If your workflow includes collecting a lot of information from clients, you’ve probably tried Google Forms already. Many individuals and organizations use it because it’s part of Google Workspace.
But it only takes a little bit of research to find there are better ways to gather client files and important information. Though Google Forms is affordable and easy to use, it also lacks many customization features and design functionalities.
In this post, you’ll see:
- A brief Google Forms overview
- The best Google Forms alternatives
- How to find the best Google Forms alternative for your business
Let’s dive in!
Note: Don’t want to read the whole article? Go straight to the list of alternatives.
Key takeaways:
- Google Forms is a great tool for simple use cases, but it doesn’t offer many features you’d expect from a top-level form builder.
- The best alternatives to Google Forms offer additional branding solutions, advanced customization features, and better data analytics.
- Content Snare is a superior data-gathering system for businesses working with clients who continuously deliver project-related content, files, and information.
Choose the Google Forms alternative that will WOW your clients.
Give your clients a better experience submitting information through Content Snare.
Google Forms: A brief overview
Google Forms is a popular online form builder that enables users to create surveys, quizzes, and feedback forms. With its easy-to-use interface, it makes an efficient platform for gathering information and feedback from individuals or groups.
The benefits of this software include the following:
- Google Forms is available for free, but it also offers affordable pricing plans
- The interface is simple and user-friendly
- It integrates with commonly used Google Workspace tools like Google Sheets
- It features conditional logic
But Google Forms has limitations that make it not so great for many users, especially those coming from the business sector. Companies eager to create advanced forms should pay attention to these details:
- It’s hard to customize content with Google Forms
- A complicated file upload solution
- The overall design isn’t eye-pleasing, to say the least
- There’s no option to collect payments via Google form
- The system makes it difficult to save progress
- Built-in templates are scarce and rudimentary
The best Google Forms alternatives in 2024
1. Content Snare
We don’t like bragging, but yes: our platform is one of the finest Google Forms alternatives you can find these days. Content Snare allows you to create forms and questionnaires that will impress clients with beautiful design and intuitiveness.
You can build forms in minutes using our readymade templates, but you can also tailor each template to add branding details or other visual elements. Automated reminders are the best thing about Content Snare — you’ll never have to send survey reminder emails again.
In addition, all responses are saved automatically. We must add that our platform has a standout rating of 4.9 out of 5 on Capterra. Here’s one review that explains Content Snare in a nutshell:
Source: Capterra
The only difference between Content Snare and Google Forms is that our tool is not made for bulk data collection. We don’t do surveys — the purpose of our platform is to send unique forms to a single recipient in order to streamline onboarding, collect content, gather files, or learn more about your client.
Give clients a better option with Content Snare
Make your clients’ lives easier with the best Google Forms alternative. Content Snare’s easy-to-use dashboard and form templates will impress clients and make your life easier.
2. Typeform
Typeform is perfect for short surveys and questionnaires. It offers more than 3,000 form templates, which can be a real time saver if you’re frequently creating new surveys in different fields. It has multiple layout options that help you optimize forms based on a given content.
On the downside, your options are limited if you’re hoping to personalize forms. That’s because Typeform does not allow custom HTML or CSS, so users wanting a more customizable option should look elsewhere.
In addition, longer surveys may not work as well — questions appear one at a time, making longer surveys somewhat tedious and laggy.
Source: Capterra
3. Jotform
Jotform has countless template options (well over 10 thousand) and it’s slightly more customizable than Typeform. However, that extra customizability comes with a significantly higher price tag.
The good thing is that Jotform has tiered payment plans, allowing you to choose the one that best fits your needs and budget. Many people prefer Jotform when primarily working in team settings, as the ability for any number of users to work on an individual form makes collaboration easy.
Similar to many other form builders, Jotforms often struggles with lengthier formats:
Source: Capterra
4. Paperform
Paperform has a powerful inline text editor and highly advanced customization options. It’s excellent for users looking to create unique and beautiful surveys and questionnaires. This tool is also more budget friendly than most Google Forms alternatives.
But unlike many alternatives, there is no free option available (and paid plans are rather expensive). In addition, many user reviews complain about Paperform’s poor customer support and online forms loading too slowly.
Source: Capterra
5. Microsoft Forms
Microsoft Forms is a survey and quiz application that comes as part of the Office 365 suite. In other words, it’s Microsoft’s response to Google Forms. This tool has an intuitive interface, which makes it easy to figure out the ins and outs. The biggest advantage of this platform are AI-powered smart recommendations that speed up the work.
On the other hand, complex branching and skip logic aren’t possible, while you can’t organize folders to suit your needs. Microsoft Forms also makes text editing options (colors, italics, bold fonts, and similar) pretty annoying as they are difficult to use.
Source: Capterra
How to find the best Google Forms alternatives
Before you choose an alternative to Google Forms, you want to make sure you’re picking the best alternative that solves some of the issues related to Google’s online surveys and forms platform. Find a platform with advanced features that will make your job easier.
Universal Access
Only users signed into a Google account are able to upload files in Google’s online forms. If you’re collecting information from a client whose preferred platform is Outlook, iCloud, or Yahoo, they’ll have to create a Google account before proceeding.
Most people like to keep all their work information stored in the same place, so you don’t want your clients to have to create an entirely separate account just to be able to work with you. A recent study estimated that less than half of email users use Gmail.
In the United States, only 42% of email addresses are Gmail accounts. In Germany, the percentage is even lower, with 22% of email addresses being Gmail accounts.
Depending on where your clients are located, Google may not be a very popular platform. It’s easier for both you and your clients to use a content collection platform that’s universally accessible, and not just for Google users.
Large capacity for file uploads
While Google Forms might be a convenient option if you’re creating simple contact forms to collect an email address or a phone number, it becomes a major hassle when uploading files.
For example, Google Forms places a limit of 10MB on the size of the files able to be sent per form per person. This 10MB limit makes it difficult to send nearly any type of video. Large photo galleries are likely to exceed that limit, as well. You may have to submit photos using multiple forms to avoid exceeding the limit.
Google also limits the number of files allowed to be sent per question, regardless of file size.
Users can’t send more than 10 files per question. If you work with clients who need to send a large number of files, they’ll have to tediously divide the files into groups of 10 and submit through different questions. This will give your company an unprofessional look.
The best Google Forms alternatives should have the ability to upload single large files and large numbers of files at once. Your job likely depends on your ability to collect info from your clients quickly and easily, so it’s important to make that process as simple as possible for them.
A sleek, modern look
To impress your clients, it’s important to show you are a modern company that stays up-to-date with the latest trends. Every communication you send to a client should have a sleek, modern aesthetic.
The aesthetic of Google Forms isn't terrible, but it also isn't incredible. With this platform, you won’t be sending the message that your company stands out from the crowd. On the contrary, you’ll send the message that your business doesn't care to keep up with the latest trends.
Google’s online forms platform looks fine, but it certainly doesn’t wow people. The best Google Forms alternative will show your clients you’re committed to quality by sending them something beautiful.
Auto-save feature
Any Google Forms alternative should have the ability to auto-save. Form builder platforms that require users to find the save button create a huge hassle for everyone involved. The reason is simple—many users forget to click save before closing their browser window.
Other times, a device or browser can close unexpectedly, leaving users with the tedious task of redoing something they’ve already done. If you want to be sure your clients are in a good mood during your interactions, this is not the way to do it.
In such circumstances, you should only use a form builder with an auto-save feature. If you pick an alternative to Google Forms with auto-save, you can create unlimited forms, send them to your clients, and rest easy knowing your clients won’t have to deal with any frustration over lost progress.
Content Snare: The best Google Forms alternative
Content Snare is a strong option for anyone looking for the top Google Forms alternative. With our platform, you can create forms that aren’t only easy to access and use but also easy on the eyes.
Data collection is easy with Content Snare. Advanced features include automatic reminders sent to your clients, top-tier security, and the ability to create your own custom workflows. With advanced customization options, there’s a perfect solution for every business owner.
Make your clients’ lives easier with the best Google Forms alternative: Start your free trial now.
