CommCare vs Fulcrum (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, CommCare and Fulcrum share a 2.0 GPA, and only CommCare has a free plan.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
CommCare grades higher on the free plan. Fulcrum grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
CommCare
No-code apps for frontline case management and data collection
Fulcrum
Offline field data collection with maps for crews and utilities
Which one is for you
Pick CommCare if
- Fits if you run a health or social programme with field workers and follow-up visits
- Works for a pilot of up to 5 mobile workers
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free, as it is for testing with 5 mobile workers
- Pricey if you grow: $2 a month for each extra mobile user, active or not
- Watch out: web applications and Power BI feeds need Advanced at $1,000 a month
- Watch out: buying online covers up to 3 project spaces; more needs a sales call
Pick Fulcrum if
- Fits if you run a field crew of 5 or more and need map-based forms
- Works for teams already on ArcGIS or Power Automate
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are small: 5 users at $43 each is the floor, $2,580 a year
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there is none
- Watch out: APIs, webhooks, SSO and the AI features need Elite at $55 a user
- Watch out: the trial's length isn't stated, and annual billing is required
How we grade them
| 2.0GPACommCareFair | 2.0GPAFulcrumFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DStandard is $100 a month on yearly billing plus $2 for each extra mobile user. Web apps and Power BI and Tableau feeds sit on Advanced at $1,000. | D$43 a user a month on yearly billing with a minimum of 5 users, so $215 a month or $2,580 a year at the least. One person pays that floor. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe Free Edition is for testing: 1 project space and 5 mobile workers. | DA free trial is offered, but its length and card requirement are not stated. No free plan. |
| Features | CNo-code apps, offline case management, reports, messaging and security. Web applications, BI feeds and de-identification need Advanced, and texts cost $0.01 to $0.10 each. | BOffline capture, a form builder with logic, media and scanning, geospatial capture, dispatch and administration. The listing names no gap in field-form work, though APIs and SSO need Elite. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Building a case-management app is real design work. | CNo store rating on record. You build each form and set up your crews. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus Android and iOS apps, with Zapier, Power BI, Tableau and Excel links. No desktop app. | BWeb app and mobile apps whose operating systems the pages do not name, with Esri ArcGIS, Power BI, Zapier and Salesforce links. |
| Best for | no-code mobile apps for frontline programmes | field crews filling in forms with maps |
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: CommCare and Fulcrum. How we grade
Price against what you get
CommCare starts at $100 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Fulcrum starts at $43 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
Fulcrum scores higher and starts $57 a month lower. Of the other form and survey tools on the chart, 38 score higher than CommCare for less, and 5 score higher than Fulcrum 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
- CommCare is open source, according to its own site.
- CommCare also covers surveys and case management.
- Fulcrum also covers workflow automation and reports.
At a glance
| CommCare | Fulcrum | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $100 per month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly) | $43 per user license / month, billed annually (minimum five users) |
| Free plan | Free Edition for testing: 1 project space and 5 mobile workers. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | Free trial offered; its length is not stated on the pricing page |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Dimagi, Inc. | Fulcrum |
| Price read from | commcare.dimagi.com | fulcrumapp.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
CommCare
- Billing counts mobile users, active or inactive, at $2 per extra user a month; web users are unlimited.
- Text messages carry per-message fees, roughly $0.01 to $0.10 through Dimagi's gateway depending on country.
- Web applications, Power BI and Tableau feeds and data de-identification need the Advanced plan.
- Buying online covers up to 3 project spaces; 4 or more need a sales conversation.
Fulcrum
- All plans require an annual subscription and a minimum of five users, so the lowest cost is about $2,580 a year.
- APIs, webhooks, SSO, SCIM, audit logging and the AI-based Audio FastFill and Insights features are on Elite or above.
- The pricing page does not state the length of the free trial, and there is no free plan.
- The pages read do not name the operating systems the mobile apps run on, so only web is listed as a platform.
Key features
CommCare
- No-code app builder
- Program staff build and deploy mobile apps without engineers, with multi-language support and multimedia.
- Offline case management
- Track clients over time and collect data with no signal; everything syncs when connectivity returns.
- Reports and exports
- A web report builder, scheduled exports and Excel dashboards; Power BI and Tableau OData feeds on Advanced.
- Messaging
- One-way messaging and live text chat; two-way text messaging is an add-on or Advanced feature.
- Security
- The vendor says it is SOC 2 certified, GDPR compliant and signs HIPAA BAAs on Advanced.
Fulcrum
- Offline data capture
- Records are saved on the device without a connection and sync when it reconnects, according to the vendor's FAQ.
- Form builder with logic
- A drag-and-drop builder with calculated fields, required and visibility rules, repeatable parent-child records and linked records.
- Media and scanning
- Fields for photos with timestamps, audio, video, barcodes, QR codes and signatures, plus AI-powered face blurring on the Professional plan.
- Geospatial capture
- Automatic geotagging, line and polygon capture, offline basemaps and layers, and integration with ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise.
- AI form builder
- Turns a plain-language description into a form with its logic, automation and reports; the vendor also lists a Fulcrum MCP server and AI toolkit.
- Dispatch and administration
- Record assignment and dispatch, projects, custom security roles, full record history and an activity feed.
Plans
CommCare
Free Edition$0
For testing purposes: 1 project space, 5 mobile workers, unlimited form submissions.
Standard$100
per month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly)
50 mobile users included, offline case management; shown as was $250, with no end date given.
Pro$500
per month, billed annually ($600 billed monthly)
250 users included, case sharing, child cases, a web report builder, APIs and priority support.
Advanced$1,000
per month, billed annually ($1,200 billed monthly)
500 users included, Power BI and Tableau integration, web applications, de-identification and two-way SMS.
Enterprise$4,000
per month and up, billed annually
Custom user volume, single sign-on, account management, customized terms and roadmap input.
Fulcrum
Professional$43
per user license / month, billed annually (minimum five users)
Offline capture, drag-and-drop builder, logic, repeatables, geospatial tools, data import/export and reports, with 100 GB storage and 10 data shares.
Elite$55
per user license / month, billed annually (minimum five users)
Adds AI Audio FastFill and Insights, ArcGIS Enterprise link, APIs, webhooks, audit logging, SSO and SCIM, with 500 GB storage and 50 data shares.
EnterpriseCustom
Everything in Elite under a tailored enterprise license agreement, with unlimited users and data shares, storage as needed and a customer success manager.
Ways to pay less
CommCare
- Annual discount
About 17% off with annual billing
Paying annually costs about 17% less than paying monthly, for example $500 versus $600 a month on Pro.
- Other savings
Subsidized pricing for health ministries
Ministries running national community health programs qualify for subsidized pricing through Dimagi's eCHIS offering.
Fulcrum
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, CommCare or Fulcrum?
As of Nov 13, 2026, CommCare starts at $100 per month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly), and Fulcrum starts at $43 per user license / month, billed annually (minimum five users). 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, CommCare or Fulcrum?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only CommCare has a free plan. Fulcrum does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do CommCare and Fulcrum run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only CommCare lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.