Response Quotas

Control how many responses your survey collects. Set limits to manage costs, meet sample size requirements, or close the survey automatically when you have enough data.

Quick Start

Set up a response quota in three steps:

1. Navigate to survey limits - Open your survey and go to Limits Settings
2. Set your quota - Enter the maximum number of responses in "Response Quota"
3. Configure quota-full action - Choose to show a message or redirect to a URL

How It Works

Response quotas track completed responses in real-time:

1. Each completed response increments the counter
2. When the quota is reached, new respondents see the quota-full action
3. In-progress responses are still allowed to complete
4. The survey can be reopened by increasing the quota

Quota Tracking

Setting Up Quotas

Basic Response Quota

1. Open your survey and navigate to Limits in the sidebar (or use Survey Limits settings)
2. Enter the maximum number of responses in the "Response Quota" field
3. Select the action when quota is full (Message or Redirect)
4. If showing a message, customize the quota-full message for each language
5. If redirecting, enter the redirect URL
6. Save changes

Quota-Full Actions

Show message (default):

• Display a customizable message to new visitors
• Survey link remains active but inaccessible
• Good for general research

Redirect to URL:

• Send visitors to an external page
• Useful for Prolific studies (redirect with appropriate code)
• Can redirect to an alternative survey

Customizing the Quota-Full Message

Create a friendly message for late arrivals:

1. Find "Quota Full Message" in settings
2. Enter your message (supports multiple languages)
3. Save changes

Example messages:

• "Thank you for your interest. This survey has reached its response limit."
• "We have collected enough responses for this study. Thank you!"
• "This survey is now closed. Please check back for future opportunities."

Real-World Examples

Example: Academic Research Study

Scenario: Need exactly 200 participants for statistical power.

Quota: 200 responses
Action: Show message
Message: "Thank you for your interest in our study.
We have reached our target sample size.
Your interest is appreciated!"

Example: Prolific Study

Scenario: Paid study with budget for 100 participants.

Quota: 100 responses
Action: Redirect to URL
URL: https://app.prolific.co/submissions/complete?cc=QUOTA_FULL

Prolific settings:
- Mark as "Returned" submissions
- No payment for quota-full participants

Example: Soft Cap with Buffer

Scenario: Want approximately 500 responses but do not want to lose any in-progress.

Quota: 520 responses (includes 4% buffer)
Action: Show message

Reasoning:
- Target: 500 responses
- Typical concurrent respondents: 20
- Buffer prevents losing in-progress responses

Monitoring Quotas

Track your progress toward the quota:

Survey Dashboard

• Current response count visible in the survey list
• Response details in the Response Viewer

Notifications

• Email notification to team admins when quota is reached
• Webhook notifications (if configured) when quota is exceeded

Analytics

• Response totals in Analytics

Plan Availability

Response quotas require the response_quotas feature, available on Pro plans and above.

Troubleshooting

Issue: Quota not stopping new responses

Symptoms: Responses continue after quota should be met.

Solutions:

• Verify the quota setting is saved
• Check if counting in-progress as completed
• Ensure "completed" responses are actually marked complete
• Review concurrent response timing

Issue: Respondents seeing quota message prematurely

Symptoms: Quota shows full but count is below limit.

Solutions:

• Check for caching issues (clear cache)
• Verify no other limiting factors (scheduling, status)
• Check if multiple quota rules conflict

Issue: Prolific participants not handled correctly

Symptoms: Participants not getting appropriate status in Prolific.

Solutions:

• Verify redirect URL format
• Test with Prolific preview
• Check that action is set to "Redirect"

Best Practices

• Add a buffer - Set quota 5-10% higher than needed for in-progress responses
• Monitor progress - Check response rate regularly
• Plan for timing - Know when you need to reach the quota
• Communicate clearly - Quota-full message should be friendly
• Use notifications - Get alerts before the quota fills
• Document settings - Record quota details for research documentation
• Consider timezone - Responses may come in waves based on location