Best Free Survey Tools 2026: 8 Options Compared

The word free in survey software usually means a response cap, so the right question is how many answers you need. Google Forms and Microsoft Forms are free with an account and have no response caps that the vendor pages state, which makes them the default for internal surveys and classroom polls, though design and logic are limited. SurveyMonkey's Basic plan shows only a limited number of responses per survey, and Typeform's free plan caps responses a month while giving better-looking one-question-at-a-time forms. Tally lists unlimited forms and submissions within fair usage guidelines, which is generous for a small business. Jotform's Starter plan has 5 active forms and 100 submissions a month. If you need serious research control and a data policy of your own, LimeSurvey has a free cloud package and a self-hosted Community Edition under GPL-2.0 or later, and Formbricks, AGPL-3.0, offers a Hobby plan with 250 responses a month plus self-hosting. For customer surveys, check that you can export raw data and that the free plan keeps the vendor's branding off. These eight options are free to start, and each entry lists the cap you will hit first.

Google Forms

Free with a Google account, with responses collected into Google Sheets. Simple logic and styling, and the free plan has limits, so check the pricing page.

Price: Free (Google Forms pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: Internal and classroom surveys.

Compare: Google Forms alternatives

Microsoft Forms

Free with a Microsoft account, though the official page was not readable. Not sold alone, and business use comes bundled with Microsoft 365.

Price: Free (Free with a Microsoft account (third-party reports; the official page was not readable)) (Microsoft Forms pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: Organisations on Microsoft 365.

Compare: Microsoft Forms alternatives

Tally

Free plan covers unlimited forms and submissions within fair usage guidelines, with a Notion-like editor. Pro is $24 a month.

Price: Free (Unlimited forms and submissions within Tally's fair usage guidelines); paid from $24 per month (Pro; yearly billing is advertised as 2 months off) (Tally pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: Small business forms and surveys.

Compare: Tally alternatives

Formbricks

AGPL-3.0 core with a Hobby plan of 1 workspace and 250 responses a month, or self-host. Pro is $74 a month for 2,000 responses.

Price: Free (Hobby plan: 1 workspace and 250 responses a month); paid from $74 per month (Pro, 3 workspaces and 2,000 responses; annual billing gives 2 months free) (Formbricks pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. AGPL-3.0 (core; enterprise features under a separate license) (open source).

Project activity: 13.2k GitHub stars · latest release 6.1.2 (Oct 27, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: In-product and customer feedback surveys.

LimeSurvey

GPL-2.0-or-later Community Edition is free to self-host; the cloud free package has limits, so check the pricing page. Expert cloud is $36 a month billed annually.

Price: Free (Free package on LimeSurvey Cloud (see the pricing page for limits); Community Edition is self-hosted); paid from $36 per month, billed annually (Expert; Basic is $39 billed monthly) (LimeSurvey pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. GPL-2.0 or later (open source).

Project activity: 3.8k GitHub stars · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: Research surveys with complex logic.

SurveyMonkey

Basic plan shows only a limited number of responses per survey. Team plans start at $30 per user a month for 3 or more users.

Price: Free (Basic plan shows only a limited number of responses per survey); paid from $30 per user/month, Team Advantage, minimum 3 users, billed annually (SurveyMonkey pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: Familiar survey templates.

Compare: SurveyMonkey alternatives

Typeform

Free plan with a limited number of responses a month. Basic is $28 a month billed yearly for 100 responses.

Price: Free (Free plan with a limited number of responses a month; the page gives no count); paid from $28 per month, billed yearly (Basic, 100 responses a month, 1 user; $39 billed monthly) (Typeform pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, iOS, Android. Proprietary.

Best for: Short, polished surveys.

Compare: Typeform alternatives

Jotform

Starter plan with 5 active forms, 100 submissions a month and 100 MB of uploads. Bronze is $34 a month billed annually.

Price: Free (Starter plan with 5 active forms, 100 submissions a month and 100 MB of upload space); paid from $34 per month, billed annually (Bronze; $39 billed monthly) (Jotform pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web, iOS, Android. Proprietary.

Best for: Forms that also take payments or uploads.

Compare: Jotform alternatives

Which one to pick

• You survey your own team at work: Google Forms
• You expect hundreds of responses on a budget: Tally
• You run academic research and need control: LimeSurvey
• You collect feedback inside a product: Formbricks