The holiday rush is weeks away. In January, when things go quiet, you will sit down to plan next year, and unless you ask customers what brought them in and what almost kept them away, that plan will run on guesses. A five question survey sent now costs nothing and gives you real answers before the busy season blurs them.
The short answer: Google Forms and Tally are the most generous free options, with no response cap stated on the official pages we read (Tally works under a fair use policy). Microsoft Forms is free with a personal Microsoft account but stops at 200 responses per form. Zoho Survey Free stops at 100 responses per survey, Jotform Starter at 100 submissions a month, and SurveyMonkey Basic caps you at 10 questions and lets you view only a limited number of responses per survey.
Key takeaways
- Microsoft Forms free accounts allow up to 200 responses per form, 200 questions per form and 400 forms, according to Microsoft's limits page.
- Zoho Survey Free and SurveyMonkey Basic both cap a survey at 10 questions, so write short surveys or pick another tool.
- Under CASL, a survey email that also pushes a sale is a commercial message, so keep feedback requests free of offers unless the person has agreed to hear from you.
At a glance
| Tool | Best for | Free plan limit | Paid from | Canadian note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Forms | Owners already using Gmail and Google Sheets | No response cap stated on Google's Forms pages | Google Workspace Business Standard $12 USD per user a month on a 1 year commitment | Business price shown in USD |
| Tally | Good looking forms with unlimited responses | Unlimited forms and submissions under a fair use policy; 10 MB file uploads | Pro $29 a month or $290 a year (currency not stated on the page) | None stated |
| Microsoft Forms | Owners on Outlook.com or Microsoft 365 | 200 responses per form, 200 questions, 400 forms | Comes with Microsoft 365 business plans | None stated |
| Zoho Survey | Short surveys sent by email to a small list | 10 questions and 100 responses per survey, 1 user | Basic, price not shown in the page text | None stated on the survey pages |
| Jotform | Forms that mix feedback with bookings or orders | 5 forms, 100 submissions a month, 500 stored submissions | From $19 a month, charged in U.S. dollars outside Europe per its FAQ | USD billing |
| SurveyMonkey | Businesses that will pay for analysis tools later | 10 questions per survey; limited responses viewable per survey; no export | Advantage Annual $39 a month, billed $468 a year (currency not stated on the page) | None stated |
How we chose
- Official pages only for every limit and price: pricing pages, help centres and support answers from each company.
- Published features and pricing, not hands on testing.
- What matters to a small Canadian business: a free plan that lasts a season, enough responses, and an easy way to get answers out.
- Nobody pays to be included.
We left out Typeform: its pricing page showed two different sets of USD prices, and we could not confirm its free limits on an official page.
The tools with the most room to grow
Google Forms
Google Forms is Google's form and survey builder, free for personal use and included in Google Workspace.
Best for: an owner on Gmail who wants answers in a spreadsheet.
- Logic: show questions based on earlier answers.
- Google Sheets: send responses to a new or existing sheet for sorting and charts.
- Validation: rules that check formats such as email addresses or number ranges.
- Live charts and real time collaboration.
Why it stands out: the free personal plan has no response cap on the Google pages we read, and the Sheets link means no exporting step.
Limits: design options are basic, the form carries Google's look, and the business features (custom email, admin controls, 2 TB of storage) come with a paid Workspace plan.
Price: free with a personal Google account. Google lists Business Standard at $12 USD per user a month with a 1 year commitment, or $14.40 a month billed monthly.
Tally
Tally is a form builder that works like a document: you type questions on a page instead of dragging boxes around.
Best for: a clean looking survey without counting responses.
- Unlimited forms and submissions on the free plan, as long as you stay within its fair use policy.
- Most features free: Tally says 99% of its features are available to all users.
- File uploads up to 10 MB on the free plan.
Why it stands out: it is the only tool here that states unlimited submissions on its free plan.
Limits: removing Tally branding, a custom domain, partial submissions, drop off insights, Meta Pixel and Google Analytics tracking, and team members all need Pro. The fair use terms are on a separate page, so read them if you expect thousands of responses.
Price: free. Pro is $29 a month or $290 a year; the page shows only a $ sign, so the currency is not stated on the page.
Free plans with a ceiling
Microsoft Forms
Microsoft Forms is Microsoft's survey, quiz and poll tool, available with a free personal Microsoft account and in Microsoft 365.
Best for: an owner on Outlook.com or a business already paying for Microsoft 365.
- Free personal account: up to 400 forms, 200 questions per form and 200 responses per form.
- Business accounts: Microsoft lists up to 5,000,000 responses per form for Microsoft 365 Apps for business.
Why it stands out: 200 questions per form is the highest question limit among the free plans here that publish one.
Limits: 200 responses per form on a free account; after that you start a new form and combine results yourself.
Price: free with a personal Microsoft account; the higher limits come with Microsoft 365 business plans, which this guide does not price.
Zoho Survey
Zoho Survey is the survey app from Zoho, the company behind Zoho Books and Zoho CRM.
Best for: a short survey to a small customer list, especially if you already use other Zoho apps.
- Free plan: unlimited surveys, 10 questions per survey, 100 responses per survey, 1 user.
- Sharing: embed with HTML, QR codes and in email surveys.
- Templates: more than 200 editable templates and 25 question types.
- Email distribution to up to 10 people per survey on free.
Why it stands out: more than 200 templates on the free plan, plus mobile apps for Android and iOS.
Limits: skip logic starts on Basic, and branding removal on Pro, according to the plan comparison page. Zoho's pages disagree on whether free accounts can export results, so check before you rely on it.
Price: free. Basic raises the limit to 12,000 responses per survey a year; the paid prices were not shown in the text of the pricing page we read.
Jotform
Jotform is an online form builder for surveys, order forms, registrations and payments.
Best for: a business that wants one tool for feedback forms and other forms such as bookings or simple orders.
- Starter (free): 5 active forms, 100 submissions a month, 1,000 form views a month.
- Storage: 500 stored submissions in total and 100 MB of uploads.
- Payments: 10 payment submissions a month.
Why it stands out: Jotform says the free plan includes most paid features.
Limits: forms carry Jotform branding on Starter. The 500 stored submissions is a lifetime total, so you will need to delete old entries or upgrade.
Price: free. The pricing page says paid plans start at $19 a month, and its FAQ says customers outside Europe are charged in U.S. dollars.
SurveyMonkey
SurveyMonkey is a dedicated survey platform with a free Basic plan and individual and team plans.
Best for: a business that expects to pay for deeper analysis, benchmarks or team access later.
- Basic (free): unlimited surveys, up to 10 questions per survey.
- Responses: you can view a limited number of responses per survey; SurveyMonkey shows the exact number only after you sign up.
- Not on free: exporting results, survey logic and custom reports.
Why it stands out: the widest range of paid analysis features if you outgrow a simple form.
Limits: its help centre says responses over the free limit cannot be viewed and are deleted. Paid plans count responses across your whole account, unused responses do not roll over, and extra responses cost $0.15 USD each.
Price: Standard Monthly is $149 a month for 1,000 responses a month. Advantage Annual is $39 a month, billed $468 a year, for 15,000 responses a year. Team Advantage is $30 per user a month, billed yearly, with a 3 user minimum. The pricing page shows only a $ sign.
Worked example: how long does each free plan last?
Here is a worked example with made up volumes, not survey data. A café puts a QR code on its receipts and gets about 40 completed surveys a month. A busier shop gets about 150. Using each company's published free limit:
| Free plan | The limit that bites | At 40 a month | At 150 a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Forms | No cap stated | No stated limit | No stated limit |
| Tally | Unlimited, fair use | No stated limit | No stated limit |
| Microsoft Forms | 200 per form | Full after 5 months (40 × 5 = 200) | Full during month 2 (150 × 2 = 300) |
| Zoho Survey | 100 per survey | Full during month 3 (40 × 3 = 120) | Full in month 1 |
| Jotform Starter | 100 a month, 500 stored | Storage full during month 13 (40 × 13 = 520) | Over the monthly cap every month |
| SurveyMonkey Basic | Not published before sign up | Unknown | Unknown |
At café volume, every free plan except Zoho lasts the holiday season. At 150 a month, only Google Forms and Tally keep going without a workaround: start a fresh form each month and combine results in one spreadsheet.
Which one fits your situation
| If you need | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Answers in a spreadsheet with no counting | Google Forms | Sheets link built in, no stated cap |
| A polished form that matches your website | Tally | Unlimited free submissions; Pro removes branding |
| Long surveys (more than 10 questions) | Microsoft Forms or Google Forms | Zoho and SurveyMonkey free stop at 10 |
| Feedback plus orders or bookings in one tool | Jotform | Payments and many form types, within 100 a month |
| A team that will share survey work | Google Forms, then a paid plan | Real time collaboration; most free plans here are 1 user |
Your copy and paste customer feedback survey
Five questions fit every free limit above and are quick to finish on a phone.
- How did you first hear about us? (Google search, Google Maps, Instagram, Facebook, a friend, walked by, other)
- What did you come in for today? (short answer)
- How likely are you to recommend us to a friend? (0 to 10)
- What is one thing we could do better? (short answer)
- Anything else you want us to know? (optional, short answer)
Invitation text for a receipt, table card or email:
Thanks for coming in. We are planning next year and want to get it right. Our 5 question survey takes about a minute, and we read every answer: [link]. You do not need to give your name.
Question 1 tells you which channel is working, which feeds straight into your marketing budget. Question 3 gives you a simple score you can compare month to month, and a falling score is an early warning. If you also want more Google reviews, ask every customer, not just happy ones; our Google reviews guide explains why.
Canadian privacy and anti spam rules to follow
- Collect only what you need. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada says businesses should collect only the personal information needed for a legitimate identified purpose, and be honest about why. If you do not need a name or email to act on the feedback, do not ask for one.
- Say why you are asking. One line at the top of the survey such as "We use your answers to improve our service" covers the purpose.
- Keep survey emails free of offers. The CRTC's CASL FAQ says you cannot carry out commercial activity under the guise of a survey, and a message with a survey plus a solicitation is covered. If your survey email includes a coupon or sale, send it only to people who have agreed to receive marketing email. Our free email marketing tools guide covers CASL consent in more detail.
This is general information, not legal advice.
Our take
This is a judgment based on the published features and pricing, not a hands on test.
Solo owner: Google Forms. It costs nothing, has no stated cap, and the answers land in a spreadsheet you already know how to use.
Online store or brand that cares about looks: Tally, because unlimited free submissions and a cleaner form suit a survey linked from order emails or your website.
Small team on Microsoft 365: Microsoft Forms, since business accounts raise the limit far beyond the 200 response free cap.
Service business that also takes bookings or deposits: Jotform, as long as you stay under 100 submissions a month.
When the pick changes: if you need survey logic, reports and exports for a team and are ready to pay, SurveyMonkey's paid plans make sense. Zoho Books or Zoho CRM users can stay with Zoho Survey, within its 100 response cap. For more tools by job, see the software hub, and use what you learn with our customer retention ideas.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free survey tool for a small business?
For most small businesses, Google Forms: it is free with a personal Google account, has no response cap stated on Google's pages, and sends answers to Google Sheets. Tally is the best pick if you want a more polished form with unlimited free submissions under its fair use policy.
How many responses can I get on SurveyMonkey for free?
SurveyMonkey does not publish the exact number before you sign up. Its help centre says free plans have a response limit per survey, and responses over that limit cannot be viewed and are deleted. Free surveys are also capped at 10 questions.
Is Microsoft Forms free?
Yes, with a personal Microsoft account such as Outlook.com. Microsoft lists limits of 400 forms, 200 questions per form and 200 responses per form for free accounts.
Do customer feedback emails fall under CASL?
The CRTC says a survey combined with a solicitation is covered by CASL. Add a coupon or promotion and you need consent. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
- Google Forms: Online form creator (official)
- Google Docs Editors Help: How to use Google Forms
- Tally features (official)
- Tally Pro features and pricing (official)
- Microsoft Support: Form, question, response and character limits in Microsoft Forms
- Microsoft Support: Can someone without a Microsoft account take my survey?
- Zoho Survey: Unlimited online surveys, free plan (official)
- Zoho Survey pricing (official)
- Zoho Survey plan comparison (official)
- Jotform pricing (official)
- Jotform support: Overview of free Starter features
- SurveyMonkey individual plans (official)
- SurveyMonkey plans and pricing (official)
- SurveyMonkey: Free vs paid plans (official)
- SurveyMonkey Help: Account response limits
- Typeform pricing (official)
- Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada: PIPEDA Principle 4, Limiting collection
- CRTC: Frequently asked questions about Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation
