Paperform vs Google Forms

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Paperform vs. Google Forms

Paperform

Paperform is a flexible online form builder that lets you make sales, take bookings, communicate with customers, and put manual processes on autopilot. The powerful editor offers nearly unlimited customization, 25+ question fields, and advanced workflows, so you can build the beautiful solutions you need.

Google Forms

Google Forms is a free form builder software with basic question types and a barebones editor. It is best used for creating simple forms and surveys that don’t require any more advanced question types, integrations, or automation workflows.

A Detailed Comparison

(Updated February 2024)

Pricing

Paperform
Google Forms
Free version
Free up to 5 forms and 10 submission per month
Starting price (USD, billed yearly)
$24 per user/month
$6 per user/month
Forms per month
Unlimited
Unlimited
Submissions per month
100 (+ $7.50 per additional 250)
Unlimited
Users
1
Unlimited

Paperform

Paperform gives you the option to choose from three pricing tiers: Essentials at $24/mo, Pro at $49/mo, and Business at $165/mo. The lowest pricing plan gives you unlimited forms and generous 100 form submissions per month, with even higher quotas on higher pricing plans. The only limitation on the lowest pricing plan is having no access to some of the more advanced features such as Calculations, e-signature support, custom CSS/HTML, and APIs.

Google Forms

Google Forms is completely free for personal use. All you need to get started is a Google account. There are no limitations on submissions and you can create as many forms as you need. If you want more storage for your forms, you can go with Google’s Business Starter plan at $6/user/month. In addition to 30 GB storage per user, it also includes custom and secure business email and up to 100 participant video meetings on Google Meet.

Form Creation & Sharing

Paperform
Google Forms
One-page Forms
Pagination (Multi-page Forms)
Basic Question Types
Advanced Question Types
Appointments (Bookings & Scheduling)
Scoring
Conditional Logic
Calculations
Advanced Calculations
File Uploads
Files must be uploaded to Google Drive first
‘Save & Resume’ for respondents
Automated Emails
Answer Piping
E-Signature Support
No, but you can use the Signature add-on

Paperform

Paperform's minimalist no-code interface makes it easy for anyone to create beautiful forms and surveys. The editor is designed to be as simple as writing a doc, so if you've ever used a word processor, you'll be able to master it in a few minutes. Just type anywhere on the page to add paragraphs of text and question types, insert logos, and embed images and videos with a click.

As you add questions and build your form, contextual menus appear. These allow you to only concentrate on what matters and when it matters, rather than clicking through clunky menus. You can view your form or adjust your theme at any time from the top menu. Any changes you make are reflected in real-time without needing to open another menu.

Paperform’s advanced features include auto-generating responses and hiding fields based on previous fields or existing data, creating Excel-style smart dynamic Calculations, taking one-off payments and recurring payments, as well as managing booking appointments. Paperform also has a built-in integration with Papersign that lets you automatically trigger signature requests on connected documents.

Paperform's interface

Google Forms

Google Forms has a clean layout and is simple to use. Everything is managed in the editor. You can type to add questions, select from multiple question types, drag and drop to order questions, and tweak the look. While the user experience is fluid, the level of polish is much lower than with Paperform. There are fewer question types available, with very few advanced options. You might expect this from a free tool, but if you’re looking for something more powerful, you’re bound to be let down.

Google Forms interface (Image Source: Google Forms)

Customization & Branding

Paperform
Google Forms
Templates
700+
15
Custom Form Link
Custom End Screen
Full customization
Basic customization
Add Images, GIFs & Videos to Forms
Multi-language Forms and UI
Custom Fonts & Colors
Custom Domain
Pro & Business Plans
Custom CSS
Pro & Business Plans
Custom HTML
Pro & Business Plans

Google Forms

As far as theming and visual customization goes, Google Forms leaves a bit to be desired. Google Forms only has 16 form and survey templates. This just doesn’t compare to Paperform 750+ pre-built templates that cover every possible need—from job applications and event registrations to yoga studio software and landing pages.

While Google Forms allows you to complete basic actions like changing colors and fonts, it isn’t as accommodating for customizing ‘Thank You’ screens or adding any automated emails.

Paperform

On the other hand, Paperform’s success pages are fully customizable. You can choose to create simple pages or set up complex workflows that do things like redirecting users to other pages or dynamically adjusting the page’s look and feel based on user responses. You can easily add images, video, or any other media to Paperform’s forms and success pages, as well as use answer piping to automatically display certain questions or responses based on previous answers. This is especially useful for quizzes or surveys that need a calculation or score to be displayed upon completion.

E-Commerce & Payments

Paperform
Google Forms
Sell Products
Built-in integration with Stripe, Braintree, PayPal, Square, Google Pay + integrates with 95 other payment providers
No payment integrations, but you can use the Payable Forms add-on as a workaround
One-off Payments
Recurring Payments (Subscriptions)
Multiple Currencies
Tax Calculations
Discount Coupons
Invoices
Refunds
Product Inventory

Google Forms

Google Forms doesn’t allow users to accept payments natively. If you really want to collect payment with Google Forms, there is a workaround. You can link a URL and redirect users to an external site like PayPal or Google’s payment add-ons. We can’t recommend this course of action though as customers aren’t likely to trust an external link to a payment page, and when payments aren’t integrated into the form process, it also adds extra steps to your workflow.

Paperform

Paperform doesn’t limit you to external links or one payment provider. With support for all major payment gateways like PayPal Business, Stripe, and Square, you can make the best choice for your business and customers.

Paperform also offers a variety of advanced e-commerce tools. With custom pricing rules, for example, you can automatically calculate shipping costs, add discounts and coupons, and charge taxes on your products. You can even accept subscriptions and generate receipts and invoices to keep your business organized and compliant. Paperform also offers order management tools so you can manage inventory, fulfillment, and payment all in one place.

Analytics, Automation & Integrations

Paperform
Google Forms
Submission Reports
Export Data
CSV, PDF, Word
CSV only
Integrations
3,000+
API access
Pro & Business plans
Webhooks
Pro & Business plans

Both Paperform and Google Forms allow you to create reports for your forms and export raw submission data into Excel for deeper analysis.

Google Forms

Google Forms has rudimentary data analysis features. You can look at individual responses or get a summary of results with basic graphs and charts. That’s about it. These charts are helpful for basic insights, like breaking down the percentage of responses. But if you want to delve any deeper you’ll have to export your data to a third-party tool.

Google Forms integrates with G-suite, but it doesn’t offer much in the way of other direct integrations. For anything other than sending responses to a Google Sheet, you’ll need to use a third-party integration platform like Zapier or Make. Google Forms has an API, but no webhooks and integrations as such, however, if you know how to play around with add-ons, you can use Google's add-ons as a workaround. It won’t be as quick and easy as Paperform’s built-in integrations but lets you do the job.

Paperform

Paperform has analytics functionality built into the dashboard. You can analyze responses, boost conversions and improve your response rate all from one place. Track in-depth data like incomplete submissions and completion rates, the number of sales, or find the questions that are causing respondents to drop off. Our analysis tools help gather insights to perfect your processes and ensure your form is working for you.

When it comes to integrations, Paperform outshines Google Forms with its API and 3,000+ integrations with popular apps and software to improve productivity, automate workflows and free up time to focus on the work that matters. The integrations are available as native integrations, or via Zapier and Make.

Security & Privacy

Paperform
Google Forms
Enhanced Security (SSL Encryption)
Two-Factor Authentication
SOC 2 Type II compliance
HIPAA Compliance
Enterprise plan

Why switch to Paperform?

Forms for any occasion

Forms for any occasion

Gather feedback, collect registrations, sell products, accept payments, manage appointments. The possibilities are endless.

Unmatched customization

Unmatched customization

Don’t settle for another boring form that looks like everyone else’s. Create your own themes, add your own colors, and embed content wherever you like.

Professional Templates

Professional Templates

We’ve got hundreds of pre-built templates designed by our team to get you inspired and create fast. Need to get something done? There’s a template for that.

Easy Peasy

Easy Peasy

No more drag & lag interfaces or clumsy menus. Paperform is as easy to use as a document—and 10 times more fun.

More about Google Forms

1. The ultimate guide to Google Forms

2. How to create a quiz in Google Forms

3. How to make a poll in Google Forms

4. How to add points and calculations in Google Forms

5. How to create anonymous surveys with Google Forms

6. 4 Ways to View Responses in Google Forms

7. How to make an escape room in Google Forms

8. How to create a QR Code for Google Forms

9. How to set conditional questions in Google Forms

10. How to make a multiple-choice grid in Google Forms

11. How to make a header image in Google Forms

12. The 10 best Google Forms add-ons

13. How to add a signature to Google Forms

Switch to Paperform — The best alternative to Google Forms

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