Surveys for nonprofits: which to run, when, and what to ask
Nonprofits should run a small, repeatable set of surveys: a donor survey once or twice a year, a volunteer survey after each major activity and annually, a beneficiary or program-impact survey each program cycle, and a post-event survey within 48 hours of every event. Keep each short, ask questions you can actually act on, and close the loop by telling respondents what changed. Below is the cadence as a table, 10+ example questions by audience, and a practical method for turning results into decisions.
Which surveys should a nonprofit run, and how often?
Resist the urge to survey everyone about everything. A handful of focused, recurring surveys aimed at your key audiences — donors, volunteers, the people you serve, and event attendees — gives you trend data over time without burning goodwill. The cadence below is a starting point; scale frequency to your capacity to actually read and act on what comes back.
| Survey | Audience | Cadence | Goal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donor survey | Donors and lapsed donors | 1–2x per year | Understand motivation, satisfaction, why they give or stop |
| Volunteer survey | Active volunteers | After major activities + annually | Improve the volunteer experience and retention |
| Program / impact survey | Beneficiaries and program participants | Each program cycle | Measure outcomes and whether the program helps |
| Post-event survey | Event attendees | Within 48 hours of each event | Improve future events; gauge donor and attendee experience |
| Stakeholder / partner survey | Funders, board, partners | Annually | Align on priorities and strengthen relationships |
| Newsletter / comms pulse | Email subscribers | 1–2x per year | Learn what content and channels people want |
Keep every nonprofit survey under 10 questions and tell people the time cost up front ("3 minutes"). Your audience is donating attention, not buying a product — a long survey reads as taking advantage of their goodwill, and abandonment climbs fast past the five-minute mark.
Example donor survey questions
- What first motivated you to support us? (open text)
- How connected do you feel to the impact of your donation? (1–5)
- How clearly do we communicate where your money goes? (1–5)
- How likely are you to recommend supporting us to a friend? (0–10)
- Which of these would make you more likely to give again? (more impact stories / clearer reporting / smaller suggested amounts / events / monthly giving option)
- Is there anything that would cause you to stop giving? (open text)
Example volunteer survey questions
- How satisfying was your most recent volunteer experience? (1–5)
- Did you feel your time was used well? (Yes / Mostly / No)
- How clear were your role and instructions? (1–5)
- How likely are you to volunteer with us again? (1–5)
- What would make volunteering with us better? (open text)
- How well-recognized do you feel for your contribution? (1–5)
Example program / impact survey questions
Word these with care and offer anonymity — the people you serve may worry that honest answers affect their access to services. Make clear that responses are confidential and won't change their eligibility.
- Has this program made a positive difference for you? (Yes, a lot / Somewhat / Not really / No)
- What's the most valuable thing you got from this program? (open text)
- How respected and welcome did you feel? (1–5)
- Was anything a barrier to taking part? (open text)
- What's one thing we could do better? (open text)
Example post-event survey questions
- Overall, how would you rate the event? (1–5)
- How likely are you to attend another of our events? (1–5)
- What was the highlight for you? (open text)
- How did you hear about this event? (pick one)
- Would you consider donating or volunteering after today? (Yes / Maybe / Not now)
How do you act on nonprofit survey results?
Data you don't act on is worse than no data — it costs goodwill and teaches people their feedback is ignored. Use this loop after every survey:
- 1Read everything within a week while it's fresh, and tag open-text answers into themes (e.g., "communication," "recognition," "logistics").
- 2Pick the top one or two themes you can realistically change this cycle — not ten.
- 3Make one concrete change and assign an owner and a date.
- 4Close the loop: email respondents a short "You said, we did" note. Donors and volunteers who see their feedback acted on give and stay more.
- 5Track the key metric (donor NPS, volunteer satisfaction) over time so you can see whether the change worked.
Keeping survey costs at zero
Nonprofits run on tight budgets, and survey tools that cap responses or charge per seat eat into program money. A free tool with unlimited responses lets you survey every donor and volunteer without watching a counter. Formkii is free with unlimited surveys and responses, shareable by link or QR code, and exports to CSV — so you can run the full cadence above without a line item. Match the tool to your scale, but don't pay for capacity you can get free.
Common nonprofit survey mistakes
- Surveying too often and burning out a small, loyal audience.
- Asking questions you can't or won't act on.
- Forgetting anonymity for beneficiary surveys, which suppresses honesty.
- Never closing the loop, so people stop responding next time.
- Leading questions that fish for praise instead of honest feedback.
Frequently asked questions
How often should a nonprofit survey its donors?
Once or twice a year is right for most nonprofits. That's frequent enough to track satisfaction and catch problems early, but rare enough to respect donors' time and avoid survey fatigue. A short post-event survey after major events is a useful addition without over-asking.
What surveys should a nonprofit run?
The core set is a donor survey, a volunteer survey, a program or impact survey for the people you serve, and a post-event survey, with optional annual stakeholder and communications surveys. Keep each short and focused on a single audience, and run them on a predictable cadence so you can compare results over time.
How do you survey beneficiaries ethically?
Make responses anonymous and confidential, and state clearly that answers won't affect anyone's access to services — otherwise people answer to protect their eligibility rather than honestly. Word questions with respect and dignity, keep the survey short, and offer it in the languages and formats your participants actually use.
What's a free survey tool for nonprofits?
Formkii is free with unlimited surveys, questions, and responses, which matters when your audience is large and your budget isn't. It shares by link or QR code, works on any device with no account for respondents, and exports results to CSV for your reports and grant applications.
How do you get nonprofits' survey results to actually change things?
Pick one or two themes you can realistically act on this cycle, make a concrete change with an owner and a deadline, then tell respondents what you changed with a short "you said, we did" message. Closing the loop visibly is what keeps donors and volunteers responding — and gives them another reason to stay involved.