In 2025, technology isn’t just advancing: it’s becoming intelligent. The rise of AI-powered tools and smart automation has enabled businesses to become more conscious of where they should invest. The age of buying software and tools just for the brand name is gone. What matters most today are performance, affordability, and real value when it comes to decision-making.
Take DeepSeek, for example. The AI powerhouse that outperformed high-profile, high-cost competitors by focusing on what truly matters – intelligent results without inflated pricing. It’s clean now that users prioritize outcome over pricing. Your tool may be worth a lot but if it doesn’t offer the value it’s expected to, people will not use it.
Question to you: If AI can disrupt billion-dollar industry leaders, should something as essential and basic as a form builder still cost you a lot? Let’s see whether you’re paying more than you should for your current form builder.
The Illusion of Free: Are You Getting Enough?
Many popular form plugins in the WordPress ecosystem proudly offer “FREE” versions but once you start building anything beyond a basic contact form, you quickly hit a wall.
Top Form Plugins Free Plan Overview
WPForms Lite offers a user-friendly interface and gets you started quickly. However, once you need to see your responses data, you will hit a paywall. They allow sending responses by email on a free plan but don’t allow users to access their own data from backend without payment. Moderately advanced features like conditional logic, file uploads, or multi-step forms are far from free in it.
It’s not a crime to do so, but the limitations in the basic plan may intimidate users, often leading them to seek alternatives.
Forminator offers a lot for the free plan and has a polished UI. However, it still keeps some important features, such as advanced analytics or certain field types, locked away from free users.
Formidable Forms free plan is good for simple forms, but many of its standout features, like calculations, views, or integrations, require a paid subscription.
Fluent Forms offers more than many others in its free version, but it still reserves features such as payment integrations and advanced automation features for Pro users.
Gravity Forms simply has no free version; you must purchase a license to get started. Again this is very normal, but what if their competitors were to offer the same features on a free plan?
While these form plugins often appear to be free, most follow a common pattern: they give just enough to get you started, then nudge you toward a paid upgrade as soon as you need real functionality, such as storing responses, adding logic, tracking conversions, or integrating with email tools.
Recently, I have seen many plugins trying to ease the burden of users on a budget by offering more and more in the free plan. One may argue that it’s part of their marketing plan to onboard users first. Soon they will lock them and push for an update which is very unethical – though legal.
Opportunity for Disruption: Value Is the New Differentiator
When real users started to become aware of their costs in basic looks such as form builders, they started to shift from big names to affordable solutions. This shift in user awareness has created a massive opportunity for newcomers.
Small businesses, creators, and freelancers are the real audience of form builder plugins who use them for various tasks. They are getting tired of paying for functionality or benefits that they can get in basic tools. Therefore, any solution that will offer real value vs cost will become an obvious winner.
I am talking about a highly saturated market that is crowded with partial benefit providers. In this market, the tool that will give more benefits without gatekeeping will stand out.
This is where plugins like FormGent step in to challenge the status quo by delivering premium-level capabilities for free, with no hidden catches. Affordability is one of its key selling points but that’s not all. It’s redefining what users should expect from a form builder plugin in 2025.
Overview of Pricing Trends in 2025
By 2025, the WordPress plugin market has become increasingly commercialized and users are being pushed to get add-ons, advanced AI features by paying extra. Simple form-building functionality now comes bundled with tiered pricing plans, upsells, and add-ons. It makes users struggle to get full value without committing to recurring plans and renewals.
While these plugins offer great functionality, the add up costs fast. Especially for small and medium-businesses and solopreneurs, who need reliable forms without overkill – this is a deal breaker. Here’s a quick comparison of what the form plugin market looks like today:
Pricing Plans of Most Popular WordPress Form Plugins in 2025
| Plugin | Starting Price (Paid Plan) | Free Plan Limitations | Notable Locked Features |
| WPForms | $49.50/year (Basic) | Limited fields, no logic, no uploads, no entries | Conditional logic, file upload, multi-step, entries |
| Gravity Forms | $59/year (Basic) | No free version | Everything requires license |
| Formidable Forms | $39.50/year (Basic) | Basic fields only | Views, logic, calculations, integrations |
| Fluent Forms | $47/year (Pro) | Some features available, but integrations and payments gated | Payment, CRM/email integrations, advanced logic |
| Forminator | Free only (no Pro tier) | Generous for basics but lacks depth | Limited analytics, logic, fewer integrations |
| Ninja Forms | $49/year (Add-on Based) | Free core plugin lacks advanced fields | Conditional logic, file upload, CRM/email add-ons |
Note: Prices are for single-site licenses as of mid-2025. Features may vary based on provider plans.
Meet FormGent: A Cost-Saving Alternative
I found FormGent recently while scrolling through Reddit community posts. They announced the arrival in a very casual fashion seeking user’s feedback on the tool. I gave it a try and got a very different experience than what I discussed above.
When most form plugins charge for standard features, FormGent takes a different path by giving powerful and smart features in free plan. I was able to experience modern form-building for free and it wasn’t their beta launch. They ensured that the features they already offered in the free plan will never be locked. So the question is, who is the target? And how will they make money?
If you’re a freelancer, a small business owner, or someone managing multiple client sites, FormGent is for you. It helps you save hundreds per year without compromising quality, speed, or features. They will make money if you buy their pro plan, which you may consider. I found exceptional values in the free plan and can imagine what they will offer in the pro plans.
What You Get with FormGent for Free
Upon testing the FormGent free plan, I tried to make a quick comparison of features you ideally get in the leaders’ free plan. Now I am going to discuss what values I have got:
- AI-Powered Form Creation: I generated a total of 5 forms using the AI creation. I wrote a prompt and it created numerous forms for me. Forms were advanced, tailored and I customized them to fit my needs.
- Conditional Logic: This is fantastic! I was able to set logic based show/hide questions. Setting logics is easier and you can even group multiple logics in the builder.
- Multi-Step Forms: It’s the page break block that does the breaking of forms. If you are creating a long form, better break it to various pages, show steps counter and progress bar and give your audience an idea of what to come. With each step completion, your data will be saved.
- File Uploads: It was particularly challenging with WPforms Lite. They didn’t allow file upload fields on the free plan. So I became very happy when I found this field with extension and file size limit options.
- Unlimited Forms & Fields: Not something extraordinary but thankfully I was able to insert as many fields needed without hitting a paywall.
- Spam Protection: All popular CAPTCHAs are part of the free plan. Works well with Google reCAPTCHA, hCAPTCHA and Cloudflare.
- Form Analytics & Submissions: Another feature that some leaders keep locked. The form analytics were updated in real-time, showing illustrated charts of submissions. Tabular submissions allow export in various formats.
- Instant Shareable Links: I didn’t need to embed my form in particular pages and posts. An instant link of the form was generated when I finalized creating my form. That link works smoothly on any device and showcases my form.
- Integrations and Completion Message: I found some interesting integration capabilities of FormGent and they are all free. I believe they will add more soon. Upon form completion, I was able to set personalized message and email templates to be sent. It also allows setting redirects.
With FormGent, I found a leaner way to build forms that doesn’t charge me for growing. Its Premium plans are not absolutely necessary but if you wish to avail it, it’s totally worth the price in my opinion. Let’s take a quick sneak peak on what’s included and upcoming in pro plans.
This is interesting! No changes of features in various plans; pricing varies based on the number of sites you handle. This clearly explains that you should pay as per your necessity. They are also giving you an opportunity to save headaches and buy a lifetime plan so that you don’t need to worry about paying recurring fees.
Real-World Impact: How Much Can You Actually Save?
Choosing any tool is no longer just a technical decision but also a financial decision in 2025. Especially if you are cautious about your spendings, want to invest smartly and care about the returns, you may have realized how quickly costs can skyrocket when using “freemium” plugins that require upgrades for advanced functionalities. Let’s break it down to tentative figures:
Form Plugins Cost Breakdown
If you are using one of the market leaders for building your forms, you are roughly spending $49-$79 per year for a single site. That excludes standard functionalities like AI, templates or conversational forms. To unlock those, you have to pay roughly another $100 making a tentative expense of $150 for a single website.
Now, if you have several websites, the average cost per site may reduce a bit but still that will be in three-digital figures. For freelancers who need licenses for unlimited sites, it’s going to break banks. For example, you have to pay a minimum of $300 to get an unlimited site access that’s also on a recurring plan.
Estimated Total: $150 per site, per year, $300 unlimited site per year
How Much Can FormGent Save?
Most of those basic features you will pay $49-79 are free on FormGent. That’s some savings if you are a solopreneur. If you are in need of a pro plan, get the starter single site for $39 to get the value of average $150 saving $111 for you each year.
If you work with multiple sites, go with the 10-sites annual plan for $59 and you will roughly save $500 easily. More flexibility comes in the unlimited site plan that is a Lifetime deal. Pay only $159 (on 60% off) for unlimited sites one-time license and you are saving what?
Consider only 5-years product lifetime; multiply it by $300 that the giants would charge you. It comes down to $1,500 meaning you are saving $1,341 in a 5-year span. The more years you will use it, the more your savings will be. Who would have thoughts a form plugin can take up so much of your money?
More Than Just Savings, It’s Strategic Freedom
I talked a lot about finance today but that shouldn’t be my entire focus when assessing a tool like FormGent. They are not just offering a freebie, they are giving value that you should accept before your competitors do. With FormGent, you are free to:
Launch sites without worrying about form plugin budgets. Spend this amount elsewhere to elevate your features further.
Help your clients save money without compromising quality and delivering advanced functionalities
Scale your freelance career with unlimited site plan, grow without headaches.
Quit stressing about running out of free trial dates or cancelling plans before a big free is charged from your card.
Simply put, FormGent ensures that you are relieved from worrying about trial countdown, pressure to upgrade and disappearing features after 7 or 14 days. Get full access to powerful tools from day one, and they stay free as long as you need them.
If Any of These Sound Familiar…
You have just discovered a gem you will remember every time you create a highly functional form using it. So make your mind up, switch to smart, cost-effective options that don’t compromise on functionalities. FormGent is built to give you the freedom without limitations at a surprising cost.
Still Thinking? Checkout this Expert Opinion
We get it, switching tools isn’t always easy. But when you can save money and get more done, it’s worth a look. Check out this video review I found on YouTube that may convince you further.