How to Create a Poll in an Outlook Email
"Pizza or sandwiches for the team lunch?" sent to 20 people gets you 20 emails, half of them Reply All, two with a third option. Put a poll in the email instead and people vote with one click. You see the results as they come in, and nobody has to count.
Quick reference
| What you want | How |
|---|---|
| Add a poll (new Outlook / web) | Compose → Insert → Poll |
| Add a poll (classic Outlook) | Compose → Insert → Poll (Microsoft 365) |
| Simple Yes/No (classic) | Options → Use Voting Buttons |
| See results | Open the sent email → View results |
1. Add a poll in new Outlook or Outlook on the web
1. Click New mail and add your recipients and subject.
2. Click Insert on the ribbon, then Poll. (If it's hidden, click ⋯ or Apps and look for Polls.)
3. Type your question.
4. Type the options — click Add option for more.
5. Choose Single answer or Multiple answers.
6. Click Add to email.
2. Click Insert on the ribbon, then Poll. (If it's hidden, click ⋯ or Apps and look for Polls.)
3. Type your question.
4. Type the options — click Add option for more.
5. Choose Single answer or Multiple answers.
6. Click Add to email.
A poll card appears in the message. Recipients click their choice right inside the email, in Outlook or Gmail or whatever they use, and the results update live.
2. Add a poll in classic Outlook
With a Microsoft 365 account, the same poll is on the Insert tab → Poll. Fill it in the same way; it opens in a pane on the right.
If you don't see it, use the older voting buttons instead:
1. In the message, click the Options tab.
2. Click Use Voting Buttons and choose Approve;Reject, Yes;No, Yes;No;Maybe or Custom… to type your own, separated by semicolons.
3. Send.
2. Click Use Voting Buttons and choose Approve;Reject, Yes;No, Yes;No;Maybe or Custom… to type your own, separated by semicolons.
3. Send.
Recipients see a Vote button at the top of the message (Outlook only). Their votes come back to you as emails, and the Tracking tab on your sent message totals them.
3. See the results
Open the email in your Sent Items and click View results on the poll card. You'll see the count for each option and who voted for what (unless you made it anonymous). There's also a link to open the full results in Microsoft Forms, where you can export them to Excel.
For voting buttons in classic Outlook, open the sent message and click Tracking on the ribbon.
4. Polls in Teams meetings
Need a vote during a meeting rather than by email? In a Teams meeting, click ⋯ → Polls, or add the Polls app to the meeting chat. Same questions, live results on screen.
5. Good uses
• Picking a date for an event (or use a scheduling poll, which books the winner automatically).
• Yes/No decisions that don't need discussion.
• Lunch orders, team names, which logo people prefer.
• A quick pulse check — "How confident are you about Friday's deadline?"
• Yes/No decisions that don't need discussion.
• Lunch orders, team names, which logo people prefer.
• A quick pulse check — "How confident are you about Friday's deadline?"
Troubleshooting
I can't find Poll on the Insert tab. Polls need a Microsoft 365 work, school or personal account. With a Gmail or IMAP account added to Outlook, use voting buttons (classic) or send a Forms link instead.
Recipients say they can't vote. Some email programs show the poll as a link rather than buttons. The link opens the poll in a browser — it still works.
Voting buttons don't appear for the recipient. They only show in Outlook. For mixed audiences, use the Insert → Poll version.
Wrapping up
One question, a few options, Add to email. The next time you're tempted to ask a group something, add a poll — and let it count the replies for you.
