Guides / Gmail
How to create a poll in Gmail
You cannot insert a poll in Gmail. Compose has no poll button, and a search for one usually lands on Outlook or on a form. For a single question, put the choices on the email as buttons. They click one. You are not asking them to open a survey.
Add a poll to a Gmail email
Gmail will not collect a vote for you. There is no tally hiding in settings, and no Insert menu that adds choices to the message. The email can still ask one question, if the answers are on the message itself.
That is the workaround: two to four short answers, written as buttons, on the Gmail you are already composing. One question. Not a survey.
When a Google Form is the right tool
Google Forms collects a survey, and Gmail can include that form in the message for many people reading it in Gmail. Other inboxes usually get a link. The answers live in a spreadsheet, not on the thread.
Use a form for ten questions, a file upload, or a record someone outside the conversation has to sort. It is a poor way to ask whether a draft is ready, whether a meeting should happen, or whether a thread is still open.
Send an email with yes or no buttons
Yes or no is the same poll with two answers. Write the question so that each answer is a next step. Asking if the draft is ready to send works. Asking for thoughts does not, because neither answer tells you what to do tomorrow.
Add Yes and No. Add Later only when you will actually wait. Send it from Gmail. They click one, and they do not install anything. The first example below is that email. A stalled deal, candidate, or intro can use the same shape.
Create a one-question poll in Gmail
- Write one question. In the Gmail you are composing, ask for a single decision. Leave the survey for a form.
- Add two to four answers. Yes and No, or a short list of real options. Each answer should tell you what to do next.
- Send the buttons. Easy Reply adds them in Gmail. The recipient clicks one and does not install anything. The answer comes back on the thread.
Examples you can copy
Subject. Is the draft ready for the client?
Hi — the draft is in the thread above. I am not going to add another version until I know this one is the one.
Yes means I send it. No means I wait for the note you owe me.
Is this draft ready to send?
- Yes
- No
Subject. Which option should we ship?
Hi — we can only build one of these before Friday. I need the choice, not a discussion of all three.
If none of them is right, say so and I will not guess.
Which one should we ship?
- The short one
- The full one
- Neither
Subject. Still want the introduction?
Hi — I offered an introduction, and I am not going to send it on a maybe.
If later, name a month. I will not make the introduction until you do.
Should I make the introduction?
- Yes
- No
- Later
In Gmail these are buttons. The recipient clicks one. The answer comes back on the thread. They do not install anything.
FAQ
How do I add a poll to a Gmail email?
Gmail has no poll button. Write one question, add two to four answers, and send those as buttons with Easy Reply. They click one. The choice comes back on the thread.
How do I send an email with a yes or no button?
Put the question in the email and add Yes and No. Send it from Gmail with Easy Reply. They click one answer. They do not install anything, and you do not send them to a form.
Is a Google Form a Gmail poll?
It is the workaround Google gives you, and it is a real survey. Many people reading in Gmail can answer an included form. The replies go to a spreadsheet. Use it when you need more than one question.
Will I see which answer they clicked?
With Easy Reply, the click comes back on the thread and shows in Insights. The reply button generator on this site is mailto links. You only see an answer if they send the reply it opens.
Free for 50 sends a month, with no Easy Reply footer. The other person does not install anything.