Point any HTML form at one endpoint. 500 free submissions — no card, no time limit — and unlimited forms.
Create free accountDisclosure: splitforms publishes this comparison and is one of the services in it. Free-plan limits and prices were read from each vendor's own pricing page on September 29, 2026 (Formcarry and Formspark re-checked October 14, 2026); every link is under Sources. There is no overall ranking: services are listed alphabetically and each pick names the use case it wins.
Definition: A form backend is a hosted endpoint that receives your form's POST, filters spam, emails you and stores each submission, so you don't write server code. What is a form backend?
See what a free form backend includes, or open the full form backend comparison (every service side by side, with sources and check dates).
What does each free plan include?
The number that matters most is how many real submissions you can collect before the form stops or asks you to upgrade. Most services give a monthly allowance; splitforms gives 500 submissions total with no time limit.
| Service | Free allowance | Forms | Free history | Uploads on free | Cheapest paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| splitforms | 500 total, no time limit | Unlimited | No expiry | No | $5/mo for 5,000/mo, or $49/yr for 15,000/mo |
| Web3Forms | 250/month | Unlimited | 30 days | No | $15/mo or $149/yr for 10,000 |
| FormBold | 100/month | 5 | - | No | $6/mo, or $48/yr ($4/mo), for 3,000 |
| Forminit | 100/month | 1 | Until you delete | 25 MB/submission, 100 MB stored | $19/mo, or $190/yr, for 5,000 |
| Formspree | 50/month | Unlimited | 30 days | No | $15/mo ($10 yearly) for 200 |
| Basin | 50/month | 1 | 30 days | 100 MB | $15/mo, or $12.50/mo yearly, for 250 |
| Formcarry | 50/month | 1 | - | No (paid plans) | $6/mo or $5/mo billed annually for 500 |
| FormSubmit | Unlimited | Unlimited | 30 days via API | Attachments emailed, 10 MB | No paid plan |
| Netlify Forms | Unlimited on credit plans | - | - | - | Netlify hosting required |
Which free form backend is best for each use case?
Each row names the service whose published plan wins that use case on the numbers in the tables below, plus the closest runner-up.
| Use case | Best for it | Why | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Largest monthly free tier (re-checked) | Web3Forms | 250 a month, unlimited forms, 30 days of history | FormBold or Forminit (100 a month). SubmitKit lists 500 a month, from an older snapshot |
| Unlimited free, no dashboard needed | FormSubmit | Unlimited email forwarding with no signup and no paid plan | Netlify Forms, if you host there |
| Site hosted on Netlify | Netlify Forms | Unlimited on credit-based plans, one form attribute | Any host-independent backend if you might move |
| File uploads on a free plan | Basin | 100 MB of uploads on Free | Forminit (25 MB per submission, 100 MB stored); FormSubmit emails 10 MB |
| Largest one-time free allowance | splitforms | 500 submissions total, no card, no expiry | Formspark (250 total) |
| Webhooks on a free plan | Formspark | Webhooks on Free (unsigned), within 250 free submissions | FormSubmit (_webhook field) |
| Signed webhooks at a low monthly price | splitforms Pro | $5/month for 5,000 submissions a month | FormBold Starter ($6/month, or $48/year, for 3,000) |
| EU-hosted data | SubmitKit | EU-first hosting (older snapshot; verify) | Forminit (EU hosting) |
| Established brand and docs | Formspree | Mature docs and a React package; 50 free a month | Basin |
How do the 10 form backends compare?
Pricing changes often. Most rows below were re-checked against public pricing pages on September 29, 2026; Formcarry and Formspark were checked again on October 14, 2026. SubmitKit remains an earlier snapshot. Treat it as a buying guide, then verify the provider page before moving a production form. Services are listed alphabetically.
| Service | Free plan | Cheapest paid path | Dashboard | Webhooks | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basin | 50 submissions/mo | $12.50/mo Starter billed yearly (250/month) | Polished dashboard | Growth plan | Designers who care about dashboard polish |
| FormBold | 100 submissions/mo (5 forms) | $6/mo Starter, or $48/yr ($4/mo billed yearly), for 3,000/month | Dashboard | Starter and up (optional signing secret, retries on non-2xx) | Small sites that need a few forms on a monthly free allowance |
| Formcarry | 50 submissions/mo | $6/mo Starter, or $5/mo billed annually, for 500/month | Good dashboard | Integration limits | Paid native uploads and documented MCP tools |
| Forminit / Getform | 100 submissions/mo (1 form) | $19/mo Pro, or $190/yr (about $15.83/mo billed yearly), for 5,000/month | Analytics dashboard | Pro plan (HMAC-SHA256 signed) | Teams that already used Getform |
| Formspark | 250 submissions total | $25 promotional prepaid bundle for 50,000 submissions ($50 list) | Clean dashboard | Available on Free; unsigned requests | Projects that prefer one-time credits |
| Formspree | 50 submissions/mo | $15/mo Personal ($10/mo billed yearly) for 200/month | Mature dashboard | Paid plans | Teams that want the established brand |
| Netlify Forms | Unlimited form submissions on credit plans | $9/mo Personal hosting plan (forms included) | Inside Netlify | Available | Sites already hosted on Netlify |
| splitforms | 500 submissions total (no card, no time limit) | Pro $5/month for 5,000 submissions/month; Annual $49/year for 15,000/month | Full dashboard | Paid plans (Pro $5/month or Annual $49/year) | Agent-built, code-first sites and signed webhook workflows |
| SubmitKit | 500 submissions/month | €6/mo Pro; €15/mo Business | Full dashboard | Pro and above | EU-hosted forms and free file uploads |
| Web3Forms | 250 submissions/mo | $15/mo ($149/yr) Pro for 10,000/month | Basic | Paid plans | Small email-only HTML forms |
How much free headroom does each plan give?
The most important number is not the logo or the landing page. It is how many real leads you can collect before the form stops, pauses, or pushes you into a paid plan. Most bars are monthly allowances; the splitforms bar is its 500-submission total.
What is each form backend good at?
Basin
Very clean UX, but paid limits step up quickly.
- Free
- 50 submissions/mo
- Paid
- $12.50/mo Starter billed yearly (250/month)
- Webhooks
- Growth plan
FormBold
A useful monthly free tier across five forms, with a low yearly upgrade price.
- Free
- 100 submissions/mo (5 forms)
- Paid
- $6/mo Starter, or $48/yr ($4/mo billed yearly), for 3,000/month
- Webhooks
- Starter and up (optional signing secret, retries on non-2xx)
Formcarry
Solid low-price option with useful file-upload support.
- Free
- 50 submissions/mo
- Paid
- $6/mo Starter, or $5/mo billed annually, for 500/month
- Webhooks
- Integration limits
Forminit / Getform
Getform renamed (January 2026), with free file uploads and EU hosting, but pricier than most.
- Free
- 100 submissions/mo (1 form)
- Paid
- $19/mo Pro, or $190/yr (about $15.83/mo billed yearly), for 5,000/month
- Webhooks
- Pro plan (HMAC-SHA256 signed)
Formspark
Interesting no-subscription model, but free is not monthly.
- Free
- 250 submissions total
- Paid
- $25 promotional prepaid bundle for 50,000 submissions ($50 list)
- Webhooks
- Available on Free; unsigned requests
Formspree
Reliable and mature, but the free tier is small.
- Free
- 50 submissions/mo
- Paid
- $15/mo Personal ($10/mo billed yearly) for 200/month
- Webhooks
- Paid plans
Netlify Forms
Excellent built-in value for Netlify-hosted sites; the tradeoff is host portability.
- Free
- Unlimited form submissions on credit plans
- Paid
- $9/mo Personal hosting plan (forms included)
- Webhooks
- Available
splitforms
Best fit when an AI agent or developer should provision and operate the form backend.
- Free
- 500 submissions total (no card, no time limit)
- Paid
- Pro $5/month for 5,000 submissions/month; Annual $49/year for 15,000/month
- Webhooks
- Paid plans (Pro $5/month or Annual $49/year)
SubmitKit
A strong EU-first option with a generous free plan.
- Free
- 500 submissions/month
- Paid
- €6/mo Pro; €15/mo Business
- Webhooks
- Pro and above
Web3Forms
Simple and generous enough for tiny projects.
- Free
- 250 submissions/mo
- Paid
- $15/mo ($149/yr) Pro for 10,000/month
- Webhooks
- Paid plans
Where does splitforms fit?
splitforms Free includes the endpoint, email notifications, smart spam filtering, unlimited forms and searchable submissions with no automatic expiry, but its 500 submissions are a one-time total, not a monthly allowance. Paid plans add signed webhooks and file uploads (5 files of 5 MB per submission): Pro is $5/month for 5,000 submissions a month and Annual is $49/year for 15,000 a month.
The cost to watch in this category is webhooks. The first plan with webhooks ranges from $6/month (FormBold Starter, or $48/year) and $5/month (splitforms Pro) up to $30/month (Formspree Professional). Formspark sends unsigned webhooks even on its free 250 submissions.
When is splitforms not the right choice?
- You need EU data residency. splitforms stores data in the US under Standard Contractual Clauses (see the DPA); SubmitKit and Forminit advertise EU hosting.
- You want a free allowance that resets every month. splitforms Free is 500 submissions once. Web3Forms (250 a month), FormBold and Forminit (100 a month) keep going indefinitely.
- Your site is staying on Netlify. Netlify Forms is free and unlimited on credit-based plans with one form attribute.
- You need file uploads on a free plan. splitforms uploads are paid; Basin and Forminit store files on Free, and FormSubmit emails attachments up to 10 MB.
- You want a visual form builder or surveys. splitforms receives your own HTML form; a hosted builder such as Tally or Typeform fits better.
How do you choose a free form backend?
Choose Web3Forms if
- You want 250 free submissions every month.
- Your form is email-only and does not need a full dashboard.
- You can live without webhook forwarding on Free.
Choose Basin or Forminit if
- Your free-plan form needs file uploads.
- One form on the free plan is enough.
- You want Forminit's EU hosting or Basin's spam tooling.
Choose SubmitKit if
- You require EU-hosted form data.
- Your free-plan form needs file uploads.
- You prefer its EU-first privacy posture.
Choose Formspree if
- You want the oldest, most established brand.
- Your team already uses Formspree and the bill is acceptable.
- You value ecosystem familiarity over price.
Choose splitforms if
- You expect a burst (a launch or an event) that 500 one-time free submissions can absorb.
- You need signed webhooks or CSV export at a low paid price ($5/month, or $49/year).
- You want the same endpoint across any framework or host, or an AI agent to provision it through MCP.
Choose FormBold if
- You want 100 free submissions a month across up to 5 forms.
- You want a cheap upgrade: Starter is $6/month, or $48/year ($4/month), for 3,000 a month with webhooks.
- You want ready-made form templates to start from.
Choose Netlify Forms if
- The site is already hosted on Netlify.
- You are fine with host lock-in.
- You want forms bundled into your hosting account.
Where do these prices come from?
Free-plan and paid-plan numbers were checked on September 29, 2026 against each provider's own pricing page below, with later checks for Formcarry and Formspark on October 14, 2026. SubmitKit remains an earlier snapshot. Confirm the selected plan before you switch.
For the recently checked services, read the sourced Formcarry review, Formspark review and Formspark vs Formcarry comparison. Use the migration checklist to compare storage, delivery and automation alongside the price.
FAQ
What is a form backend?
A form backend is a hosted endpoint that does the server work for your form: it receives the POST, validates it, filters spam, emails you and stores the submission, and can forward it to other tools. It replaces writing your own API route or PHP mail() script.
Can I collect form submissions without a backend or server?
Yes. Set your form's action to a hosted form backend's endpoint and add its access key; the service handles email and storage. This works on GitHub Pages, Netlify, Vercel, Webflow, WordPress and any static site.
Which free form backend allows file uploads?
Basin's Free plan includes 100 MB of uploads, Forminit Free accepts up to 25 MB of files per submission with 100 MB of storage, and FormSubmit emails attachments up to 10 MB per submission without storing them. Web3Forms and FormBold keep uploads for paid plans. Formspree Free has no upload storage. splitforms stores uploads on paid plans (5 files of 5 MB per submission).
What happens when I hit a free plan's limit?
It depends on the service. Formspree emails you at 50%, 75% and 90% of its 50-a-month cap; legacy Netlify free plans pause the sites on the account at 100% of a limit (paid legacy plans move the site to the next level, and credit plans don't meter forms at all); splitforms refuses new submissions with an HTTP 429 once the 500 one-time submissions are used, until you upgrade (Pro is $5/month for 5,000 a month).
Is a monthly free tier better than a one-time allowance?
For a steady trickle, a monthly allowance lasts longer: 50 a month is 600 a year. For bursts such as a launch or an event, a bigger one-time total like splitforms' 500 absorbs the spike. At about 40 submissions a month, splitforms Free lasts roughly a year, after which Pro ($5/month for 5,000) covers most small sites.
Is Web3Forms really free?
Yes. Web3Forms Free is 250 submissions a month with unlimited forms and domains and 30 days of history, and it doesn't expire. Paid plans are Pro ($15/month or $149/year for 10,000) and Agency & Team ($39/month or $399/year for 20,000).
Is this comparison biased toward splitforms?
splitforms publishes this page and is one of the ten services in it, so read it as a vendor-written comparison. To keep it checkable, there is no overall ranking: services are listed alphabetically, each pick names the use case it wins, free limits and prices were read from each vendor's own pricing page on September 29, 2026 (links under Sources), and a section lists when splitforms is not the right choice.
Is Formspree still a good option?
Yes. Formspree is mature, stable, and well documented. The tradeoff is headroom and price: Free is 50 submissions a month, and the Personal plan is $15/month ($10/month billed yearly) for 200 a month.
Should I use Netlify Forms instead of a form backend?
Netlify Forms is a strong built-in option if your site is already hosted on Netlify and you are happy to keep it there; current credit-based plans include free, unlimited form submissions. If you might move to Vercel, Cloudflare Pages, GitHub Pages, or a custom host, use a host-independent form backend.
Can I switch from Formspree, Web3Forms, Basin, or Getform?
Yes. For most HTML forms, migration means changing the form action URL, adding the splitforms access_key hidden input, and recreating any webhooks. Export your old submissions first if you need history.
Next Steps
Comparing services head-to-head? The alternatives hub lines every backend up on one matrix. Otherwise, try splitforms free, read the docs, or compare specific competitors: Formspree, Web3Forms, Basin, FormBold, Getform, and Netlify Forms. Framework deep dives: Next.js form backends and React form backends.