“Adding audio” to a form means one of two things. Either the person answering listens to something, like a clip in a language quiz, or the person answering speaks and you get a recording back. Google Forms has a workaround for the first and a clumsy one for the second.

Play audio with a Google Drive link

This works for any audio file and keeps it next to the question it belongs to.

1. Upload the audio file (MP3, M4A or WAV) to Google Drive.
2. Right-click the file, choose Share, and set General access to Anyone with the link.
3. Copy the link.
4. In your form, open the question, click More (the three dots) and turn on Description.
5. Paste the link into the description, with a line like “Listen, then answer below.”

The link opens Drive's player in a new tab, so people switch tabs to listen. If the file stays private, anyone outside your organisation gets a “request access” page instead of the audio.

Play audio as a YouTube video

Google Forms can show a YouTube video on the form itself. It can't put a video inside a question, but it can place one just before or after it, which is close enough for a listening question.

1. Turn the audio into a video with a still image and upload it to YouTube. Set it to Unlisted if it shouldn't show up in search.
2. In your form, click Add video in the toolbar next to the questions.
3. Search for the video or paste its URL, then click Select.
4. Move the video so it sits right above the question.

This plays inside the form, with no tab switching. The catch is the extra step of making a video, and YouTube's player and suggestions around your clip.

Can people record an answer in Google Forms?

No. None of Google Forms' question types records audio. The closest is File upload: people record in a voice memo app on their phone or computer, then upload the file to the question.

• Answering a File upload question needs a Google sign-in.
• Uploads land in a new folder in the form owner's Google Drive.
• Forms stored in a shared drive can't use File upload.
• There's no transcript. You open and play each file to hear the answer.

Inside a school or a company where everyone already signs in to Google, this is workable. For clients and customers, it means a Google sign-in and a separate recording app before they can answer.

Collect spoken answers with a voice form

A voice form is built for answers out loud. SendMyVoice opens in any browser on a phone or laptop, records each answer on the page, and gives you the audio and a transcript of every answer, question by question. Nobody needs an account or an app to answer.

The free plan has 1 voice form with 3 questions and 10 answers a month, up to 1 minute per answer. If your team works in Google, Pro adds each set of answers to a Google Sheet as a row, or to a Google Doc.

Other form builders

Typeform takes audio answers on its Growth and Talent plans, up to 2 minutes each. Jotform has a free Voice Recorder widget for its own forms. Both are covered, with prices and limits, in the comparison of voice form tools.