Makeform logo – free AI form builderHelp

7 best free survey makers in 2026

By the Makeform editorial team · Last updated November 7, 2026 · Pricing verified November 2026

Short answer: Makeform is our top pick for AI-built surveys and NPS or CSAT summaries; Google Forms is a close second for people who already work in Google Sheets.

This ranking weighs free response allowances, useful survey questions and ways to review answers. Competitor features and prices are as of November 2026. Makeform is a free AI form builder: describe what you want to collect and it builds the form for you, with unlimited forms and submissions on the free plan.

Comparison table

Paid starting prices use annual billing unless marked otherwise; monthly response pools and per-survey limits measure different things.

Tool Free plan Free limit that matters Survey features Paid from Best for
Makeform Yes Unlimited submissions within fair use Rating, matrix, ranking, NPS and CSAT summaries $19/month annually AI-built feedback surveys
Google Forms Yes, with Google account 500,000 responses per form; 1 GB total storage limit Summary and Individual views, Sheets, CSV Workspace Business Starter $7/user/month, billed monthly Surveys in a Google workflow
Tally Yes Unlimited submissions within fair use; 10 MB/file AI creation, logic and calculations $24/month annually Unlimited collection with PDF input
Microsoft Forms Personal Microsoft account 200 responses per form; 200 questions per form Up to 400 forms Paid personal account: 1,000 responses per form; price not covered Modest surveys with a Microsoft account
Zoho Survey Yes 10 questions and 100 responses per survey 1 user Not stated in cited page Short, small surveys
SurveyMonkey Basic 10 questions per survey; limited responses AI building, web links, Zapier Advantage Annual $39/month; Standard Monthly $149/month Short surveys with Zapier
Typeform Yes 10 responses/month across all forms AI building, logic, scores and variables $28/month annually Very small surveys

How we picked

  • Free response allowances and whether they apply monthly or per survey.
  • Question types for ratings, rankings and structured feedback.
  • Ways to review responses, including summaries and exports.
  • AI support for drafting and editing surveys.
  • Restrictions on questions, branding and paid features.

Makeform publishes this page, so we list our own limits and link every source.

1. Makeform: best for AI-built feedback surveys

Makeform builds a survey from one sentence and lets you edit it by chatting or visually. Its rating, opinion scale, matrix and ranking questions make it our first choice for feedback surveys with useful response summaries.

Free plan: Unlimited forms, questions and submissions within fair-use guidelines; AI creates up to 50 questions per draft, with more addable manually.

Paid from: Pro is $29/month monthly or $19/month billed yearly ($228/year).

Good:

  • Response summaries for choice, rating, ranking and scale questions.
  • Net Promoter Score (NPS) for an Opinion Scale with an exact 0–10 range, plus CSAT summaries for eligible scale questions.
  • Free conditional logic and integrations with Google Sheets, Notion, Slack, Airtable, Zapier, Make and webhooks.

Watch out:

  • Saving partial, unfinished submissions requires Pro.
  • Branding removal, custom domains and collaboration require Pro.
  • There is no native mobile app or real-time simultaneous co-editing.

Start a draft without an account at Create a form with AI; saving and publishing require a free account.

2. Google Forms: best for surveys in a Google workflow

As of November 2026, Google Forms combines free survey collection with Summary and Individual response views, a Google Sheets link and CSV downloads. It is a close second and our pick if you already work in Google and want those response tools.

Free plan: Free with a Google account; Google's help says that starting September 2026 each form can receive up to 500,000 responses with a 1 GB total storage limit.

Paid from: Google Workspace Business Starter is $7/user/month billed monthly; Gemini form creation requires an eligible Workspace or Google AI plan.

Good:

  • Review answers by question or by individual response.
  • Link responses to Google Sheets or download them as CSV.
  • A high per-form response allowance on the free offering.

Watch out:

  • Upload questions require respondents to sign in to a Google account.
  • Gemini's Help me create a form requires an eligible Workspace or Google AI plan, or Google's Workspace Experiments tester program.
  • Design and branding options are limited compared with dedicated form builders.

Read Makeform vs Google Forms.

3. Tally: best for unlimited collection with PDF input

As of November 2026, Tally includes unlimited forms and submissions within fair use, plus free AI creation from a prompt, screenshot or PDF. It is a good alternative if you want to turn an existing PDF into a survey, since Makeform's AI reads screenshots and Word files but not PDFs.

Free plan: Unlimited forms and submissions within fair-use guidelines; uploads up to 10 MB per file.

Paid from: Pro is $29/month monthly or $24/month billed yearly.

Good:

  • Free AI creation and Ask AI edits.
  • Conditional logic and calculations are included on Free.

Watch out:

  • Free surveys retain Tally branding; Pro removes it.
  • Respondent email notifications require Pro; self email notifications are free.

Read Makeform vs Tally.

4. Microsoft Forms: best for modest surveys with a Microsoft account

As of November 2026, a personal free Microsoft account allows up to 400 forms and 200 questions per form. Its 200-response limit applies to each form, making it an option for separate, modest-size surveys.

Free plan: Personal accounts allow up to 400 forms, 200 questions per form and 200 responses per form.

Paid from: A paid personal Microsoft account raises the response limit to 1,000 per form; Microsoft 365 prices are not covered here.

Good:

  • A per-form response allowance instead of a shared monthly pool.
  • Up to 200 questions per form, above the 10-question limits of Zoho Survey and SurveyMonkey Free.

Watch out:

  • A free personal survey is limited to 200 responses.
  • Copilot in Forms needs Microsoft 365 and a Copilot licence.

Read Makeform vs Microsoft Forms.

5. Zoho Survey: best for short, small surveys

As of November 2026, Zoho Survey Free allows one user, 10 questions per survey and 100 responses per survey. It fits a short survey with a small audience, provided both caps cover the work you need to do.

Free plan: 1 user, 10 questions per survey and 100 responses per survey.

Paid from: Paid prices are not shown on the cited page, so we do not quote one.

Good:

  • A stated response allowance for each survey.
  • Free access for one user collecting a short set of answers.

Watch out:

  • Each free survey is limited to 10 questions.
  • The 100-response allowance is smaller than Microsoft Forms' free personal per-form allowance.

6. SurveyMonkey: best for short surveys with Zapier

As of November 2026, SurveyMonkey Basic includes unlimited surveys, AI building, web-link publishing and Zapier integration. Its 10-question limit and restricted response access make it a narrower free choice than the tools above.

Free plan: 1 user, unlimited surveys, 10 questions per survey and limited responses per survey; the exact response cap appears only after sign-up or login.

Paid from: Advantage Annual is $39/month ($468 billed annually, 15,000 responses/year); Standard Monthly is $149/month billed monthly.

Good:

  • Build with AI and publish via a web link or add surveys to websites.
  • Zapier integration is included on Basic.

Watch out:

  • Free viewable responses are limited; the cited public pricing page does not give the exact cap.
  • Data exports are listed under Standard, not Basic, and only some question types are free.

7. Typeform: best for very small surveys

As of November 2026, Typeform Free includes AI chatbot form building and logic with scores and variables. Its 10-response monthly pool across all forms places it last for ongoing free survey collection.

Free plan: Unlimited typeforms sharing 10 responses/month across all forms.

Paid from: Basic is $28/month billed yearly or $39/month monthly, with 100 responses/month.

Good:

  • Free AI chatbot form building.
  • Logic, scores and variables are available on Free.

Watch out:

  • The free response pool is monthly and shared across all forms.
  • Uploads, payment questions and signatures are paid-only; branding removal requires Plus at $56/month billed yearly.

Read Makeform vs Typeform.

Which one should you pick?

  • If you want AI-built surveys with NPS or CSAT summaries, pick Makeform.
  • If you already work in Google and want Sheets links and CSV downloads, pick Google Forms.
  • If you want unlimited free collection and AI that reads PDFs, pick Tally.
  • If you use a personal Microsoft account and expect up to 200 responses per form, pick Microsoft Forms.
  • If you need a short survey within 10 questions and 100 responses, pick Zoho Survey.
  • If you need Zapier on a short survey and can work within restricted response access, pick SurveyMonkey.

FAQ

Which free survey maker has unlimited responses?

Makeform and Tally include unlimited submissions within fair-use guidelines. Google Forms has a stated limit: starting September 2026, Google's help says each form can receive up to 500,000 responses with a 1 GB total storage limit.

Can Makeform calculate NPS and CSAT?

Makeform calculates NPS when an Opinion Scale uses an exact 0–10 range. It can also summarise eligible scale questions as CSAT; not every scale question qualifies for either summary.

Which free survey maker works well with Google Sheets?

Google Forms is our close second for people who already work in Google, with a Sheets link, Summary and Individual views, and CSV downloads. Makeform also includes a free Google Sheets integration.

Can I export responses from SurveyMonkey Basic?

As of November 2026, SurveyMonkey lists data exports under Standard, not Basic. Basic has limited response access, with the exact cap shown after sign-up or login.

Can Makeform save unfinished survey answers?

Partial submission saving requires Pro. Free includes owner email notifications, while respondent email notifications also require Pro.

More comparisons

Sources

Pricing verified November 2026.