Customer onboarding survey template

This template shows how customers experienced their first steps with your product or service. It helps uncover questions, blockers, and expectations that can be missed after activation.

Create my onboarding survey

When to send it

Send it once customers have had a real chance to complete the main onboarding step. That might be after the first setup, first delivery, or a few days of use.

The right moment depends on the product promise. Avoid asking too early, before customers can experience the value, or too late, when the details of the first experience have faded.

Ready-to-use questions

1. Were you able to complete what you needed in the first steps?
2. How easy was it to get started with our product or service?
3. Which part was least clear?
4. What helped you move forward the most?
5. What almost made you stop along the way?
6. Was the initial outcome close to what you expected? Why or why not?
7. What would make this first experience better? (optional)

How to keep the survey short

Choose one closed question and two open-ended questions tied to the step you want to improve. If onboarding has several phases, do not evaluate them all at once. Keep the survey short and focus on one important moment.

The question generator also offers an onboarding-specific selection.

How to interpret the responses

Group comments into three themes: questions, barriers, and expectations. Then connect each theme to the step where it appeared.

A low score may point to friction, but it may also reflect expectations that differ from the product promise. Read the comment before choosing a solution. If the experience involves effort to complete a task, learn about CES.

Common mistakes

• Sending the survey before the first valuable experience.
• Asking about the entire journey in one form.
• Using internal terms customers do not know yet.
• Asking for a rating without asking why.
• Talking only to customers who finished and ignoring those who stopped.

Next step

Choose the most important onboarding step, publish three questions, and compare the most common blockers. After adjusting the flow, repeat the survey at the same moment.

Create my onboarding survey