175+ Employee Engagement Survey Questions + Free Template

Employee engagement survey questions are structured prompts that measure how connected, motivated, and committed an employee feels toward their work and their company. The good ones isolate a single driver — trust, recognition, workload, growth — so a low score points to a specific fix rather than a general mood.

Getting them right matters more than it used to. Global employee engagement fell to 20% in 2025, down from a 23% peak in 2022, according to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace: 2026 report — the first back-to-back annual decline Gallup has ever recorded. Gallup estimates that low engagement costs the global economy around $10 trillion a year, roughly 9% of global GDP.

Most HR teams are already surveying. The problem is that vague, double-barrelled, or leading questions produce scores nobody can act on — and a survey nobody acts on is worse than no survey at all.

This guide gives you 177 ready-to-use employee engagement survey questions organised by driver, a free copy-paste annual and pulse template, scoring guidance, and a four-step process for what to do once results come in.

BRAVO, an AI-powered employee recognition and engagement platform by WorkHub, built this question bank from the same driver framework behind BRAVO Points, BRAVO Voice, BRAVO Feats, and BRAVO Focus — its recognition, survey, milestone, and goal-tracking tools.

What Makes a Good Engagement Survey Question

A good engagement survey question measures one specific thing.

It asks about a single driver — recognition, trust, workload — never two at once.

“I feel recognized for my work and I understand our company goals” is two questions wearing one sentence. Split it, or you won’t know which half moved the score.

Four criteria separate a usable question from a wasted one:

• Specific — points to one driver, not a mood
• Action-oriented — a low score suggests an obvious next step
• Neutral wording — no leading language (“Don’t you agree that…”)
• Scale-consistent — same 1–5 or 1–7 format across the survey, so scores are comparable over time

Mix formats deliberately. Closed (Likert-scale) questions give you trackable numbers. Open-ended questions give you the “why” behind the number. A survey built entirely from one format misses half the picture.

Read – How to run an employee satisfaction survey

How Many Questions Should You Ask

The right length depends on whether you’re running an annual deep-dive or a pulse check.

Annual surveys can afford length because they’re a once-a-year event with communication around them. Pulse surveys can’t — they compete with a normal working day, so every question past fifteen costs you completion.

Pulse surveys trade depth for frequency — fewer questions, asked more often, so you catch problems before they show up in exit interviews.

Survey type	Question count	Frequency	Best for
Annual engagement survey	30–50	Once or twice a year	Full driver coverage, year-over-year benchmarking
Pulse survey	5–15	Weekly to monthly	Trend tracking, catching disengagement early
Onboarding pulse	8–12	Days 30/60/90	New-hire risk signals before the 90-day mark
eNPS check-in	1–3	Quarterly	Fast loyalty read between full surveys

Response rate is the real reason pulse surveys have taken over. Short, frequent surveys consistently outperform long annual ones on participation, and the mechanism is simple: a two-minute survey delivered where people already work gets answered, while a 45-question form emailed once a year gets deferred until it’s forgotten.

Qualtrics found the same directional pattern in its 2026 Employee Experience Trends Report, which surveyed 33,831 employees across 24 countries: organisations that increased listening frequency saw higher engagement, stronger intent to stay, and more visible follow-through than those relying on a single annual snapshot.

BRAVO sees the same pattern. Surveys delivered through Slack or Teams rather than email consistently draw higher completion than email-only distribution, because the survey arrives in the channel people are already in rather than the inbox they’re avoiding. You can see how that works in BRAVO’s employee engagement survey tool.

175+ Engagement Survey Questions by Category

Leadership & Trust

1. I trust the decisions made by senior leadership.
2. Leadership communicates the company’s direction clearly.
3. I believe leadership acts on employee feedback.
4. Senior leaders are visible and approachable.
5. I have confidence in where this company is headed.
6. Leadership treats employees fairly, regardless of role.
7. I understand the reasoning behind major company decisions.
8. Leadership admits mistakes when they happen.
9. I believe leadership genuinely cares about employee wellbeing.
10. Company values are reflected in leadership’s actual decisions.
11. Leaders here follow through on what they promise.
12. I feel comfortable raising concerns with senior leadership.
13. Leadership makes decisions based on data, not politics.
14. I trust that layoffs or restructuring would be handled fairly.
15. Leadership’s actions match what they say publicly.

Manager Relationship

16. My manager cares about me as a person, not just my output.
17. My manager gives me feedback I can actually use.
18. I feel comfortable disagreeing with my manager.
19. My manager recognizes my contributions regularly.
20. My manager removes obstacles that block my work.
21. My manager sets clear expectations for my role.
22. I trust my manager to advocate for me.
23. My manager checks in on my workload realistically.
24. My manager helps me connect my work to team goals.
25. I receive coaching, not just direction, from my manager.
26. My manager gives credit to the right people.
27. My one-on-ones with my manager are useful, not wasted time.
28. My manager is transparent about decisions that affect me.
29. I feel supported by my manager during difficult periods.
30. My manager treats every team member equitably.

Recognition & Appreciation

Recognition is the driver most likely to score low and the one most likely to be fixed quickly, which is why it’s worth measuring in more depth than a single item. If this category comes back weak, the questions below tell you whether the problem is frequency, specificity, or the fact that only top performers ever get named — three problems with three different fixes. Our guide to building an employee recognition program covers what to do with each.

31. I feel recognized for the work I do.
32. Recognition at this company feels genuine, not performative.
33. I know how to recognize a coworker for great work.
34. My manager acknowledges my wins in real time, not just at reviews.
35. Recognition here goes beyond top performers only.
36. I’ve been recognized by a peer in the last 30 days.
37. Our recognition program reflects what our team actually values.
38. I understand how recognition connects to rewards here.
39. Recognition happens consistently, not just during big wins.
40. I feel comfortable publicly celebrating a teammate’s work.
41. Leadership recognizes contributions, not just results.
42. Recognition here feels specific, not generic.
43. I’d recommend our recognition culture to a friend joining the company.
44. I know what “great work” looks like in my role.
45. Small, everyday contributions get noticed here.

Growth & Development

46. I see a clear path for growth at this company.
47. I have access to the training I need to do my job well.
48. My manager discusses my career goals with me.
49. I’m learning new skills in my current role.
50. I understand what it takes to get promoted here.
51. I get stretch opportunities that challenge me.
52. My skills are being used effectively in my role.
53. I receive feedback that helps me improve, not just evaluate.
54. I feel supported in pursuing certifications or education.
55. Development conversations happen more than once a year.
56. I know what skills I need to build for my next role.
57. This company invests in my long-term career, not just my current output.
58. I have a mentor or sponsor here.
59. I’m given the chance to take on new responsibilities.
60. My growth here matches the pace I want.

Purpose & Alignment

61. I understand how my work contributes to company goals.
62. My work feels meaningful, not just transactional.
63. I believe in the mission of this company.
64. I understand our company’s priorities for this quarter.
65. My role aligns with what I’m actually good at.
66. I could explain our company strategy to someone outside the company.
67. I feel proud to tell people where I work.
68. My daily tasks connect clearly to bigger team goals.
69. I understand how my team’s success is measured.
70. This company’s mission matches my personal values.
71. I know what success looks like in my role this quarter.
72. Our goals feel achievable, not just aspirational.

Belonging & Inclusion

73. I feel like I belong on my team.
74. I can be myself at work without holding back.
75. My opinions are valued regardless of my role or tenure.
76. This team respects different working styles and backgrounds.
77. I feel included in decisions that affect my work.
78. I have at least one strong relationship at work.
79. New ideas are welcomed here, even from newer employees.
80. I don’t feel like an outsider on my team.
81. Everyone on my team gets equal opportunities to contribute.
82. I feel safe sharing an unpopular opinion in meetings.
83. My team celebrates differences instead of ignoring them.
84. I’d describe this workplace as genuinely inclusive.

Workload & Wellbeing

85. My workload is manageable most weeks.
86. I can disconnect from work outside business hours.
87. I rarely feel burned out by my job.
88. I have the resources I need to do my job well.
89. My manager checks in on my wellbeing, not just my output.
90. I take my full allotted time off.
91. Deadlines here are realistic, not arbitrary.
92. I feel physically and mentally well enough to do my best work.
93. I’m not regularly asked to do work outside my role without support.
94. My team has enough people to handle our current workload.
95. I know what to do if I’m feeling overwhelmed at work.
96. This company supports work-life balance in practice, not just policy.
97. I rarely dread coming to work.
98. My workload has felt sustainable over the last quarter.
99. I have flexibility in how I manage my schedule.

Communication & Transparency

100. I get the information I need to do my job well.
101. Company updates are communicated clearly and on time.
102. I know who to go to when I have a question.
103. Leadership is transparent about company performance.
104. I understand changes before they affect my work.
105. Communication between teams here is effective.
106. I feel informed about decisions that impact my role.
107. Feedback flows both ways, not just top-down.
108. I know where to find company policies when I need them.
109. Meetings here are a good use of my time.
110. I trust that I’m hearing the full picture, not a filtered version.
111. Cross-team communication rarely causes confusion or delays.

Team Collaboration

112. My teammates and I work well together.
113. I can rely on my team to deliver what they commit to.
114. Collaboration between departments is smooth, not siloed.
115. My team resolves conflict productively.
116. I feel comfortable asking teammates for help.
117. My team shares credit fairly.
118. We celebrate team wins, not just individual ones.
119. I trust my teammates to do quality work.
120. My team communicates proactively, not reactively.
121. I know what my teammates are working on.
122. Handoffs between team members are smooth.
123. My team gives each other honest, constructive feedback.

Overall Engagement & Loyalty

124. I would recommend this company as a great place to work.
125. I rarely think about looking for another job.
126. I feel motivated to go above and beyond at work.
127. I’m proud to be part of this company.
128. I plan to still be working here in 12 months.
129. This job gives me a sense of accomplishment.
130. I’m excited about the company’s future.
131. Overall, I would rate my engagement at this company highly.
132. I’d choose to work here again if I were starting over.
133. This is one of the best places I’ve worked.
134. I’d stay here even if a comparable offer came along.
135. I have a reason to stay beyond compensation.
136. My engagement here is higher than it was six months ago.

New Hire & Onboarding

Send these at day 30, day 60, and day 90. Comparing the same questions across all three checkpoints is what turns onboarding feedback into a retention signal instead of a courtesy check-in.

137. My onboarding gave me what I needed to start contributing.
138. The role matches what was described during hiring.
139. I know what’s expected of me in my first 90 days.
140. I’ve had enough time with my manager since starting.
141. I know where to find the answers I need without asking my manager every time.
142. I’ve been introduced to the people I need to work with.
143. I have the tools and access required to do my job.
144. I understand how my role connects to team goals.
145. I feel welcomed by my team.
146. I’d describe my first weeks here as well organized.
147. Nothing about this job has been a surprise so far.

Question 147 is the one to watch. A drop between day 30 and day 90 is the earliest reliable signal that hiring promised something delivery didn’t — and it shows up months before it appears in exit interviews.

Pulse Survey Questions

Pulse questions trade breadth for speed — five to fifteen questions, sent weekly or monthly, built for a two-minute completion time.

Rotate 3–5 of these on a monthly cadence instead of running all of them at once:

148. On a scale of 1–5, how supported did you feel this week?
149. Did you feel recognized for your work this week?
150. How manageable was your workload this week?
151. Did you get the support you needed from your manager this week?
152. How connected did you feel to your team this week?
153. Rate your energy level at work this week.
154. Did anything block your progress this week?
155. How clear were your priorities this week?
156. Did you feel heard in team discussions this week?
157. On a scale of 0–10, how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work?
158. What’s one thing that went well this week?
159. What’s one thing that could have gone better this week?
160. How would you rate your work-life balance this week?
161. Did you receive useful feedback this week?
162. How confident do you feel about hitting your goals this month?
163. Rate how included you felt in decisions this week.
164. Did you have what you needed to do your best work this week?
165. How would you describe your mood at work this week, in one word?

Open-Ended Engagement Questions

Closed questions tell you the score moved. Open-ended questions tell you why.

Use them sparingly — two or three per survey keeps completion rates high while still surfacing themes you didn’t know to ask about.

166. What’s one thing we could change to make your job better?
167. What does a great day at work look like for you?
168. What’s one thing your manager could do differently to support you?
169. Describe a time recently you felt genuinely recognized.
170. What’s stopping you from doing your best work right now?
171. If you could change one thing about this company, what would it be?
172. What would make you consider leaving this company?
173. What’s one thing leadership should know that they probably don’t?
174. How would you describe our culture to a friend considering joining?
175. What’s one skill you wish you had more support developing?
176. What’s working well on your team right now?
177. What would make you more likely to recommend this company?

How to Score and Benchmark Your Results

Raw averages are hard to compare across teams. Two simple methods fix that.

Percent favorable. For each 1–5 question, count the share of respondents who answered 4 or 5. A team where 68% answered “agree” or “strongly agree” on recognition has a 68% favorable score on that item — trackable quarter over quarter.

eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score). Ask: “On a scale of 0–10, how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work?” Then apply this formula:

eNPS = % Promoters (score 9–10) − % Detractors (score 0–6)

A team with 50% promoters and 20% detractors scores an eNPS of +30. Any positive score means you have more promoters than detractors. Beyond that, the number only means something against your own trendline — eNPS benchmarks vary widely by industry, company size, and region, so a +12 that was +4 last quarter tells you more than a +12 measured against someone else’s average.

Gallup’s 20% global figure is a classification derived from its own Q12 instrument — it is not a percent favorable score, and it is not comparable to the numbers these questions will produce. Read it as market direction, not as a target. Your own previous quarter is the only benchmark you control, and the only one that tells you whether anything you changed actually worked.

BRAVO’s employee engagement software tracks participation and sentiment trends automatically through BRAVO Assist, so you’re reading ranked priorities instead of rebuilding a scoring spreadsheet every quarter.

What to Do With Your Results

A survey without action trains employees to stop answering honestly.

Close the loop in four steps:

1. Share results within two weeks. Delayed communication signals the survey didn’t matter.
2. Segment by team, not just company-wide. A 75% favorable score company-wide can hide a struggling department at 40%.
3. Pick one or two priorities, not ten. Teams that try to fix everything at once fix nothing.
4. Tie action back to recognition. If recognition scored low, that’s the moment to strengthen your recognition and rewards program — not just note it and move on.

Skipping the “share results” step is the single most common reason engagement surveys lose credibility. Employees remember being asked more than they remember any fix that followed.

Free Employee Engagement Survey Template

The question bank above gives you options. This gives you something you can send tomorrow.

Below is a ready-to-run 25-question annual survey and a 7-question monthly pulse, both built from the drivers above. Copy them straight into Google Forms, Microsoft Forms, Typeform, or your HR platform — no signup, no email gate.

Get the full template in Google Docs → — includes all three surveys (annual, monthly pulse, and a 30/60/90 new-hire check-in), the scoring formulas, and launch and results email templates. Make a copy and edit it as your own.

Annual Engagement Survey Template (25 questions)

Scale for every question: 1 = Strongly disagree · 2 = Disagree · 3 = Neither agree nor disagree · 4 = Agree · 5 = Strongly agree

Leadership & Trust

1. I trust the decisions made by senior leadership.
2. Leadership communicates the company’s direction clearly.
3. I believe leadership acts on employee feedback.

Manager Relationship
4. My manager gives me feedback I can actually use.
5. My manager sets clear expectations for my role.
6. My manager recognizes my contributions regularly.
7. I feel comfortable disagreeing with my manager.

Recognition & Appreciation
8. I feel recognized for the work I do.
9. Recognition at this company feels genuine, not performative.
10. Recognition happens consistently, not just during big wins.

Growth & Development
11. I see a clear path for growth at this company.
12. I understand what it takes to get promoted here.
13. I’m learning new skills in my current role.

Purpose & Alignment
14. I understand how my work contributes to company goals.
15. My work feels meaningful, not just transactional.
16. I feel proud to tell people where I work.

Belonging & Inclusion
17. I feel like I belong on my team.
18. My opinions are valued regardless of my role or tenure.
19. I feel safe sharing an unpopular opinion in meetings.

Workload & Wellbeing
20. My workload is manageable most weeks.
21. I can disconnect from work outside business hours.
22. Deadlines here are realistic, not arbitrary.

Communication & Transparency
23. I get the information I need to do my job well.
24. I understand changes before they affect my work.

Overall Engagement
25. I would recommend this company as a great place to work.

Add these two open-ended questions at the end:

• What’s one thing we could change to make your job better?
• What’s stopping you from doing your best work right now?

Add the eNPS question on its own 0–10 scale:

• On a scale of 0–10, how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work?

Keep the eNPS item separate from the 1–5 block. It’s scored differently, and mixing the scales makes both numbers meaningless.

Monthly Pulse Template (7 questions)

Keep questions 1–4 fixed every month so you build a trendline. Rotate 5–7 to cover different drivers without lengthening the survey.

1. How manageable was your workload this month? (1–5)
2. Did you feel recognized for your work this month? (1–5)
3. How clear were your priorities this month? (1–5)
4. Did you get the support you needed from your manager? (1–5)
5. How connected did you feel to your team this month? (1–5)
6. Did anything block your progress this month? (open text)
7. What’s one thing that went well this month? (open text)

Cap open-text questions at two per pulse. Past that, completion drops sharply — people will rate seven things in ninety seconds but they won’t write three paragraphs.

Five setup rules that matter more than the questions

Keep one scale. Mixing 1–5 and 1–7 items in the same survey makes the scores non-comparable across questions and across quarters. Pick 1–5 and stay on it.

Keep eNPS separate. The recommend question runs on its own 0–10 scale, outside the Likert block.

State anonymity in the invitation, not the footer. People decide whether to answer honestly in the first ten seconds, before they’ve scrolled anywhere near your fine print.

Set the close date before you send. Extending the window to chase a participation number teaches people that deadlines here are negotiable.

Book the results meeting before the survey opens. If there’s no date already in the calendar, the results email doesn’t get sent — and that’s the step that determines whether anyone answers next time.

Running this without the spreadsheet

Everything above can be run manually. It works. It just costs a few days per cycle in building forms, chasing participation, cutting results by team, and assembling the deck.

BRAVO Voice runs the same program automatically: a curated question library built on these drivers, fully anonymous collection, scheduled pulses with automated reminders, and sentiment analysis through BRAVO Assist that returns ranked priorities instead of a spreadsheet to interpret. Surveys go out through Slack, Microsoft Teams, email, or an open link — so they land where people already are, not in the inbox they’re avoiding.

If you want scoring, benchmarking, and action-tracking handled for you, book a free BRAVO demo and see the question library running on your own team structure.

Conclusion

The question list matters less than what happens after you send it.

Pick 30–50 questions across the drivers above for your next annual survey, rotate 5–8 into a monthly pulse, and commit to sharing results within two weeks of closing the survey.

That combination — the right questions, asked at the right frequency, followed by visible action — is what actually moves engagement scores, not the survey tool you use to collect them.

If you’re ready to put this into practice, book a free BRAVO demo and see how BRAVO Voice turns these questions into a running engagement program instead of a one-time spreadsheet.

Frequently Asked Questions