In this guide · 8 sections
- 01Tally vs Google Forms vs Jotform at a glance
- 02Prices and free plan limits (October 2026)
- 03File uploads, payments and conditional logic
- 04Where your form data is stored
- 05PDPA settings for any online form
- 06Integrations: getting submissions where you need them
- 07Do it yourself or get help?
- 08Frequently asked questions
Short answer
Google Forms is best for simple internal forms if you already use Google Workspace. Tally is the best free option for public forms, with unlimited submissions, logic and payments. Jotform suits complex forms, payments and approvals, but its free plan caps you at 100 submissions a month.
Tally vs Google Forms vs Jotform at a glance
Prices are in US dollars, before GST, from each provider's pricing page in October 2026.
Google Forms
Free; included in Workspace
- No submission limit
- Branching by section, no payments
- File upload only for signed-in Google users
- Responses in Google Forms and Sheets
Best for: Internal forms and staff surveys in a Google Workspace company.
Tally
Best free planFree; Pro from US$24/mo; Business from US$74/mo
- Unlimited forms and submissions free
- Logic, calculations, signatures, file uploads
- Stripe payments (5% Tally fee on free plan)
- Data stored in the EU
Best for: Public enquiry, booking and sign-up forms on a small budget.
Jotform
Free Starter; Bronze US$34/mo billed yearly
- Starter: 5 forms, 100 submissions a month
- Many payment gateways, PDFs, e-signatures
- Approval workflows and apps
- US or EU data centres
Best for: Complex forms, payments and approval workflows.
The right choice often depends on where the data needs to go next. Our guide to automating follow-up from enquiry forms covers sending submissions to a CRM, WhatsApp or email.
Prices and free plan limits (October 2026)
| Google Forms | Tally | Jotform | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Unlimited forms and responses | Unlimited forms and submissions, within fair use | 5 forms, 100 submissions a month, 100 MB storage |
| Entry paid plan | Comes with Google Workspace | Pro: US$24 a month | Bronze: US$34 a month billed yearly |
| Next tier | Workspace plan upgrades | Business: US$74 a month | Silver: US$39, Gold: US$99 a month billed yearly |
| Remove branding | No branding to remove | Pro | Bronze and up |
Jotform's limits apply per month and also as a total stored: the free plan holds 500 submissions in total, so older responses must be deleted or exported. Tally's paid plans add team workspaces, custom domains and partial submissions; Business adds automatic data retention and email verification.
File uploads, payments and conditional logic
- File uploads. Tally includes uploads on the free plan with a 10 MB per-file limit, removed on Pro. Jotform uploads count towards your plan's storage. Google Forms requires respondents to sign in to a Google account to upload, and Google's help page says the question cannot be used in forms stored in shared drives or with Data Loss Prevention on.
- Payments. Tally collects card payments through Stripe. Its payment forms help page says the free plan carries a 5% Tally commission plus Stripe fees, and Pro has 0% commission. Jotform connects to Stripe, PayPal, Square and other gateways, with monthly payment submissions capped by plan (10 on the free plan). Google Forms has no built-in payments.
- Logic. Tally and Jotform support conditional logic and calculations. Google Forms can send people to different sections based on an answer, which covers simple branching.
For payments, also look at fees on the gateway side. Our Stripe fees guide shows what Stripe charges in Singapore.
Where your form data is stored
Form data is personal data once it includes names, phone numbers or emails, so storage location matters for your PDPA transfer obligations and for any client contracts.
| Tool | Storage location | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Google Forms | Google's data centres | Google Workspace data regions offer US or Europe on supported editions; no Singapore option |
| Tally | Europe | Tally says it is Belgium-based, stores all form data in Europe and encrypts data in transit and at rest |
| Jotform | US by default, or EU | EU storage in Frankfurt can be enabled in account settings; Enterprise can choose other regions |
Jotform's security page says Enterprise customers can choose a local data residency centre. For most SMEs, overseas storage is acceptable under the PDPA's Transfer Limitation Obligation provided the vendor contract or terms give comparable protection; keep a record of which tool holds which data.
PDPA settings for any online form
The tool matters less than how the form is set up. Use this checklist on every form that collects personal data.
Online form PDPA checklist
Retention is where these tools differ most. Tally Business can delete submissions automatically after a set period; on Google Forms and the other plans you need a calendar reminder to export and delete. Our NRIC collection rules guide explains when you may ask for NRIC numbers at all.
Integrations: getting submissions where you need them
All three can send data onwards. Google Forms writes straight to Google Sheets and works with Apps Script. Tally's free plan includes Google Sheets, Notion, Airtable, Zapier, Make and webhooks. Jotform lists over 200 integrations, including Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel and Teams, HubSpot, Salesforce, OneDrive, Dropbox and WhatsApp Business.
Watch out for copies. Each integration creates another place holding the same personal data, so include them in your retention and access reviews.
Do it yourself or get help?
Building a form in any of these tools takes under an hour. The extra work is connecting it to the rest of your systems, writing the consent and notice wording, and setting retention.
Our Workflow Automation (S$490) connects your form to your CRM, spreadsheet, email or WhatsApp follow-up so no enquiry is missed. The PDPA Compliance Pack (S$690) provides the privacy notice, consent wording and retention schedule to go with it.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, within its fair use policy. Tally's free plan includes unlimited forms and submissions, file uploads up to 10 MB per file, conditional logic, signatures and Stripe payments. Payments on the free plan carry a 5% Tally commission on top of Stripe fees. Pro removes branding, the commission and the upload size limit.
Not natively. Google Forms has no built-in payment field. You can link to a separate payment page or use an add-on, but if you need to take payment as part of the form, Tally (via Stripe) or Jotform (via Stripe, PayPal, Square and others) are simpler.
Google requires respondents to sign in to a Google account to answer a file upload question, and the question is not available for forms stored in a shared drive or when Data Loss Prevention is on. If your customers do not use Google accounts, use another form tool or a dedicated upload link.
Jotform's security page says its servers run on Google Cloud and AWS, in the US (Iowa and Virginia) and the EU (Frankfurt). You can move your account's data to the EU servers in account settings. Jotform Enterprise can choose a local data residency centre in other regions.
The tool alone does not make you compliant; your set-up does. Collect only what you need, state the purpose, use a separate opt-in for marketing, link your privacy policy, protect the accounts with 2FA, and delete old responses on a schedule. Also record where each tool stores data for the PDPA's transfer obligation.