30+ Software Evaluation Survey Questions: What to Ask and Why

Software evaluation surveys are a powerful tool to measure and improve the quality and performance of your software product. They can help you understand how your users perceive and use your software, what they like and dislike about it, and how loyal and satisfied they are with it.

But to get the most out of your software evaluation survey, you need to ask the right questions. They will determine the type and quality of data you collect and the insights you can derive from it.

So, what are the best software evaluation survey questions to ask? And why are they important?

In this blog post, we’ll answer these questions and more.

Software Evaluation Surveys: Questions & Templates

Software survey questions can be classified into different types, depending on the purpose and the format of the question. Some of the common types of software survey questions are:

User Onboarding Survey Questions

Embarking on a new software journey can be exciting, but navigating the initial steps shouldn’t be a daunting quest.

1. How smooth and helpful was the initial setup process?

2. What could be improved in the onboarding process?

3. Were the tutorials and onboarding materials helpful and easy to follow?

4. How easy was it to learn & navigate the software interface?

5. Based on your experience, what advice would you give to someone just starting with this software?

Usability Testing Survey Questions

Usability testing assesses the software’s user-friendliness, focusing on task completion efficiency, interface intuitiveness, and learnability & memorability. These questions will help you gain insights into your software’s strengths and areas for improvement.

6. Did you encounter any difficulties using the software?

7. Did you find it easy to locate features and understand their functions?

8. Were the labels, instructions, and terminology clear and consistent?

9. What aspects of the software’s usability impressed you the most?

User Experience

First impressions matter! Assess how intuitive, accessible, and supportive the software is for new users.

10. On a scale of 1 (difficult) to 5 (very easy), how easy was it to learn and use the software?

11. Is the interface user-friendly and easy to learn?

12. Was the installation process smooth and clear?

13. How easy is it to find the features you need?

Functionality and Features Survey Questions

Evaluate core functionalities, missing features, and potential improvements.

14. Evaluate core functionalities, missing features, and potential improvements.

15. Does the software have all the features you need?

16. Are there any essential features missing that you would like to see added?

17. How satisfied are you with the range and quality of the features offered?

18. Which existing features could be improved or made more user-friendly?

19. How well does the software integrate with other tools and platforms you use?

20. Does the software offer any unique or innovative features that differentiate it from competitors?

21. What aspects of the software’s functionality do you find most valuable?

Software Satisfaction Survey Questions

Dig deeper into user sentiment. Explore overall satisfaction, perceived value, and recommendations.

22. How satisfied are you with the software?

23. Would you recommend this software to friends or colleagues?

24. Do you feel the software offers good value for its price?

25. Is the pricing model transparent and easy to understand?

26. What factors would most influence your decision to continue using or upgrade the software?

27. What are your main suggestions for improvement in future versions?

Performance and Reliability Survey Questions

Trust is key. Analyze responsiveness, stability, security, and data protection measures.

28. Does the software produce accurate results?

29. How quickly does the software respond to your inputs and actions?

30. Do you experience any lag or delays while using the software?

31. How well does it perform on your device (computer, phone, etc.)?

32. How often do you encounter crashes, errors, or unexpected behavior?

33. Does the software clearly explain its data privacy practices?

The Benefits of Software Evaluation Surveys

Software evaluation surveys can provide valuable information and software feedback that can help you improve your software product and your business. Some of the benefits of product evaluation surveys are:

• They can help you measure the performance and usability of your software product and identify the areas that need improvement or optimization.

• They can help you assess the satisfaction and loyalty of your users and understand the factors that influence them, and reduce churn by identifying friction points and usability gaps early.

• They can help you discover the needs and expectations of your users and how well your software product meets them.

• They can help you collect testimonials and reviews from your users and use them to enhance your marketing and sales efforts.

• They can help you build trust and rapport with your users and show them that you care about their opinions and software feedback.

• They can help you improve renewals by understanding the key drivers of loyalty and acting on them to strengthen long-term retention.

• They can help you prioritize your product roadmap by highlighting missing or confusing features that need attention first.

• They can help you accelerate adoption by aligning new feature development with the real needs and workflows of your users.

The Best Practices for Software Evaluation Survey Question

To ensure that your software evaluation survey questions are effective and reliable, you need to follow some best practices for software evaluation question design. Some of the best practices are:

Be Clear and Concise

Your questions should be easy to understand and answer without any ambiguity or confusion. Avoid using jargon, acronyms, or technical terms that your users may not be familiar with.

Use simple and direct language that your users can relate to. You can check Qualaroo’s question library to ask specific questions.

Also Read: 30 Best Customer Satisfaction Survey Questions to Ask

Be Relevant and Specific

When creating a software evaluation survey, make sure your questions are relevant to the purpose and scope of the survey.

Keep the questions specific to the aspect of your software that you are interested in measuring or exploring. The length of your survey can make or break response rates. Too short, and you’ll miss critical insights. Too long, and people will drop off halfway. The sweet spot? 8–12 questions that take no more than 5–10 minutes to complete.

Avoid asking questions that are too broad, vague, or unrelated to your software product or your users. This will help gather meaningful and actionable insights from the survey respondents.

Be Innovative With Customer Sentiments

To enhance your software evaluation survey, you can use Qualaroo’s sentiment analysis feature, a natural language processing technique that determines whether text feedback expresses a positive, negative, or neutral sentiment.

You can use sentiment analysis to analyze the user’s comments and feedback and understand their emotions and opinions.

This can help you identify your software’s strengths and weaknesses and improve your user satisfaction and loyalty.

Recommended Post: Sentiment Analysis: Guide to Understanding Customer Emotions

Be Advanced With Targeting

To enhance your software evaluation survey, you can use advanced targeting, a technique that allows you to target specific segments of your users based on their characteristics and behavior.

You can use advanced targeting to personalize your survey and increase the response rate and relevance.

For example, you can target users who have used your software for a certain period of time, who have completed a certain task, or who have a certain profile.

This can help you collect more specific and actionable feedback from your users.

Be Strategic With Distribution

The way you deliver your survey matters as much as the questions you ask. Don’t rely only on email—response rates are often low and delayed. 

Instead, mix different channels based on context: in-app nudges for real-time feedback, emails for periodic check-ins, post-support surveys to measure service quality, and exit-intent prompts to understand churn. 

Using multiple touchpoints ensures you capture insights from both active users and those at risk of slipping away. You can use Qualaroo for microsurveys with ProProfs Survey Maker for long-form surveys and more to deliver across all channels.

Be Timely With Delivery

Even perfectly written questions fall flat if asked at the wrong moment. Send your software evaluation survey when the experience is fresh and top of mind: right after onboarding, following a feature release, or as a quarterly check-in. 

For email surveys, aim for Tuesday to Thursday, mid-morning or early afternoon—that’s when open and response rates are highest. Avoid weekends and late nights, when users are least likely to engage.

Be Unbiased and Neutral

It’s important to ask unbiased and neutral questions that don’t sway the user’s responses.

Avoid using words or phrases with a positive or negative connotation or that suggest your own preferences or expectations.

Keep your questions objective and impartial to obtain accurate and reliable responses.

Also Read: 10 Best Anonymous Feedback Tools to Collect Unbiased Insights

Be Consistent and Logical

When creating a software evaluation survey, it’s essential to maintain consistency in the formatting, order, and wording of the questions. This means using the same scale, terminology, and style throughout the survey.

It’s also crucial to ask only relevant follow-up questions using skip and branching logic to collect insightful data.

By keeping these factors in mind, you can ensure that your survey is logical, easy to understand, and effective in eliciting the information you need.

Also Read: 60 Best Brand Awareness Survey Questions to Ask

Be Mindful of Costs

Running a software evaluation survey doesn’t have to be expensive, but it’s smart to budget ahead. If you use an in-house tool, the cost is mostly your team’s time. 

With dedicated survey platforms like Qualaroo, you get advanced features—sentiment analysis, targeting, templates—at a predictable subscription cost. Outsourcing to research firms is an option too, but it can quickly run into thousands of dollars. 

The key is to match your survey goals with your budget so you’re not overspending for insights you could gather more affordably.

Your Path to Software Excellence Starts Here

Software evaluation surveys are invaluable tools that enable you to make informed decisions. However, designing effective survey questions is not an easy task.

To achieve your survey objectives and deliver actionable insights, you need a software evaluation tool like Qualaroo. It will help you define your survey goals and audience, select the right question types and scales, write clear and concise questions that are unbiased, and test and refine your survey questions. These are some of the steps you should take.

Following these steps, you can create software evaluation survey questions to help you achieve your survey objectives and deliver actionable insights.