SURVEYSYNERGY · RESEARCH GUIDES
Where to share your survey for free
A practical starting list for students recruiting survey participants, with advice on choosing communities and writing a useful invitation.
Start with who you need
A survey link is easy to post. Finding people who actually meet your eligibility criteria takes more thought. Write down who can participate before choosing where to share it: age range, location and any experience the study requires.
For example, a study about first-year university life needs a different recruitment plan from a study about returning to education after working. A large general audience may produce fewer eligible responses than one small, relevant group.
Places worth considering
University groups: ask a student society, postgraduate association or course administrator whether they can share your invitation. Give them a short message they can forward, including eligibility, expected duration and a contact address. Access to a mailing list does not automatically mean permission to recruit from it.
Interest-based communities: choose groups connected to the people you need, rather than assuming that every group connected to your topic is a suitable sample. Read the rules and ask the moderators if research invitations are not covered.
Survey communities: r/SampleSize is one place to investigate for individual study recruitment. Check its current title, flair, demographic and reposting requirements. Permission to recruit for a study is not permission to advertise a platform.
Your own networks: a personal post can help get started. Record that you used convenience recruitment and be clear about the limits of the sample. Friends forwarding a link do not make it a random sample.
What about a survey exchange?
A research exchange gives people a reason to contribute to one another’s studies. SurveySynergy is our early-beta attempt at that: free survey building, participant requirements and shareable study links. The community is still growing, so do not plan around an assumed pool size or a promised completion date.
Use a mix of permitted recruitment routes, keep a record of where you posted, and check whether people are eligible before interpreting the response total. Free recruitment still costs time.