Formbricks vs Refiner (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Formbricks grades higher than Refiner: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Formbricks grades higher on value for money, the free plan and features. Refiner grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Formbricks
Open-source survey platform for links, websites and apps
Refiner
In-app and website microsurveys for SaaS customer feedback
Which one is for you
Pick Formbricks if
- Fits if you're a product team asking questions inside your own website or app and can run a server
- Works for organizations that must keep feedback data on their own infrastructure
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you don't want to run a server: there's no cloud plan right now, and hosting by Formbricks is only listed as coming soon
- Not for you if you want a price up front, as the Experience Suite license is quoted after a call
- Watch out: SSO, roles, audit logs and an SLA need the paid license, and the free edition gets community support only
- Skip it if you want a quick contact form, since there's a whole instance to set up first
Pick Refiner if
- Fits if you run a SaaS app with identified users and want surveys inside it
- Works for product teams that track NPS and product-market fit
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're small: $149 a month for 5,000 users, rising with more users
- Skip it if you want a free plan, because there isn't one
- Watch out: the API, webhooks and CRM integrations need Growth at $279 a month
- Not for you if you want general or long surveys, as it's built for apps with identified users
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAFormbricksFair | 1.8GPARefinerWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CThe Community Edition is free under AGPLv3, but only if you host it yourself, which means paying for and running a server, so it isn't free in the way a download is. The paid Experience Suite license has no published price; it's quoted on yearly responses and workspaces after a call. | D$149 a month at 5,000 monthly users billed monthly ($1,490 a year), in the forms category's dearest tenth, and it rises with user count. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe self-hosted Community Edition is free with surveys on every channel, the API and webhooks, and a 15-day trial license switches on the paid features in your own instance. The catch is that you pay for and run the server yourself, and support is community only. | DA free trial with no length stated on the pricing page, and no free plan. |
| Features | BIt covers the survey job end to end: by link, on a website, in an email or triggered inside a web or mobile app, with an API, webhooks and an MCP server. AI analysis, dashboards and workflows need the paid license. | CSurvey types, templates, user targeting, AI tagging and mobile SDKs. But multilingual surveys, the REST API, webhooks and CRM integrations need Growth, and Essentials caps published surveys at 20. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record, and it has to be self-hosted for now: you run it on your own servers and database before the first survey goes out. Hosting by Formbricks is only listed as coming soon. | CNo store rating on record. Installing the SDK and setting up targeting takes developer time. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with an API, webhooks and an MCP server, plus Slack, Zapier, Notion, n8n, Make, Google Sheets and Airtable. No app of its own, though. | BWeb, iOS and Android SDKs with HubSpot, Braze, Salesforce, Amplitude, Mixpanel, Slack and Zapier. No desktop app. |
| Best for | self-hosted open-source surveys | short in-app NPS and CSAT surveys for SaaS |
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: Formbricks and Refiner. How we grade
Where they differ
- Formbricks is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Formbricks also covers workflow automation.
- Refiner also covers forms and reports.
At a glance
| Formbricks | Refiner | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | Not published | $149 per month for up to 5,000 monthly active users, billed monthly |
| Free plan | The self-hosted Community Edition is free under the AGPLv3 license, with surveys on every channel, the API and webhooks, and community support. | None |
| Free trial | 15-day trial license that switches on Experience Suite features in your own instance | Free trial account with no length stated on the pricing page. |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Formbricks GmbH | Refiner SAS |
| Price read from | formbricks.com | refiner.io |
| Checked | Nov 9, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Formbricks
- There is no public price list: the Experience Suite license is quoted after a call, based on yearly responses, workspaces and term.
- It must be self-hosted for now; dedicated cloud and Formbricks-managed hosting in the EU or Saudi Arabia are listed as coming soon.
- The free Community Edition comes with community support only; SSO, roles, audit logs and an SLA need the paid license.
- Going over the licensed response volume does not stop a self-hosted instance; the FAQ says it is settled at renewal.
Refiner
- There is no free plan; the entry price is $149 a month at 5,000 active users and rises with user count.
- Multilingual surveys, REST API, webhooks and CRM and CDP integrations need Growth.
- Essentials caps published surveys at 20 and dashboards at 2.
- It is built for apps with identified users, not for general-purpose forms or long surveys.
Key features
Formbricks
- Link, website and in-app surveys
- Share a survey by link, show it to chosen visitors on a website, embed it in an email or trigger it inside a web app or a native mobile app.
- Self-hosting
- The Community Edition runs on your own servers and database and is free to use under AGPLv3. A license key adds Experience Suite features to the same instance.
- API, SDKs and integrations
- An API, webhooks and an MCP server let answers flow into other tools and AI agents, with integrations such as Slack, Zapier, Notion and n8n.
- Experience Suite license
- An annual license adds unified feedback with AI analysis and dashboards, workflows and owner alerts, single sign-on, roles, audit logs and support with an SLA.
- Priced by responses, not seats
- The license is quoted on the responses collected each year and the number of workspaces, for 1 to 3 years, with unlimited seats.
Refiner
- Survey types
- In-app surveys for web and mobile, website popup surveys, email surveys and shareable survey pages.
- Ready templates
- NPS, CSAT, CES and product-market-fit templates, plus survey logic, banner images and video questions.
- User targeting
- Target by user traits on Essentials; behavior-based segments and tracked-event triggers are on Growth.
- Reporting and AI tagging
- Dashboards, NPS and CSAT charts and AI response tagging. Essentials allows 2 dashboards; Growth allows unlimited.
- Mobile SDKs
- Native iOS and Android SDKs, with React Native and Flutter listed in the feature comparison.
- Integrations
- Sync data with tools such as HubSpot, Braze, Amplitude, Mixpanel and Slack; Claude, ChatGPT and MCP access are on Essentials.
Plans
Formbricks
Community Edition$0
Self-hosted and open source under AGPLv3: surveys on every channel, runs on your own servers and database, API and webhooks, community support.
Experience SuiteCustom
Annual self-hosting license quoted by responses and workspaces, with unlimited seats, AI analysis, dashboards, workflows, SSO, roles, audit logs and an SLA.
Refiner
Essentials$149
per month for 5,000 users, billed monthly ($1,490 billed yearly)
Unlimited responses and team members, all survey types, AI tagging. $179 a month at 10,000 users.
Growth$279
per month for 5,000 users, billed monthly ($2,790 billed yearly)
Adds event tracking, multilingual surveys, CRM, CDP and analytics integrations, REST API. $325 a month at 10,000 users.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom data volumes, security and governance, procurement terms and dedicated customer success; sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
Formbricks
No public discounts listed.
Refiner
- Annual discount
Save 17% with annual billing
Refiner's pricing page shows a 17% saving on annual billing: $1,490 a year for Essentials at 5,000 users versus $149 a month.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Formbricks or Refiner?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Formbricks publishes no starting price, and Refiner starts at $149 per month for up to 5,000 monthly active users, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Formbricks or Refiner?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Formbricks has a free plan. Refiner does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Formbricks and Refiner run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Refiner 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.