Survey rating scales: Types, examples, & best practices

Rating scales offer survey respondents flexibility, providing a fast method of giving feedback without burdening customers. Rating scales enable organizations to easily monitor survey respondents’ opinions on a specific topic. However, it’s essential to choose the right type of scale for your survey questions. 

In this article, we’ll explore survey rating scales, different question types, and tips for using them effectively.

A survey rating scale is a response format to a closed-ended, multiple-choice question. Respondents will select from a series of options to express how they feel or what they think in response to a closed-ended question. Survey rating scales can be numbered, worded, or symbolic. 

Several survey questions use rating scales:

Close-ended questions, such as those used by researchers when exploring the topics above, all utilize survey rating scales. 

Related reading: What is an interval scale and how to use it in your survey questions

A rating scale enables researchers to collect quantitative data that informs decision-making. Rating scales provide researchers with structured, measurable feedback that’s easy to compare and track over time. 

Other reasons to use a rating scale in your surveys include:

Unlike the Thurstone scale, rating scales allow for more granular, nuanced data. Let’s move on to the various types of survey rating scales and how to use them. 

A survey rating scale is a structured way for respondents to share their opinions or experiences using a fixed set of options. Let’s take a look at numbered vs. worded scales, along with other common uses:

Numbered rating scales are a simple but effective way of collecting data from survey respondents. The exact numbers you use on a scale can vary, often ranging from 0 to 10, 1 to 5, or 1 to 100 in some cases.

A numbered rating scale is a popular option for many closed-ended questions. You’ll find numbered scales in the vast majority of surveys.

The Likert scale is a rating system that measures respondents’ opinions, thoughts, or emotional responses to a topic or statement. Typically, the Likert scale uses a 5- or 7-point ordinal scale.

The Likert scale can measure customer likelihood, satisfaction, and the importance they assign to a topic. 

The Likert scale is a highly effective rating scale for measuring customer opinions. For example, a company may use the Likert scale to determine the effectiveness of its customer support team. They offer respondents the opportunity to rate their responsiveness from “Extremely responsive” to “Not responsive at all.”

As the Likert scale produces structured data, it becomes easy to analyze and draw insights. In this example, most customers had only an average experience with the customer service team. This can propel the company to make positive changes and iterations to enhance the customer experience.

Researchers who want to generate more precise data could expand this form of the Likert scale into a 7-point system. For example, answers could include:

Numeric rating scales typically range from 1-5, 1-7, or 1-10. The number scale is a universally accepted form of survey measurement. In a numbered scale question, the number selected will indicate the strength of the respondent’s opinion on the matter. 

The benefits of a numeric rating scale include:

Which is better: a 5- or 10-point rating scale?

Both 5- and 10-point scales are effective, but the best option will depend on the goals of your survey. For surveys with numerous questions, a 5-point scale may facilitate quicker responses, thereby increasing survey completion rates. However, a 10-point scale provides more granular data for detailed analysis.

Related reading: Yes, there is a right and wrong way to number rating scales

In a Net Promoter Score® (NPS) survey question, businesses aim to better understand customer loyalty. They achieve this through NPS surveys and by using a rating scale of 0 to 10. Net Promoter Score surveys ask customers, “How likely is it that you would recommend this company to a friend or colleague?”

NPS surveys measure the impact of customer experience (CX) strategy on customer satisfaction and loyalty. Millions of businesses worldwide use NPS as a CX benchmark. 

You can make numbered rating scales interactive with slider rating scales. A slider rating scale allows survey participants to drag or slide their response to a specific number. However, it’s essential to note that this can create usability issues, particularly on mobile devices.

Worded rating scales are ordinal scales that allow survey respondents to express their opinions using relative options.

While these question responses do use words, they are still inherently tied to numeric values. For example, the five options—Strongly agree to Strongly disagree—align with a 1-5 scale, simplifying numerical analysis.

A semantic differential scale is a worded rating scale that measures attitudes using bipolar adjective pairs. These scales often use a 5- or 7-point continuum for the set of adjectives.

A bipolar rating scale has two extremes. Respondents will then select where they fall on the scale of completely one thing to completely another. Opposing variable questions, like “Strongly agree/Disagree” scales, are bipolar with two distinct ends.

Related reading: 4 tips for writing matrix questions

Symbolic rating scales use symbols or icons to represent the points on a scale. The most common types of symbolic rating scales are the star rating scale and the smiley face or emoji rating scale. 

The star rating scale is commonly used by businesses and researchers to gather quantifiable data. This rating scale typically ranges from 1 to 5 stars, with 1 being the worst score and 5 being the best. 

This type of symbolic rating scale makes it super easy for survey participants to answer questions quickly.  

Related reading: Will the new Star Rating question type affect your survey completion rates?

The smiley face or emoji rating scale is similar in that it is a 5-point scale. Instead of stars, though, the scale is based on smiley faces. Sometimes emojis are used that range from sad to exceedingly happy. 

This type of rating scale can be a fun way to enhance your surveys and add a unique element. The smiley/emoji rating scale is a satisfaction scale in a different visual format. 

Choosing the right rating scale depends on your survey goals and audience. Here are a few tips to keep in mind.

Survey design is often an overlooked aspect of creating effective surveys. Consider the data you want to generate, and then tailor your rating scale to fit that data.

If you select a certain type of rating scale, ensure you plan to avoid any potential downsides. For example, a numerical scale is great for analysis, but numerical values could be subjective in a survey. To address this, you can explain what the numbers represent.

In the survey above, 0 means “Not at all” while 10 means “A lot.” Including these small, quantifiable factors in your survey design planning can make a significant difference and help mitigate any drawbacks of certain rating scales.

When planning a survey, consider the audience that will participate. Based on your customers or wider audience, the right rating scale for you may change.

For example, you could introduce slider and star-rating questions to make your surveys quicker and easier to complete. Alternatively, if you’re writing a survey for a research group that is prepared to spend time on your survey, then you can opt for larger worded scales with lots of options. 

No matter what scale you opt for, it’s essential to follow leading survey writing practices to obtain the best data possible. Low-quality questions will lead to low-quality responses, confusing your data and devaluing the insights you produce.

Here are a few considerations to take into account when writing your survey questions:

Creating good survey questions is especially important when using rating scales, as you need to provide your respondents with sufficient context to respond effectively.

Rating scales are more than just a way to collect data—they reveal true audience insights. Enhance your surveys by crafting an experience that resonates with your audience and yields meaningful results. This is where SurveyMonkey shines. 

Get started creating better surveys today with SurveyMonkey.

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