Microsoft Forms Tutorial: A Comprehensive Guide for Efficient Professionals

Why Microsoft Forms Deserves a Spot in Your Toolkit

If you’re still using Google Forms or SurveyMonkey for internal check-ins, customer feedback, or data collection — it’s time to look closer at Microsoft Forms.

It’s already part of Microsoft 365, integrates with Excel and Teams, and takes minutes (not hours) to set up. Whether you’re managing a team, gathering client insights, or streamlining admin — Forms helps you get results without friction.

This guide is built for efficient professionals who need fast, reliable, and clean-looking forms that actually do something with the responses.

What Is Microsoft Forms?

Microsoft Forms lets you create:

• Surveys
• Quizzes
• Feedback forms
• Registrations
• Polls

It’s cloud-based, mobile-friendly, and integrated directly with Excel, SharePoint, Teams, and Power Automate.

You can use it for:

• Staff onboarding checklists
• Customer satisfaction feedback
• Weekly team check-ins
• Training assessments
• Event registrations
• Client pre-qualification

Explore Forms Templates →

Step 1: How to Access Microsoft Forms

You can access it through:

• forms.office.com
• The Forms app in your Microsoft 365 dashboard
• Directly via Microsoft Teams (in a channel tab or post)

Tip: If you use Microsoft 365 daily, it’s already available — no setup required.

Step 2: Choose Your Form Type

When you start a new form, you’ll see two core options:

• New Form – best for surveys, checklists, registrations
• New Quiz – for assessments or anything with right/wrong answers

Step 3: Build Your Form (It’s Drag-and-Drop Easy)

Add questions using multiple formats:

• Choice (radio buttons, checkboxes)
• Text (short or long answers)
• Rating (stars or numbers)
• Date picker
• Likert scales (agree/disagree)
• File upload (only for internal users)
• Net Promoter Score (built-in)

Tip: You can reorder questions using drag-and-drop and add sections to break your form into chunks.

Step 4: Brand and Configure Settings

Make your form look sharp:

• Add a header image
• Use preset themes or your organisation’s brand colours
• Choose who can respond:
  • Anyone with the link
  • Only people in your organisation
  • Specific people

Need anonymous feedback? Select “Anyone can respond” for external users.

You can also:

• Shuffle questions
• Limit responses
• Get email notifications
• Close the form at a specific date/time

Step 5: Share Your Form

You can distribute your form via:

• A shareable link
• QR code
• Email
• Embed on a webpage
• Directly into Teams

Forms are mobile-friendly by default, and the link never changes — ideal for automations or pinned dashboards.

Step 6: View and Analyse Results

• Get instant summaries with charts
• View individual responses in detail
• Export all data to Excel for deep analysis
• Visualise responses in Power BI or a custom dashboard

Tip: For long-term tracking, connect Microsoft Forms + Excel + Power Automate and feed all responses into a central data hub.

Real-time summary analytics — no spreadsheet sorting required.

Common Use Cases for Professionals

Tips for High-Response, Low-Friction Forms

• Keep it short — 5 to 7 questions max
• Use required fields sparingly
• Break longer forms into sections
• Always test before sending
• Use simple language — clarity beats cleverness

Final Thoughts

Microsoft Forms is one of the most underused apps in Microsoft 365 — and one of the most powerful when you pair it with Excel, Teams, or Power Automate.

You can gather insights, standardise processes, and make decisions faster — all without tech headaches or third-party tools.

Want a shortcut? Check out our library of ready-to-use Microsoft Forms templates for:

• Employee onboarding & exit
• Project feedback
• Health check-ins
• Performance

Explore Forms Templates →