Softwr

Surveys · head to head

KoboToolbox vs MoEngage

KoboToolbox logo

KoboToolbox

Surveys

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

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
MoEngage logo

MoEngage

Marketing

Essential solutions to help your growing teams build and retain customers

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only KoboToolbox has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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.; MoEngage no pricing information published; platform uses custom pricing requiring sales contact
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which KoboToolbox and MoEngage actually diverge.

Attributes where KoboToolbox and MoEngage differ
AttributeKoboToolboxMoEngage
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer month by submission countquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Android, Self-hostedWeb
CategorySurveysMarketing

Identical on both: 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 MoEngage

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 MoEngage
  • A ministry of health running a national survey that must be self-hosted in country for data protection reasonsnot MoEngage
  • An NGO running the same longitudinal household survey in four languages across three countriesnot MoEngage
  • A research group that needs a free instrument for a modest sample and an SPSS export at the endnot MoEngage

MoEngage

  • Identifying at-risk customers through churn prediction modelsnot KoboToolbox
  • Sending triggered SMS alerts when customers abandon shopping cartsnot KoboToolbox
  • A/B testing email subject lines for newsletter campaignsnot KoboToolbox
  • Personalizing push notifications based on location and browsing historynot 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.

MoEngage

  • No pricing information published; platform uses custom pricing requiring sales contact
  • Growth and Enterprise plan tiers mentioned but no rates or features disclosed

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

MoEngage

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the MoEngage review.

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 MoEngage if

Nothing in the data separates MoEngage from KoboToolbox on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

MoEngage review

Questions people ask

Is KoboToolbox or MoEngage better?
Neither clearly leads. KoboToolbox starts at Free and MoEngage at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, KoboToolbox or MoEngage?
KoboToolbox has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for KoboToolbox and On request for MoEngage.
Does KoboToolbox or MoEngage run on more platforms?
KoboToolbox runs on Web, Android, Self-hosted. MoEngage runs on Web.
Can I use KoboToolbox for free?
Yes. KoboToolbox has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. MoEngage starts at On request.
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 MoEngage is typically brought in for.
What can KoboToolbox do that MoEngage 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.

MoEngage: How much does MoEngage cost?

MoEngage does not publish pricing rates on its website. The platform offers Growth and Enterprise plan tiers, with exact pricing available only through contacting the sales team or requesting a demo.

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.

MoEngage: What is MoEngage's pricing model?

MoEngage uses custom enterprise pricing determined by specific customer requirements, requiring direct sales outreach to obtain a quote.

Source
KoboToolbox: Can I host it myself?

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

KoboToolbox: Are forms portable?

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

Share

Related pages

More on KoboToolbox

More on MoEngage

Keep looking

Other head to heads