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Surveys · head to head

KoboToolbox vs Mailgun

KoboToolbox logo

KoboToolbox

Surveys

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

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Mailgun logo

Mailgun

Marketing

Email delivery built for developers

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Mailgun free tier limited to 100 emails per day, restricting high-volume use cases
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which KoboToolbox and Mailgun actually diverge.

Attributes where KoboToolbox and Mailgun differ
AttributeKoboToolboxMailgun
Pricing modelPer month by submission countsubscription
PlatformsWeb, Android, Self-hostedWeb
CategorySurveysMarketing

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 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

Only in Mailgun

Nothing recorded that KoboToolbox does not also cover.

What people use each for

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

KoboToolbox

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

Mailgun

  • Transactional email delivery and SMTP relaynot KoboToolbox
  • Email marketing at scale for developers and enterprisesnot KoboToolbox

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Mailgun

  • Free tier limited to 100 emails per day, restricting high-volume use cases
  • Log retention minimal on lower tiers (1 day on Free and Basic plans)
  • Add-on pricing for email validations and extra emails can accumulate quickly for high-traffic users

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Mailgun

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 100 emails per day
    • Basic APIs
    • SMTP relay
  • Basic$15/monthly
    • 10,000 emails per month
    • No daily limits
    • Monthly overage options
  • Foundation$35/monthly
    • 50,000 emails per month
    • 1,000 custom domains
    • Email template builder
  • Scale$90/monthly
    • 100,000 emails per month
    • SAML SSO
    • 5,000 email validations

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Mailgun if

  • You want to start without paying.
Mailgun review

Questions people ask

Is KoboToolbox or Mailgun better?
Neither clearly leads. KoboToolbox starts at Free and Mailgun at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, KoboToolbox or Mailgun?
KoboToolbox starts at Free and Mailgun at Free.
Does KoboToolbox or Mailgun run on more platforms?
KoboToolbox runs on Web, Android, Self-hosted. Mailgun runs on Web.
Can I use KoboToolbox for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is KoboToolbox best used for?
KoboToolbox is most often used for a rapid needs assessment after a disaster where enumerators work for days without mobile coverage, a ministry of health running a national survey that must be self-hosted in country for data protection reasons, an ngo running the same longitudinal household survey in four languages across three countries, a research group that needs a free instrument for a modest sample and an spss export at the end. Of those, a rapid needs assessment after a disaster where enumerators work for days without mobile coverage and a ministry of health running a national survey that must be self-hosted in country for data protection reasons are not what Mailgun is typically brought in for.
What can KoboToolbox do that Mailgun cannot?
KoboToolbox covers Offline data collection, XLSForm and browser form builder, Skip logic and validation, Multilingual forms.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Mailgun: What happens when I exceed my monthly email quota?

Mailgun allows monthly overage options on paid plans. Extra emails are charged from $1.30 to $1.10 per 1,000 emails depending on plan tier. Enterprise customers negotiate custom rates.

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.

Mailgun: Can I upgrade from Free to a paid plan and when does billing begin?

Yes, you can upgrade to paid plans anytime. The first month is free on Foundation ($35/month) and Scale ($90/month) plans, with billing starting on month two.

Source
KoboToolbox: Can I host it myself?

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

Mailgun: What currencies and billing periods does Mailgun support?

Mailgun supports monthly billing in USD, EUR, and GBP. Charges are prorated for mid-month signups. Annual billing options are not explicitly listed on the pricing page.

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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