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Marketing · head to head

Improvado vs KoboToolbox

Improvado logo

Improvado

Marketing

Data integration platform for marketing teams

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
KoboToolbox logo

KoboToolbox

Surveys

Offline-first data collection for humanitarian, development and research field work

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Improvado free tier limited to 50 MCP actions per week; KoboToolbox the free Community plan caps at 5,000 submissions a month and 1 GB of file storage, and any form collecting photographs exhausts storage long before it exhausts the submission count.
  • They diverge on capability: Improvado covers 500+ data source connectors, KoboToolbox covers Offline data collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Improvado and KoboToolbox actually diverge.

Attributes where Improvado and KoboToolbox differ
AttributeImprovadoKoboToolbox
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month by submission count
PlatformsWeb, Api, Data-warehouseWeb, Android, Self-hosted
CategoryMarketingSurveys
Founded2015Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Improvado

  • 500+ data source connectors
  • Data transformation
  • Real-time syncing
  • Data warehouse integration
  • ETL capabilities
  • Data quality monitoring
  • Historical data
  • Custom connectors

Only in KoboToolbox

  • Offline data collection
  • XLSForm and browser form builder
  • Skip logic and validation
  • Multilingual forms
  • GPS and media capture
  • Case management
  • Exports and analysis
  • Self-hosting

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Improvado

  • Marketing data integrationnot KoboToolbox
  • Multi-workspace data orchestrationnot KoboToolbox
  • Incrementality testing and attributionnot KoboToolbox
  • Multi-touch attribution modelingnot KoboToolbox

KoboToolbox

  • A rapid needs assessment after a disaster where enumerators work for days without mobile coveragenot Improvado
  • A ministry of health running a national survey that must be self-hosted in country for data protection reasonsnot Improvado
  • An NGO running the same longitudinal household survey in four languages across three countriesnot Improvado
  • A research group that needs a free instrument for a modest sample and an SPSS export at the endnot Improvado

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Improvado

  • Free tier limited to 50 MCP actions per week
  • Advanced and Enterprise tiers require custom pricing quotes
  • No publicly listed Advanced or Enterprise rates

KoboToolbox

  • The free Community plan caps at 5,000 submissions a month and 1 GB of file storage, and any form collecting photographs exhausts storage long before it exhausts the submission count.
  • The Starter paid plan allows only 1,000 submissions a month for $21, which is fewer than the free nonprofit tier, so a small commercial user pays more for less than a charity gets free.
  • Eligibility for the free plan depends on Kobo's assessment of your organisation and purpose, which introduces an approval step that a consultancy working on behalf of an NGO may not clear.
  • Self-hosting is genuinely possible but the stack is substantial to deploy and maintain, so a ministry choosing it for data residency reasons takes on real infrastructure staffing cost.
  • Analysis and reporting inside the platform are basic compared with dedicated tools, so most serious use exports to Excel, Power BI or statistical software, and that export step is where data governance often gets loose.

Pricing, plan by plan

Improvado

Free
  • Free LimitedFree
    • 50 MCP actions per week
    • 1 workspace
    • Live API requests to all sources
  • MCP Only$100/month
    • 2M rows per year
    • Daily data sync
    • 300 MCP actions per week
  • Advanced$null/custom
    • 600M rows per year
    • Up to 4x daily syncs
    • 200 actions per day
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • 1B rows per year
    • 600 actions per day
    • Unlimited workspaces

KoboToolbox

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Free for qualifying nonprofit and public good organisations
    • 5,000 submissions per month
    • 1 GB file storage
  • Starter$21/month
    • 1,000 submissions per month
    • 0.5 GB file storage
    • For private and for-profit use
  • Professional$129/month
    • 25,000 submissions per month or 300,000 per year
    • Unlimited file storage
    • Priority support
  • Teams$undefined/month
    • 50,000 submissions per month or 600,000 per year
    • Shared team administration
    • Pricing published by plan tier

Which should you pick?

Choose Improvado if

  • You need 500+ data source connectors.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api, Data-warehouse.
  • You also want data transformation.
Improvado review

Choose KoboToolbox if

  • You need offline data collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Android, Self-hosted.
  • You also want xlsform and browser form builder.
KoboToolbox review

Questions people ask

Is Improvado or KoboToolbox better?
Neither clearly leads. Improvado starts at Free and KoboToolbox at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Improvado or KoboToolbox?
Improvado starts at Free and KoboToolbox at Free.
Does Improvado or KoboToolbox run on more platforms?
Improvado runs on Web, Api, Data-warehouse. KoboToolbox runs on Web, Android, Self-hosted.
Can I use Improvado for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Improvado best used for?
Improvado is most often used for marketing data integration, multi-workspace data orchestration, incrementality testing and attribution, multi-touch attribution modeling. Of those, marketing data integration and multi-workspace data orchestration are not what KoboToolbox is typically brought in for.
What can Improvado do that KoboToolbox cannot?
Improvado covers 500+ data source connectors, Data transformation, Real-time syncing, Data warehouse integration. KoboToolbox covers Offline data collection, XLSForm and browser form builder, Skip logic and validation, Multilingual forms.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Improvado: What is Improvado's free tier?

Improvado Free Limited tier costs $0/month and includes 50 MCP actions per week, 1 workspace, live API requests to all sources, AI Agent, and MCP. No credit card required to start.

Source
KoboToolbox: Is KoboToolbox free?

Free for qualifying nonprofit and public good organisations under the Community plan, currently 5,000 submissions a month and 1 GB of storage. Commercial use requires a paid plan from $21 a month.

Improvado: What are Improvado's paid plans?

Paid tiers include MCP Only ($100/month with 2M rows/year and 300 weekly actions), Advanced (custom pricing with 600M rows/year and 50 workspaces), and Enterprise (custom pricing with 1B rows/year, unlimited workspaces, and SSO).

Source
KoboToolbox: Who funds it?

Kobo Inc is a US nonprofit funded roughly 38 per cent by grants and contributions and 62 per cent by service contracts, subscriptions and training, based on its 2024 figures.

Improvado: Does Improvado offer data sync frequency limits?

MCP Only tier offers daily data sync, Advanced tier allows up to 4x daily syncs, and Enterprise tier includes no stated sync frequency limits. Free tier enables live API requests without scheduled syncing.

Source
KoboToolbox: Can I host it myself?

Yes. The server stack is open source and is regularly deployed in country for data residency reasons.

Improvado: What compliance and security features does Improvado include?

Improvado holds SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA, GDPR, and CCPA compliance. Enterprise tier specifically includes SSO with Azure and Okta support for identity management.

Source
KoboToolbox: Are forms portable?

Yes. It uses XLSForm and ODK standards, so instruments move between Kobo and other ODK-compatible servers.

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