Untap
All comparisons

Untap vs Google Forms

A real platform for programs, not a form tool taped to a spreadsheet.

Updated April 2026

$7,200+

in hidden staff costs per year

What three grant programs on Google Forms actually cost in manual orchestration. Untap replaces that entire stack from $125/month.

See full pricing comparison

QUICK VERDICT

The short version, for people in a hurry.

If you read nothing else, read this.

Topic
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
Review workflows
None: responses land in a spreadsheet
Multi-round review with rubrics and jury panels
Participant accounts
None: links are anonymous or require Google login
Persistent accounts with save, resume, and status tracking
Branding
Minimal: header image and color theme only
Full design customization on all plans
Community
No participant profiles or talent community
Persistent talent community with participant profiles

PRICING

Pricing comparison, line by line.

Their tiers on the left, Untap Corporates plan on the right. Education and NGO pricing subtracts 25% and 50% respectively.

Scroll sideways to see every column; the header row stays visible.

LINE ITEM

Google Forms

Free

Google Forms

Workspace Starter

Google Forms

Workspace Business

UNTAP

Starter

UNTAP

GrowthPopular

UNTAP

Ultimate

Monthly price
$0
$7/user
$14/user
$250/mo
$900/mo
$2,500/mo
Annual price
$0
$84/user
$168/user
$2,500/yr
$9,000/yr
$25,000/yr
Submissions
Unlimited (storage-limited)
Unlimited
Unlimited
Unlimited
Unlimited
Unlimited
Admins / users
Google account required
Per-seat
Per-seat
Unlimited
Unlimited
Unlimited
Programs
Unlimited forms
Unlimited forms
Unlimited forms
Unlimited
Unlimited
Unlimited
Reviewers
Manual in Sheets
Manual in Sheets
Manual in Sheets
Unlimited
Unlimited
Unlimited
Storage
15 GB shared
30 GB/user
2 TB/user
Included
Included
Custom
Monthly billing
N/A
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Nonprofit discount
N/A
Google for Nonprofits
Google for Nonprofits
50% off
50% off
50% off

Their tiers on the left, Untap Corporates plan on the right. Education and NGO pricing subtracts 25% and 50% respectively.

Google Forms is free, and that is the entire value proposition. What it does not include is the program: no scoring rubrics, no judge workflows, no branded portal, no participant accounts, no audit trail, no multi-round review. Teams building a real program on top of Forms glue together Sheets, Apps Script, Drive, and Gmail into something fragile. A mid-sized foundation running three grant programs on Google Forms typically spends $7,200 to $10,800/year in staff hours on manual orchestration. Untap replaces that entire stack from $125/month.

Annual billing includes 2 months free. Subscription pause available at $15/month between program cycles. Education tier: 25% off list. Small NGO tier: 50% off list.

FEATURES

Feature comparison, grouped by workflow.

Tap a section to expand. On desktop, all sections are open by default.

Application and Submission Management

7 capabilities
CAPABILITY
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
Custom application forms
Limited
Included
Conditional and branching logic
Limited
Included
File uploads and attachments
Limited
Included
Team and group submissions
Not available
Included
Eligibility gates and pre-screens
Not available
Included
Save and resume submissions
Not available
Included
Application translation
Not available
Included

Review and Evaluation

6 capabilities
CAPABILITY
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
Multi-round review
Not available
Included
Weighted scoring rubrics
Not available
Included
Judge assignment and balancing
Not available
Included
Jury panels and deliberation
Not available
Included
Audit trails and score history
Not available
Included
Unlimited reviewers
Not available
Included

Communication and Notifications

5 capabilities
CAPABILITY
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
Automated applicant emails
Limited
Included
Reviewer reminders
Not available
Included
In-app messaging
Not available
Included
Custom email templates
Not available
Included
Multi-language messaging
Not available
Included

Platform and Infrastructure

6 capabilities
CAPABILITY
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
Branded participant portal
Not available
Included
Custom domain
Not available
Included
Multiple branded platforms
Not available
Included
Mentorship and bookings
Not available
Included
Innovation challenges workflow
Not available
Included
Persistent participant accounts
Not available
Included

Integrations and Security

7 capabilities
CAPABILITY
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
SSO and SAML
Limited
Paid add-on
Role-based permissions
Limited
Included
API access
Limited
Paid add-on
GDPR compliance
Included
Included
ISO 27001 or SOC 2
Included
Included
Data residency options
Included
Included
On-premise deployment
Not available
Included

WHAT USERS SAY

Common feedback about Google Forms.

Paraphrased themes from public reviews. No direct quotes, no cherry-picking: recurring patterns only.

Great for surveys, wrong tool for programs

Reviewers consistently praise Forms for quick internal surveys and short intake forms, and just as consistently flag it as unfit for programs requiring review workflows, applicant accounts, or multi-stage evaluation.

BASED ON G2 AND CAPTERRA REVIEWS, 2024-2026

Scoring becomes manual spreadsheet work

Teams evaluating submissions describe building ad-hoc scoring sheets in Google Sheets, manually tracking reviewer assignments, and chasing comments via email. Audit trails are whatever the last editor saved.

BASED ON CAPTERRA REVIEWS, 2024-2026

No participant-facing experience

Applicants get a Google link and an email receipt. There is no portal to return to, no status updates, no way to build a relationship with a talent community over time.

BASED ON G2 REVIEWS, 2024-2026

Hits a ceiling fast

Smooth sailing until volume grows: spreadsheets slow down past a few thousand rows, file uploads clog shared Drive storage (10GB per form limit), and Apps Script glue starts failing in ways that are hard to debug.

BASED ON G2 AND COMMUNITY FORUMS, 2024-2026

Themes are synthesized from public reviews on G2, Capterra, and TrustRadius. We do not reproduce reviewer text.

BY ORGANIZATION

Which platform is right for you?

An honest take. There are scenarios where Google Forms is the right answer.

Choose Google Forms when...

  • You need a one-time internal survey or quick RSVP form
  • You have no review, scoring, or judging workflow
  • Your program runs once and a Google-branded experience is fine
  • You are fine with a Google account requirement for participants

Choose Untap when...

  • You run programs with multi-round review or scoring rubrics
  • You want a branded portal with your own domain
  • You need persistent participant accounts and talent communities
  • You need audit trails, role-based permissions, and real security
  • You run the same program year after year and want accumulated data
  • You are a small NGO and want a 50% discount on the full platform

BY PROGRAM TYPE

Best fit by program type.

How each platform holds up across the eight most common program shapes.

PROGRAM TYPE
GOOGLE FORMS
UNTAP
Awards
Adequate
Best fit
Grants
Adequate
Solid
Scholarships
Adequate
Best fit
Hackathons
Adequate
Best fit
Competitions
Adequate
Best fit
Talent Communities
Adequate
Best fit
Innovation Challenges
Adequate
Best fit
Accelerators
Adequate
Best fit

Being fair

Where Google Forms is stronger

Google Forms is the better pick when your needs match what it was built for; see the “Choose Google Forms when...” card above. Untap is the better pick when you run programs continuously and need unlimited submissions, users and programs on one flat price. Both are valid; the honest question is volume and frequency.

Last reviewed: April 2026

What you also get, beyond the comparison above

Point tools win on one job and stop. Untap ships the whole program lifecycle on one engine, including a training stack and an events and bookings stack most alternatives do not have at all.

Trusted at scale

1M+ participants have applied to programs built on Untap.

Fortune 500 innovation teams, UN agencies, universities and national governments have run their programs here.

1M+

Participants

400+

Programs

100+

Customers

AccorPwCAUCEG BankDell TechnologiesVodafoneUnited NationsP&GISO 27001 certified

Make the switch

Ready to outgrow Google Forms?

Import your existing program data and launch your first branded platform on Untap this week. We will help if you need it.

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