The Time Compare feature in BlockSurvey Analytics allows you to compare survey responses across different time periods side-by-side. This is useful for tracking how respondent sentiment, preferences, or feedback change over weeks, months, quarters, or custom date ranges.
Use case: You run a recurring customer satisfaction survey. With Time Compare, you can instantly see how satisfaction scores in Q1 differ from Q2, or compare month-over-month trends without manually filtering and re-filtering your data.
How It Works
Time Compare is available under the Response Analytics tab within the Analytics section of your survey. When you activate it, BlockSurvey splits your survey responses into the time periods you define and generates a Compare Data Report showing the results for each period sequentially.
You can choose from four preset comparison modes:
Preset
| What It Does
|
Quarters
| Compare responses across Q1 (Jan–Mar), Q2 (Apr–Jun), Q3 (Jul–Sep), and Q4 (Oct–Dec) for a selected year.
|
Months
| Compare responses across individual months (Jan through Dec) for a selected year.
|
Year over Year
| Compare full calendar years (Jan 1 – Dec 31) against each other.
|
Custom
| Define your own labeled time periods with specific start and end dates. You can add multiple custom periods.
|
Pre-requisites:
You must have an active survey with collected responses.
Your survey must have responses spread across multiple time periods for the comparison to be meaningful.
You need access to the Analytics section of your survey (available on supported plans).
Step-by-Step Setup
Step 1: Navigate to Response Analytics
Open your survey in BlockSurvey.
Click on the 5. Analytics tab in the top navigation bar.
Select the Response Analytics sub-tab.
You will see the analytics toolbar with options including Last 30 days, Qualified Responses, Filter & Group By, Compare, Sort, and More.
Step 2: Open the Compare Dialog
Click the Compare button in the analytics toolbar.
A dialog box will open with two tabs: Compare By and Time Compare.
Click on the Time Compare tab.
Step 3: Configure Time Periods
Under the Configure Time Periods section, choose your preferred comparison preset from the Preset dropdown.
Option A: Quarters
Select Quarters from the Preset dropdown.
Choose the Year you want to compare (e.g., 2026).
Select the quarters you want to include: Q1 (Jan–Mar), Q2 (Apr–Jun), Q3 (Jul–Sep), Q4 (Oct–Dec). You can select one or more quarters.
Click Apply.
Option B: Months
Select Months from the Preset dropdown.
Choose the Year.
Select the months you want to compare (Jan through Dec). You can select multiple months.
Click Apply.
Option C: Year over Year
Select Year over Year from the Preset dropdown.
Select the years you want to compare. Each selected year will be compared across its full calendar year (Jan 1 – Dec 31).
Click Apply.
Option D: Custom
Select Custom from the Preset dropdown.
Enter a Label for your first time period (e.g., "Pre-launch", "Post-campaign").
Set the From and To date range for the period.
Click + Add Period to add additional custom time periods for comparison.
Click Apply.
How It Behaves After Applying
Once you click Apply, the following happens:
A filter chip appears below the toolbar showing Time Compare (N periods), where N is the number of time periods you selected.
The page displays a Compare Data Report that shows your survey results broken down by each time period.
Each time period is displayed as a separate section (e.g., "Online shopping experience survey – Q1 2026"), with all questions and their response data shown for that specific period.
A download button is available at the top right of the Compare Data Report section, allowing you to export the comparison data.
Tip: You can combine Time Compare with other filters like Qualified Responses, Filter & Group By, and Sort to further refine your comparison analysis.
Removing the Time Comparison
To remove the time comparison and return to the standard analytics view:
Locate the Time Compare (N periods) filter chip below the toolbar.
Click the × (close) icon on the chip.
The page will reload and display all responses without time-based segmentation.