Reordering Survey Questions

The sequence in which you present questions affects:

• Response quality: A logical flow helps respondents think clearly and provide better answers
• Completion rates: Well-ordered surveys feel shorter and more engaging
• Data accuracy: Asking for context before details can improve answer quality
• User experience: A natural progression reduces confusion and frustration

Best practice is to start with easier, less sensitive questions and progress to more specific or personal ones. Group related questions together to create a coherent narrative.

To change the order of questions in your survey:

1. Navigate to Surveys in the left sidebar
2. Select the survey you want to edit
3. In the survey builder, locate the question you want to move
4. Click the up chevron button (↑) to move the question up one position
5. Click the down chevron button (↓) to move the question down one position
6. Repeat until the question is in the desired position
7. Click Save Survey to apply your changes

Each question displays its current position number between the up and down buttons. For example, a question might show: ↑ 3 ↓

• The up button is disabled on the first question (you cannot move it higher)
• The down button is disabled on the last question (you cannot move it lower)
• Disabled buttons appear with reduced opacity (30%)

Questions move one position at a time. If you need to move a question several positions, click the button multiple times.

Currently, demeterrr does not support drag-and-drop reordering. You must use the up and down buttons to reposition questions. This ensures precise control and prevents accidental reordering.

One of the key advantages of demeterrr's reordering system is that conditional logic is preserved when you rearrange questions.

demeterrr stores conditional logic rules using unique question identifiers (UUIDs), not question position numbers. This means:

• Position-based conditions (e.g., "Show to employees in the Accounting department") continue to work exactly as before
• Department-based conditions (e.g., "Show to managers only") are unaffected by question order
• Question-based conditions (e.g., "Show if NPS score is 6 or lower") remain intact because they reference the specific question by ID, not by position

For example, if Question 4 has a condition that depends on the answer to Question 2, and you move Question 4 to position 6, the condition still references the same Question 2 (now at a different position) and works correctly.

While conditional logic is preserved, you should still review the logical flow of your survey after reordering:

• Ensure that questions with conditions appear after the questions they depend on
• A question cannot show/hide based on a question that appears later in the survey
• If you reorder questions that have dependencies, verify the order makes logical sense

To review or edit conditional logic, select any question and click the Conditional Logic tab in the question editor.

Before reordering, outline the natural flow of your survey:

1. Welcome and context questions
2. Main topic questions (grouped by theme)
3. Demographic or classification questions
4. Open-ended feedback questions

Keep questions on the same topic together. For example, all questions about product features should appear in sequence, followed by questions about customer support.

The question number displayed in the builder shows the current order. Use this to plan your reordering strategy before making changes.

After rearranging questions, use the Preview button or send a test survey to yourself to ensure:

• The new order flows naturally
• Conditional logic still works as expected
• No questions appear out of context

The survey builder auto-saves, but it is good practice to click Save Survey after completing a series of reordering changes to ensure nothing is lost.

Put yourself in the respondent's shoes. Read through the survey in the new order and ask:

• Does this feel natural?
• Are there any confusing jumps between topics?
• Does the difficulty level progress smoothly?

For more information on building effective surveys, see Adding Questions, Question Types, or Conditional Logic.