# Knowledge base vs sources

ResponseHub answers from two kinds of material, and which ones it can use depends
on what is being answered.

| Answering a | Draws on |
|---|---|
| [Questionnaire item](/questionnaires/questionnaire-items/) | Knowledge base **and** sources |
| [RFP item](/rfps/what-are-rfps/) | Knowledge base **and** sources |
| [Knowledge base item](/knowledge-base/knowledge-base-items/) | Sources only |
| [Question asked from the home page](/home-page/asking-questions/) | Knowledge base **and** sources |

A knowledge base item cannot answer from the knowledge base, because it *is* the
knowledge base — sources are all it has to work from.

## Knowledge base items come first

Where both are available and relevant, ResponseHub prefers a knowledge base item
over a passage from a source.

The reason is intent. A [knowledge base item](/knowledge-base/knowledge-base-items/)
is an answer: someone decided how this question should be answered, wrote it, and
approved it. A source is a policy document — evidence that supports an answer,
but not written to be one.

So the knowledge base is the higher-intent material, and drawing on it first is
what keeps your answers consistent with what you have already decided to say.

**This is why building the knowledge base pays off:** Every approved answer you add shifts the balance. A thin knowledge base means
most answers are assembled from policy text each time; a rich one means the same
questions come back answered the way you settled on. See
[updating the knowledge base after a questionnaire](/questionnaires/updating-kb-after-questionnaire/).

## Next steps

- [References](/how-questions-are-answered/references/) — what sits behind an answer
- [Verbatim answers](/how-questions-are-answered/verbatim/)