Exit Interview Form Template

Departing employees hold the most honest feedback your company will ever receive — and most of it is never collected. This exit interview form captures reasons for leaving, what they valued, what they'd change, and whether they'd recommend you as an employer. Insights that prevent the next resignation often come from the last one.

Use this template

Last updated 21 August 2026

Fields in this template

Full Name
Job Titlerequired
Departmentrequired
Last Day of Employmentrequired
Length of Employment
Primary Reason for Leavingrequired
Better compensation at another company · Career advancement opportunity · Work-life balance or burnout · Relocation · Returning to education · Company culture or management issues · Role not as described or expected · Personal or family reasons · Layoff or position eliminated · Retirement · Other
Please elaborate on your reason for leaving
Overall, how satisfied were you in your role?required
Very Satisfied · Satisfied · Neutral · Dissatisfied · Very Dissatisfied
What did you value most about working here?required
What would you change about the role, team, or company?
Would you consider returning to work here in the future?
Yes, definitely · Possibly · Unlikely · No
Would you recommend us as an employer to friends or colleagues?
Yes, definitely · Probably · Probably not · No
Any final comments or advice for leadership?

Who uses this template

HR managers and HR business partnersSmall business ownersPeople operations teamsDepartment managersStartup foundersOperations directorsOffice managers

About this template

Exit interview data is some of the most valuable and underused information in HR. When employees leave, the social pressure to be diplomatic fades — people who wouldn't say a negative word in a performance review will be candid in an exit interview, especially if it's written and confidential. That candor is exactly what organizations need to understand why people leave and what would have made them stay.

This template is designed around the questions that produce actionable insights. The primary reason for leaving dropdown identifies trend data — if 'better compensation at another company' appears in 60% of exit interviews, that's a compensation strategy conversation. The 'what would you change' free-text field is where the most specific and surprising feedback surfaces, which is why its placeholder explicitly encourages specificity. The employer recommendation and likelihood to return questions give you leading indicators of your employer brand health.

Making the name field optional is a deliberate design choice. Anonymous exit interviews get more honest responses. Some HR teams prefer identified responses so they can follow up — in that case, simply make it required. formformform gives you all submissions in one place, exportable for trend analysis across cohorts and over time.

What's included

Primary reason for leaving dropdown with 11 common reasons

Open-ended elaboration field for context

Overall satisfaction rating for the role

What they valued most and what they'd change fields

Likelihood to return and employer recommendation questions

Optional anonymous submission (name field is optional)

All responses stored in your HR dashboard

Free with unlimited submissions

How to create an exit interview form

1
Click 'Use this template' to open the exit interview form in formformform.
2
Decide whether to make the name field required or optional — optional produces more candid responses, required allows follow-up conversations.
3
Customize the 'Reason for Leaving' dropdown to reflect patterns you're already seeing in your org, or add company-specific options like 'Acquired by another company' or 'Contract end'.
4
Update the intro paragraph to reinforce confidentiality and explain how the feedback will be used.
5
Set your HR team's email as the notification recipient.
6
Share the form link with departing employees at or before their last week — ideally framed as a 15-minute investment that genuinely helps the colleagues they're leaving behind.

Best practices for your exit interview form

Send before the last day, not on it

employees are distracted and rushed on their final day. Send the exit interview link during their notice period when they still have headspace to give thoughtful responses.

Emphasize confidentiality

employees are more candid when they trust their feedback won't be shared with their manager or used against a reference check. State your confidentiality policy explicitly in the form intro.

Analyze trends, not individual responses

a single exit interview is interesting; 20 exit interviews from the same department are actionable. Aggregate and review quarterly.

Act visibly on what you hear

if multiple departing employees cite the same issue and you fix it, tell remaining employees. 'Based on feedback from exit interviews, we changed X' builds trust in the process.

Track reasons by department

a company-wide attrition reason might mask a department-level problem. Export your data and filter by department to identify hotspots.

Compare to stay interviews

the best retention tool is a stay interview: asking current employees what would make them leave. Exit interview themes make excellent stay interview prompts.

Frequently asked questions

Is this exit interview form template free?

Yes, completely free. You can collect unlimited exit interview submissions with no subscription required.

Should exit interviews be anonymous?

It depends on your culture and goals. Anonymous exit interviews produce more candid responses, especially about management issues. Identified ones allow follow-up conversations. This template makes the name field optional — you can make it required if your process calls for identified responses.

When should I send the exit interview form?

Send it during the employee's notice period — ideally within the first week after they give notice, while they still have time to reflect thoughtfully. Avoid sending it on their last day when they're distracted and eager to move on.

Who should have access to exit interview responses?

Typically HR leadership and senior management — not the departing employee's direct manager, especially if management issues are a common reason for leaving. Configure dashboard access and notification email accordingly.

How do I track exit interview trends over time?

Export all submissions from your formformform dashboard as a CSV. Filter by the 'Primary Reason for Leaving' column to identify the most common reasons, and compare quarterly to see whether retention initiatives are having an effect.

Can I use this form for contractor or freelancer offboarding as well?

Yes. The form works for any departure — adjust the wording of the intro and any fields to fit the context, and rename 'Last Day of Employment' to 'Last Day of Engagement' if appropriate.