Fluent Forms vs Gravity Forms: Which is Better?

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Comparing Features

When it comes to choosing a form builder plugin for your WordPress website, two popular options are Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms. Both plugins offer a wide range of features to help you create and manage forms on your site. Let's take a closer look at the features offered by each plugin.

Form input field types

Both Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms offer a variety of form input field types to choose from. These include basic fields such as text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, and dropdown menus. Both plugins also offer more advanced field types such as file uploads, date pickers, and password fields.

However, Fluent Forms goes a step further by offering some unique field types such as "Chained Select Fields" and a Range Slider field. These additional field types can be useful in certain situations where you need more advanced form functionality.

Form confirmations

Form confirmations are messages or actions that are displayed to users after they submit a form. Both Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms allow you to customize the confirmation message that is displayed to users.

However, Fluent Forms offers more options for form confirmations. With Fluent Forms, you can choose to display a simple message, redirect users to a specific page, or even display a custom HTML message. This level of flexibility can be useful if you want to create a more personalized user experience.

Email notifications

Both Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms allow you to set up email notifications to receive an email whenever a form is submitted. You can customize the email template and choose which form fields are included in the email.

However, Fluent Forms offers more advanced email notification options. With Fluent Forms, you can set up conditional email notifications based on user input. For example, you can send different email notifications depending on which options the user selects in a dropdown menu. This level of customization can be useful if you want to send targeted emails based on user input.

Form entry management

Both Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms provide a way to manage form entries within the WordPress admin area. You can view and export form entries, as well as perform actions such as deleting or marking entries as read.

However, Fluent Forms offers more advanced form entry management features. With Fluent Forms, you can filter and search form entries based on specific criteria. This can be useful if you have a large number of form entries and need to find specific entries quickly.

Interface

The interface of a form builder plugin can greatly impact the user experience. Let's take a look at the interface of Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms.

Fluent Forms

Fluent Forms has a visually appealing interface with its own CSS in the WordPress admin area. The interface is clean and modern, making it easy to navigate and use. The form builder itself is intuitive and user-friendly, with drag-and-drop functionality for easily adding and arranging form fields.

One notable advantage of the Fluent Forms interface is its speed. The plugin is optimized for performance, which means that form building and editing is fast and responsive.

Gravity Forms

Gravity Forms has a more WordPress-native interface, which means that it blends in seamlessly with the rest of the WordPress admin area. The interface is clean and well-organized, making it easy to find the features and settings you need.

While the Gravity Forms interface is user-friendly, it may not be as visually appealing as Fluent Forms. Additionally, the form builder in Gravity Forms does not have drag-and-drop functionality. Instead, you need to use a series of buttons and settings to add and arrange form fields.

Form Design Options

The design of your forms can greatly impact the user experience and the overall look and feel of your website. Let's compare the form design options offered by Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms.

Fluent Forms

Fluent Forms offers a wide range of form design options. You can customize the appearance of your forms by changing the colors, fonts, and sizes of form elements. You can also choose from different form layout options, including column layouts.

One notable feature of Fluent Forms is its drag-and-drop functionality for arranging form fields. This makes it easy to position fields in columns or side-by-side. Fluent Forms also offers pre-designed form templates that you can use as a starting point for your own forms.

Gravity Forms

Gravity Forms also offers a range of form design options. You can customize the appearance of your forms by changing the colors, fonts, and sizes of form elements. You can also choose from different form layout options.

However, Gravity Forms does not have drag-and-drop functionality for arranging form fields. If you want to create more complex form layouts, you may need to use CSS customization. Gravity Forms also offers pre-designed form templates that you can use as a starting point for your own forms.

Field Type Availability

The availability of different field types can greatly impact the functionality of your forms. Let's compare the field type availability of Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms.

Fluent Forms

Fluent Forms offers a wide range of built-in field types, including basic fields such as text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, and dropdown menus. It also offers more advanced field types such as file uploads, date pickers, and password fields.

In addition to these standard field types, Fluent Forms also offers some unique field types. For example, it has a "Chained Select Fields" option, which allows you to create dropdown menus that are dependent on each other. It also has a Range Slider field, which allows users to select a value within a specified range.

Gravity Forms

Gravity Forms also offers a wide range of field types, including basic fields such as text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, and dropdown menus. It also offers more advanced field types such as file uploads, date pickers, and password fields.

While Gravity Forms has a good selection of field types, it does not offer some of the more unique field types that Fluent Forms does. However, Gravity Forms has a wide range of add-ons available that can extend its functionality and provide additional field types.

Third-Party Support

Third-party support can greatly enhance the functionality of a form builder plugin. Let's compare the third-party support offered by Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms.

Fluent Forms

Fluent Forms has a growing ecosystem of third-party add-ons and integrations. These add-ons can extend the functionality of the plugin and integrate it with other tools and services. Some popular add-ons for Fluent Forms include PayPal integration, Mailchimp integration, and Zapier integration.

In addition to third-party add-ons, Fluent Forms also offers other plugins from the same company that can fill any feature gaps. For example, FluentCRM is a customer relationship management plugin that integrates seamlessly with Fluent Forms.

Gravity Forms

Gravity Forms has been around for a longer time and has a larger community of third-party developers. As a result, there are many third-party add-ons available for Gravity Forms. These add-ons can extend the functionality of the plugin and integrate it with other tools and services.

Pricing

Pricing is an important factor to consider when choosing a form builder plugin. Let's compare the pricing options offered by Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms.

Fluent Forms

Fluent Forms offers a range of pricing options to suit different needs and budgets. The pricing starts at $59 per year for a single site license. This includes all capabilities and add-ons.

Fluent Forms also offers a lifetime plan for $299, which gives you lifetime access to all capabilities and add-ons. This can be a cost-effective option if you plan to use the plugin for a long time.

Gravity Forms

Gravity Forms offers different licenses with varying levels of access to add-ons. The pricing starts at $59 per year for a basic license, which includes access to the core plugin and basic add-ons.

If you need more advanced features and add-ons, you can choose a higher-priced license. The most expensive license is the Elite license, which costs $259 per year and includes access to all add-ons.

It's worth noting that Gravity Forms does not offer lifetime plans like Fluent Forms does.

Conclusion

After comparing Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms, it can be concluded that both plugins offer similar features such as form input field types, form confirmations, email notifications, and form entry management. However, there are some notable differences between the two.

In terms of interface, Fluent Forms has a more visually appealing interface with its own CSS in the admin area, while Gravity Forms has a more WordPress-native interface. The Fluent Forms interface is also faster and easier to use.

When it comes to form design options, Fluent Forms offers more flexibility with column layouts and drag-and-drop functionality, making it easier to position fields in columns or side-by-side. Gravity Forms, on the other hand, requires CSS customization for more complex layouts.

In terms of field type availability, Fluent Forms has more built-in options, including "Chained Select Fields" and a Range Slider field. Gravity Forms has a wide range of add-ons available, but many of them require a more advanced and expensive license.

In terms of third-party support, Gravity Forms has been around longer and has more third-party add-ons available. However, Fluent Forms has more features built into the core product and offers other plugins from the same company to fill any feature gaps.

In terms of pricing, Fluent Forms offers a better deal as it includes all capabilities and add-ons in its license options. Gravity Forms, on the other hand, has different licenses with varying levels of access to add-ons. Fluent Forms also offers lifetime plans, which Gravity Forms does not.

Ultimately, the choice between Fluent Forms and Gravity Forms depends on specific needs. Gravity Forms may be better for developers and those looking for more customization options, while Fluent Forms is more cost-effective, has a better interface, and includes more capabilities in its license options. Both plugins are solid choices, but Fluent Forms may be a better option for most sites.