Conditional logic in forms: skip, branch and jump rules, with 6 examples
Conditional logic in forms changes what people see based on their answers: it skips questions that don’t apply, sends people down different paths or ends the form early. Write each rule as “if this answer, go there”, keep branches short and test every path before you publish. In Ribbit, jump rules, up to 10 endings and the Flow board that maps every path are free on every plan.
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What is conditional logic in forms?
Conditional logic is a set of rules that changes what a form shows based on earlier answers. The names vary from tool to tool, but most rules do one of three things: skip ahead, branch to a different path, or show and hide a question.
The short version
- Write each rule as “if this answer, go there”, on the question whose answer decides.
- Use logic when some questions apply only to some people, when answers need different follow-ups, or when some people should stop early.
- Keep branches short: follow-ups that keep coming make people quit.
- Never require a question on a path someone can be routed past.
- Test every path in preview, including the values at the edge of each rule, after every edit.
- In Ribbit, jump rules, up to 10 endings and the Flow board are free on every plan.
| Term | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Skip logic | Sends people forward to a later question based on an answer | A No to “Do you have children?” skips the questions about children |
| Branch logic | Sends people down a different path of questions | Customers and suppliers answer different sets of questions |
| Display (show/hide) logic | Shows or hides a single question based on earlier answers | “Tell us more” appears only after a low rating |
| Jump logic | Each answer picks the next screen; Ribbit’s name for skip and branch rules in a one-question form | A score of 0 to 6 goes to “What would make it better?” |
| Multiple endings | Different final screens depending on the path | A “Sorry you can’t make it” ending for RSVP replies of No |
Qualtrics’ documentation defines skip logic (opens in a new tab) as a way to “send respondents to a future point in the survey based on how they answer a question”, forward only. For more involved rules it points to display logic, which shows or hides single questions, and branch logic, which routes whole blocks.
How logic works when each question has its own screen
In a one question at a time form, showing, hiding and skipping become the same thing: a hidden question is just a screen someone jumps past. So the rule sits on the question whose answer decides, and it names the screen that comes next. The GOV.UK Service Manual (opens in a new tab) lists handling “branching questions and loops” as one of the reasons to ask one thing per page.
When to use conditional logic
Use it when some questions only make sense for some people, when different answers need different follow-ups, or when some people should stop early. Don’t use it to hide a form that’s simply too long.
- Questions that don’t apply: takeout customers don’t need the dining-room question.
- Follow-ups that fit the answer: a low score gets “What could we have done better?”, a high one “What did we get right?”.
- Screening: someone who can’t attend, or doesn’t consent, can stop right away, with a closing message of their own.
If two groups share almost no questions, two separate forms are usually easier to build, test and read than one form with two long branches.
Six conditional logic examples
Six patterns cover most forms: skip a question, end early, follow up on a score, ask for details only when something went wrong, open a text box for one answer, and route people to different endings. Each is one rule, or a pair, written the way you set it up: if the answer is X, go to Y. Five come from Ribbit templates you can open, try and copy.
1. Skip a question that doesn’t apply
In the restaurant survey, “How did you order?” is a single-choice question. The rule: if the answer is any of Takeout or Delivery, go to “How was the food?”. Dine-in guests follow Otherwise to the next question, which asks about the atmosphere.
2. End the form early on a No
In the RSVP form, “Will you be there?” is a yes/no question. The rule: if the answer is No, go to the ending “Sorry you can’t make it. Thanks for letting us know.” A Yes goes on to guests and dietary needs. The consent form uses the same pattern when someone doesn’t agree.
3. Ask a follow-up that fits the score
The NPS survey asks for a score from 0 to 10, with two rules checked in order:
- If the score is 6 or less, go to “What would make it better?”
- If the score is 9 or more, go to “What do you like most about us?”
Scores of 7 and 8 match neither rule, so they follow Otherwise to “What’s the main reason for your score?”. Each follow-up then leads to the same email question, so every path ends in one place. The NPS survey questions guide has more follow-ups to choose from.
4. Ask for details only when something went wrong
In the customer service survey, “Did we solve your problem?” has one rule: if the answer is Yes, go to “How easy was it to get help?”. A No goes on to “What still isn’t fixed?” and an optional email, so only people with an open problem are asked about it.
5. Open a text box for one answer
In the demographic survey, the gender question offers Woman, Man, Non-binary, Prefer to self-describe and Prefer not to say. The rule: if the answer is any of Prefer to self-describe, go to a short text question. Otherwise jumps past it to the country question, so most people never see the text box.
6. Send different people to different endings
This one isn’t a template. Say a demo request form ends with a number question, “How many people would use it?”. The rule: if the answer is greater than 50, go to an ending that says your sales team will be in touch. Everyone else reaches the main ending, which explains how to get started on their own. On Ribbit Pro, each ending can also redirect to its own page.
Conditional logic pitfalls
Most logic problems are quiet: a rule that breaks after an edit, a required question on a path someone skipped, or follow-ups that make people quit. Plan the paths before you write rules, and re-test after every change.
Follow-ups that make people quit
In a web-survey experiment, Chen, Cernat, Shlomo and Eckman (2022) (opens in a new tab) compared two ways of asking filter questions, the yes/no gates that open follow-ups. Asking the filter questions together led to fewer breakoffs at the start than interleaving each with its follow-ups, but the advantage faded once people saw that their answers triggered more questions. Keep each branch short, and say up front roughly how long the form is.
Rules that break when you edit the form
CASRAI’s guide to questionnaire design (opens in a new tab) warns that skip rules written against question numbers break when questions are added, removed or reordered, and that skip logic fails silently in most survey platforms, so mistakes only show up when someone tests the paths on purpose. Re-test after you move, delete or change the type of any question that has rules or that rules point to.
Required questions and old answers on skipped paths
A question someone was routed past shouldn’t be required, or they can get stuck. And if someone goes back and switches branch, the answers from the old path no longer apply; keep them and your data mixes two paths. In Ribbit, a question skipped by logic isn’t required, answers from an abandoned path are dropped, and Back retraces the path the person actually took.
A progress count that doesn’t add up
On a branching form the number of questions depends on the path, so “3 of 10” can promise questions someone will never see. Ribbit hides the count on forms with logic and keeps the progress bar.
Forgetting who was asked
A question on a branch is answered by fewer people. CASRAI advises reporting the base for routed questions, so say how many people were asked each one, not just the share who gave each answer.
How to test conditional logic
Write down every path, then walk each one in preview, including the values right at the edge of each rule. Do it again after every edit.
- Map the pathsList each rule, the answer that triggers it and where it goes. In Ribbit, the Flow board draws this map for you.
- Walk every path in previewMake each rule fire at least once, and check you land on the right question and ending. Ribbit’s Preview never saves responses, so run it as often as you like.
- Test the edgesFor number, rating and scale rules, try both sides of each threshold, such as 6 and 7 on a “6 or less” rule, and a value that could match two rules.
- Leave optional questions blankSkip each optional question that has rules and see where the form goes.
- Go back and change an answerSwitch branches halfway through and check that answers from the old path don’t come through.
- Try it on a phoneRun at least the longest path at phone size.
- Read the first real responsesAfter you publish, check that questions skipped by logic are empty for the people who skipped them.
How conditional logic works in Ribbit
Ribbit uses jump logic: each question can carry rules that send people to a later question or to an ending. Jump rules, up to 10 endings and the Flow board are free on every plan; a different redirect for each ending is part of Pro.
- How a rule reads: “If the answer is No, go to Ending 2.” A screen’s rules are checked top to bottom, the first match wins, and an answer that matches none follows Otherwise, which defaults to the next question.
- One condition per rule: there’s no AND or OR, and a rule checks only the answer to the question it sits on.
- Forward only: rules go to a later screen or an ending, so a form can’t loop.
- Limits: up to 20 rules per screen and up to 10 endings per form.
- You set the rules by hand: AI drafts the questions from your description (our AI form prompts guide shows how to write one), but it can’t write logic, add endings or set redirects. You add rules in a question’s Logic section, or click a screen on the Flow board to open its logic in the side panel.
- Templates with logic: 12 of the 52 templates come with rules already set up.
| Answer type | Conditions you can use |
|---|---|
| Yes / no | is Yes, is No |
| Single choice, dropdown | is any of the options you pick |
| Multiple choice | includes any of the options you pick |
| Rating, scale, number | equal to, greater than, less than, at least or at most a number |
| Short text, long text, email, phone, website, date | No conditions; Otherwise only |
| Statement screens and multi-question pages | No conditions; Otherwise only |
The Flow board
The Flow board is a map of every screen and ending, with a line for each path. You can pan and zoom it, forms with more than 15 screens get a mini-map, and there’s a text outline of the same map for accessibility. Click a screen to edit its logic in the side panel, where every rule is set, so the board always matches the rules.
Conditional logic on free plans
Ribbit puts jump rules, up to 10 endings and the Flow board on the free plan. Its logic routes people rather than scoring them, so it doesn’t total a quiz or price an order. Here’s what logic each builder’s free plan includes, from its own pages.
| Form builder | Logic on the free plan | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ribbit | Jump rules and up to 10 endings | The Flow board maps every path; a redirect per ending is Pro |
| Tally | Conditional logic | Listed on the free plan |
| Youform | Conditional logic and multiple endings | Listed as free; redirect after submitting is Pro |
| Fillout | Conditional logic | Listed on every plan |
| Paperform | Conditional logic | Listed on the Free plan |
| Jotform | Conditional logic | Jotform says every plan includes it |
| Google Forms | Go to section based on answer | Multiple choice and dropdown only |
| SurveyMonkey | No | Skip logic starts on the paid Standard plan |
Build a form with logic, free
Open one of the logic templates above, or describe your form and add rules once the draft is ready. See what else the free form builder includes.
Templates to start from
- TemplateFeedback form templateA short, friendly way to hear what worked and what didn’t, with contact details only from people who want a reply.
- TemplateCustomer satisfaction survey templateMeasure satisfaction on a simple 1–5 scale, hear why unhappy customers scored low, and see which part of the experience to fix first.
- TemplateProduct feedback survey templateLearn how people use your product, what they wish it did and how satisfied they are, and line up volunteers for a follow-up call.
- TemplateProduct–market fit survey templateRun the Sean Ellis test: ask how disappointed people would be without your product, then learn who loves it and why.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between skip logic and branching?
Skip logic moves people forward past questions that don’t apply; branching sends them down different paths. In a one question per screen form they work the same way: the answer decides which screen comes next.
What is an example of conditional logic in a form?
A restaurant survey asks “How did you order?” and skips the dining-room question for takeout and delivery customers. An NPS survey sends scores of 0 to 6 to “What would make it better?” and scores of 9 or 10 to “What do you like most about us?”. There are six worked examples above.
Is conditional logic free in Ribbit?
Yes. Jump rules, up to 10 endings and the Flow board are free on every plan. Pro adds a different redirect for each ending.
Does conditional logic slow down a form?
Not in Ribbit: the whole form loads at once, so a rule picks the next screen without waiting on the network. What slows people down is a branch with too many follow-ups, so keep each one short.
Can Ribbit calculate scores or totals?
No. Ribbit’s logic is jump-based: it routes people, it doesn’t score or total. For NPS, download the CSV and use the spreadsheet formula in our NPS survey questions guide.
How do I add conditional logic in Google Forms?
Use “Go to section based on answer”. Google’s help says it works only on multiple choice and dropdown questions, and an answer can also end the form.
Does conditional logic reduce form abandonment?
It can make the form shorter for most people, but we found no solid study that measures the effect directly. How you arrange branching questions does change how many people quit, so keep branches short and test them. More in the form abandonment guide.
Sources
- Qualtrics Support, “Skip Logic” (opens in a new tab)qualtrics.com · checked
- GOV.UK Service Manual, “Form structure” (opens in a new tab)gov.uk · checked
- Chen, Cernat, Shlomo and Eckman (2022), “Impact of question topics and filter question formats on web survey breakoffs” (opens in a new tab)rti.org · checked
- CASRAI, “Skip logic and branching in questionnaire design” (opens in a new tab)casrai.org · checked
- Google Docs Editors Help, “Go to section based on answer” (opens in a new tab)support.google.com · checked
- Tally pricing (opens in a new tab)tally.so · checked
- Tally features (opens in a new tab)tally.so · checked
- Youform pricing (opens in a new tab)youform.com · checked
- Fillout pricing (opens in a new tab)fillout.com · checked
- Paperform pricing (opens in a new tab)paperform.com · checked
- Jotform, “Typeform alternative” (opens in a new tab)jotform.com · checked
- SurveyMonkey pricing (opens in a new tab)surveymonkey.com · checked
Related
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