Create participant quotas for balanced study recruiting every time

Manage participant quotas to ensure you recruit a perfectly balanced mix of users. Set limits, track progress, and close screeners when targets are met.

Pool Participant Tags Consent Usage data Date added Albert Flores Main Opted-In App +2 NDA Heavy user Today, 12AM Mia Chen Main Opted-In App NDA Light user Yesterday, 3PM Liam O'Connor Opted-In Cool Recording Moderate user Today, 10AM Sofia Patel Main App NDA Heavy user Today, 1PM Noah Johnson Main Opted-In App NDA Moderate user Yesterday, 5PM Isabella Martinez Main Opted-In App NDA Light user Today, 11AM Ethan Smith Main Opted-In App NDA Heavy user Today, 9AM Your participant pool 6,554,321 🇪🇺 3/7 EU participants 1 Location 8 Participants 🇺🇸 2/8 US participants 1 Location 6 Participants

Used by great teams at:

Intuit
Cisco
Meta
AirBnB
California Department of Technology
eBay
YouTube
Toyota

Filter and view quotas right from your study calendar

Select the perfect participants as you quickly fill up your quotas during scheduling

  • Study sidebar in calendar view shows quotas
  • Individual times show participants with quotas
  • Oversample quotas if needed to complete your study
Potential participants 4 1:1 Interview Apr 03, 2026 9:30 AM Local Time: Apr 03, 2026 9:30AM Javier Bardem javier@gmail.com 🇪🇺 EU 0/7 Confirm Odessa A'zion odessa@gmail.com 🇺🇸 US 0/6 Confirm

Track quotas in study progress

Ethnio automatically monitors your progress as participants move from scheduled to completed, updating your visual progress bars at every step. This allows you to track quotas for specific segments and ensures your study stays perfectly on target.

Track quotas in study progress

Powerful quota management features

Everything you need to recruit the perfect participant mix for your research studies.

Set custom quotas

Define precise participant quotas based on demographics, behaviors, or any custom criteria. Set limits per segment to ensure balanced representation.

Real-time tracking

Monitor quota progress in real-time with visual dashboards. See exactly how many participants you need in each segment at a glance.

Auto-close studies with limiters

You can create an automatic shut-off limit by using the limiter for any Ethnio intercept or screener link so that after you get a certain number of responses, it will turn off.

Multiple simultaneous quotas

Manage multiple quota segments simultaneously. Perfect for complex studies requiring specific mixes of user types.

Manage quota overlap

Ensure participants only count toward one quota segment. Intelligent logic prevents double-counting and maintains data integrity.

Flexible configuration

Adjust quotas on the fly as your research needs evolve. Update limits, add segments, or modify criteria without starting over.

How quotas work

Quotas are soft targets for numbers of participants from different demographics, audience segments, or anything that divides your target research audience into separate cohorts.

  1. Define your segments

    Set up quotas from Responses > Quotas in your Ethnio study

  2. Set quota limits

    Assign a maximum number of participants to each segment

  3. Launch your screener

    Activate your screener and watch as participants are automatically sorted into quota segments

  4. Track progress

    See which segments are filling up and which need more participants

Ethnio quotas
See our help article for more information
Customer logo

“Nava has used Ethnio with much success–it's fully i18n-friendly, Section 508, WCAG 2.0 (AA), GDPR and CCPA-compliant.”

Customer photo
Andrew Cochran
Senior Designer, Nava

Quota lot of conditions (get it?)

Ethnio quotas work with virtually any participant attribute. Mix and match conditions to create the perfect recruitment quotas for your research studies.

Screening responses

This is the most common type of condition, and can include multiple answers or a single answer

External variables

These could be from your product data, intercept data, or API integration with Ethnio

Geographic location

Target participants by city, region, or country. Perfect for location-specific research

Pool tags

Automatically qualify (or disqualify) panel members based on screener responses, or review potential panelists manually.

Multiple conditions

Each quota can have up to 3 conditions for perfect recruitment criteria

Completed vs confirmed

You can decide if you would like to have the quota based on completed participants or confirmed participants.

Security & compliance

We know how seriously you treat your customer data. That’s why security is built into Ethnio from the ground up—with the certifications to back it up.

More about security

GDPR

Robust data encryption and granular access controls to ensure compliance with EU data protection regulations and safeguard the privacy of EU citizens.

HIPAA

Ethnio’s security and privacy standards meet the highest tier for research software, including every component required for HIPAA compliance.

CCPA

Ethnio is fully compliant with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), a new California privacy law, where applicable.

SSO

We support SSO via SAML 2.0 to manage vendor access for all your employees.

Swiss & Canadian data protection policy compliance

Full compliance with CPPA in Canada, FADP in Switzerland, and other international data frameworks.

Frequently asked questions

Absolutely. Ethnio’s panel management software is engineered to support small and large-scale research operations and diverse panel requirements. It is built to manage growth in data and user activity, meeting the ongoing needs of large teams overseeing hundreds of studies and extensive participant pools.

Our panel management solution features advanced performance management and team-based workflows, optimizing collaboration across research projects. You can ensure precise segmentation and dynamic updates with customization options, including tailored intercepts and screeners across 30+ targeting variables. Integration with essential tools like Zoom, Outlook, and Google Calendar streamlines research processes, boosting operational efficiency across large teams.

Additionally, Ethnio supports various panel types—general, specialized, and ad-hoc—ensuring that your panels remain current and relevant for targeted recruitment strategies and research at scale.

Absolutely. Our user research CRM integrates with the tools research teams rely on, including Outlook, Google Calendar, DocuSign, Zoom, and Slack. Additionally, our powerful API and webhooks enable seamless two-way data sync with any CRM.

Data handling is streamlined through automatic import/export with CSV and Google Sheets, reducing manual entry and enhancing accuracy. For privacy and compliance, integrations with tools like Transcend automate GDPR and CCPA processes, including user opt-outs based on their email address and data erasure (DSRs).

You can find the full list of integrations here

Ethnio also integrates with visitor management systems (VMS) to send participant consent and approval to front desk check-ins, streamlining the research process and reducing manual admin tasks.

Discuss VMS integration on an Enterprise call

We also offer support for custom integrations. Simply reach out, and our dedicated support team, supported by detailed developer documentation, will assist you. By connecting your preferred tools to your participant database, you can maintain your favorite methodologies and tools with your own real users, ensuring minimal disruption to your existing workflows and a seamless integration into your research stack.

At Ethnio, protecting your data is our top priority. We implement robust security measures to protect participant data, including advanced encryption for data in transit and at rest, SOC 2 certifications, and adherence to major data protection regulations like GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA.

Customer data is stored in AWS US West (Oregon), a SOC 2 Type 2 accredited data center, and we have achieved SOC 2 Type 1 certification from A-LIGN. Regular security audits and detailed documentation on data breach response protocols further ensure that your sensitive data is protected.

To prevent unauthorized access, we support two-factor authentication (2FA).

Conduct research with confidence, knowing that your data is securely protected. For additional details on our security practices and compliance features, please visit Ethnio Security.

Ethnio centralizes your entire recruitment process into a single, easy-to-use platform. Gain complete control over every stage—from participant recruitment and onboarding to incentive distribution—eliminating the need for multiple systems and third-party platforms.

Import participant data from various sources, including global opt-in pages, recruiting agencies, marketing databases, customer opt-in pages, and tools like Qualtrics and Salesforce. Ethnio supports participant lists in multiple formats, such as CSV and Google Sheets, allowing for dynamic filters and segments to target participants based on custom attributes, survey results, and engagement history.

Onboarding is streamlined with customizable workflows for registration, consent collection, and initial engagement for smooth integration of new participants. Incentive management is flexible, with options for monetary compensation, gift cards, and other payment methods tailored to participant preferences and study needs.

Additionally, features like opt-out management and participant history tracking ensure compliance, helping you adhere to data protection regulations while managing the recruitment process end‑to‑end.

We understand that a successful transition involves more than just features. We’re here to support you throughout the implementation process and beyond, ensuring you fully leverage the platform to run research at scale. From the start, our team provides personalized one-on-one onboarding to facilitate a seamless setup. Our training sessions and resources equip your team with the knowledge needed to maximize Ethnio's capabilities. Once operational, you’ll have access to extensive support documentation and a dedicated customer success team ready to assist with any technical issues or best practices.

Achieve diversity with Ethnio quotas

Research Operations teams and UX Researchers know that intercepts drive massive gains in efficiency and quality of participant recruiting. Sign up for a live demo to see how Ethnio intercepts can transform the way your team streamlines workflows and scales impact.

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