Springer Nature conducted the second iteration of a survey run in 2020 that focuses on the experiences of postdoctoral researchers, as this audience has been described as ‘the neglected part of the scientific workforce’. Research agency Shift conducted a review of the questions from the 2020 survey and 10 cognitive interviews to inform the wording of new questions and the rewording of previous questions where necessary. A survey was launched in 3 languages in June 2023. We received 6,571 responses, of which 3,838 were useable as the final sample.