When to use it
- You have a long list of items and need to separate what truly matters.
- Rating scales have flattened your list — everything scores “very important.”
- You want realistic trade-offs rather than independent ratings.
- You’re prioritizing features, claims, or messages for a decision.
When to reach for something else
- You need computed utility scores or part-worths inside the platform — Surveti fields and exports the exercise but does not calculate them.
- Your list is short — a simple ranking question is quicker to field.
- Your sample is too small to support a series of choice sets per respondent.
Sample question
“Of these four features, which is the MOST important and which is the LEAST important to you? (Shown across several sets, four features per set.)”
Best practices
- Keep each set small — typically four to five items — so the choice is quick.
- Balance how often items appear across sets so no item is over-shown.
- Write items at a consistent level of specificity so comparisons are fair.
- Field enough sets per respondent to cover the item list adequately.
- Plan your analysis externally — export the picks and score them in your own tool.
Data & reporting
For each set, the response stores the items shown plus the chosen best and worst (exported per set as best=… worst=…). Reports rank items by best–worst count score — best picks minus worst picks, normalized by how often each item was shown. For hierarchical-Bayes utilities, part-worths, or a simulator, bring the exported picks into your own analysis stack.
Accessibility
Each set presents best and worst as labeled, keyboard-operable choice controls tied to their item text, so respondents can complete every set without a mouse and screen readers announce which item and which end (best or worst) is being chosen.
Compared to SurveyMonkey
Surveti fields a proper best–worst MaxDiff exercise and exports the raw picks; like most survey tools, the utility scoring itself happens in your analysis stack, not in the platform.
Frequently asked questions
Does Surveti calculate MaxDiff utility scores?
Surveti fields a balanced best–worst exercise and reports count-score utilities per item (best minus worst picks, normalized by exposure), and exports every respondent’s raw picks. Hierarchical-Bayes utility scores or part-worths are computed in your own analysis tool from the exported data.
When is MaxDiff better than a ranking question?
When your list is long. Ranking many items is fatiguing and the middle turns to noise; MaxDiff breaks the list into small best/worst sets that discriminate far more cleanly across a long list.
Which plan includes MaxDiff?
MaxDiff is available on the Research Team plan, alongside the other advanced market-research question types.