SilentForms vs Headlessforms
The free Headlessforms alternative
Headlessforms' free plan covers one form and 25 submissions a month. Paid plans start at $4.50 a month for three forms and 100 submissions per form; webhooks, the API and custom redirects come with Pro at $28 a month. SilentForms has no submission quota and no paid plans: webhooks, the API, CAPTCHA, redirects and CSV export come with every form.
- Free submissions
SilentForms
Unlimited
Headlessforms
25 a month
- Forms on the free plan
SilentForms
25 per account
Headlessforms
1
- Cheapest paid plan
SilentForms
None: everything is free
Headlessforms
$4.50 a month
- Webhooks
SilentForms
Yes
Headlessforms
Paid plans only
The short version
Headlessforms is a form backend from a small company in Zürich: it gives your HTML form an endpoint, a dashboard, notifications and spam filtering, with hosted forms and a WordPress plugin besides. It suits small sites that want a very cheap paid plan and data stored in the EU.
Choose SilentForms if
- You expect more than 25 submissions a month
- You want webhooks and the API without $28 a month
- You want a choice of CAPTCHA
- You want one documented endpoint
Choose Headlessforms if
- You need file uploads: Headlessforms accepts attachments on its paid plans, SilentForms does not have them yet.
- You want an automatic reply to the person who submitted ("Submitter Notification" on its paid plans); SilentForms has no autoresponder yet.
- You want Zapier without a webhook step: Headlessforms includes it from Basic ($4.50 a month).
Pricing
SilentForms has no paid plans: every feature is on every form. Here are Headlessforms's plans as its own pricing page lists them.
| Plan | Price | Submissions a month | Forms | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SilentForms | $0 | Unlimited | 25 per account | Every feature, no paid plans |
| Headlessforms Free | $0 | 25 | 1 | Spam filtering, data export, hosted forms |
| Headlessforms Basic | $4.50 a month$3.75 a month billed yearly | 100 per form | 3 | Zapier, attachments (5 MB per file), submitter notification |
| Headlessforms Pro | $28 a month$19 a month billed yearly | 1,500 per form | 15 | Webhooks, API, custom redirect and thank-you page, 5 users |
| Headlessforms Plus | $99 a month$79 a month billed yearly | 30,000 per form | 50 | Double opt-in, conditional notifications, branded thank-you page, 50 users |
Feature by feature
Every Headlessforms value comes from its own website and links to it under Sources. "Paid plans only" means the free plan does not include it.
| Feature | SilentForms | Headlessforms |
|---|---|---|
| Price and limits | ||
| Free submissions | UnlimitedAbuse limits only: 10 a minute per IP, 60 a minute per access key. | 25 a month |
| Forms on the free plan | 25 per accountA key without an account is one per email address. | 1 |
| Submission history (free) | Until you delete them | Not stated |
| Cheapest paid plan | None: everything is free | $4.50 a monthBasic: 3 forms, 100 submissions per form a month; $3.75 a month billed yearly. |
| Account needed to start | NoConfirm your email and you have a key. | Yes |
| Delivery | ||
| Email notifications | Yes | YesPer its docs; its pricing table ticks them from Pro. |
| More than one recipient | Up to 5 extra per formEach recipient confirms first. | Yes, plan not statedComma-separated addresses. |
| Webhooks | YesFailed deliveries are retried for about 15 hours. | Paid plans onlyPro ($28 a month) and up. |
| Built-in integrations | Slack, Discord, TelegramZapier, Make, n8n and Google Sheets through the webhook. | Paid plans onlyZapier from Basic. |
| API to read submissions | YesREST API with personal tokens. | Paid plans onlyPro and up. |
| Spam protection | ||
| Honeypot / spam filtering | Yes | YesPer its free-plan description; its pricing table lists advanced filtering from Pro. |
| CAPTCHA | Turnstile, hCaptcha, reCAPTCHA v2/v3 | reCAPTCHA v3The plan is not stated. |
| Restrict to your domain | Yes | Yes, plan not stated"Domain verification". |
| Submissions and forms | ||
| Dashboard to read submissions | Yes | Yes |
| Export (CSV) | Yes | YesPer its free-plan description; its pricing table differs. |
| Custom thank-you redirect | Yes | Paid plans onlyPro and up. |
| File uploads | No | Paid plans onlyUp to 5 MB per file on Basic. |
| Autoresponder | No | Paid plans only"Submitter Notification" on paid plans. |
What SilentForms does differently
You expect more than 25 submissions a month
The Headlessforms free plan covers 25 submissions a month on one form, and Basic 100 per form. SilentForms has no quota and up to 25 forms per account.
You want webhooks and the API without $28 a month
Headlessforms adds webhooks, the API and custom redirects with Pro. SilentForms has all three on every form, plus Slack, Discord and Telegram.
You want a choice of CAPTCHA
Headlessforms documents reCAPTCHA v3. SilentForms supports Cloudflare Turnstile, hCaptcha and reCAPTCHA v2 and v3, with a honeypot on every form.
You want one documented endpoint
SilentForms has one submit URL, the same in every guide, and also accepts the key in the URL for forms that cannot carry a hidden field.
Where Headlessforms is strong
- A very low entry price: Basic is $4.50 a month, or $3.75 billed yearly.
- Data stored on servers in the EU, as its GDPR page states.
- Several spam layers (domain verification, Akismet, reCAPTCHA v3, honeypot), with double opt-in and conditional notifications on Plus.
Switching from Headlessforms
Your form's markup, fields and styling stay as they are. Most switches change one line.
- Step 1
Get a key
Enter your email on the access key page and click the confirmation link. No password, no card.
- Step 2
Change the action
Keep your form's fields and markup and change the action URL to SilentForms with your access key. Settings you made in the Headlessforms dashboard, such as a redirect or the email subject, are set again in the SilentForms dashboard or with hidden fields like redirect and subject.
- Step 3
Send a test
Submit the form once and check your inbox. Open the dashboard to see it stored there too.
<form action="https://app.headlessforms.cloud/api/v1/form-submission/YOUR_FORM_TOKEN" method="POST">
<input type="email" name="email" required>
<textarea name="message"></textarea>
<button type="submit">Send</button>
</form><form action="https://silentforms.com/f/YOUR_ACCESS_KEY" method="POST">
<input type="email" name="email" required>
<textarea name="message"></textarea>
<input type="checkbox" name="botcheck" style="display:none" tabindex="-1" autocomplete="off">
<button type="submit">Send</button>
</form>How your settings carry over
| Setting | Headlessforms | SilentForms |
|---|---|---|
| Endpoint | …/api/v1/form-submission/{token} | https://silentforms.com/f/{accessKey} |
| Email subject | Set in the dashboard | subjectA hidden field, or a default subject in the dashboard. |
| Reply-To | — | emailA field called email (or replyto) becomes the Reply-To. |
| Redirect after submit | Set in form settings | redirectA hidden field, or set it in the dashboard. Free here, Pro on Headlessforms. |
| Honeypot | A name you choose | botcheckAlso accepts honeypot, _gotcha and _honey. |
| reCAPTCHA v3 | g-recaptcha-response | g-recaptcha-responseWorks unchanged once your secret key is saved in the dashboard. |
Questions
Is SilentForms really free?
Yes. Unlimited submissions, email delivery, webhooks, spam protection, CAPTCHA and the dashboard are all free, forever, for up to 25 forms per account. There are no paid plans and we never ask for a credit card. The only limits stop abuse: 10 submissions a minute from one IP address and 60 a minute per access key.
Can I keep my existing form when I switch from Headlessforms?
Yes. Keep your form's fields and markup and change the action URL to SilentForms with your access key. Settings you made in the Headlessforms dashboard, such as a redirect or the email subject, are set again in the SilentForms dashboard or with hidden fields like redirect and subject.
What does Headlessforms offer that SilentForms does not?
You need file uploads: Headlessforms accepts attachments on its paid plans, SilentForms does not have them yet. You want an automatic reply to the person who submitted ("Submitter Notification" on its paid plans); SilentForms has no autoresponder yet. You want Zapier without a webhook step: Headlessforms includes it from Basic ($4.50 a month).
Try it on your form in two minutes
Free, with no submission quota and nothing to upgrade. Keep Headlessforms running until you are happy, then switch.
Get your free access keyOther alternatives
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- Basin alternativeFree plan: 50 a monthCompare
Or see every form backend side by side.
Checked on 25 October 2026 against each service's own website. Plans and prices change: if something here is out of date, the linked page is authoritative. "Not stated" means the service's own pages did not say.
Headlessforms