Google Forms alternative: public forms on your own domain

The most common trigger is the no-API problem. Google Forms doesn't ship a real-time webhook or a clean REST API for fetching submissions. The standard workaround is Apps Script — you write a Google-flavored JavaScript file, hook it to the form's `onFormSubmit` trigger, and POST to wherever you actually want the data. It works, but it's a separate codebase, a separate auth model, a separate deploy story, and the failure modes are silent. splitforms ships HMAC-SHA256 signed webhooks (one retry after ~2s on network errors, timeouts and 5xx; not on 4xx; 8-second timeout) on paid plans, plus an open REST API for pulling submissions on demand.

The second trigger is the hosting model. Google Forms lives on docs.google.com or embeds via iframe. For an internal survey that's fine; for a public marketing-site form, the iframe loads slowly, breaks page styling, and breaks attribution chains. splitforms is a standard form action — your HTML, your domain, your CSS, your analytics, no iframe and no off-site link.

The third trigger is spam. Google Forms has effectively no spam filtering — there's no honeypot, no CAPTCHA option on the free tier, and no smart spam filter. For a public form on the open web, this is structural: you'll get bot submissions, and Google Forms will write them to your sheet alongside the real ones. splitforms layers smart spam filtering (rule-based content scoring) on top of a honeypot and a time-trap, without the user friction of CAPTCHA.

The fourth trigger is the Google-account barrier. By default, Google Forms can require respondents to sign in (and many configurations encourage it). For internal use that's fine; for an outside-the-org contact form, it's a friction tax. splitforms forms accept any submitter, no account required.

Price

Google Forms is free forever with unlimited submissions if you have a Google account. splitforms is free for 500 submissions total, $5/mo for 5,000, or $49/year for 15,000/month on the Annual plan. For unlimited submissions on a free account, Google Forms wins on price.

Hosting

Google Forms lives on docs.google.com or embeds via iframe. splitforms is a standard HTML form action that lives on your own domain, with no iframe.

Webhooks

splitforms unlocks HMAC-SHA256 signed webhooks (one retry after ~2s on network errors, timeouts and 5xx; not on 4xx; 8-second timeout) on paid plans. Google Forms has no native webhook — the standard path is Apps Script with `onFormSubmit`.

API

splitforms ships an open REST API on every plan including free. Google Forms exposes data through Apps Script and the Forms API, both of which are functional but require Google-platform tooling to consume.

Spam protection

splitforms uses a smart spam filter on top of honeypot. Google Forms has no spam filtering — every bot submission lands in your sheet.

Notification emails

SplitForms standard notifications need no customer SMTP setup; paid plans support SMTP through a provider and domain you configure. Google Forms sends notifications from a Google address with no customization.

MCP server for AI agents

splitforms ships one on every plan. Google Forms has no MCP integration — agents would need Apps Script and Google OAuth.

Sheets integration

both write rows natively. Google Forms does it on every account; splitforms' Google Sheets integration creates the sheet and appends a row per submission on paid plans.

Respondent experience

Google Forms can require a Google sign-in. splitforms requires nothing of the respondent.

• “I need a real-time webhook into my CRM and Google Forms only writes to a Sheet.”

  splitforms ships HMAC-SHA256 signed webhooks (one retry after ~2s on network errors, timeouts and 5xx; not on 4xx; 8-second timeout) on paid plans. Wire the webhook directly to your CRM endpoint or to a serverless function that maps the payload.

• “Apps Script is fine but I want the form, the backend, and the deploy in one codebase.”

  splitforms is a standard HTTP endpoint — no Google OAuth, no Apps Script project, no separate deployment story.

• “My public Google Form is getting flooded with bot spam and there's no filter.”

  splitforms adds a honeypot, a time-trap and smart spam filtering (rule-based content scoring) to every form, with no CAPTCHA for visitors to solve.

• “I don't want my form to live on a docs.google.com URL.”

  splitforms forms are standard HTML on your own domain. No iframe, no off-site link.

• “Notification emails come from a generic Google address and land in promotions.”

  SplitForms standard notifications need no customer SMTP setup; paid plans support SMTP through a provider and domain you configure.

• “Respondents shouldn't need a Google account to submit.”

  splitforms requires nothing of the respondent.

• “I want a Claude or Cursor agent to read submissions natively.”

  splitforms ships an MCP server. Google Forms would require Apps Script plus Google OAuth.

splitforms isn't competing with Google Forms on price for unlimited internal surveys — Google Forms is free and that's hard to beat. splitforms wins in the cases Google Forms structurally can't reach: developer workflows, public-facing forms on your own domain, real-time webhook delivery, spam filtering on open-web traffic, and AI-agent integration via MCP.

Real webhooks on paid plans: HMAC-SHA256 signed payloads, per-form scoping, one retry after about 2 seconds on network errors, timeouts and 5xx (not 4xx), with an 8-second timeout. Wire submissions directly into your CRM, Slack, internal tools, or AI agent pipeline without Apps Script.

Open REST API on every plan, including free. Fetch submissions and list forms without Google OAuth, Apps Script, or a separate Google project; webhook management unlocks with the paid delivery features.

smart spam filtering (rule-based content scoring) on top of a honeypot and a time-trap

Forms on your own domain. The form is HTML on your page, your CSS, your analytics, your branding. No iframe, no docs.google.com link, no Google sign-in barrier.

owner email notifications. Delivery time and inbox placement depend on the mail provider and recipient settings.

MCP server for AI agents: Claude, Cursor, and other MCP-aware tools read and act on form data natively. No Apps Script bridge required.

Step 1: sign up at splitforms.com for a free access key — no credit card required. Step 2: rebuild your form as plain HTML on your own page. For each Google Forms question, write a corresponding `<input>`, `<textarea>`, or `<select>` inside `<form action="https://splitforms.com/api/submit" method="POST">`. Question types map directly: short answer to text input, paragraph to textarea, multiple choice to radio, checkboxes to checkbox group, dropdown to select. Step 3: submit a test entry and confirm it lands in the splitforms dashboard.

If you want submissions to keep flowing into a Google Sheet, connect the splitforms Google Sheets integration (paid plans): it creates the sheet and appends a row per submission, with no Apps Script. You keep the Sheet-as-database pattern and gain a real backend underneath it. This is the migration path most teams take when they've outgrown Google Forms but still want the spreadsheet-native workflow.

If you were using Apps Script with `onFormSubmit` to forward submissions elsewhere, you can delete the Apps Script entirely — the splitforms webhook does that job natively, with HMAC-SHA256 signed payloads your receiver can verify — something Apps Script doesn't ship.

splitforms Free

500 submissions total, unlimited forms, dashboard, email notifications and smart spam filtering. splitforms Pro: $5/mo for 5,000 submissions a month, adding signed webhooks, integrations (including Google Sheets), exports and file uploads. splitforms Annual: $49/year for 15,000 submissions a month with every Pro feature.

Where splitforms is the right spend

any public-facing form on your own domain where the Google Forms model doesn't fit. The $5/mo or $49/year price is for the webhook, the API, the spam filtering, the owner email notifications, the MCP server — none of which Google Forms ships.

Is splitforms trying to replace Google Forms? No, and that framing would be wrong. Google Forms is the right tool for internal surveys, classroom quizzes, and any workflow where Sheets is the natural destination. splitforms is for the cases Google Forms structurally can't reach — public forms on your own domain, real-time webhooks, programmatic API access, spam filtering, AI-agent integration.

Can I keep my Google Sheet as the destination? Yes. Connect the Google Sheets integration on a paid plan and every submission appends a row. You keep the Sheet pattern and gain a real backend underneath it.

Will my respondents need a Google account on splitforms? No. splitforms requires nothing of the submitter. Anyone can fill the form and submit.

What about Google Forms' built-in quiz mode and answer keys? splitforms doesn't ship a quiz UI — that's a Google Forms-specific feature for classrooms. If you need quiz mode, stay on Google Forms.

Does splitforms have a real-time webhook that Google Forms doesn't? Yes. splitforms ships HMAC-SHA256 signed webhooks (one retry after ~2s on network errors, timeouts and 5xx; not on 4xx; 8-second timeout) on paid plans. Google Forms' equivalent path is Apps Script with `onFormSubmit`, which works but is a separate codebase.

How does spam filtering compare? splitforms uses a smart spam filter on top of honeypot, accurate enough to drop CAPTCHA. Google Forms has no spam filtering at all — every bot submission lands in your Sheet.

Is there a per-form limit? No. splitforms has unlimited forms on every plan, including Free. Google Forms also has no per-form limit on Sheets-destination forms.

Is there a yearly plan? Yes. Annual is $49/year for 15,000 submissions/month with every Pro feature, about $4.08/month.