October 24, 2026

Typeform alternative for developers: Ikiform vs Typeform

Q: How do I verify webhooks after switching?

Typeform signs with `Typeform-Signature`. Ikiform uses the Standard Webhooks headers, `webhook-id`, `webhook-timestamp` and `webhook-signature`, with an HMAC-SHA256 signature.

Typeform is a hosted form builder; Ikiform is a backend for forms you build. When each makes sense, what you give up, and how to rebuild a typeform in your own HTML.

Preet SutharFounder, Ikiform

Typeform and Ikiform aren't the same kind of tool. Typeform is a hosted form builder: you design the form in its editor, and visitors fill it in on Typeform's page or in an embed. Ikiform has no builder at all. You write the form in your own HTML or framework, and Ikiform is the backend it posts to.

So the question isn't which is better, but who owns the form. If you want a designer or marketer to build and change forms without a developer, Typeform is the right tool. If the form is part of your product, styled by your CSS and shipped with your code, a backend like Ikiform fits better, and it costs far less per response.

Checked on October 24, 2026 against Typeform's public pricing pages and docs. Ikiform makes this comparison; every Ikiform fact comes from our own docs. Prices and limits change, so the sources are listed at the end.

At a glance

Feature	Ikiform	Typeform
What it is	A backend for forms you build	A hosted form builder with its own editor, pages and embeds
Free plan	None. Every plan is paid	Yes, with a monthly response cap. The pricing page doesn't print the number
Paid plans	Pro from $6/mo for 500 submissions, up to $399/mo for 1,000,000. Every feature on every tier. Yearly is 10 months' price for 12	Basic $39/mo or $28/mo yearly (100 responses), Plus $79 or $56 (1,000), Business $129 or $91 (10,000), Enterprise custom
Who builds the form	A developer, in HTML or a framework	Anyone, in Typeform's visual editor
Design	Your own markup and CSS. No iframe or embed script	Typeform themes, embedded with its script. Branding removal from Plus
Logic and multi-step	Write it in your own code	Built in
File uploads	Not supported yet. A post with a file gets `422 files_not_supported`	Paid plans, 1 to 4 GB of storage by plan
Webhooks	3 endpoints per workspace, signed with HMAC-SHA256, 9 attempts over about 3 d 6 h, with delivery logs	Paid plans, signed in a `Typeform-Signature` header
Integrations	Webhooks, REST API and SDK	A large catalogue, including Zapier
Data location	Cloudflare, with the database in Asia-Pacific. EU Standard Contractual Clauses in the DPA	EU hosting in Frankfurt on Enterprise, for new customers only

Where Typeform is the better choice

People who don't write code need to build and edit forms. Typeform's editor is the point of the product.
You want branching logic, one question at a time, scoring and calculations without writing any of it.
You want file uploads, payments or a built-in integration with your CRM.
You want a hosted link you can share without a website. Ikiform has no hosted form pages.
You need EU data hosting. Typeform offers it on Enterprise; Ikiform doesn't.

Where Ikiform is the better choice

The form lives inside your product and has to look exactly like it. With Ikiform it is your own HTML, with no iframe or third-party script.
You collect more than a few hundred responses a month. Ikiform's Pro plan covers thousands of submissions for a fraction of a Typeform plan with the same volume.
You want the form in version control, reviewed and deployed with the rest of your code.
You want server-side validation of the same rules your form enforces, with field errors returned to your UI.
You want submissions in your own systems by signed webhook or API, without a per-response price on top.

Who should pick which

Pick Typeform when the people building forms aren't developers, or when the form itself (conversational, branching, branded) is the product experience you want to buy.

Pick Ikiform when developers own the form and it should be part of your site or app. You trade the visual editor and logic builder for full control of the markup and a much lower price per submission.

Moving a Typeform form into your own code

Moving from Typeform means rebuilding the form in your own markup; there is no import. Most question types have a direct HTML equivalent, and Ikiform's field types can enforce the same rules on the server.

Field mapping

Typeform	Ikiform	Notes
Short text	`<input>`, field type `text`	Set `max_length` or a `pattern` in the field definition if you need limits.
Long text	`<textarea>`, field type `textarea`	10,000 characters by default, up to 16,000 with `validation.max_length`. Each value is also capped at 16 KB, so text outside ASCII fits fewer characters.
Email	`<input type="email">`, field type `email`	Name it `email` and notification emails reply to it.
Multiple choice, one answer	Radio buttons, field type `radio`	Only listed option values are accepted.
Multiple choice, several answers	Checkboxes named `topics[]`, field type `multi_select`	Stored as an array.
Dropdown	`<select>`, field type `select`
Opinion scale, rating, NPS	Number input or radios, field type `rating` or `number`	`rating` accepts whole numbers from 1 to a maximum you set.
Date	`<input type="date">`, field type `date`	Stored as `YYYY-MM-DD`.
Phone number, website	Field types `phone` and `url`
Hidden fields	`<input type="hidden">`	Names without a leading `_` are stored with the answers.
Logic jumps and one-question-at-a-time	None	Write the steps in your own UI and post once at the end.
File upload, payment	None	Not supported.

Before and after

survey.html

<div data-tf-live="01JABCDEF0123456789"></div>
<script src="//embed.typeform.com/next/embed.js"></script>

Steps

List every question, its type and whether it is required.
Create an Ikiform form and define matching fields, so the server rejects incomplete answers.
Write the form in your own markup, one input per question, using the field ids as name values.
If you need steps, show and hide groups of inputs in your own code and submit once at the end.
Point a webhook at whatever consumed your Typeform webhook, and update the handler for Ikiform's payload and signature.
Download your Typeform responses before you close the account.

What doesn't carry over

There is no import of forms or responses.
Logic, scoring, file uploads, payments and hosted share links have no Ikiform equivalent.

FAQ

Is Ikiform a Typeform clone?

No. Ikiform has no form builder and no hosted form pages. It is the backend: you build the form, Ikiform validates, stores and delivers what it sends.

Can I keep the conversational, one-question-at-a-time feel?

Yes, but you build it. Show one question at a time in your own UI and post all the answers to Ikiform at the end, with fetch or the SDK.

Who should stay on Typeform?

Teams where non-developers build forms, forms that need complex logic or file uploads, and anyone who needs a shareable hosted link or EU data hosting.

How do I verify webhooks after switching?

Typeform signs with Typeform-Signature. Ikiform uses the Standard Webhooks headers, webhook-id, webhook-timestamp and webhook-signature, with an HMAC-SHA256 signature.

Sources

Checked on October 24, 2026.

Trademarks and accuracy

Typeform and the other product names on this page are trademarks of their owners. Ikiform isn't affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any of them. What this page says about Typeform comes from its public pricing pages and docs as of October 24, 2026, linked under Sources. If anything here is wrong or out of date, email hello@ikiform.com and we'll correct it.