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Marketing · head to head

Lucky Orange vs SurveyCTO

Lucky Orange logo

Lucky Orange

Marketing

All-in-one conversion optimization

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
SurveyCTO logo

SurveyCTO

Surveys

Offline field survey platform priced by submissions rather than seats, built for research data quality

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Lucky Orange session-based pricing scales poorly during traffic spikes or successful campaigns; SurveyCTO pricing is by submission volume, forms and storage rather than by users, so a small team running continuous high-volume collection can pay more than a 200-person survey team that runs for six weeks
  • They diverge on capability: Lucky Orange covers Heatmaps, SurveyCTO covers Offline collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lucky Orange and SurveyCTO actually diverge.

Attributes where Lucky Orange and SurveyCTO differ
AttributeLucky OrangeSurveyCTO
Pricing modelUnknownPer month by submission volume
PlatformsWebWeb, Android, iOS
CategoryMarketingSurveys
Founded2012Unknown

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 Lucky Orange

  • Heatmaps
  • Session Recordings
  • Live Chat
  • Surveys
  • Form Analytics
  • Shopify
  • WordPress
  • BigCommerce

Only in SurveyCTO

  • Offline collection
  • XLSForm authoring
  • Automated quality checks
  • Audio auditing
  • Case management
  • Random assignment
  • Server region selection

What people use each for

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

Lucky Orange

  • User experience analysisnot SurveyCTO
  • Bug reproductionnot SurveyCTO
  • Conversion optimizationnot SurveyCTO
  • Customer journey mappingnot SurveyCTO
  • Usability testingnot SurveyCTO

SurveyCTO

  • A household survey with 200 enumerators across a country where paying per seat would cost more than the fieldworknot Lucky Orange
  • An impact evaluation that needs audio auditing and timing metadata to prove interviews were conducted as reportednot Lucky Orange
  • A panel study revisiting the same households annually and needing offline case assignment to find them againnot Lucky Orange
  • A statistics unit that must keep data inside a specific region and produce a SOC 2 report for its fundernot Lucky Orange

Where each one falls short

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

Lucky Orange

  • Session-based pricing scales poorly during traffic spikes or successful campaigns
  • Lacks A/B testing capabilities that competitors like Crazy Egg offer
  • Less privacy-focused than Hotjar for session recording data

SurveyCTO

  • Pricing is by submission volume, forms and storage rather than by users, so a small team running continuous high-volume collection can pay more than a 200-person survey team that runs for six weeks
  • Forms are authored in XLSForm spreadsheet syntax, which is precise and versionable but has a real learning curve, and organisations without someone comfortable in it stall at form design
  • Overage is charged at 100 US dollars per 1,000 extra submissions, which is easy to trigger on the Basic tier at 5,000 a month and produces surprise invoices during an active field round
  • Server region selection only appears on the Pro tier and a custom GDPR data processing agreement only on Advanced, so European data protection requirements push the price to at least 315 and often 630 dollars a month regardless of volume
  • It is built for structured research fieldwork, not for business process forms, so it has no dispatch, no invoicing and no formatted document output, and a field service business would be buying the wrong tool

Pricing, plan by plan

Lucky Orange

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 100 monthly sessions
    • 30 days data retention
    • Basic features
  • Build$32/month
    • 5,000 monthly sessions
    • Live chat
    • Heatmaps
  • Grow$72/month
    • 15,000 monthly sessions
    • All Build features
  • Expand$184/month
    • 50,000 monthly sessions
    • All features

SurveyCTO

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Permanent free subscription for testing and training
    • 10 forms
    • 200 monthly submissions
  • Basic$225/month
    • Billed annually, 250 USD month to month
    • 100 forms
    • 10 GB storage
  • Pro$315/month
    • Billed annually, 350 USD month to month
    • 500 forms
    • 25 GB storage
  • Advanced$630/month
    • Billed annually, 700 USD month to month
    • Unlimited forms, storage and submissions
    • Advanced offline case management

Which should you pick?

Choose Lucky Orange if

  • You need heatmaps.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want session recordings.
Lucky Orange review

Choose SurveyCTO if

  • You need offline collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Android, iOS.
  • You also want xlsform authoring.
SurveyCTO review

Questions people ask

Is Lucky Orange or SurveyCTO better?
Neither clearly leads. Lucky Orange starts at Free and SurveyCTO at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lucky Orange or SurveyCTO?
Lucky Orange starts at Free and SurveyCTO at Free.
Does Lucky Orange or SurveyCTO run on more platforms?
Lucky Orange runs on Web. SurveyCTO runs on Web, Android, iOS.
Can I use Lucky Orange for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Lucky Orange best used for?
Lucky Orange is most often used for user experience analysis, bug reproduction, conversion optimization, customer journey mapping. Of those, user experience analysis and bug reproduction are not what SurveyCTO is typically brought in for.
What can Lucky Orange do that SurveyCTO cannot?
Lucky Orange covers Heatmaps, Session Recordings, Live Chat, Surveys. SurveyCTO covers Offline collection, XLSForm authoring, Automated quality checks, Audio auditing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Lucky Orange: What is Lucky Orange's pricing based on?

Lucky Orange uses session-based pricing tiers. The Free plan tracks 100 monthly sessions; Build plan ($32/mo) tracks 5,000 sessions; Grow ($72/mo) tracks 15,000 sessions, up to Scale ($839/mo) for 300,000 sessions.

Source
SurveyCTO: Do I pay per enumerator?

No. Users and devices are unlimited on every paid tier. You pay for monthly submissions, forms and storage.

Lucky Orange: Does Lucky Orange include live chat?

Yes, unlike pure heatmap tools, Lucky Orange includes live chat with canned responses, operator transfers, co-browsing, and typing preview in all paid plans.

Source
SurveyCTO: Is there a free version?

Yes, a permanent community subscription with 10 forms, 200 monthly submissions and 200 MB of storage, intended for testing and training rather than production.

Lucky Orange: Can I get a 7-day free trial?

Yes, Lucky Orange offers a 7-day free trial with all features on every plan and no credit card required to start.

Source
SurveyCTO: What happens if I exceed my submissions?

Extra credits are 100 US dollars per 1,000, with discounts of 20 per cent or more at volume. Plan the tier around your peak field month, not your average.

Lucky Orange: Does Lucky Orange track session recordings?

Yes, Lucky Orange provides dynamic heatmaps and visitor session recordings showing customer behavior, including drop-offs in conversion funnels.

Source
SurveyCTO: Can I choose where the data is stored?

Only on Pro and above. If data residency matters, budget for at least the Pro tier.

Lucky Orange: How is Lucky Orange different from Hotjar?

Lucky Orange combines heatmaps with integrated live chat for real-time support, while Hotjar focuses more on feedback collection and UX research with better privacy defaults.

Source
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