How to add a multiple-choice grid in Google Forms

People like Google Forms because it’s so easy to use. As you probably know, you can use it to make a simple, tidy form in minutes. You can also add open-ended and multiple-choice questions in Google Forms. 

In this article, we’ll take a look at how to add a multiple-choice grid in Google Forms. Grids are a great resource for customer satisfaction surveys, where you often want to give people a range of options.

Adding a multiple-choice grid to a form

Let’s start by creating a new form from scratch. You can do that by visiting forms.google.com or docs.google.com/forms. Next, click the Blank option (the large plus sign) in the upper left-hand corner just below Start a new form.

You should now see a new form that looks like this:

It’s a good idea to name the form something you can remember for future reference. 

Now, let’s create a multiple-choice grid — which is different from what you see depicted above. The multiple-choice option you see asks one question and gives a list of possible answers.

Instead, what we want is a number of questions that all have the same answer options. You can create that by clicking the dropdown in the upper right-hand corner of the form that currently displays Multiple choice. From the dropdown list, select Multiple choice grid. 

Your first multiple-choice grid form question should look something like this:

Editing a multiple-choice grid

The multiple-choice grid form has two sets of fields: rows and columns. The rows are the questions, and the columns are the answer options. There’s only one set of answers for all of the questions.

Here are the rows and columns used to create the customer satisfaction survey shown at the beginning of this article:

You can add new questions by clicking on Add row, and you can add answers by clicking on Add column. You can also delete questions and answers by clicking the X next to them.

Exploring multiple-choice grid options

The first field in the upper left of the grid is the question people will see when your form is published. You can attach an image to the question by clicking on the icon to the right of that field — that will draw attention to your question and make your form more visually appealing. 

On the bottom row, you’ll see two icons near the center. The one on the left lets you duplicate your question. This is helpful if you want to add more multiple-choice grid questions.

For example, you might want to gauge your customers’ satisfaction with your staff in one grid. If you also wanted to ask them about the cleanliness of your facilities, you could add another grid. 

The trash can next to the “duplicate” icon will delete your grid if you decide you don’t want it after all. If you slide the toggle button labeled Require a response in each row to the right, respondents can’t submit the form without answering every question in the grid.

You’ll also see three dots to the right of that for more options. Clicking on the dots opens this menu, with more options, like adding a short description under the question:

Use a more intuitive and comprehensive approach

Jotform has a similar multiple-choice grid feature with our Input Table form element. Many people find our visual layout more intuitive for editing a grid. 

We also provide many more options for styling your forms, with more field types than Google Forms offers. Even if you don’t decide to use Jotform, our wide array of templates can give you the inspiration you need to get started with a survey.