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Manufacturing · head to head

Fulcrum vs SurveyCTO

Fulcrum logo

Fulcrum

Manufacturing

Field operations management for installing, inspecting and maintaining physical work

From
$39/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
SurveyCTO logo

SurveyCTO

Surveys

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only SurveyCTO has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fulcrum monthly pricing only available for first 12 months; after that, annual commitment required; 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
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fulcrum and SurveyCTO actually diverge.

Attributes where Fulcrum and SurveyCTO differ
AttributeFulcrumSurveyCTO
Starting price$39/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer month by submission volume
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Android, iOS
CategoryManufacturingSurveys

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 Fulcrum

Nothing recorded that SurveyCTO does not also cover.

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.

Fulcrum

  • Capturing inspection photos and data completely offlinenot SurveyCTO
  • Collecting field data in areas without cell coveragenot SurveyCTO
  • Tagging asset locations with geospatial coordinatesnot SurveyCTO
  • Automating asset maintenance work order workflowsnot SurveyCTO

SurveyCTO

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

Where each one falls short

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

Fulcrum

  • Monthly pricing only available for first 12 months; after that, annual commitment required
  • Additional storage costs $2.20 USD per month per 20 GB block
  • Enterprise plan requires minimum of 5 users

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

Fulcrum

$39/month
  • Professional$43/month
    • 100 GB storage
    • 10 data shares
    • Standard email and in-app support
  • Elite$39/month
    • 500 GB storage
    • 50 data shares
    • Priority email, in-app, and phone support
  • Enterprise$null/mo
    • Custom pricing
    • Unlimited users minimum 5
    • Unlimited storage

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 Fulcrum if

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

Fulcrum 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 Fulcrum or SurveyCTO better?
Neither clearly leads. Fulcrum starts at $39/month and SurveyCTO at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fulcrum or SurveyCTO?
SurveyCTO has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $39/month for Fulcrum and Free for SurveyCTO.
Does Fulcrum or SurveyCTO run on more platforms?
Fulcrum runs on Web. SurveyCTO runs on Web, Android, iOS.
Can I use SurveyCTO for free?
Yes. SurveyCTO has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Fulcrum starts at $39/month.
What is Fulcrum best used for?
Fulcrum is most often used for capturing inspection photos and data completely offline, collecting field data in areas without cell coverage, tagging asset locations with geospatial coordinates, automating asset maintenance work order workflows. Of those, capturing inspection photos and data completely offline and collecting field data in areas without cell coverage are not what SurveyCTO is typically brought in for.
What can Fulcrum do that SurveyCTO cannot?
SurveyCTO covers Offline collection, XLSForm authoring, Automated quality checks, Audio auditing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Fulcrum: How much does Fulcrum cost per user?

Professional and Elite plans cost $43 per month for monthly billing or $55 per user per month when billed annually. Enterprise pricing is custom and requires contacting Fulcrum.

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.

Fulcrum: What is Fulcrum's storage limit?

Professional includes 100 GB storage, Elite includes 500 GB storage, and Enterprise includes unlimited storage. Additional storage blocks of 20 GB cost $2.20 USD per month.

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.

Fulcrum: Are there restrictions on monthly billing for Fulcrum?

Monthly pricing is only available during the first 12 months as a Fulcrum customer. After 12 months, the company learns your usage pattern and offers pricing with an annual commitment required.

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.

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.

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