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Google Forms

Question types, logic, and grading reference for Google Forms.

Type forms.new in the address bar

It creates a blank form instantly. docs.new, sheets.new, and slides.new work the same way.

Forms has no keyboard-shortcut culture the way Sheets does, but it does have a small set worth knowing: Ctrl/⌘ + ⇧ + Enter preview, Ctrl/⌘ + ⇧ + D duplicate the selected question, and Ctrl/⌘ + ⇧ + I insert an image.

Type Behaviour Use when
Short answerSingle-line free text. Supports response validation.Names, emails, reference numbers. Add validation so you get clean data.
ParagraphMulti-line free text.Open feedback. Expect to read these manually — they don't summarise well.
Multiple choicePick exactly one. Can branch to a different section per answer.The only type that supports "go to section based on answer" — the basis of all branching.
CheckboxesPick any number. Can require a minimum or maximum count."Select all that apply". Note this makes the spreadsheet column comma-separated, which is awkward to analyse.
DropdownPick one from a list. Also supports branching.Long option lists where radio buttons would dominate the page.
File uploadUploads to your Drive. Requires the respondent to sign in to Google.CVs, assignments, documents. Blocks anonymous responses entirely — plan around that.
Linear scaleA numeric scale, 2–10 points, with labelled ends.Satisfaction and agreement ratings. Label both ends or the numbers mean nothing.
RatingStar, heart, or thumb icons.A friendlier-looking alternative to linear scale for consumer-facing forms.
Multiple-choice gridRows × columns, one answer per row.Rating several items on the same scale. Poor on mobile — keep to 4 columns or fewer.
Checkbox gridRows × columns, any number per row.Availability matrices, e.g. days × time slots.
Date / TimeNative picker; date can include year and time.Always prefer over a text field — it guarantees a parseable value.
SectionNot a question — a page break with its own title.Required for branching, and it makes long forms far less intimidating.
Image / VideoDisplay-only media, or images as answer options.Image-based multiple choice is available via the question's ⋮ menu.

Branching: only from Multiple choice or Dropdown

Conditional logic in Forms works one way — a Multiple choice or Dropdown question sends the respondent to a chosen section. There is no "show this question if…" at the individual-question level, so anything conditional must live in its own section.

1

Create a section per branch

Use the Add section button in the right toolbar. Name each one clearly — the section title is what you'll pick from the branching dropdown.

2

Turn on branching for the question

Open the question's ⋮ menu → Go to section based on answer. Each option gets its own destination dropdown.

3

Set where each section goes next

Every section has its own "After section N" dropdown at the bottom. This is the step people forget — without it, sections fall through in order and respondents see branches meant for someone else.

Point the end of each branch at either Submit form or a shared closing section.

4

Test every path

Use the preview (eye icon) and walk each branch end to end. Branching bugs are invisible until someone hits them, and by then you have bad data.

Response validation
  • Enable via the question's ⋮ menu → Response validation. Available on Short answer, Paragraph, Checkboxes, and File upload.
  • Number: greater than, between, is a whole number — stops "about 30" appearing in a numeric column.
  • Text: contains, doesn't contain, is a valid email, is a valid URL.
  • Regular expression: matches / doesn't match, for anything structured — employee IDs, postcodes, phone formats.
  • Always write custom error text. The default message tells the respondent nothing about what you actually wanted.
  • Validation runs in the browser and is a data-quality tool, not a security control.
Useful validation patterns
  • Email: use the built-in is a valid email rather than a regex — it handles the edge cases.
  • UK postcode: ^[A-Z]{1,2}\d[A-Z\d]?\s?\d[A-Z]{2}$
  • US phone (10 digits, any separators): ^\D?(\d{3})\D?\D?(\d{3})\D?(\d{4})$
  • Employee ID, three letters then four digits: ^[A-Za-z]{3}\d{4}$
  • Test every regex in the preview before publishing — a too-strict pattern silently blocks valid respondents.

Turning a form into a quiz

Settings → Make this a quiz. Every question then gains an Answer key where you set point values, correct answers, and per-answer feedback.

1

Choose when grades are released

Immediately after each submission gives instant feedback but lets someone resubmit to discover answers. Later, after manual review is the right choice for anything that counts.

2

Set the answer key per question

Click Answer key at the bottom of each question. Auto-grading works for Multiple choice, Checkboxes, Dropdown, and Short answer with exact text matching.

Short-answer grading is literal — accept several spellings by adding each as an accepted answer, or grade manually.

3

Add feedback for both outcomes

You can attach explanation text and a link to correct and incorrect answers. This turns a quiz into a teaching tool rather than just a score.

4

Control what respondents can see

Settings lets you show or hide missed questions, correct answers, and point values. Hide correct answers if you plan to reuse the quiz.

5

Restrict and lock down

Limit to one response per person (requires sign-in), turn off Edit after submit, and shuffle question order via the ⋮ menu. In Google Classroom, locked mode on managed Chromebooks prevents leaving the tab — the only genuinely enforceable option.

What Forms can't enforce
  • There is no built-in timer. Add-ons simulate one, but nothing stops a respondent leaving the tab open.
  • "One response per person" relies on the Google account. Anyone with a second account can respond again.
  • Shuffling options helps against copying but doesn't prevent it.
  • For high-stakes assessment, use a purpose-built proctored platform. Forms is designed for low-stakes quizzes, homework, and self-checks.
Link responses to Sheets
  • Responses tab → the green Sheets icon → Create a new spreadsheet. Do this before collecting responses so everything lands there from the start.
  • The link is live — each submission appends a row immediately, with a timestamp column added automatically.
  • Never edit or reorder the response columns. Add formulas in columns to the right of the last question, or better, in a separate sheet using =QUERY() or =FILTER().
  • Adding a question later inserts a new column, which shifts anything to its right. Formulas placed in the response sheet break when this happens — another reason to analyse in a separate tab.
  • Deleting the linked sheet does not delete the responses stored in the form itself.
Notifications and follow-up
  • Responses tab ⋮ → Get email notifications for new responses — a simple per-submission alert.
  • Settings → Responses → Send responders a copy of their response, either always or on request.
  • Turn on Collect email addresses (Verified, for Workspace) if you need to follow up or restrict submissions.
  • Under Presentation, edit the confirmation message and optionally allow submitting another response or editing after submission.
Pre-filled links
  • ⋮ menu → Get pre-filled link. Fill in the answers you want pre-populated, click Get link, and Forms produces a URL with those values encoded.
  • Useful for tagging where a response came from — send a different pre-filled link per team, campaign, or event.
  • The values are visible and editable in the URL, so never treat them as trusted or secret.
  • Swap /viewform for /viewform?embedded=true when embedding in a page.

Automating with Apps Script

Extensions → Apps Script on the linked spreadsheet, then add an On form submit trigger. This is where Forms becomes a real workflow tool — email a custom confirmation, create a calendar event, post to chat, generate a PDF from a template, or write to another system.

function onFormSubmit(e) { // e.namedValues is keyed by the question title const email = e.namedValues['Email address'][0]; const name = e.namedValues['Your name'][0]; MailApp.sendEmail({ to: email, subject: 'Request received', htmlBody: `Thanks ${name} — we have your request and will reply within 2 working days.` }); } // Install the trigger once: // Apps Script editor -> Triggers (clock icon) -> Add trigger // Function: onFormSubmit | Event source: From spreadsheet // Event type: On form submit

Tips

Test on a phone

Most responses arrive on mobile. Grids in particular become unusable — preview on a real phone before sending, and cut any grid wider than four columns.

Reuse forms as templates

⋮ → Make a copy keeps all questions, logic, and settings but starts with zero responses. Build one good survey and clone it each cycle.

Import questions

The right toolbar's Import questions button pulls selected questions from any of your other forms — much faster than retyping a standard question block.

Close a form on schedule

Forms has no native closing date. Toggle Accepting responses off manually, or use an Apps Script time-based trigger calling form.setAcceptingResponses(false).

Theme it properly

The palette icon sets a header image, colour, and font. A branded header noticeably raises completion rates on forms sent to customers.

Read the summary first

The Responses tab's Summary view auto-charts every question. For a quick read that's often all you need — no spreadsheet work required.

Privacy & gotchas

Anonymity is easy to break by accident
  • If you promise anonymity, turn Collect email addresses off and check that Limit to 1 response is off too — that setting requires sign-in and records the account.
  • File upload questions always require sign-in and therefore always identify the respondent. They cannot be anonymous.
  • Inside a Workspace domain, forms default to collecting the signed-in address. Verify this before running a staff survey you've called anonymous.
  • Even without emails, free-text answers and small response counts can identify people. Say so honestly rather than over-promising.
Other things that catch people
  • Never collect passwords, card numbers, or government ID numbers. Forms is not a secure collection channel and offers no field-level encryption.
  • Uploaded files consume your Drive quota, not the respondent's. A busy form fills a Drive fast.
  • Editing a question's text after responses arrive changes the header but not the already-collected data — the old answers stay under the new label.
  • Deleting a question deletes its column from the summary view, though the data remains in the linked sheet.
  • There's no version history for the form structure itself, only for the linked spreadsheet. Copy before a big restructure.

Resources

Google Forms Help Center Official documentation for every setting and question type. support.google.com Create & grade quizzes Answer keys, feedback, grade release, and Classroom integration. support.google.com Form-submit trigger reference The event object fields available to an on-submit script. developers.google.com Apps Script Forms service Build, modify, and close forms programmatically. developers.google.com Google Forms REST API For creating forms and reading responses from an external system. developers.google.com Google Sheets Where responses land — QUERY and FILTER do the real analysis. build.ty1er.com

Forms is free with any Google account. Workspace accounts add verified email collection, domain-restricted responses, and response-expiry controls. Forms is not an appropriate channel for passwords, payment details, or regulated personal data.