Alchemer vs SurveyHero (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Alchemer grades higher than SurveyHero: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Alchemer grades higher on features. SurveyHero grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Alchemer
Survey platform with advanced logic and market research questions
SurveyHero
Online survey builder with unlimited responses on every plan
Which one is for you
Pick Alchemer if
- Fits if you're a researcher who needs conjoint, card sort or heatmap questions
- Works for teams of one to three building long surveys full of branching, with answers going to Salesforce or HubSpot
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you just want a contact form, since paid plans start at $315 per user a year
- Pricey if you need advanced logic or file uploads, as those start at $1,075 per user a year
- Not for you if there are more than 3 of you, because that means a custom-priced Platform plan
- Tight if you're staying free, with 3 surveys at a time, 100 responses on each and basic question types
- Watch out: the API and single sign-on are Platform only, and kiosk mode and SPSS export need Full Access
Pick SurveyHero if
- Fits if you run short surveys and don't want to count responses
- Works for a one-person researcher on the Professional plan
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free: each survey closes 30 days after its first response
- Pricey if you need branching logic, as it starts at Business, $45 a month billed annually
- Watch out: white labelling and custom domains are Enterprise only, $125 a month billed annually
- Tight if you need a team, since plans include only 1 to 5 users
- Too light for forms that take payments, as the listing shows surveys only
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAAlchemerFair | 2.2GPASurveyHeroFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DThe entry licence is $315 per user a year, but advanced logic, file uploads and email campaigns start on Professional at $1,075, about $90 a month against this category's middle of $24. The API isn't on any published plan at all. | CProfessional is $25 a month billed annually ($35 monthly) for 1 user, between the cheaper quarter ($12.50) and the dearer quarter ($34) of form tools. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe free account caps you at 3 surveys at a time, 100 responses each, basic question types and standard reports. You'll hit that on a first real project. The 7-day trial of a paid plan needs no card up front. | CThe free Basic plan has unlimited surveys, questions and responses, but each survey stays open only 30 days after its first response. |
| Features | A43 question types, logic, piping, sending by link, email, SMS or QR, and reports out as PDF, PowerPoint, Excel or Word. What the rest of this category hasn't got: conjoint, card sort and heatmap questions, SPSS export and an offline kiosk mode. | CQuestion types, templates, reports, exports, sharing, API and webhooks. But branching logic and branding removal start at Business, $45 a month. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and this is a platform you learn rather than pick up: 43 question types, advanced logic, piping and merge codes. The AI Survey Builder drafting from a description is the one shortcut in. | CNo rating on record. It's a web app where you build each survey and its logic. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb with integrations for Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, Google Sheets, Tableau, Jira and Zapier. No phone or desktop apps, and the API is reserved for custom-priced Platform plans. | BWeb only, but it has WordPress, Google Analytics and webhooks, plus an API on Business. |
| Best for | long surveys with heavy logic and research questions | online surveys with no cap on responses |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Alchemer and SurveyHero. How we grade
Price against what you get
Alchemer starts at $26.25 a month when paid by the year for each person and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SurveyHero starts at $25 a month and scores 2.3.
Alchemer scores higher, and starts $1.25 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other form and survey tools on the chart, none scores higher than Alchemer for less, and 15 score higher than SurveyHero for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Alchemer also covers workflow automation and reports.
- SurveyHero also covers templates and forms.
At a glance
| Alchemer | SurveyHero | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $315 per user / year, or $55 per user / month billed monthly | $25 per month, billed annually ($35 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Free account: up to 3 surveys at a time and 100 responses per survey, with a limited set of question types and standard reports only. | Basic plan: unlimited surveys, questions and responses for 1 user, but each survey stays open only 30 days. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of a paid plan, no credit card required up front | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Alchemer LLC | SurveyHero |
| Price read from | alchemer.com | surveyhero.com |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Alchemer
- Professional and Full Access allow at most 3 users; larger teams need a custom-priced Platform plan.
- The pricing page limits API access, single sign-on and security assessments to Platform plans.
- The Free account stops at 3 surveys and 100 responses per survey, with a short list of question types.
- Offline or kiosk mode, SPSS export and the market research question types all require Full Access.
SurveyHero
- On the free Basic plan each survey stays open for 30 days after its first response.
- Branching logic, branding removal and API integration start at Business, $45 per month billed annually.
- White labeling and custom domains are Enterprise only.
- The plans include one to five user accounts, so extra seats mean moving up a tier.
Key features
Alchemer
- 43 question types
- Alchemer Survey lists 43 question types. File uploads need Professional, and card sort, heatmap and conjoint questions need Full Access.
- Logic, piping and merge codes
- Survey logic is on every paid license. Multiple conditions, piping and repeating count as advanced logic and start on Professional.
- Link, email, SMS and QR distribution
- Share a survey by link, QR code or SMS. Sending email campaigns to a contact list from inside Alchemer starts on Professional.
- Reports and exports
- Paid licenses share reports by URL, download them as PDF, PowerPoint, Excel or Word and export raw data to Excel. SPSS export is Full Access only.
- Integration catalog
- A catalog of integrations pushes survey data to, or pulls records from, Salesforce, HubSpot, Google Sheets, Tableau and other systems.
- AI survey tools
- An AI Survey Builder drafts a survey from a plain-language description, and AI Smart Question generates follow-up questions for respondents.
SurveyHero
- Unlimited responses
- Every plan allows unlimited surveys, questions and responses; the free plan limits how long each survey stays open.
- Question types and templates
- A survey editor with many question types, templates, side-by-side questions and print-ready PDF export of the questionnaire.
- Skip and display logic
- Branching is part of Business and above, along with multilingual surveys and Google Translate.
- Reports and exports
- Real-time results with automatic charts, filtering and export to Excel or CSV compatible with SPSS.
- Sharing and invitations
- Share by link, QR code or embed, use a WordPress plugin, and send email invitations and reminders.
- API and webhooks
- A developer API and webhooks are listed under integrations on the higher plans.
Plans
Alchemer
Free$0
Up to 3 surveys at a time and 100 responses per survey, with basic question types such as radio buttons, checkboxes, text boxes and ratings.
Collaborator$315
per user / year ($55 per user / month billed monthly)
Unlimited surveys and questions, 75,000 responses a year per account, survey logic, report downloads and email support.
Professional$1,075
per user / year ($165 per user / month billed monthly)
Up to 3 users and 100,000 responses a year, plus advanced logic, email campaigns, file uploads and phone support on annual plans.
Full Access$1,895
per user / year ($275 per user / month billed monthly)
Up to 3 users and 125,000 responses a year, plus market research question types, SPSS export, open-text analysis and offline or kiosk mode.
Platform PlansCustom
For more than 3 users: API access, single sign-on, 24/7 support, a customer success manager and feedback collection across other channels.
SurveyHero
Basic$0
1 user, unlimited surveys, questions and responses, with each survey open for 30 days.
Professional$25
per month, billed annually ($35 billed monthly)
1 user, no time limit on surveys, all question types, your own logo and colors, anonymous surveys, filtering and export.
Business$45
per month, billed annually ($59 billed monthly)
3 users, branching logic, multilingual surveys, branding removal, redirection, API integration and priority support.
Enterprise$125
per month, billed annually ($255 billed monthly)
5 users, white label with your own domain, custom CSS and JavaScript, custom reports and top-level support.
Ways to pay less
Alchemer
- Annual discount
Save 43% to 52% with annual billing
The pricing page marks annual billing as saving 52% on Collaborator ($315 a year against $55 a month), 46% on Professional and 43% on Full Access.
- Nonprofit
25% off annual plans for non-profits
Registered non-profit organizations get 25% off annual accounts after entering an EIN or international equivalent at checkout. Monthly accounts are excluded.
SurveyHero
- Education
Free student accounts, 50% off for educators
Students get a free account with full access, and educators, faculty and researchers get 50% off a paid plan.
- Nonprofit
50% off yearly plans for nonprofits
The pricing FAQ gives nonprofit organizations 50% off all yearly plans.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Alchemer or SurveyHero?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Alchemer starts at $315 per user / year, or $55 per user / month billed monthly, and SurveyHero starts at $25 per month, billed annually ($35 billed monthly). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Alchemer or SurveyHero?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Alchemer and SurveyHero have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.