Surveys · head to head
SurveyCTO vs Typeform
SurveyCTO
Surveys
Offline field survey platform priced by submissions rather than seats, built for research data quality
- From
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
The short version
- Each has a real cost: 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; Typeform free plan limited to 10 responses per month; Basic plan capped at 100/month
- They diverge on capability: SurveyCTO covers Offline collection, Typeform covers Conversational forms.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which SurveyCTO and Typeform actually diverge.
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 SurveyCTO
- Offline collection
- XLSForm authoring
- Automated quality checks
- Audio auditing
- Case management
- Random assignment
- Server region selection
Only in Typeform
- Conversational forms
- Logic jumps
- Calculator fields
- Payment collection
- File uploads
- Multi-language forms
- Mobile responsive
- Real-time analytics
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
SurveyCTO
- A household survey with 200 enumerators across a country where paying per seat would cost more than the fieldworknot Typeform
- An impact evaluation that needs audio auditing and timing metadata to prove interviews were conducted as reportednot Typeform
- A panel study revisiting the same households annually and needing offline case assignment to find them againnot Typeform
- A statistics unit that must keep data inside a specific region and produce a SOC 2 report for its fundernot Typeform
Typeform
- Customer feedback surveysnot SurveyCTO
- Lead generation formsnot SurveyCTO
- Event registrationsnot SurveyCTO
- Job applicationsnot SurveyCTO
- Market researchnot SurveyCTO
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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
Typeform
- Free plan limited to 10 responses per month; Basic plan capped at 100/month
- Branding removal only available on Plus plan ($56/month) and above
- No self-hosting or on-premise deployment options
Pricing, plan by plan
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
Typeform
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Typeform review.
Which should you pick?
Choose SurveyCTO if
- You need offline collection.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Android, iOS.
- You also want xlsform authoring.
Choose Typeform if
- You need conversational forms.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want logic jumps.
Questions people ask
- Is SurveyCTO or Typeform better?
- Neither clearly leads. SurveyCTO starts at Free and Typeform at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, SurveyCTO or Typeform?
- SurveyCTO starts at Free and Typeform at Free.
- Does SurveyCTO or Typeform run on more platforms?
- SurveyCTO runs on Web, Android, iOS. Typeform runs on Web.
- Can I use SurveyCTO for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is SurveyCTO best used for?
- SurveyCTO is most often used for a household survey with 200 enumerators across a country where paying per seat would cost more than the fieldwork, an impact evaluation that needs audio auditing and timing metadata to prove interviews were conducted as reported, a panel study revisiting the same households annually and needing offline case assignment to find them again, a statistics unit that must keep data inside a specific region and produce a soc 2 report for its funder. Of those, a household survey with 200 enumerators across a country where paying per seat would cost more than the fieldwork and an impact evaluation that needs audio auditing and timing metadata to prove interviews were conducted as reported are not what Typeform is typically brought in for.
- What can SurveyCTO do that Typeform cannot?
- SurveyCTO covers Offline collection, XLSForm authoring, Automated quality checks, Audio auditing. Typeform covers Conversational forms, Logic jumps, Calculator fields, Payment collection.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
SurveyCTO: Do I pay per enumerator?
No. Users and devices are unlimited on every paid tier. You pay for monthly submissions, forms and storage.
Typeform: What are Typeform's pricing tiers?
Typeform offers a free plan (10 responses/month), Basic at $28/month billed annually (100 responses/month, 1 user), Plus at $56/month billed annually (1,000 responses/month, 3 users, branding removed), and Business at $91/month billed annually (10,000 responses/month, 5 users).
SourceSurveyCTO: 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.
Typeform: Does Typeform have a free tier?
Yes. Typeform offers a free plan limited to 10 form responses per month with Typeform branding.
SourceSurveyCTO: 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.
Typeform: What integrations does Typeform support?
Typeform integrates with ActiveCampaign, Calendly, CallRail, Intercom, Klaviyo, Slack, Stripe, Webflow, and Zapier for workflow automation.
SourceSurveyCTO: Can I choose where the data is stored?
Only on Pro and above. If data residency matters, budget for at least the Pro tier.
Typeform: Can users export data from Typeform?
Yes. Typeform provides API access for data export. Users can retrieve form data and responses through the API using the GET /forms/:formId endpoint and export to CSV through integrations like Zapier or Airbyte.
SourceTypeform: Does Typeform offer self-hosting options?
No. Typeform is a cloud-based SaaS platform only. Self-hosted alternatives exist in the open-source form builder category, but Typeform itself does not offer on-premise deployment.
SourceTypeform: When is branding removed from Typeform?
Typeform branding is automatically removed only on the Plus plan ($56/month billed annually) and higher. The free and Basic plans display Typeform branding on forms.
SourceRelated pages
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- Typeform vs Optimove
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- Typeform vs Funnel.io
- Typeform vs Google Optimize
- Typeform vs Improvado
- Typeform vs Insider
- Typeform vs Instapage