Google Forms is the internet’s favorite free form builder, and with good reason. You can do a lot with it. But that doesn’t mean it’s the only form builder you should consider.
Some new form builders are making the process easier to use in different ways, like Tally, which works like a Doc, or NueForm, which makes it easy to create “slide forms” that display one question at a time. Also, Google Forms restricts you to the world of Google apps, while HeyForm connects with other apps. And then there are Formester and FormJelly, who want to make it easy for beginners to create a form in no time.
one. Bill (Web): Keyboard-friendly form builder, works like a document
Tally is growing in popularity as one of the best free online form builders for its ease of use and keyboard friendly nature. It’s especially good if you’re creating forms that require recipients to type long responses.
You can start building a form without signing up to try Tally quickly. It looks like a simple blank Doc file. Use your keyboard to press Get into to add lines and press / to see all the options you can insert on any line.
Tally input blocks include Questions, Short Answers, Long Answers, Multiple Choice, Checkboxes, Numbers, Emails, Phone Numbers, Links, Date and Time, Dropdown, File Upload, Checkout, Rating, Linear Scale and signature. You can also combine them to get more complex responses from your recipients. Tally also allows if-then conditional logic to set which questions to ask based on the recipient’s previous answers.
The web application allows you to customize the form in several ways. For example, you can add multiple pages and customize the layout through header blocks, custom fonts, tags, images, videos, audio files, or embedded elements. You can also add a custom logo and cover image for branding.
The free version of Tally allows all of this with no real limits, plus Tally branding and a maximum size of 10MB for uploaded files. In the paid version, you can remove tally branding, create custom domains, collaborate with teammates, create group workspaces, add custom CSS, and capture partially submitted forms.
2. NewForm (Web): The easiest form builder, especially for slide-based forms
If this is your first time building forms and you value simplicity and ease of use, go for NueForm. It’s remarkably accessible for beginners, but it lacks some advanced features like conditional logic or custom logos.
Once you sign up, NueForm asks you to choose between three types of forms: simple one-page forms, classic multi-page forms with sections, or slide forms that show the user one question at a time. The developer points out that the app was created because other form builders don’t allow you to easily create such “slide forms”. You can also use one of the template forms to get started quickly, with options for a feedback form, questionnaire, contact information, RSVP, and job application.
In the form, you can add a title for each section and a description. Each section can have multiple questions, and the answers can be short text, paragraph, multiple choice, checkbox, rating scale, and email address. There is a simple button on each question to mark it as a mandatory requirement or not. You can preview your form at any time, then publish it to share online with anyone.
3. Molder (Web): Free Drag and Drop Visual Form Builder
Formester has a fantastic drag and drop interface that makes it easy for anyone to create a form visually. Sign up and start the form builder. The left sidebar has all the elements you can insert into the main form in the middle, including headers, questions, personal information input boxes, single or multiple choice answers, scale or star rating, and more. The app even allows you to add a Recaptcha to deter bots. It is a visual, simple and WYSIWYG way to create a form.
In the right sidebar, you can further customize the look of each element and choose to make it a form that displays one question at a time. Formester also displays a visual flowchart of your questions to see the logic. On the Formester dashboard, you’ll see all submissions collected in one place, while the analytics page displays response rate and other statistics.
We especially liked some small but useful features in Formester. For example, it allows you to redirect users to a URL after they fill out the form, as well as send them automated emails. You can also receive email notifications about each shipment. Formester also integrates with APIs and is compatible with Zapier Connectors to easily export your data.
The free version of Formester allows up to 100 submissions per month, does not allow you to upload files, and includes Formester branding on the form. The paid version removes these limitations.
4. helloshape (Web): Collect shipping data automatically in Sheets, Slack, or any app
While creating a form should be easy, it’s just as important that the data collected from submissions be easy to manage. HeyForm integrates with a variety of applications to use form data in various ways without tying you to the HeyForm control panel.
It currently supports email, Telegram, Slack, and Lark to receive notifications about any submission. If you want to organize your data in a spreadsheet or database, you can connect HeyForm with Google Sheets, Airtable, Monday, Hubspot CRM, and SupportPal. Any uploaded video or file can be automatically transferred to a Google Drive or Dropbox folder. You can get information about your responders by connecting it to Google Analytics or Facebook Pixel. And it also supports Webhook, Zapier and Integromat for other needs.
Creating the form is also a simple process. Each question is like its own PowerPoint slide, and you can set the answer type, layout, and conditional logic using a simple interface in the right sidebar. HeyForm gets high marks for how good it looks, but it’s not as customizable as Formester.
5. FormJelly (Web): Create simple forms quickly with free templates
One of the best features of Google Forms is the number of free templates to quickly get started with a new form. Templates help beginners create a form without doing most of the work, and it’s easier to edit an existing form to customize it to your needs than to start from scratch.
FormJelly is a great alternative to using Google Forms if you want to use templates. You can preview templates like 90-day review, address book, bakery order, camp or event registration, mailing list, post-event survey, potluck registration, webinar registration, teacher evaluation and vacation request. Select the template that best suits your needs and then edit it.
The form builder is quite simple and allows you to edit each element already included in the form, as well as add new blocks with a drag and drop mechanism from the sidebar. FormJelly has many other form templates as suggestions for inspiration as you create your forms.
The free version of FormJelly allows up to 100 entries and stores five forms at a time. You can unlock more forms and inputs, as well as integrations and custom URLs in paid versions of the app.
Should I upgrade to paid versions of these apps?
Apart from NueForm, all the other form builders in this article offer a free and premium version. In general, the free version has some common restrictions, such as the application branding being included in the form, no custom URLs, limited responses or submissions, etc.
These restrictions are usually sufficient for personal use forms such as RSVPs, quick surveys, or basic information gathering. Professional users may be tempted to purchase the premium version. While the apps are great, you should first check to see if one of your existing paid business apps doesn’t already offer these features. Microsoft, Zoho, Google, and several other office productivity suites offer their own form builders, which include many of the advanced features of the premium versions of these apps.