Netlify Forms Alternative: Nisuform vs Netlify Forms
Netlify Forms is free and built in when Netlify deploys your site. Nisuform works on any host and with forms rendered by JavaScript.
Prices and limits checked
Short answer: if your site is plain HTML deployed on Netlify and you plan to stay there, Netlify Forms is free and already set up. Pick Nisuform if you host anywhere else, might move hosts, render forms with JavaScript or want to send JSON.
Netlify Forms is part of Netlify's hosting. Nisuform is a separate form backend that any site can post to.
At a glance
| Nisuform | Netlify Forms | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it works | Any website or host | Sites deployed on Netlify |
| Setup | Set the form's action to your endpoint | Add data-netlify="true" and redeploy |
| Forms rendered with JavaScript | Work as they are | Need a hidden HTML copy of the form |
| JSON submissions | Supported | Not supported |
| Price | Free for 100 a month, Pro $10 a month for 5,000 | Free on credit-based plans |
| Spam protection | Honeypot, fill-time check, rate limits, duplicate checks, optional Turnstile or reCAPTCHA | Akismet, optional honeypot, optional reCAPTCHA 2 |
| File uploads | Pro, up to 5 files and 25 MB per submission | One file per field, 8 MB per request |
| Notifications | Email, plus Slack, Discord, Telegram, Google Sheets and webhooks on Pro | Email, Slack and webhooks |
| Changing hosts | Nothing to change | Forms move to another service |
Where Netlify Forms is ahead
- Nothing else to sign up for. Submissions live in the Netlify dashboard you already use.
- Free with no monthly limit on Netlify's credit-based plans.
- No endpoint to manage. Add one attribute to the form and Netlify sets it up when it deploys.
- Slack and webhooks at no extra cost. On Nisuform they are Pro features.
Where Nisuform is ahead
- Works on any host. GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Vercel, your own server or a site builder. Move your site and the forms keep working, with their full history.
- No build step to rely on. Forms rendered by React, Vue, Svelte or an AI app builder post straight to the endpoint, without a hidden HTML copy or a
form-namefield. - JSON and fetch. Send JSON, FormData or URL-encoded data and get a JSON response with stable error codes.
- An inbox built for forms. Search, a spam folder, CSV export, per-form settings and, on Pro, a separate team for each client.
Netlify Forms pricing and limits
On Netlify's credit-based plans, form submissions are free with no monthly limit. Netlify made them free in April 2026. Before that, each submission cost 1 credit, and teams on legacy plans are still metered per site.
The limits are in how forms work:
- Your site has to be deployed on Netlify. Move hosts and the forms stop working.
- Forms are detected at deploy time. Forms rendered with JavaScript need a hidden HTML copy.
- No JSON submissions.
- Small file uploads. One file per field and 8 MB per request.
Nisuform Free has 100 submissions a month and 3 forms on any host, and Pro is $10 a month for 5,000. If your site is plain HTML and stays on Netlify, Netlify Forms is the cheaper choice.
Switching from Netlify Forms
Create a form
Sign in at app.nisuform.com, create a form and copy its endpoint from the Setup tab.
Replace Netlify's attributes
Before <form name="contact" method="POST" data-netlify="true" netlify-honeypot="bot-field"> <input type="hidden" name="form-name" value="contact">After <form action="https://api.nisuform.com/s/YOUR_FORM_KEY" method="POST">Remove the hidden
form-nameinput, or it is saved with every submission. If you added a hidden HTML copy of a JavaScript form for Netlify to detect, delete it too.Swap the honeypot
Rename
bot-fieldto_gotchaand keep the input hidden with CSS:<input type="text" name="_gotcha" tabindex="-1" autocomplete="off" style="display:none">Send a test submission
Submit the form from your live site and check that it reaches your inbox and your email.
If your form's action pointed to a success page on your site, visitors now see Nisuform's thank-you page with a link back to your site. On Pro, send them to your own page with _redirect or the form's settings. See Thank-you page and redirects.
If you submit with fetch, post to your endpoint instead of / and add Accept: application/json. See JavaScript and fetch.
Sources
- Netlify Forms setup, checked October 26, 2026
- Netlify Forms spam filters, checked October 26, 2026
- Netlify Forms notifications, checked October 26, 2026
- Netlify pricing updates, April 2026
- Nisuform pricing and limits
Frequently asked questions
Is Netlify Forms free?
On Netlify's credit-based plans, form submissions are free and unlimited. Netlify made them free in April 2026, and before that each submission cost 1 credit. Teams on Netlify's legacy plans are metered per site.
Does Netlify Forms work outside Netlify?
No. Netlify detects your forms when it deploys your site and handles their submissions on its own servers. If you move the site to another host, the forms stop working.
Why is my Netlify form not detected?
Netlify reads your site's HTML at deploy time. Forms rendered with JavaScript, like most React and Next.js forms, aren't in that HTML, so Netlify needs a hidden HTML copy of the form with the same field names. A form backend like Nisuform has no detection step. The form posts to its endpoint wherever it is rendered.
Can I use Nisuform on a site hosted on Netlify?
Yes. Nisuform works on any host, including Netlify. Remove the Netlify attributes from the form and set its action to your Nisuform endpoint.