Use Zoom Polls During Meetings

Quick Links: | Prerequisites | Instructions | Troubleshooting | Next Steps |

Launching polls or quizzes during Zoom meetings allows you to gather feedback, check understanding, and increase participant engagement. Polls can be created before the meeting or during a live session.

Prerequisites

Before launching polls during meetings, ensure you have:

  • Created polls for your meeting (optional - you can also create polls during the meeting)
  • Started your scheduled Zoom meeting
  • Host, co-host, or alternative host permissions. By default, only the original meeting host can create or edit polls during a meeting. Alternative hosts may also create or edit polls if the meeting was configured to allow it.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Launching Pre-Created Polls

To launch a poll you created before the meeting, do the following:

  1. Start your scheduled meeting
  2. From the Zoom toolbar, select Polls/Quizzes (this option may be within the More menu)
    1. This process applies to quizzes. Quizzes include correct answers and scoring options, while polls are used to gather feedback or opinions.
  3. If you have multiple polls, use the dropdown arrow at the top right next to Edit to select which poll to launch
  4. Select Launch to make the poll visible to participants and begin gathering responses

Note: Participants cannot see the poll until you select Launch.

  1. Monitor responses as they come in
  2. When you're satisfied with the response rate, select End Poll
  3. Optional: Select Share Results to display the poll results to all meeting participants

Creating Polls During the Meeting

You can also create polls on the fly during your meeting:

  1. From the Zoom toolbar, select Polls/Quizzes
  2. Select Create (or the + icon if polls already exist) to build a new poll.
  3. Add your question and answer options
  4. Select Save
  5. Follow the launch steps above to deploy your new poll

Now your poll has been successfully launched and completed, and participants have had the opportunity to respond.

Troubleshooting

If participants report they cannot see the poll, ensure you have selected Launch rather than just opening the poll interface.

If some participants cannot see the poll, ensure they are using a current version of Zoom. Users on older Zoom versions may be unable to view certain poll types or quizzes.

If some participants cannot see the poll, ensure they are using a current version of Zoom. Users on older Zoom versions may be unable to view certain poll types or quizzes.

If you cannot find the Polls/Quizzes option, check the More menu in the Zoom toolbar, or verify that polling is enabled in your account settings.

By default, only the original meeting host can create or edit polls during a meeting. Alternative hosts may also create or edit polls if the meeting was configured to allow it.

Next Steps

After launching polls during your meeting, you can:

Still need help? If you run into problems or still need help, reach out to the Technology & Learning Program. 

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