Margin of Error in Opinion Polls
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“Opinion Poll Margin of Error”
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Topic poll · all networksGallup beat the Literary Digest's 2.4M poll in 1936. How many did Gallup survey?
- ~3,000
- ~50,000
- ~500,000
- ~1,000,000
Guess, then reveal the answer
~50,000
Just 1,000 people can represent all of America in a poll!
National polls of 1,000–1,500 people yield a margin of error of just ±3 points at 95% confidence — math, not magic. Learn more at Wikipedia
Topic poll · all networksHow many people must a poll survey to achieve a ±3% margin of error?
- ~250 people
- ~1,000 people
- ~10,000 people
- ~100,000 people
Guess, then reveal the answer
~1,000 people
Just 1,000 people can represent a nation's opinion in polls!
A sample of ~1,000 gives a ±3% margin of error at 95% confidence — meaning a U.S. poll and a city poll use the same sample size. Learn more at Wikipedia
