Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Welcome to YouGov's FAQ Page. If you are looking for help with your account, rewards or surveys, please visit our Help Centre to find more information or to contact us. For more general questions about YouGov, please scroll down.

What is YouGov?

YouGov conducts polls on the Internet about politics, public affairs, products, brands and other topics of general interest. YouGov polls are taken by people, from all over the nation, who have agreed to share their thoughts on a wide variety of important issues.

How long is a typical YouGov survey?

Most YouGov surveys are very short and should only take you about five to seven minutes to complete. A typical survey is only about 20 to 30 fairly short questions in total. Occasionally, there will be longer surveys or surveys with more complex questions. The longest surveys should not take more than 20 minutes to complete.

For what purposes is the data collected by YouGov used?

Data from YouGov surveys are used by news media, public affairs groups, institutions, political campaigns, companies and marketing agencies, to reveal and analyze public opinion.

Who pays for these polls?

YouGov conducts surveys for a diverse group of clients to help them better understand public views about current affairs, and consumer products and brands.

YouGov is a non-partisan organization.  Many of our surveys have nothing to do with politics.  We do also conduct political polls – some for clients and some on our own behalf to gauge the opinions of Americans.  Our own polls are not written from either the Democratic or Republican side, but are meant to be social scientific efforts to read public opinion. Our clients may be Democrats or Republicans or liberals, moderates, or conservatives. While these clients may in the end have their own partisan goals, the surveys we conduct are not intended to influence your opinions, but to measure them. Rest assured that when you answer a poll at YouGov, your privacy is secure, and your responses do make a difference.

Can I see results of the polls in which I participate?

You can read results of many of our polls right on the front page of this website.

I took a survey but don't see all of the results posted. Why do you only show some of the results?

YouGov conducts surveys for a wide variety of clients, and is sometimes asked to keep the results from those surveys confidential.

Will the information I provide to YouGov be confidential?

Yes. Your responses will be used only for statistical tabulations, such as "50% of the public is in favor of a tax cut" or "10% more women valued Brand X." Your individual answers will never be revealed to anyone in a manner that reveals your identity. Please see our Privacy Policy for complete details.

What kind of rewards are offered for participating in surveys?

When you take surveys you accumulate points which can later be redeemed for rewards.  Rewards include: cash (via direct deposit to your bank account) and gift cards.  Gift cards include brands such as Amazon, Best Buy, Target and Gamestop to name a few.  See our Rewards page for a complete list.

Will I receive e-mail messages from anyone other than YouGov?

No. Under no conditions will YouGov give, rent, or sell your e-mail address to anyone else or allow messages to be sent to you by third parties.

Do I have to buy or subscribe to anything?

No. YouGov conducts only legitimate public opinion polls. You will not be asked to buy or subscribe to anything.

Where can I see my points?

You can see your complete account summary from your activity page, your points balance will appear in the upper right, below the search box. To navigate to your account page select Panel Members then Activity from the top menu. You must be logged in to see your points and account summary.

How can I reset my password?

If you have forgotten your password or need to reset it for any reason, click on Forgot your Password from the Login page. Or just click here.

Where can I change my email or postal address?

You can change your email or postal address from your account page. To navigate to your account page select Panel Members then Account from the top menu.

Where can I get more information?

See the Terms and Conditions page.

How do I leave YouGov?

While we hope you will enjoy being a member of the site, should you for any reason wish to leave then please visit the unsubscribe page. Please note that you will forfeit any points you have in your account if you unsubscribe.

YouGov Pulse  

What is YouGov Pulse?

YouGov Pulse is a way of earning more points as a panellist. We invite our panellists to participate in the same way that we identify people for research projects. YouGov Pulse is an application you download and install onto your desktop, tablet or mobile device. The Pulse app tracks your internet usage and anonymizes it to give a picture of how real people use the internet. 

We work with a company called RealityMine on YouGov Pulse and therefore some support will be provided by them and may need to refer some questions to them. Please find below the questions we are asked most often. 

How many points do I receive for participating in YouGov Pulse?

The points you can earn with YouGov Pulse varies on the amount of devices and your location but you will be told exactly how many points you will earn when you sign up to Pulse. To earn your points YouGov Pulse must be installed and actively used on the device (actively used = use the internet on that device and keep the app runnning in the background). Points will be granted by the 7th of the following month.

What types of data are collected?

YouGov Pulse is a project to help understand how people use the internet - what websites they visit, and which apps they use. We collect what websites and apps you go to, and what devices you use to visit them. Nothing else, and never any data that you input into secure forms whilst browsing (such as usernames, passwords or online transactions). All data will be analysed on an aggregated level only.

Do I need to leave my phone / tablet / computer on?

You should leave the app running in the background on your devices. Please do not stop the app when viewing your running applications list.

Will the App or the VPN use my data allowance?

The application will send a tiny amount of data each day over the internet, so you won’t notice an impact on your data allowance.

Although this is only a small amount, we recommend you have a data plan on your phone, or connect to WiFi whenever possible, or your network provider may charge you.

If you check your data allowance on your phone, you may see data being used by the VPN. The app utilizes a VPN (Virtual Private Network) for us to be able to see which Apps are being used while you are a member of YouGov Pulse. When apps are used, and the VPN is enabled, the data usage is attributed to the YouGov Pulse App / VPN instead of the App actually in use. The VPN is not actually using any data, it is the app in use that is generating this data.
Take the following example:

  1. You install the YouGov Pulse App and VPN
  2. You then use your device to watch 2GB of videos on YouTube
  3. If you then look at the data usage stats, the 2GB data will show as being generated by the VPN and not the app that originally generated the request (in this case, YouTube)

Will it use up my battery?

The YouGov Pulse App may have a small effect on your smartphone / tablet battery life.

To monitor and manage your battery usage

  • On Android go to Settings > Battery (on some devices go to Settings > Device/Power > Battery)
  • On iPhone go to Settings > Battery

How do I install the YouGov Pulse App?

Please refer to the installation manual for your device (see below). Please note that it's important to closely follow the manual to properly install the YouGov Pulse App.

How do I install the YouGov Pulse extension or add-on for my browser?

Please refer to the installation manual for Windows below. 

I can't find the App in the Google Play Store/App Store.

Please use the installation link provided in the initial email sent by YouGov after you have joined YouGov Pulse. This will ensure an easy and smooth installation. If you can't find your individual installation link, please get in contact with our support team.

How will I know if the app on my phone / tablet / computer is working?

  • On Android phones, you will see a small application icon in the notification area of the screen, which indicates the application is running
  • On iPhone, you will see the application listed with your other open apps if you double-tap the home key
  • On Windows computers, you will see a round green icon in the system tray
  • For Apple/Mac computers, if you leave the App running after install, it will run in the background

If you do not see the App running by either of these methods, re-open the App and keep it running in the background. 

The app won’t install on my iPhone or iPad – why is the app ‘Untrusted’?

After downloading the app, you will be presented with a screen which says the app is ‘Untrusted’. Apple take security very seriously (as do we). The reason for this is that the YouGov Pulse App is collecting information about you, and Apple wants to make sure you are the one to give permission for this, and not them doing so on your behalf.

To give permission to ‘Trust’ the YouGov Pulse App: 

  1. Go into 'Settings' and open 'General'.
  2. Next, scroll down and select 'Profile'.
  3. Select 'REALITYMINE LIMITED'
  4. Choose 'Trust REALITYMINE LIMITED'.

If you try to open the YouGovPulse app without following the steps above, the app will open to its first screen and fail to launch – please note: it will not display an error message informing you of this.

Once the app has been verified, it must be manually opened (tap the app icon) to resume running. It will not automatically start. Please follow the full  installation manual for further steps: https://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/r/53/YouGovPulse_iOS_Installation_Manual.pdf

I’m being asked to install a ‘Certificate’?

You may be asked to install an additional certificate on your device. This is to allow the VPN (Virtual Private Network) to work correctly. The app utilizes a VPN in order for us to see which Apps are being used during the study.

You’ll know if you need to follow this step as you will see a warning in your notifications with ‘Install Certificate’ next to it. Installing the certificate is easy, just follow the on-screen prompts after clicking the notification. Please note that you will need to set a lock screen on your device as part of installing the certificate. You can turn this off at the end of the study once you have removed the certificate.

  1. Give the certificate a name, the default is fine, then press ‘OK’
  2. Follow the prompts to set either a PIN or a pattern for your lock screen. Remember that PIN or pattern! you’ll need it when you want to unlock your device.
  3. You’ll now see a small pop-up on screen letting you know the certificate has been installed.

Please refer to the full  installation manual for further steps: https://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/r/53/YouGovPulse_iOS_Installation_Manual.pdf

I am getting the error “Cannot Verify Server Identity” on my iPhone or iPad.

Due to new security measures introduced by Apple with iOS 10.3, combined with the YouGov Pulse App using an SSL VPN – a specific SSL certificate must be explicitly trusted if this is the first time such a certificate has been added to the device.
If you attempt to use the device without first trusting the certificate, it will produce the verification error you may have seen, “Cannot Verify Server Identity”. You need to follow the below steps to resolve this:

  1. Go to the ‘Settings’ on your device, then into the ‘General’ section.
  2. Go into the ‘About’ section.
  3. Under ‘About’, navigate into ‘Certificate Trust Settings’
  4. Toggle the slider onto the RealityMine Certificate.
  5. Accept the warning prompt that appears by clicking ‘Continue’.
  6. The process is complete when the slider shows green.

How will I know if the VPN is working?

On an iPhone, you will see a small rectangle with the text ‘VPN’ at the top of the screen when using the internet. If you don’t see this, try locking and unlocking your phone and drag the notification bar down to see the full list of icons.

On an Android phone, you will see an icon within the notification bar of the device after you have accepted the credentials as being trusted.

Laptops / computers do not need the VPN to run so you will not be prompted to install one.

Some of my apps don’t work when I have the VPN connected.

If you experience this, please contact us and let us know which Apps are affected. We are continually monitoring our VPN, so your feedback will be a great help in improving everyone’s experience.

Our support team can be reached through this web-form: https://yougov.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

How do I check which version of iPhone I have?

To check your version of iPhone iOS:

  1. Open the Settings app
  2. Tap ‘General’
  3. Tap ‘About’
  4. Scroll down and look for ‘Version’

We currently support iOS versions 9 and above.

How do I check the version of Android on my phone?

  1. Start from your home screen 
  2. Tap Menu
  3. Tap Settings (or find settings in your app drawer/dock)
  4. Tap About Phone (scroll all the way down, it’s the last option).

We currently support Android versions 5 and above.

What if I change my device during the study?

If you purchase a new device and want to continue participating, please contact us and a download link for your new device will be provided. You can also use the link in the initial email you received after joining YouGov Pulse to install the App on your new device.

The installation link can be found in the email initially sent from YouGov after joining YouGov Pulse. If you can no longer find the email, let us know and we can provide the URL again. This link will not expire.

I can't remember the PIN.

The YouGov Pulse App does not require a PIN or password.

During the installation of the app, a VPN (virtual private network) is set up on your device. For security reasons, a PIN is required to lock your screen when your device is in use. This is a requirement by both iOS and Android. If you have not set up a display lock PIN before, you are being asked to provide a PIN. This is not your SIM PIN (e.g. the PIN used to unlock your SIM card, usually provided by your mobile phone operator, and only required after you turn on your phone).

I receive a notification that I need to re-open the YouGov Pulse app.

To ensure you are credited your points for being part of the YouGov Pulse project, please make sure to always run the YouGov Pulse app in the background. To remind you that the app stays open at all times, you receive a notification after you have accidentally closed the app or haven't opened in for some time. Please just re-open the app and the notification will disappear.

Where can I check what devices are active?

To receive your points, you need to keep the YouGov Pulse app running in the background, and also actively used the device. To check whether the connection to YouGov is established, please click/tap on "Information" on the App's main menu. The "Last upload" data should be within the last couple of hours, if your device is currently connected. Please make sure that the VPN is running on your device.

Perform this check on all devices you have installed the App on and that you are actively using.

Can I pause the App?

Yes. You can pause the app on both Android and Windows PC (iOS/Apple will follow soon).

For Windows PC:

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Find the “Privacy Mode” option
  3. Select a time period (between 15 minutes to 180 minutes)
  4. Click the “Turn On” button

For Android mobile:

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Find the “Privacy Mode” option
  3. Click the “Turn On” button
  4. Select a time period (between 15 minutes to 180 minutes)
  5. Click the “Set” button

How do I uninstall the App?

Please refer to the uninstallation manual for your device: