Free Accounts - Qualtrics
Free Accounts
About Free Accounts
Qualtrics offers a free survey account that allows prospective users to get a sense of the Qualtrics platform as they consider purchasing a full license. The purpose of the free survey account is to provide an environment where the point-and-click user interface can be experienced by building a survey, distributing it, collecting a few responses, and experimenting with our reporting tools.
Due to this purpose, there are a number of limitations on free survey accounts.
Free accounts are deleted after 13 months of inactivity. We will email you to remind you as this date approaches, so you can log in and export your Qualtrics data if you need to. So long as you are logging into your account to use it, your account will not be removed. Logging in will reset the 13 month timer.
Qtip: As a result of these limitations, we encourage free account users to evaluate the complexity of research they are attempting and to consider purchasing a Strategic Research license for more rigorous or substantial research. Although a Qualtrics Surveys free account is useful for simple surveys and basic data analysis, you can discover the full power of Qualtrics by signing up for a free 30-day trial of our professional-grade product or request a demo to see advanced features in action.
Usage Limits in Free Accounts
Free accounts are not designed for high-volume or long-term research projects. The following limits apply to free account usage:
- Only 3 active surveys at any given time (unlimited inactive surveys allowed)
- Only 30 questions per survey
- No emails allowed. Try other distribution methods like anonymous link and social media distribution.
- Only 500 responses per user, including retaken and deleted responses. Responses in progress will not count towards this limit until they become recorded responses. See the Recorded Responses page for more information about what counts as a recorded response.
Features and Restrictions in Free Accounts
Free accounts grant basic access to XM Platform essentials, but many capabilities are restricted to paid plans only. The following table details many of the capabilities and restrictions of free accounts. Premium features that are unique to the Strategy & Research, Customer Experience, or Employee Experience product suites are also restricted in free accounts.
| Product Area | Features in Free Accounts | Restrictions in Free Accounts |
|---|---|---|
| Survey builder | - Create, edit, copy or delete surveys - 8 question types: - Multiple choice - Text entry - Text / graphic - Matrix table - Slider - Form field - Rank order - Side by side - Choice randomization - Piped text - Use survey blocks - Access blocks and questions saved to the library - Survey flow editor - Survey logic: - Skip logic - Display logic - Branch logic - Can collaborate on surveys with other users |
- No advanced question types - No autocomplete based on supplemental data - No custom code (this also means many options in the rich content editor are unavailable): - No HTML markup - No custom Javascript - No inserting images - No iFrame support - No redirect links in the survey (this includes both survey options and end of survey elements) - No survey translations |
| Customization and branding | - Limited Look & Feel: - Theme (select from pre-built themes) - Layout (simple, flat,modern, or classic) - General (button text, progress bar, questions per page) - Style (color and contrast, font and font size, spacing) - Motion tabs (page transition, autofocus, auto-advance) - Background (color and contrast, container) |
- Restricted Look & Feel (including no custom code): - General (no header/footer) - Style (no custom CSS) - No Logo - Background (no background image) - No branded or vanity URLs |
| Methodology | - 50+ expert-built survey templates - 1 sample project with example questions and pre-loaded results - Only basic ExpertReview (methodology and question quality) |
- No imported data projects - No guided projects or programs, including COVID-19 XM Solutions - No ExpertReview compliance (fraud detection, sensitive data policy) or response quality (bot detection, ballot box stuffing) |
| Survey distribution | - Distributions: - Anonymous link - Social media - QR codes |
- No email - No SMS - No offline app - Cannot purchase online samples from inside account - No XM Directory |
| Response management | View, filter, and edit responses | - No quotas - No screen-outs - No response weighting |
| Reporting & analytics | - Access to Data & Analysis tab: - Real-time collected responses data table - Real-time Results dashboard with editable data visualizations - Reports that can be customized and shared - Data exports (CSV, TSV, Excel, XML, SPSS and more) |
- No basic or advanced analytics (Text iQ, Stats iQ, Crosstabs, etc.) - No dashboards |
| Workflows | None | No Workflows |
| Account administration | None | - No admin reports, tools, or brand settings - No Home page |
| Extensions and integrations | None | No API or third-party integrations |
| 24/7 support | - Qualtrics Support AI Assistant - Self-serve articles on qualtrics.com/support including detailed step-by-step guides - Self-serve tutorials and video lessons on Qualtrics Learn - Access to other Qualtrics users and experts through Experience Community |
- No email, chat or phone support - No direct product or program guidance |
Qtip: Note that inserting media and hyperlinks requires the Allow All HTML Markup account permission to be enabled. The Allow JavaScript account permission must be enabled for proper video playback. These permissions cannot be enabled without upgrading your account.
Free Accounts Made Before November 2019
Free accounts made before November 2019 are being gradually moved to the new free account experience. Your account may have been made before this date if you see a difference in what features you have access to, such as the inability to access survey templates.
The term “trial” no longer refers to all free accounts.
Upgrading Your Free Account
If you are interested in getting access to more features, you can upgrade your free account from the Plans tab. See Upgrading a Free or Trial Account for instructions.
If you would prefer to speak to the Sales team about upgrade options and are not already in contact with a Qualtrics Account Executive, go to the Contact Us page and fill out the form to contact sales. You will be contacted about your upgrade request.
Deactivating Your Free Account
Warning: Deactivating your account will make it irretrievable. You will not be able to access it or its contents again. Only deactivate your account if you are absolutely sure that is what you want to do.
Qtip: Remember, you can export surveys and upload them to a new account. These surveys will not retain the same links. If you need to move data from one account to another, see User Moves for other options available to you.
Click the profile icon.
Select Account Settings.
Staying in the User Settings tab, scroll to the bottom of the page.
Click Deactivate account.
Enter your password.
Click Confirm.
FAQs
Why are the changes I made in the Rich Content Editor not showing up in my free / trial account?
The Rich Content Editor makes changes to question text by marking up the text with custom code (HTML). As a free account, custom code is not enabled in preview and active versions of the survey. This includes everything from changing font colors to embedding videos. To use the Rich Content Editor to its fullest extent, your account will need to be upgraded.
Why is my HTML, CSS, and JavaScript not working in my free / trial account?
As a free / trial account, custom code is not enabled and so you won’t see it in preview and active versions of the survey. To use custom code, your account will need to be upgraded.
I accidentally made a free account instead of signing up with my university or correct affiliation. What should I do?
That's OK! Since free accounts have a limited set of permissions, we recommend using an account affiliated with your organization instead.
Contact Qualtrics Support to get help finding the correct organization signup page or moving your account to another license.
When does my free account expire?
Free accounts are deleted after 13 months of inactivity. We will email you to remind you as this date approaches, so you can log in and download your Qualtrics data if you need to. So long as you are logging into your account to use it, your account will not be removed. Logging in will reset the 13 month timer.
How do I remove the pop up at the end of my surveys that says “Thank you for taking this survey powered by Qualtrics”?
This pop up cannot be removed unless your account is upgraded.
How can I delete my free account?
See Deactivating Your Free Account.
How can I get my surveys or account moved to another license?
Qualtrics Support has the ability to initiate a user move which will move an account from one license to another. In order to begin the process, support will need permission from the Brand Administrator of both your current and future licenses. If you have a free account, we only need permission from the new Brand Administrator. Since user move turnaround can range from a few days to a few weeks, we recommend exporting your surveys/data and importing them into your new account as it is normally much faster.
If you don’t want or don’t have anything currently in your account (no surveys, no contact lists, and no library messages), you can deactivate your own account. This way you will be able to more make an account with your new license and get started more quickly.
For details on all of the options offered you, see the User Moves page.