Fair voting
Choose how to limit responses
The most important setting for a fair poll. Compare every option and pick the one that fits.
The Duplicate check setting decides how StrawPoll makes sure each person responds only once. It’s the most important setting for any poll where the result matters. You find it in the Settings tab, under Access.
Set it before you share the link. Votes that are already in can’t be checked again when you change it later.
The options
The options go from least to most protection. More protection makes cheating harder, but also asks more of your respondents.
| Limit by | Protection | How it works | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Off | Anyone can respond as often as they like. | Brainstorming, word clouds, Q&A | |
| Respondent name | Each name can respond once. Names are not verified. | Small groups who know each other | |
| Browser session | A cookie stops the same browser from responding twice. Private windows get around it. | Casual polls among friends | |
| IP address | Each network connection can respond once. | Public polls on social media, chats and streams | |
| Email address | Respondents confirm their address with a code we email them. | Elections, awards, anything that has to hold up | |
| Unique code | Respondents need a single-use code you hand out. | Closed groups like members, staff or a class |
New polls start with IP address.
How to decide
Ask yourself three questions:
- Does anyone gain from cheating? In a contest, a giveaway or an election someone always does. Use Email address or Unique code.
- Do you know exactly who should vote? If you have a list of people, use Unique code or personal email invites. Then only they can vote, each exactly once.
- Can you trust your participants? Your team, your family or a group of friends won’t cheat, so strong protection only gets in the way. IP address blocks everyone after the first person on a shared office or home network, and Email address or Unique code add steps nobody needs. Use Respondent name or Browser session instead, so nobody gets blocked but no one votes twice by accident. If responding more than once is fine, turn it Off.
Watch out for shared networks
With IP address, everyone on the same network counts as one voter. In an office, a school or a family home, only the first person can vote. For those groups, use Browser session, Email address or Unique code instead. See “You have already voted”, but I haven’t.
Add extra protection
For big public polls, combine this with VPN blocking and a captcha. See Stop bots, VPNs and ballot stuffing.