FormMaker vs the Google Forms Editor: What's the Difference?
Quick answer: They're not competitors. FormMaker is an iOS app that lets you create and manage real Google Forms from your phone — it works with your Google account, so the forms are ordinary Google Forms. The Google Forms web editor at forms.google.com remains the most complete tool on a desktop; FormMaker is the native mobile editor Google never shipped. Many people use both.
First, full disclosure: FormMaker is our app. That makes this a slightly unusual comparison page, because the honest answer is that FormMaker doesn't compete with Google Forms at all — it extends it. Every form you build in FormMaker is a Google Form, created through your own Google account, with the same share link and the same responses flowing to the same place. What FormMaker replaces isn't Google Forms; it's the experience of pinch-zooming through a desktop web editor on a phone screen. Here's exactly where each tool fits.
The relationship: one platform, two editors
Google Forms is a platform: the forms themselves, the share links respondents open, the response storage, and the connection to Google Sheets all live on Google's servers, tied to your Google account. The Google Forms editor at forms.google.com is one way to build on that platform. FormMaker is another. When you sign in to FormMaker with your Google account, it creates and edits forms through Google's own APIs — nothing is copied to a separate service, and nothing is locked inside the app. Open Google Drive on any computer and every form you made in FormMaker is sitting there, editable in the regular web editor.
This matters because it means there is no migration decision and no lock-in risk. Trying FormMaker doesn't move your data anywhere; deleting FormMaker doesn't take your forms with it. The forms were always ordinary Google Forms.
Editing on a phone: the reason FormMaker exists
Google does not make an official Google Forms mobile app. On an iPhone, opening forms.google.com in Safari loads the desktop editor squeezed onto a phone screen — tiny tap targets, fiddly drag handles, and menus designed for a mouse. It works in a pinch, and for reading responses it's tolerable, but building or restructuring a form this way is slow and error-prone.
FormMaker replaces that workaround with a native iOS editor built for touch: add and reorder questions with normal mobile gestures, edit titles and options with the standard keyboard, and share the finished form as a link or QR code without leaving the app. You can also check incoming responses from your phone. On a desktop this advantage disappears — a big screen and a mouse suit the web editor fine — which is why the practical setup for most people is FormMaker on the phone, forms.google.com at the desk.
Platform coverage
The Google Forms web editor runs in any browser, which technically includes phones, though as covered above the mobile experience is a desktop UI in miniature. FormMaker is currently iOS only, with an Android version coming soon. On a desktop computer there's no contest and no need for one: use forms.google.com. FormMaker doesn't try to be a desktop tool.
Features: full editor vs everyday editor
The Google Forms web editor has every setting the platform supports — sections and branching logic, quiz mode with answer keys, collaborator sharing, add-ons, themes, and every response setting Google offers. FormMaker deliberately covers the everyday subset: creating forms, adding and editing the common question types, sharing via link or QR code, and viewing responses. It optimizes for speed on the tasks people actually do from a phone, not for exhaustive coverage of every advanced option.
The good news is that this is not an either/or choice. Because a FormMaker form is a real Google Form, you can rough out a form on your phone in two minutes, then open it in the web editor later to add branching logic or quiz grading. Nothing is lost moving between the two.
Price
Google Forms is free with any Google account. FormMaker is free to download and try from the App Store. Neither charges for the forms themselves or for collecting responses — those remain free Google Forms features regardless of which editor you use.
Comparison table
| Google Forms web editor | FormMaker | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Google's official browser editor | iOS app that edits real Google Forms |
| Where forms live | Your Google account | Your Google account (same forms) |
| Best on | Desktop and laptop | iPhone |
| Phone editing | Desktop site in a mobile browser | Native touch editor |
| Feature depth | Every Google Forms setting | Everyday essentials, mobile-fast |
| Sharing | Link, embed, email | Link and QR code from the app |
| Responses | Full summary + Sheets link | View responses in-app; same Sheet |
| Platforms | Any browser | iOS now, Android coming soon |
| Price | Free | Free to try |
Verdict by use case
- Building a form at a desk: the Google Forms web editor — it has everything and costs nothing.
- Creating or editing a form on your iPhone: FormMaker — a native editor beats a pinch-zoomed desktop site every time.
- Advanced setup (branching logic, quiz grading, add-ons): the web editor; start on FormMaker if you're on the go, then refine on desktop.
- Sharing a form in person: FormMaker — generating a QR code from your phone is the fastest path.
- Checking responses on the move: FormMaker, or the linked Google Sheet in the Sheets app.
- Android users: the mobile browser for now — FormMaker for Android is coming soon.
FAQ
Is FormMaker a replacement for Google Forms?
No. FormMaker is an iOS app that creates and manages real Google Forms through your own Google account. The forms are ordinary Google Forms — same share links, same response spreadsheet, fully editable at forms.google.com.
Do forms made in FormMaker show up in my Google account?
Yes. FormMaker creates forms via the official Google APIs using your own sign-in, so every form appears in your Google Drive and opens normally in the web editor.
Does Google make an official Google Forms mobile app?
No. There is no official Google Forms app for iPhone or Android. Your options on a phone are the mobile browser or a third-party app like FormMaker with a native touch editor.