Two popular form builders compared on the same 25-row feature matrix and pricing, with FormBuilder shown as a third column so you can see another option to consider.
Overview
Cognito Forms started as a side product of a software consultancy and still feels like it was built by developers for people who need forms to do real work. Its calculated fields use a spreadsheet-style expression language, repeating sections let respondents add unlimited line items, and data lookups can pull values from other forms. Order forms, event registrations, quotes and applications are its natural habitat.
On top of the builder it layers a workflow engine: entries move through statuses, roles decide who can view or edit which fields, approvals can be routed by email, and Save & Resume plus a Client Portal let people come back to unfinished submissions. Payments (Stripe, Square, PayPal) are first-class, including subscriptions and payment-on-approval, and document generation can merge entries into PDFs.
Fillout is a newer form builder built around one idea: your form should live on top of the database you already use. Connect an Airtable base, Notion database, HubSpot object, Salesforce record or Google Sheet, and Fillout maps fields both ways — it can prefill from existing records, create new ones, and update them on submit. For teams running operations out of Airtable or Notion it is often the missing "front door" for their data.
The builder itself is polished and quick, with a large field catalogue (50+ types including payments, scheduling, signatures and PDF generation), conditional logic, calculations, multi-page flows, quizzes and a growing set of AI features for drafting forms. It also supports login-gated forms, partial-submission capture and PDF output, which pushes it toward internal tools and client portals as much as public forms.
Pricing
In each vendor's own terms; Cognito Forms checked 2026-08-17, Fillout checked 2026-08-17. FormBuilder: free plan (5 forms, 100 responses / mo) and Pro at $39 / month or $390 / year.
Feature comparison
25 capabilities across building, design, data workflow and security.
| Feature | CCognito Forms | FFillout | FFormBuilder |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building | |||
| AI form generation from a prompt | PartialAI assist for calculations, not full-form generation | YesAI form builder | Yes |
| Drag-and-drop visual builder | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Template library | Yes100+ | YesLarge gallery incl. Airtable / Notion templates | Yes300+ |
| Conditional logic / branching | YesFormula-based show/hide, require, validate | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-page / multi-step forms | Yes | Yes | YesPro |
| Calculations & scoring | YesSpreadsheet-style expressions, repeating sections | YesCalculations, quizzes & scoring | YesCalculation field + auto-graded quizzes |
| File uploads | Yes100 MB free · 1 GB Pro · 10 GB Team | Yes20 MB free · 1 GB+ on Business | Yes100 MB free · 1 GB Pro |
| Payment collection | YesStripe, Square, PayPal; 1% fee on Individual & Pro | YesStripe; free plan | YesStripe — paid to your own account, no platform fee |
| E-signature field | YesPro and up | YesStarter, $15 / mo | Yes |
| Design | |||
| Custom themes & branding | YesStyles & CSS on paid plans | YesThemes on Starter; fonts & CSS on Pro | YesPro |
| Remove vendor badge | YesPro, $19 / mo annual | YesPro, $40 / mo | YesPro, $39 |
| Custom domain | PartialEmbed on your domain; no custom hosted domain | YesBusiness, $75 / mo | Yes |
| Embed on any site | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Data & workflow | |||
| Free-plan monthly responses | Partial100 / mo, overflow locked | Yes1,000 / mo | Partial100 / mo, overflow held |
| Over-limit responses kept (not rejected) | PartialLocked 30 days, then deleted unless you upgrade | NoForm stops accepting at limit | Yes |
| Email notifications & autoresponders | Yes | YesCustom emails on Pro | Yes |
| Webhooks | YesJSON webhooks + Power Automate | Yes | YesAll plans |
| Zapier / native integrations | YesZapier, Make, Power Automate | YesNative Airtable / Notion / HubSpot / Salesforce / Sheets + Zapier & Make | Yes6,000+ apps |
| Built-in analytics (views, drop-off) | PartialEntry reporting; no view / drop-off funnel | YesBusiness | Yes |
| CSV / spreadsheet export | YesExcel, CSV, PDF | Yes | Yes |
| Team workspaces & collaboration | Yes2 users Pro · 5 Team · 20 Enterprise | YesUnlimited seats & workspaces on all plans | Yes |
| Security | |||
| Password-protected forms | PartialVia workflow roles / private links | YesLogin / password forms on Starter | YesPro |
| HIPAA / BAA | YesEnterprise, $129 / mo | YesEnterprise only | PartialHIPAA plan coming soon |
| GDPR tooling & DPA | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| SSO / SAML | YesEnterprise | YesEnterprise | PartialEnterprise |
Another option to consider
AI-first form builder with a generous free plan, held (never lost) responses, and 6,000+ integrations. Describe the form you need, the AI drafts it, and you refine it with logic, multi-page layouts, uploads, signatures and Stripe payments. Free plan: 5 forms and 100 responses a month with overflow held, never lost. Pro: $39 / month for 100 forms and 10,000 responses with the badge removed.
Questions
Fillout's entry paid plan (Starter at $15 / month (annual)) is cheaper than Cognito Forms's (Pro at $19 / month (annual, $24 monthly)). Both offer a free plan (1,000 responses / mo · unlimited forms & seats · 20 MB uploads · Fillout branding) and a free plan (100 entries / mo · 1 user · 100 MB · Cognito branding · 1% payment fee) respectively. Note the plans differ in limits — see the tables above. FormBuilder Pro, for reference, is $39 / month for 10,000 responses.
Cognito Forms offers a free plan (100 entries / mo · 1 user · 100 MB · Cognito branding · 1% payment fee). Prices shown at annual billing; monthly billing is roughly 20-25% higher. Entry limits are per organisation per month; all plans include unlimited forms.
Fillout offers a free plan (1,000 responses / mo · unlimited forms & seats · 20 MB uploads · Fillout branding). Prices shown are per month on annual billing (about 20% less than monthly). All plans include unlimited forms and unlimited seats; the meaningful limits are monthly responses and features.
Cognito Forms payments: Yes (Stripe, Square, PayPal; 1% fee on Individual & Pro). Fillout payments: Yes (Stripe; free plan). FormBuilder collects Stripe payments to your own account with no platform fee on every plan, including free.
Cognito Forms HIPAA / BAA: Yes (Enterprise, $129 / mo). Fillout HIPAA / BAA: Yes (Enterprise only). FormBuilder's HIPAA plan with BAA ($99 / month) is currently rolling out.
Cognito Forms is a power-user form builder built for order forms, registrations and applications that need calculations, repeating sections, payments and approval workflows. Fillout is a fast, modern form builder whose signature trick is writing responses straight into Airtable, Notion, HubSpot, Salesforce and Google Sheets — with a very generous free plan. Cognito Forms is best for order, quote and registration forms with line items and live totals; Fillout is best for teams that run on Airtable, Notion, HubSpot or Salesforce and want forms that write directly to those records.
FormBuilder is worth a look if you want an AI generator that drafts forms from a sentence, 100 free responses a month with overflow held rather than lost, Stripe payments with no platform fee, and a flat $39 / month Pro plan for 10,000 responses. See our full FormBuilder vs Cognito Forms and FormBuilder vs Fillout comparisons.
Last reviewed August 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.
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