21 Best Online Survey Tools and Apps in 2026: Free and Paid, Expert-tested

Ah, the hunt for the perfect tool. If you’ve ever compared survey software, you already know the drill—endless tabs, confusing feature matrices, and “free” plans that aren’t really free. It’s a pain, well, you get it.

In 2026, surveys are no longer just about asking questions. With shrinking attention spans, rising survey fatigue, and stricter data privacy laws, choosing the right survey tool can directly impact response rates, data quality, and compliance.

Whether you’re collecting customer feedback, running market research, gathering employee insights, or validating a product idea, the right survey platform can make all the difference.

Many modern tools now offer generous free plans — letting you design surveys, distribute across channels, and collect responses without paying upfront. This guide covers 21 of the best, tested hands-on.

As you can see, the blog is “21 Best Online Survey Tools and Apps in 2026: Free and Paid, Expert-tested”. So, today, we will be discussing with you some top-rated online survey tools and apps that come with a free pricing tier. 

Want to jump to your favorite section? Use the following jump links. 

• How I shortlisted the survey tools
• Overview of the shortlisted tools
• List of all the free survey tools and apps
• Which is the best survey tool (according to me)

Here are some key takeaways before jumping deep into the blog. 

How I Evaluated these Survey Tools

I tailored the title and included “Free” for a reason. I want you to have an option to use the survey tools without being a paid member. Therefore, I started there - focused on finding all those tools that offered free versions. 

I am not talking about free trials, but a version where you can stay an unpaid customer forever. I evaluated 80+ survey platforms — signing up, running test surveys, and stress-testing dashboards. From that pool, 21 made this list based on the following criteria.

Factor 1 - Features Depth

What's accessible on the free plan? I tested question types, logic branching, conditional routing, and distribution channels — not just whether a free plan exists, but how much of the tool you can actually evaluate before paying.

Factor 2 - Ease of Use

I measured time-to-first-survey on each platform. Any tool that took more than 10 minutes of onboarding before I could create a basic survey was flagged. Tools with steeper learning curves are included where the capability justifies it — and noted clearly in the review.

Factor 3 - Distribution Channels

I documented every available share channel: email, SMS, WhatsApp, web embed, offline, QR code, and social. The breadth of distribution directly affects response rates — a tool limited to web links loses to one that reaches respondents where they already are.

Factor 4 - Use Cases

Surveys are not typically used for one purpose alone. There’s market research, academic research, scheduling, customer feedback, and so on. So, I made sure to add tools offering versatility. 

Surveys serve different purposes: customer feedback, market research, academic studies, live event polling, scheduling. So, I made sure to add tools offering versatility–  a scheduling tool like Doodle and an enterprise VoC platform like Qualtrics serve fundamentally different needs.

Factor 5 - Data Security & Privacy

I verified documented compliance for GDPR, HIPAA, CCPA, SOC 2 Type 2, and ISO/IEC 27001 on each tool. "Compliance-ready" claims without documentation were not accepted at face value.

Beyond these five factors, I cross-referenced G2 and Capterra ratings — looking at recent review themes, not just star averages — and tested integration depth with common CRM and helpdesk tools.

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Overview of the Free Survey Tools and Apps

I know how valuable your time is, which is why I have compiled the following table. Go through the table and see if you can spot tools that best fit your needs. 

Create Online Survey Free: What to Look For

If your goal is to create an online survey free, not all tools are equal. Some offer unlimited surveys but restrict responses, while others allow powerful features like logic branching, AI survey creation, or integrations even in their free plans.

When choosing a free survey tool, consider:

• Response limits
• Survey customization options
• Integrations and sharing channels
• Data export capabilities
• Security and compliance standards

The tools listed below allow you to create surveys online for free, test features, and upgrade only when your needs grow.

Free Online Survey Tools and Apps to Consider

The following are 21 survey tools that I tried and tested. Each of them offer a free version and features, albeit limited, which was helpful in shortlisting. 

Have a look at them and do a review of your own to choose the right tool. 

1. SurveySparrow

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (2000+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.4 / 5 (200+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

First of all, the tool allowed 3 active surveys in the free version, which was enough for me to test it properly. I created 3 different surveys - Chat survey, NPS® survey, and a classic one - and used all survey question types.

I was able to share the survey through web links, Emails, Slack, and Microsoft teams.

As for the data collection and analysis, I can collect up to 50 responses per month - both partial and complete.

Its CX dashboard provided all basic insights at one place, and it can be exported for further analysis. 

The 1000+ survey templates and AI surveys are also available with the free version.

What’s It Best For?  

SurveySparrow is best known for its conversational interface. As someone who has tried it, I concur as well. I feel this kind of interface can be useful in making the surveys more interactive and engaging. Ergo, better completion rate and survey results.

The tool is best suited for businesses who want to get a comprehensive idea about their customers. I noticed the tool offered not just surveys, a set of tools to help with reputation management, voice of the customer, sentiment analysis, and more. 

So, if you are someone who wants to manage all customer data at one point, I’d say SurveySparrow is one of the best survey tools to consider.

What I Like the Most About the Tool

While there are a lot of features I liked about the tool, the ones I loved are the AI surveys, CogniVue, and multichannel distribution. 

The AI survey feature acts like ChatGPT that creates tailored surveys. Just add in your prompt and it will take care of the rest. A must try feature, in my opinion.

As for Cognivue, it's an advanced text analytics software. I had to arrange a demo with their team to get to know the feature (It’s not available for everyone - a premium product). Shout out to all enterprises who are having trouble analyzing large chunks of data - try this one out.

The fact that I can share surveys through WhatsApp itself was a wow factor for me. Furthermore, it offered 10 more channels including SMS, slack, and offline. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

I love the fact that they provide multilingual surveys, supporting over 130 languages. However, they could have included a couple of languages in the free version to test it out. 

Also, their video survey is just a survey with video as background, which is cool. But the name of the feature I think is misleading. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

Apart from the free version, there’s a 14-day free trial. And as for the paid plans, it offers different ones depending on the tool sets. Click here if you are interested in learning more, because I will be providing pricing of the survey feature only.

For individuals

• Basic - $19 per month
• Starter - $39 per month

For Teams

• Business - $79 per month
• Professional - $249 per month

For enterprises, it offers custom plans. Just a note - The provided pricing is when billed annually. 

SurveySparrow offers one of the most engaging online survey experiences with its conversational interface that can boost completion rates by up to 40% compared to traditional forms.

2. Qualtrics

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (500+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.6 / 5 (200+ reviews)

For researchers and academics seeking advanced online survey capabilities, Qualtrics offers powerful analytical tools even in its free version.

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

To be frank I never thought Qualtrics offered free tools in the first place. I check them only because they are one of the most popular survey tools. It turns out they do offer a free version. Here’s what you can get from it. 

You get access to 3 active surveys, 8 question types, 500 responses in total, 30 questions per survey.

What’s It Best For?  

Qualtrics is best known for its advanced features like text analytics, contact center analytics, and so on. It analyzes feedback and understands the underlying theme and sentiment from open-ended questions.

The survey tool offers around 100+ types of questions and 30+ graph types to export in real-time reports. They also provide some extra features to make the surveys more powerful. These include conditional questions, conjoint analysis, and custom question types (with APIs). 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

The way I was able to pull the survey results so easily was really something. There was an option to help with quarterly reporting as well. I also liked its customization capability. I was able to personalize the surveys as per my needs and requirements. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

I was not exactly new to this platform, but for someone (noobs) it can be tricky setting up surveys. This is the case especially when trying to set up logic questions. Also, receiving data from other software is a bit difficult at times.

Pricing also is on the high-end...enterprises might be able to afford, but others try some other alternatives. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

Those who haven't tried the tool might say it's available on request. However, when I tried to upgrade the plan it showed how much Qualtrics Core XM is. They charge a price of $120 per user per month (billed annually).

Now you understand why I suggested trying some affordable alternatives to Qualtrics.

3. SurveyMonkey

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (20,000+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.6 / 5 (200+ reviews)

One of the most recognized names in online surveys, SurveyMonkey combines ease of use with powerful features that make it suitable for both beginners and survey professionals.

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Unlimited surveys but with 10 questions per survey and 40 responses per month. The tool will collect more than 40 responses, but you will be able to view the first 40 only. No logic functions.

Also, you can't export the survey data. 

What’s It Best For?  

SurveyMonkey is a survey and feedback management solution. It's quite easy to use and has powerful features suitable for small businesses and enterprises alike. Features like A/B testing and branching logic can make sure the surveys are responsive and devoid of errors. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

 I loved how simple it's to use for creating surveys. I also liked the ease in integrating with other platforms. The customization option was also really good.

The audience panel they provide, I think, could be very useful for those who want to survey specific demographics. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

I'd say it's not great for sharing access with other stakeholders. I think there are other survey tools that provide better survey designs than SurveyMonkey. They have moved some of the features that were available with low tier plans to higher plans. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

For individuals, Advantage plan pricing starts at $39 per month. 

For Teams, the Advantage starts $25 per user per month with a minimum of three users. The Premier plan is $75 per user per month with a minimum of three users.

Suggested Read: Better Alternatives to SurveyMonkey.

4. Typeform

G2 Rating: 4.5 / 5 (700+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.7 / 5 (800+ reviews)

Typeform is one of the most customizable survey platforms out there. The survey logic is really helpful in making the surveys responsive to response. 

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

I was a bit confused with their free plan. It goes like this - you can create 10 surveys, and for each you can collect 10 responses each. And that’s it. 

Not much to explore, very limited.

What’s It Best For?  

I felt it was easier to send the survey results through Typeform, and I appreciate that users don't need an account to view them. In my perspective, this could be useful when sharing results with shareholders. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

What I liked the most about the tool is its user friendliness. It was super easy to set up and work with. A special mention to its video survey - VideoAsk - which I think can offer much richer customer feedback. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

Value of money is a bit of a concern. Even if I am paying $29 a month, I still get only 100 responses per month. I personally thought there could be some more analytical tools to help with analysis of results and conclusions.  

I presume these are some reasons why people look for better Typeform alternatives.  

Paid Plans of the Tool

Typeform offers no free trial but the (very limited) free version. Its paid plans are Basic, Plus, Business, and Enterprise. They charge $25 per month for one user for the Basic plan (billed annually). For enterprises, the pricing is custom. 

5. Jotforms

G2 Rating: 4.7 / 5 (3,000+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.6 / 5 (2,000+ reviews)

JotForm is one of the leading creative online survey apps. It's known for its intuitiveness and ease of use. With fairly decent analytics and integrations, JotForm combines powerful features in its online form. 

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

You can expect to build 5 forms or surveys with the free plan. Though they allow for 100 monthly submissions, the total submission storage available is 500. So, I found the idea to be confusing. 

What’s It Best For?  

What makes Jotform a great survey tool is its extensive survey template library.

What I Like the Most About the Tool

I like that the data collected using Jotform can be managed directly in their system. Moreover, it can be exported to another spreadsheet, database, or CRM apps.

I never had to connect with their support team. However, my connections have, and they say it was fast and responsive. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

One downside I noticed is that when sharing tables/results with other non account users. It doesn't have the option to download the data to excel. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

They offer three paid plans, namely - Bronze, Silver, and Gold. The starter plan is Bronze and it starts at $34 per month for one user (billed annually). 

6. Google Forms

G2 Rating: No G2 Profile

Capterra Rating: 4.7 / 5 (10,000+ reviews)

Google Forms is undoubtedly one of the best free online survey tools. It lets you assemble surveys quickly and easily via their convenient drag-and-drop interface. The survey platform also provides you with real-time response information and charts. 

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Google Forms offer 15GB free storage. Until it fills, you can send out surveys and collect data. How great is that, right? 

What’s It Best For?  

The added bonus is that the collected data can be synced with other Google products.

What I Like the Most About the Tool

I like how easy it’s to create surveys with Google Forms. I loved how well-integrated it is with the G-Suite, especially Google Sheets. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

I'd say the limitation in designing the survey. It's very basic, and there was no way to make it more aesthetic. The same goes for the types of survey questions and the functionality. Other survey tools on this list have an upper hand in this aspect. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

There is a paid plan for businesses starting at $12 per user per month. 

7. Microsoft Forms

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (300+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.6 / 5 (100+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

You can create 400 forms in total with 200 responses per form. However, you will have to get creative with 8 survey question types. 

What’s It Best For?  

Microsoft Forms are survey tools best suited for Microsoft Suite users. The fact that it is available only with Microsoft 365, makes it more aligned for MS users. It’s relatively easier to create surveys and offer a few templates (like Google Forms) to start with. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

I really liked the robust integration with Excel. Excel also comes with password protection. Hence, only authorized persons can access my shared survey forms. Its versatility in creating quizzes, surveys, and polls are also a plus point.

What I Dislike About the Tool

The share options are limited to just Email, weblinks, website embedding, QR codes, and social shares (X and Facebook). Also, I didn't like the fact that I have to purchase the entire MS Suite to get this. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

The pricing starts at £4.90 per user per month (not including VAT).

Learn More: How to create survey on Microsoft Forms?

8. Zoho Forms

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (150+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.5 / 5 (100+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

You can create 3 forms/surveys with 500 submissions per month. One user. You include payment questions in the free version itself and also get 200MB file storage. 

What’s It Best For?  

Zoho Forms is an easy-to-use online survey software. It has a rich array of features and is a highly user-friendly tool. It works seamlessly as long as your needs are basic.

Apart from basic survey features, what sets Zoho Forms apart is its seamless collaboration with all Zoho Suite products. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

I love how easy it is to create forms and then share them with links. Very reliable and this makes my day to day easier. Don't have to think much of it. It just gets done.

What I Dislike About the Tool

The major disappointment I had was with the customization options. It didn't have the best themes to create forms as well. I tried one pop-up form, but it was very bad for mobile devices.

I never tried to connect with the support team, but those who had said it's really slow. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

The Standard plan allows for unlimited forms for 10 users with 25,000 submissions per month. For this, they charge only $10 per month (billed annually). So, I'd say it's one of the cost-effective survey tools.

9. Alchemer (SurveyGizmo)

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (800+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.5 / 5 (300+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Very limited one I’ve seen so far. Only 8 survey questions to use in the free version, and almost everything is locked away 🤷. 

What’s It Best For?  

Formerly SurveyGizmo, Alchemer is a voice-of-customer tool that helps understand customer opinions. It has good automation capabilities and provides a range of features to help capture customer feedback.

It also offers a wide range of survey questions and filtering options to ensure proper questions are being asked. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

I actually like their reporting better than most of the survey tools I tested. I had a hiccup, but their support team was prompt and helped resolve it. Also, just like HubSpot, it also provides an online learning platform to educate their users. I personally thought it to be a great idea. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

I disliked the fact that the free version is very limited, and I mean very limited. The UI could be better, and also limited survey design customization options. 

I am taking some reviews from softwareadvice.com to tell you that users have expressed their discomfort with the tool. Specifically its limited bilingual functionality, frequent changes leading to bugs or data loss, and a relatively high cost. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

It offers three different paid plans - Collaborator, Professional, and Full Access. The starting plan, the Collaborator, is priced at $55 per user per month when billed annually. 

10. Zonka Feedback

G2 Rating: 4.7 / 5

Capterra Rating: 4.8 / 5

Zonka Feedback is an AI-powered Customer Feedback & Intelligence Platform designed to help teams create online surveys, capture responses across channels, and turn raw feedback into actionable insights.

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Zonka Feedback offers a 7-day free trial with access to all core capabilities. During the trial, you can create unlimited surveys, use 20+ question types, run NPS, CSAT, and CES surveys, and collect feedback through email, SMS, WhatsApp, links, QR codes, and website widgets. You also get access to real-time dashboards, the collaborative response inbox, and AI-powered features like sentiment analysis, themes, and entity detection.

What’s It Best For?

Zonka Feedback is well-suited for businesses that want fast survey setup, omnichannel distribution, and strong analytics. Its AI Feedback Intelligence stands out by automatically identifying themes, sentiment, urgency, and customer intent. You can drill down into CX metrics, run micro-surveys on websites or in-product, and view insights by location, agent, or page. Teams can also close the loop quickly using workflows, alerts, and case management.

What I Like the Most About the Tool

The platform is extremely easy to set up. I was able to build surveys in minutes with the drag-and-drop builder and AI-assisted survey creation. The analytics dashboard was equally impressive—everything from trends to NPS movement and sentiment breakdown was instantly available. The response inbox also made it simple to manage and respond to feedback without juggling multiple tools.

What I Dislike About the Tool

Some advanced features may require time to explore, especially automation workflows and custom segmentation. Also, since the platform offers multi-channel capabilities, setting up every channel at once can feel overwhelming for new users.

Paid Plans of the Tool

Paid plans are available on request. Each tier includes additional survey sends, users, automation features, and advanced AI capabilities depending on your requirements.

11. SoGoSurvey by Sogolytics

G2 Rating: 4.6 / 5 (80+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.7 / 5 (700+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Apparently you can create any number of surveys with the free plan. They are unclear about the number of responses per month. I was able to collect 50 without any issues.

Also, their AI survey feature is available with the free plan. So, it's something to try it out. 

What’s It Best For?  

Sogolytics is an experience management platform and SoGoSurvey is its online survey tool. It's ideal for small businesses or individual needs. And the users highlight its user-friendly interface and diverse question types, making it one of the versatile survey tools for detailed feedback collection.

What I Like the Most About the Tool

The tool is more organized than other tools, and I liked that. Although I didn't get this, it offers a one-year trial for students, which can be beneficial for their research. And in my opinion, a great way to promote brand name. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

There are fewer question types to use in the survey when compared to other tools. The formatting of survey appearance can be very time consuming. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

SogoSurvey offers a 10-day free trial. There are three main paid plans with the starter plan - Plus, Pro, and Premium. They charge $25 per month for the Plus plan. 

12. QuestionPro

G2 Rating: 4.9 / 5 (500+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.8 / 5 (400+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

You can create 10 surveys with 200 responses per survey. Only one user. 

What’s It Best For?  

QuestionPro helps you create efficient surveys, polls, and quizzes within minutes. The shareable, robust analytical reports make it great for business enterprises. 

Its MaxDiff analysis feature discovers what features excite the customers. And the employee experience surveys can gauge the employee happiness and engagement of an organization.

What I Like the Most About the Tool

What I love about the tool is the diverse survey questions I can ask. Even within the free version it offered 30 question types, and there are a total of 52 available. I don’t think any other survey software is providing such an extensive list.

What I Dislike About the Tool

I found this survey tool to be less intuitive than Qualtrics. It was confusing for me to figure out how to copy a block to the library. While its reporting function is robust, it's up to a level where it's not intuitive for an average user.

Paid Plans of the Tool

The paid plans differ for survey software, CX suite, and Workforce Suite. For survey software, they provide 3 paid plans - Advanced, Team, and a custom one. The pricing of the advanced is $99 per user per month.

13. Doodle

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (2,000+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.4 / 5 (200+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Unlimited polls, unlimited sign up sheets, one booking page, and only Google Meet and Zoom conference calls.

What’s It Best For?  

Doodle, as you may already know, is best for organizing meetings and events. They use polls and surveys to collect information from the participants and help you decide on the best suited time for the meeting. 

It can be helpful in scheduling interviews with potential employees and clients alike. So, if you are looking for a survey software to organize meetings, Doodle is the one for you. It's user-friendly and accessible for anyone, all the more reason for it to be here on the list. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

The simplicity and effectiveness is just great, I loved it. The poll format makes it easier for everyone to see the potential meeting times at a glance. The integration with several calendar apps are also great. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

Scheduling multiple events at the same time can be cumbersome and time-consuming. Also, I found the tool difficult to use when organizing meetings with attendees in different time zones. 

It’s limited to just scheduling, not more than that. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

Pro and Team are two paid plans of Doodle. For Pro, they charge $6.95 per user per month. And for Team, it’s $8.95 per user per month with a minimum of 5 users. 

Related Read: Top Doodle Alternatives to try out.

14. LimeSurvey

G2 Rating: No G2 Profile

Capterra Rating: 4.4 / 5 (40+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

It’s free for education purposes, but since I don’t cut it for that, I got its (normal) free version. You can expect to create unlimited surveys with just 25 responses per month. One user.

What’s It Best For?  

LimeSurvey is a free and open-source survey app. It's best suited for academic and market research and customer feedback collection. Its cloud service offers all the tools researchers need for extensive studies. 

Furthermore, its open-source nature allows you to make modifications and integrations tailored to your needs. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

It's completely free for universities and students, which I personally think is great. Moreover, it's flexible and offers a depth of features for better survey analysis. The customization was decent, but could be improved. 

If you are looking for a survey tool for market research, try this one for a change. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

One downside I found was the learning curve. Although the interface is straightforward, navigating through the advanced features can be overwhelming. So, new users might find it difficult to use at first.

Also, 25 responses per month in the free plan is very limited, especially when they allow unlimited surveys. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

The Basic plan is priced at $39 per month when billed annually. In that plan, you can create unlimited surveys with 1000 responses per month. Only one user.

15. Survio

G2 Rating: 4.4 / 5 (300+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.4 / 5 (200+ reviews)

What Can You Expect From the Free Version of the Tool?

Unlimited surveys with 100 responses per month. One user. No branching logic functions though.

What’s It Best For?  

The last one on our list of free online survey tools is Survio. The tool is designed especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). As per the customer reviews, it's helpful for those who want to prepare their own questionnaires for offices, schools, etc. 

What I Like the Most About the Tool

I liked how easy it's to set up and use. The survey questions (19 types) are very easy to customize as well. The user interface was intuitive as well as visually appealing. It surely made me stay longer than I needed to. 

What I Dislike About the Tool

The lack of flexibility in question sequencing is something I disliked. It might be because of the preset options. The mobile layout of the surveys were showing irregularities in text spacing and overlapping of letters. 

Paid Plans of the Tool

The paid plans are Mini, Standard, and Pro Business. The Mini plan is for small businesses and individuals offering unlimited surveys with 200 responses per month for one user. They charge €15 per month for the plan. 

16. Mentimeter

G2 Rating: 4.7 / 5 (700+ reviews) 

Capterra Rating: 4.4 / 5 (100 reviews)

What the Free Plan Gives You

3 surveys, basic question types, 2 quizzes. Limited but sufficient to test the live presentation format.

What It's Best For

Live audience engagement. Mentimeter is purpose-built for real-time polling during presentations, town halls, webinars, and workshops. It's not a feedback collection tool — it's a live participation platform. If you run regular all-hands meetings or external presentations, it's the best tool in this category.

What I Like

Real-time response visualization is outstanding. Audience participation via phone or browser with no app download required. Word clouds, live vote counts, and Q&A management are all well-executed.

What I Don't Like

Not suitable for async survey distribution. Free plan limits are tight for regular use. Analytics are session-focused, not longitudinal — you can't track sentiment over time the way CX platforms can.

Paid Plans

Basic: $11.99/mo, Pro: $24.99/mo, Enterprise: custom (billed annually).

17. SurveyPlanet

G2 Rating: 4.1 / 5 (25 reviews) 

Capterra Rating: 4.6 / 5 (50+ reviews)

What the Free Plan Gives You

Unlimited surveys and unlimited responses on the free plan. The most generous free tier on this list for response volume.

What It's Best For

Budget-conscious teams and individuals who need to collect a high volume of responses without paying. Good for student researchers, nonprofits, and small businesses that have outgrown Google Forms but aren't ready to invest in a paid platform.

What I Like

Unlimited free responses is genuinely rare. Clean interface. Pre-built survey themes reduce setup time.

What I Don't Like

AI features and advanced logic branching are locked to paid plans. Analytics are basic on the free tier. Less well-known, so respondents may be less familiar with the interface.

Paid Plans

Pro: $20/mo (billed annually). Unlocks AI, advanced logic, themes, and data exports.

18. SurveyHero

G2 Rating: 4.5 / 5 (42 reviews) 

Capterra Rating: 4.7 / 5 (200+ reviews)

What the Free Plan Gives You

Unlimited surveys, 100 responses/month, basic question types.

What It's Best For

Teams in the EU that need straightforward, GDPR-compliant surveys without complexity. SurveyHero is Switzerland-hosted with strong data privacy defaults — a practical choice for European organizations with compliance requirements.

What I Like

Clean, no-frills interface. Strong GDPR defaults. Minimal learning curve.

What I Don't Like

Limited AI capability. Analytics are basic compared to most tools on this list. Less active development cadence — the product has changed little in recent years.

Paid Plans

Starter: $19/mo · Professional: $39/mo · Business: $79/mo (billed annually).

19. Pollfish

G2 Rating: 4.5 / 5 (50+ reviews) 

Capterra Rating: 4.5 / 5 (200+ reviews)

What the Free Plan Gives You

Limited free credits for small sample studies. Paid primarily on a cost-per-completed-response model.

What It's Best For

Market research with targeted panels. Pollfish connects to a network of 250M+ respondents, making it the strongest tool on this list for reaching specific demographic or professional audiences quickly. Not a feedback collection tool — it's a research panel platform.

What I Like

Audience targeting is precise — filter by age, gender, income, occupation, and location. Results arrive fast. Useful for product validation studies and competitive research.

What I Don't Like

Cost-per-response pricing adds up quickly for larger studies. Not suitable for ongoing customer feedback programs. Survey design flexibility is more limited than dedicated survey builders.

Paid Plans

CPC model: pricing per completed response varies by targeting criteria.

20. Tally 

G2 Rating: 4.8 / 5 (100+ reviews) 

Capterra Rating: 4.9 / 5 (30+ reviews)

What the Free Plan Gives You

Unlimited forms, unlimited responses, no question limits. One of the most capable free plans on this list.

What It's Best For

Developers and no-code builders who want clean, embed-friendly forms with advanced logic. Tally's Notion-like editor is the most developer-friendly interface on this list. Strong for internal tools, lead capture, and product feedback loops.

What I Like

Genuinely unlimited on the free plan. Block-based editor is flexible and fast. Native Notion, Airtable, and Google Sheets integrations. No SurveySparrow-like conversational interface, but logic and routing are excellent.

What I Don't Like

No native AI survey generation. Analytics are simpler than most CX-focused tools. Brand removal requires a paid plan.

Paid Plans

Pro: $29/mo (removes branding, adds custom domains, team collaboration).

21. Slido 

G2 Rating: 4.8 / 5 (750+ reviews) Capterra Rating: 4.8 / 5 (250+ reviews)

What the Free Plan Gives You

3 polls/event, basic Q&A, audience reactions. Cisco Webex integration included.

What It's Best For

Live event polling and Q&A management. Like Mentimeter, Slido is purpose-built for real-time audience interaction — it's particularly strong in professional conference and corporate event settings. The Webex and Teams integration makes it the natural choice for enterprise video meeting polls.

What I Like

Q&A management is the best on this list for live events — upvoting, moderation, and anonymous submissions work well. Enterprise integrations are well-supported.

What I Don't Like

Like Mentimeter, it's not a feedback collection tool. Free plan is very limited for regular use. Pricing is event-based, which can feel opaque for recurring users.

Paid Plans

Basic: $13.50/mo · Engage: $17/mo · Professional: $34/mo (billed annually).

So, Which Free Survey Tool Is Best? 

This is one tough nut to crack. Needs and requirements vary with people, and with that the right tool as well. There's no single best answer — the right tool depends on what you're trying to do. Here's how I'd break it down:

• For customer experience and closing the feedback loop: SurveySparrow. The conversational format and CogniVue analytics make it the strongest choice for teams where response rate and insight depth both matter.
• For simplicity and zero budget: Google Forms or SurveyPlanet. Both are genuinely unlimited on free plans.
• For enterprise research: Qualtrics or QuestionPro.
• For live events and presentations: Mentimeter or Slido.
• For developers and no-code builders: Tally.
• For academic research: LimeSurvey (free for students) or SoGoSurvey.

I was doing small scale surveys to understand customer perception around different tools and their priorities. For this, the free version sufficed. The intuitiveness of the tool and conversational interface of the surveys made a great impression on me…especially when it brought more response than I expected. 

Now, I am regularly conducting surveys. And the Basic plan was a reasonable charge to pay. 

A plus point I consider is the scalability of the tool. It has the potential to grow with the business. This is something that I found lacking in most of the survey software I have tested. Hence, my verdict. 

On the contrary, if you want a very basic design with fewer survey question types and design, but want more surveys in the free version itself, then go for Google Forms.