A comment box in SurveyMonkey is an open-ended question type designed to collect detailed, written feedback from respondents, letting them type longer responses than a standard text box.
What’s the difference between a comment box and text box in SurveyMonkey?
The main difference is length and purpose: a text box handles short answers (50 characters max), while a comment box captures long-form, open-ended responses perfect for detailed feedback.
Think of a text box as a quick way to grab names, emails, or numbers. A comment box? That’s where people can really explain their thoughts, suggestions, or reasoning. You can even resize a comment box in SurveyMonkey to nudge respondents toward shorter or longer answers. According to SurveyMonkey’s official documentation, SurveyMonkey Help Center, this flexibility makes comment boxes ideal for gathering qualitative insights.
What exactly is a comment box in SurveyMonkey?
A SurveyMonkey comment box is a question type that lets respondents type long, open-ended answers to collect detailed insights or opinions.
It’s not stuck as a single-line input, so you can ask questions like “Tell us about your experience” or “What improvements would you suggest?” This comes in handy when multiple-choice or rating scale questions just won’t cut it. You’ll find it in the SurveyMonkey question types menu under “Comment/Essay Box.” For more details, check the SurveyMonkey Help Center.
What’s a comment box, in plain terms?
A comment box is a web form element that lets users input written feedback, suggestions, or responses in a flexible text area, rather than a constrained single-line input.
You’ll see these everywhere—websites, surveys, forms—because they give users room to express themselves. The size and look of the box can often be tweaked to fit the situation, whether it’s a tiny pop-up or a full-sized textarea. Honestly, this is one of those simple features that improves user engagement by making it easy to share detailed thoughts. Learn more from MDN Web Docs.
How big is the default comment box in SurveyMonkey?
By default, the comment box in SurveyMonkey is set to 3 lines deep by 50 characters wide, but you can adjust both the height and width in the design settings.
Want to make it bigger? Head to the Design Survey tab, select the question, then click Adjust Question Layout. You can expand the box to encourage longer responses or keep it small to avoid overwhelming respondents. SurveyMonkey recommends balancing box size with survey flow to keep people engaged. See the SurveyMonkey Help Center for step-by-step instructions.
Can you add multiple comment boxes in SurveyMonkey?
Yes—use the Multiple Textboxes question type and label each box separately for distinct feedback fields.
- Go to the BUILD section of your survey.
- Drag and drop “Multiple Textboxes” into your survey.
- Add a main question (e.g., “Please provide feedback on each section”).
- Label them clearly, like “Section 1: Navigation” or “Section 2: Design.”
- Configure settings and save. Each box works like a mini comment box.
This approach keeps feedback organized without cluttering your survey with too many separate questions. For more options, see SurveyMonkey’s Help Center.
How do I make a comment box bigger in SurveyMonkey?
To expand a comment box, go to the Design Survey tab, edit the question, click Adjust Question Layout, and increase the size options before saving.
- Click the Design Survey tab at the top of your survey.
- Select the comment box question you want to adjust.
- Click the “Options” tab, then “Adjust Question Layout.”
- Use the sliders or input fields to change the width and height.
- Click Save to apply changes.
SurveyMonkey lets you tweak the box size to match your survey’s design and respondent needs. For visual guidance, refer to SurveyMonkey Help Center.
How many characters can you type in a single text box on SurveyMonkey?
In a single text box on SurveyMonkey, respondents are limited to 50 characters per answer, making it suitable only for short inputs like names or codes.
This limit applies to both the answer options you create and the responses participants submit. If you need more space, a comment box is the way to go. The character limit helps keep responses concise and survey data clean. For more on text box limits, visit SurveyMonkey Help Center.
How many questions can I include in a SurveyMonkey survey?
With a Basic (free) SurveyMonkey plan, you can add up to 10 questions per survey, including all question types and descriptive elements.
Paid plans expand those limits significantly: Standard supports up to 1,000 questions per survey, Advantage up to 2,500, and Premier up to 10,000. The free tier also caps responses at 40. For a full comparison, see SurveyMonkey Pricing.
What’s the maximum number of questions allowed in SurveyMonkey?
Under the free Basic plan, you can have up to 10 questions per survey and collect up to 40 responses; paid plans offer much higher limits.
SurveyMonkey’s pricing tiers determine your question and response capacity:
| Plan | Max Questions | Max Responses |
|---|
| Basic | 10 | 40 |
| Standard | 1,000 | 1,000/month |
| Advantage | 2,500 | 5,000/month |
| Premier | 10,000 | Unlimited |
For the latest details, visit
SurveyMonkey Pricing.
What’s the point of a comment box?
The point of a comment box is to gather qualitative feedback right where the content or question appears, making it easier for users to share detailed thoughts without leaving the page.
Unlike a generic contact form, a comment box is context-specific, so visitors can react to the exact content or question they’re viewing. This boosts response relevance and improves user experience. You’ll find these on blogs, product pages, and surveys all over the web. Learn more about web forms from MDN Web Docs.
What’s an HTML comment box?
An HTML comment box is created using the <textarea> element within a <form> tag, letting users input multi-line text feedback on a webpage.
Example: <form><textarea name="comment" rows="4" cols="50"></textarea></form>. Don’t confuse this with HTML comments (like <!-- This is a comment -->), which are notes for developers, not user input fields. The <textarea> tag supports attributes like placeholder and maxlength to control input. See full specs at MDN Web Docs.
How do you create a comment box from scratch?
To make a comment box, use an HTML form with a <textarea> element and a submit button, then style it with CSS if needed.
Here’s a simple example:
<form action="/submit" method="post">
<label for="comment">Your feedback:</label>
<textarea id="comment" name="comment" rows="4" cols="50" placeholder="Type your comment here..."></textarea>
<input type="submit" value="Submit">
</form>
You can add validation, auto-resizing, or styling with JavaScript and CSS. For a full guide, visit MDN Web Docs.
How do I add a thank-you message in SurveyMonkey?
To add a thank-you message, go to the Collect Responses section, enable Custom Thank You, and edit the message—your changes save automatically.
- Open your survey and click “Collect Responses.”
- Select the collector and click “Show advanced options.”
- Turn on “Custom Thank You” (formerly Thank You Page).
- Type your message or use merge fields (e.g., “Thanks, {$First Name}!”).
- Click outside the editor to save.
This appears after respondents submit the survey. For more options, see SurveyMonkey Help Center.
Is SurveyMonkey better than Google Forms?
It depends on what you need: SurveyMonkey offers advanced survey logic, reporting, and customization for a price, while Google Forms is free, simple, and integrates with Google Workspace.
Google Forms is great for quick, free surveys with basic analysis. SurveyMonkey, on the other hand, shines in enterprise use with features like skip logic, NPS scoring, and in-depth reporting. As of 2026, SurveyMonkey’s free plan allows 10 questions and 40 responses, while Google Forms has no hard limit on questions or responses. Compare features on:
| Feature | SurveyMonkey (Free) | Google Forms (Free) |
|---|
| Questions per survey | 10 | Unlimited |
| Response limit | 40 | Unlimited |
| Custom branding | No | No |
| Export formats | PDF, Excel | Sheets |
For more, see
SurveyMonkey Pricing and
Google Forms.
How do I disable comments in SurveyMonkey?
To turn off comments, go to your survey’s Collect Responses section, edit the collector settings, and disable commenting before sharing the survey.
- Go to “Collect Responses” for your survey.
- Click the invite dropdown (or pencil icon) to edit the collector.
- Look for “Commenting” or “Allow comments” and turn it off.
- Save changes and share the survey link.
This prevents respondents from adding feedback to their submissions. For visual steps, see SurveyMonkey Help Center.
