Microsoft Forms vs. Google Forms: Which Fits Your Needs

Google Forms or Microsoft Forms?

If you’re looking to create a survey, quiz, or form, you might be wondering which platform to use. While both offer similar functionalities, subtle differences set them apart.

Think of it like choosing between two identical twins. They may have the same looks, but their personalities are vastly different.

In this case, Google Forms is the outgoing twin. Offering a clean and user-friendly interface with a wide range of templates and question types. Microsoft Forms is the reserved twin, boasting a modern interface with beautiful themes and graphics. It also has a branching logic feature that allows for more complex forms.

Both twin, er, platforms offer real-time responses and data analysis. But Microsoft Forms requires a Microsoft account, while Google Forms is free and accessible on any platform.

Which platform will you choose for your next form creation endeavor? Let’s discuss the main differences between Google Forms vs. Microsoft Forms to help you make a choice.

Table of Content:

1. Microsoft Forms vs. Google Forms: Definition
2. Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms: Feature Comparisons
3. When to Choose Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms?
4. Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms: Reporting And Analytics
5. How to Analyze Microsoft Forms and Google Forms?
6. Google Forms vs. Microsoft Forms: Pros and Cons
7. Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms: Which Form Builder is Best
8. Google Forms vs. Microsoft Forms FAQs
9. Wrap Up

Microsoft Forms vs. Google Forms: Definition

What are Microsoft Forms?

Definition: Microsoft Forms is an online tool from Microsoft that empowers users to create surveys, quizzes, and polls effortlessly. It offers diverse question types and customization options, allowing you to tailor the forms to your specifications.

A unique feature of Microsoft Forms is the ability to create quizzes with automated grading. Additionally, responses are collected and readily available for real-time analysis, simplifying the data evaluation process.

What are Google Forms?

Definition: Google Forms is a web-based survey and questionnaire tool provided by Google. It allows you to create customized forms to collect respondents’ information, opinions, or feedback.

Google Forms offers a range of question types and options for customization. Furthermore, it provides data analysis features to organize and analyze responses and glean insights.

Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms: Feature Comparisons

The below table highlights the strengths and limitations of both tools to help you decide which one fits your needs better.

Feature	Microsoft Forms	Google Forms
Platform Integration	Seamless integration with Microsoft 365 apps (Excel, Teams, SharePoint).	Seamless integration with Google Workspace (Sheets, Drive, Classroom).
Question Types	Multiple-choice, text, rating, ranking, Likert, and Net Promoter Score.	Multiple-choice, text, dropdown, linear scale, and grid questions.
Customization Options	Basic customization; limited theme options.	Offers a variety of themes and allows image customization for questions.
Collaboration	Allows sharing and collaboration within the organization.	Supports collaboration with anyone having a Google account.
Data Analysis	Direct export to Excel; detailed analytics available.	Results can be exported to Google Sheets for analysis.
Response Tracking	Real-time response tracking with charts and data insights.	Real-time response tracking with integrated analytics.
Offline Access	No offline form creation or submission.	No offline form creation or submission.
Add-ons and Plugins	Limited third-party add-ons are available.	Wide range of third-party add-ons and extensions.
Survey Logic	Includes branching and conditional logic.	Includes branching and conditional logic.
Security and Privacy	Enterprise-grade security and compliance with Microsoft standards.	High security with Google’s data protection standards.
Mobile-Friendly	Fully mobile-responsive forms.	Fully mobile-responsive forms.
User Interface	Simple and clean; tailored for professional use.	Intuitive and user-friendly interface.
Pricing	Included with Microsoft 365 subscription.	Free with Google account; additional features with Workspace plans.

When to Choose Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms?

Choosing between Microsoft Forms and Google Forms can be a challenging decision. Both have their unique features and advantages.

Choose Microsoft Forms when:

• You have an Office 365 subscription.
• You already use Microsoft tools and want to keep your data in one place.
• You prefer the interface and design of Microsoft Forms.
• You need to create quizzes with automatic grading.
• You are working with a smaller team and do not need advanced collaboration features.

Choose Google Forms when:

• You do not have an Office 365 subscription
• You need to create a form with more customization options
• Do you prefer the interface and design of Google Forms
• You need advanced collaboration features.
• You want more design options.

Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms: Reporting And Analytics

Microsoft Forms Reporting And Analytics

Microsoft Forms offers reporting and analytics features to help you gather insights from the responses collected. Here are some key aspects of Microsoft Forms reporting and analytics:

1. Response summary: Microsoft Forms provides a summary view of responses. This includes an overview of the total number of responses, completion rate, and average completion time. This summary view provides a quick snapshot of the form’s performance.
2. Individual responses: You can access and review individual responses to each question. This allows for a detailed analysis of specific answers and helps identify respondent patterns or trends.
3. Visualizations: Microsoft Forms offers built-in visualizations such as charts and graphs to help you visualize response data. These visual representations make it easier to interpret and communicate the data effectively.
4. Exporting data: You can export response data from Microsoft Forms to other Microsoft applications such as Excel or SharePoint. This enables further analysis, data manipulation, or integration with other tools.
5. Sharing reports: You can share reports and analytics from Microsoft Forms with others. This makes collaborating, presenting findings, or distributing insights to relevant stakeholders convenient.
6. Response notifications: You can configure Microsoft Forms to send notifications whenever a response is received. This helps you stay informed in real-time and enables prompt action or analysis.

Google Forms Reporting and Analytics

Here are some key aspects of Google Forms reporting and analytics:

1. Response summary: Google Forms provides a summary view that displays the following;

• The total number of responses received.
• Average completion time.
• Response completion rate.

This gives you a quick overview of your form’s performance.

1. Individual responses: You can access and review individual responses, allowing you to analyze each respondent’s answers. This feature enables detailed examination and understanding of specific responses.
2. Visualizations: Google Forms provides pre-built visualizations like charts and graphs to visualize response data effectively. These visual representations aid in clearly interpreting and presenting the collected information.
3. Data analysis in Google Sheets: Responses can be automatically exported to Google Sheets, where you can perform further data analysis. Google Sheets provides a robust set of tools for manipulating and analyzing data.
4. Add-ons and integrations: Google Forms supports various add-ons and integrations with other Google Workspace tools. These add-ons provide additional functionality for reporting and analytics, allowing you to extend the capabilities of Google Forms.
5. Collaboration and sharing: Google Forms allows for collaboration on form responses. Multiple users can access and work on response data simultaneously.

How to Analyze Microsoft Forms and Google Forms Survey?

Collecting data has never been easier with the widespread use of online survey tools. However, making sense of the data from Microsoft Forms and Google Forms surveys can take time and effort. Especially when you have a large dataset.

That’s where ChartExpo comes in.

It is an innovative Excel add-in that allows you to visualize and analyze your survey data meaningfully. With ChartExpo, you can effortlessly create insightful charts and graphs to glean insights from the data. From pie charts to bar graphs, ChartExpo offers a wide range of options to choose from.

Benefits of Using ChartExpo

• ChartExpo offers an intuitive and easy-to-use interface that simplifies creating insightful charts. It doesn’t matter whether you have experience in charting or not – no coding is involved.
• ChartExpo offers a wide range of chart types to cater to your specific needs.
• With ChartExpo’s top-of-the-line customization options, you can personalize every design element of your charts. As a result, make them both informative and visually appealing.
• You can get all these features and more with ChartExpo’s affordable $10 monthly subscription. It also has a 7-day complimentary trial period if you are on the fence with the subscription.

How to Install ChartExpo in Excel?

1. Open your Excel application.
2. Open the worksheet and click the “Insert” menu.
3. You’ll see the “My Apps” option.
4. In the office Add-ins window, click “Store” and search for ChartExpo on my Apps Store.
5. Click the “Add” button to install ChartExpo in your Excel.

ChartExpo charts are available both in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. Please use the following CTA’s to install the tool of your choice and create beautiful visualizations in a few clicks in your favorite tool.

Example

Let’s say you run a Pizza shop and want to gather customer feedback on your services. You conduct a customer satisfaction feedback survey with the following questions;

• Did you agree with our pizza taste?
• Did you agree with our pizza topping?
• Will you recommend our pizza to your circle?

Your respondents provide an answer to each question using the response scale below.

1. Strongly Disagree
2. Disagree
3. Neither agree nor disagree
4. Agree
5. Strongly Agree

Assume your survey yields the results table below.

Did you agree with our pizza taste?	Did you agree with our pizza topping?	Will you recommend our pizza to your circle?
Neither agree nor disagree	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
Strongly Agree	Agree	Neither agree nor disagree
Neither agree nor disagree	Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree
Disagree	Agree	Neither agree nor disagree
Strongly Disagree	Strongly Disagree	Disagree
Agree	Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree
Strongly Disagree	Agree	Agree
Agree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree
Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree	Agree
Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree
Neither agree nor disagree	Disagree	Strongly Disagree
Strongly Agree	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree
Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree
Agree	Agree	Agree
Neither agree nor disagree	Disagree	Strongly Disagree
Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree
Disagree	Strongly Agree	Strongly Agree
Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree	Disagree
Disagree	Disagree	Strongly Disagree

Follow these steps to create a visualization with ChartExpo and glean valuable insights from your data:

• To get started with ChartExpo, install ChartExpo in Excel.
• Navigate to the INSERT menu and select My Apps. 

• Select ChartExpo and click the “Insert” button.

• Once it loads, choose the “Likert Scale Chart” from the charts list.

• Select the data from the sheet and click the “Create Chart From Selection” button.

• When you click the “Create Chart From Selection” button, you have to map responses with numbers manually. The Likert scale has this arrangement:

• • Strongly Disagree=1
  • Disagree=2
  • Neither agree nor disagree=3
  • Agree=4
  • Strongly Agree=5
• Once all is set, click the “Create Chart” button.

• ChartExpo will generate the visualization below for you.

• Click the “Edit Chart” button to modify your chart.
• Click the pencil icon next to the Chart Header to add a title.
• This will open the properties dialog.
• Add a heading in Line 1 under the Text section and enable the Show option. Then click the “Apply” button.

• Let’s say you want to add text responses instead of numbers against every emoji.
• Click the pencil icon next to the respective emoji. Expand the “Label” properties and write the required text. Then click the “Apply All” button.
• Click the “Save Changes” button to persist the changes.

• Your final chart will appear below.

Insights

• 55% of customers agree to recommend others, 25% do not agree, and 20% remain neutral.
• 60% agree with the pizza toppings, but 40% do not agree.
• 45% agreed with the taste of the pizza, 35% did not agree, and 20% gave a neutral response.
• Overall;
  • 54% of customers responded positively to the survey questions.
  • 34% gave a negative response.
  • 13% remained neutral.

Google Forms vs. Microsoft Forms: Pros and Cons

Google Forms Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Integration with Google Workspace: Seamless integration with Google Sheets, Google Drive, and other Google tools.
• User-friendly: Simple and easy to use, making it ideal for creating surveys, quizzes, and polls quickly.
• Customization: Offers basic customization options such as color schemes and images.
• Real-time collaboration: Multiple users can work on the form simultaneously, making it ideal for teamwork.
• Free to use: No cost involved, and you get unlimited forms and responses.

Cons:

• Limited advanced features: Lacks some of the advanced features available in Microsoft Forms (e.g., more complex logic options).
• Limited design customization: You can only change the theme color and add basic images, but the customization is not as extensive as other tools.
• Basic reporting: Data reporting is less powerful, especially when compared with Microsoft Forms’ ability to export results to Excel with advanced analytics.

Microsoft Forms Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Integration with Microsoft 365: Works well within the Microsoft ecosystem, such as OneDrive, Excel, and Teams, for easy collaboration and data storage.
• Advanced logic options: More sophisticated conditional logic for surveys and quizzes.
• Powerful analytics and export options: Easily export responses directly to Excel, where you can perform detailed data analysis.
• Branding options: Offers more customization with logos and themes.
• Security features: Stronger security, especially for enterprises using Microsoft’s enterprise tools (e.g., data protection and privacy).

Cons:

• Limited free plan: Only available to users with Microsoft 365 accounts (free versions are more restricted).
• The interface can be less intuitive: While powerful, the interface can be a bit more complicated for beginners.
• No advanced customization of design: While there is better branding than Google Forms, it still lacks extensive design customization.

Microsoft Forms vs Google Forms: Which Form Builder is Best

When deciding between Microsoft Forms and Google Forms, the best choice depends on your specific needs. Google Forms Excels in simplicity, ease of use, and seamless integration with Google Workspace, making it ideal for personal or small-scale surveys.

It’s free and offers real-time collaboration. On the other hand, Microsoft Forms shines in its deeper integration with Microsoft 365 tools, advanced data analytics, and stronger security features, making it a better option for enterprises or those needing more robust reporting and logic.

If you’re already within the Microsoft ecosystem, Microsoft Forms could offer a more tailored experience, while Google Forms is better suited for quick, no-cost form creation.

Google Forms vs. Microsoft Forms FAQs

Are Microsoft Forms similar to Google Forms?

Yes, Microsoft Forms and Google Forms share similarities as they offer online surveys and form-building capabilities. They allow users to create and distribute surveys, quizzes, and polls. However, they differ in features and integration with their respective productivity suites.

What are the limitations of Microsoft Forms?

Some limitations of Microsoft Forms include the lack of advanced customization options compared to other form-building tools. It also has limited collaboration features and restrictions on the free version’s number of questions and responses.

How many responses can Google Forms take?

Google Forms can handle a large number of responses. Typically it can handle thousands or even millions of responses without any issues. The limit depends on factors like Google account usage and available storage space.

Wrap Up

In conclusion, Google Forms and Microsoft Forms are powerful surveys and form-building tools. Each with its own set of advantages and features. When comparing Google Forms vs. Microsoft Forms, several key differences emerge.

One of the main distinguishing factors is integration. Google Forms seamlessly integrates with various Google Workspace apps, facilitating smooth collaboration and data analysis. Conversely, Microsoft Forms integrates effectively with the broader Microsoft ecosystem, encompassing Office 365 and Teams. This ensures a cohesive experience for users who are already utilizing Microsoft products.

The choice between Google Forms and Microsoft Forms depends on individual preferences and existing software ecosystems. Both platforms excel in their own right, empowering you to create surveys and forms efficiently and effectively.

You need advanced Excel functionalities to make sense of Microsoft Forms and Google Forms data.

How?

Use ChartExpo for Excel. With ChartExpo, you can create insightful charts and graphs to help you understand your data. The best part is that ChartExpo is easy to use – no coding is required.