# Filters (https://terac.com/docs/researchers/recruitment/filters)

Target the right participants using demographic, geographic, and professional filters.

Filters determine which experts can see and apply to your opportunity. Only experts matching all of your filters will have the opportunity appear in their listing.

## How Filters Work [#how-filters-work]

Filters are applied before participants see your opportunity. They act as hard requirements: if an expert does not match, they never see the opportunity. This is different from screening questions, which are asked during the application flow.

Think of filters as "who can apply" and screening questions as "who qualifies among those who apply."

## Filter Categories [#filter-categories]

### Geographic [#geographic]

| Filter        | Type         | Description                               |
| ------------- | ------------ | ----------------------------------------- |
| Country       | Multi-select | Country of residence                      |
| Country of IP | Multi-select | Country detected from IP address          |
| State         | Multi-select | State or province (requires country)      |
| City          | Multi-select | City (requires country, optionally state) |

> Geographic filters cascade: state options depend on the selected country, and
> city options depend on the selected country and state.

### Demographic [#demographic]

| Filter             | Type          | Description                |
| ------------------ | ------------- | -------------------------- |
| Age                | Integer range | Minimum and maximum age    |
| Sex                | Select        | Biological sex             |
| Gender             | Multi-select  | Gender identity            |
| Language           | Multi-select  | Languages spoken           |
| Household Income   | Select        | Income bracket             |
| Level of Education | Select        | Highest education level    |
| Marital Status     | Select        | Relationship status        |
| Children           | Select        | Whether they have children |
| Home Owner         | Select        | Home ownership status      |

### Professional [#professional]

| Filter            | Type         | Description                           |
| ----------------- | ------------ | ------------------------------------- |
| Job Function      | Multi-select | Primary job area                      |
| Industry          | Multi-select | Industry sector                       |
| Seniority         | Select       | Career level                          |
| Company Size      | Select       | Employer size                         |
| Work Setting      | Select       | Remote, hybrid, or in-person          |
| Employment Status | Select       | Full-time, part-time, freelance, etc. |

### Participation History [#participation-history]

| Filter                    | Type      | Description                                                     |
| ------------------------- | --------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Has taken opportunity     | Reference | Only include experts who participated in a specific opportunity |
| Has not taken opportunity | Reference | Exclude experts who participated in a specific opportunity      |

## Checking Filter Reach [#checking-filter-reach]

Before launching your opportunity, you can see how many experts in the Terac panel match your filters. This helps you:

* Avoid overly narrow filter combinations that return few matches
* Estimate how long recruitment will take
* Decide whether to relax certain criteria

Filter match counts live on the **Feasibility** page in your organization. See [Feasibility & Coverage](https://terac.com/docs/researchers/recruitment/feasibility).

## Adjusting Filters After Launch [#adjusting-filters-after-launch]

You can update filters on an active opportunity. Changes take effect immediately:

* **Loosening filters** (removing criteria) exposes the opportunity to more experts
* **Tightening filters** (adding criteria) reduces the pool but does not affect participants who have already applied

## What's Next? [#whats-next]

- [Feasibility & Coverage](https://terac.com/docs/researchers/recruitment/feasibility): Check how many experts match your filters
- [Set Up Screening](https://terac.com/docs/researchers/opportunities/screening): Add qualification questions
- [API Filter Reference](https://terac.com/docs/developers/guides/filters): Programmatic filter configuration