> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.listenlabs.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quotas

> Use recruitment quotas to balance your participant sample and control who gets in

Quotas are an advanced tool for keeping your respondent mix balanced. Once a quota is full, Listen automatically screens out any additional candidates who fall into that segment.

Most studies do **not** need quotas. Natural fallout after the screener usually mirrors your target audience. Reach for quotas only when you have clear goals such as “ ≥ 20 % paid users” or “ ≤ 50 % companies under \$1 B.”

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**How Quotas Work**: After a respondent answers screener questions, the platform checks whether admitting them would satisfy or violate your quotas. If they satisfy all requirements, they're let in — otherwise they're rejected. Think of quotas as a soft extension of the screener.

**Quota Types**:

* **Maximum**: "At most X participants from this segment." Once the cap is reached, further candidates from that group are screened out.
* **Minimum**: "At least X from this segment." When admitting a non-qualifying respondent would make the minimum impossible to reach, they're rejected.
* **Exact**: Combines a minimum and maximum. Use only when the split is essential, as it increases screen-outs.

**Absolute vs. Relative Quotas**:

* **Absolute**: Fixed numbers (e.g., exactly 15 paid users)
* **Relative**: Percentages (e.g., 30%). The platform translates the percentage to an absolute figure based on your response limit — and scales automatically if you raise the limit later

### Pro Tips

* **Use maximum quotas when in doubt**: They're easier to understand and lead to fewer screen-outs than minimum quotas
* **For multi-select questions**: Minimum quotas can be useful to ensure coverage of all answer options
* **Advanced segments with min-quotas**: If combining multiple questions or URL parameters in an advanced quota, either use max quotas, or make sure correlated segments are in the same group
* **If your study keeps pausing**: Go to the Responses tab, filter for "Screened out responses," and check the "Screen out reason" column to diagnose which quota is causing the issue

### Quick Reference

| Quota Type  | When to Use                                       | Effect                                     |
| ----------- | ------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------ |
| **Maximum** | Cap a segment (e.g., "≤ 30% under 25")            | Screens out once cap is reached            |
| **Minimum** | Ensure coverage (e.g., "≥ 10 ChatGPT users")      | Screens non-qualifiers when min is at risk |
| **Exact**   | Require a precise split (e.g., exactly 50% women) | Highest screen-out rate — use sparingly    |

***

## How to Set Up Quotas in Listen

### Step 1: Write Screener Questions First

Quotas reference screener question answers (or URL parameters). Before setting up quotas:

1. Write your screener questions with clear answer options
2. Each answer option will become a potential quota segment
3. Learn more about [setting up screener questions](/setup-to-launch/screener-questions)

### Step 2: Set the Total Response Limit

1. Navigate to the **Quotas** tab in your study
2. Set your **Total Response Limit** (e.g., 50 completes) — this is required before adding quotas
3. This is the maximum number of completed responses your study will accept

### Step 3: Add a Quota

1. Click **Add a quota** (or **Advanced Configuration** for multi-question segments)
2. Choose the screener question (or URL parameter) you want to quota on
3. Define segments — the answer options that form each group
4. Select a rule: **Minimum**, **Maximum**, or **Exact**
5. Set the count or percentage for each segment

**Example — Maximum quota:** "At most 10 participants under 25 years old." Once 10 completes are in that age band, further under-25 candidates are screened out.

**Example — Minimum quota:** "At least 10 ChatGPT users." When admitting a non-ChatGPT user would make the minimum impossible to reach, they are screened out.

### Step 4: Advanced Quota Configuration

For quotas based on a combination of multiple questions or URL parameters:

1. Click **Advanced Configuration** at the bottom of the Quotas tab
2. Build segment combinations (e.g., "male & married", "female & single")
3. Use **maximum quotas** when combining multiple attributes — minimum quotas won't work as expected for complex combinations

### Step 5: Debugging a Paused Study

If your study pauses automatically, it's usually because:

1. **Response limit reached**: The study is full
2. **Too many screen-outs**: 100 consecutive screen-out responses
3. **Low incidence rate**: Less than 10% of responses qualify

**To diagnose:**

1. Go to the **Responses tab**
2. Clear the "complete" filter
3. Switch to "Screened out responses" on the left
4. Check the "Screen out reason" column

**To fix:**

* **If screener rejection is too high:** review and relax screening criteria, or contact support for a custom recruitment quote
* **If quota limits are causing rejections:** loosen quotas on less important segments, or update recruitment filters to match current quota needs (e.g., if your 65+ quota is full, set age filter in recruitment to ≤65)

***

**Anything missing?** Let us know at [support@listenlabs.ai](mailto:support@listenlabs.ai) and we'll help you out!