# LimeSurvey vs SurveyMonkey — Forms & Surveys

As of 29 Oct 2026, the panel rates [LimeSurvey](https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys/limesurvey) 3/5 and [SurveyMonkey](https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys/surveymonkey) 3/5 in Forms & Surveys. Weighted by what each judge cares about, 5 of the 6 judges pick LimeSurvey and 1 picks SurveyMonkey. LimeSurvey scores higher on 1 of 7 criteria (Form & survey building). SurveyMonkey scores higher on 5 of 7 criteria (Survey analysis & reporting, Pricing transparency, Hosting choice, teams & portability, plus 2 more). Provenance — LimeSurvey: EU-Made; SurveyMonkey: Rest of world. Ratings are the AI panel’s opinion, formed from public evidence: [how scores are made](https://whats-best.ai/methodology#ordering).

- Canonical page: https://whats-best.ai/compare/limesurvey-vs-surveymonkey
- LimeSurvey: https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys/limesurvey ([md](https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys/limesurvey.md))
- SurveyMonkey: https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys/surveymonkey ([md](https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys/surveymonkey.md))
- Category: [Forms & Surveys](https://whats-best.ai/software/forms-and-surveys.md)
- Data as of: 2026-11-04

**AI-generated.** Both products were evaluated from public evidence by the same panel of AI judges under the same rubric; without that, no comparison is published. Not a hands-on test; no score can be bought, on either side. How scores are made: https://whats-best.ai/methodology

## The short answer

LimeSurvey and SurveyMonkey split by criterion, with no overall call. Form building goes to LimeSurvey — mean 7.5 against 6.8, five judges lean LimeSurvey, one SurveyMonkey — on 28+ question types, conjoint and maxDiff methods, relevance equations and 80+ languages. Analysis and reporting goes to SurveyMonkey — 7.0 against 4.8, six lean SurveyMonkey, zero LimeSurvey — on crosstabs, significance testing and AI text analysis; we found no public information on LimeSurvey cross-tabulation or weighting. Collection and workflows splits: means favor SurveyMonkey 6.3 to 5.8, yet three judges lean LimeSurvey on invitations, quotas and access codes. Pricing transparency leans SurveyMonkey, 6.2 versus 5.2. Sovereignty means tie at 5.7 with five judges leaning LimeSurvey, whose data residency is EU-optional versus US default. Weighted totals favor LimeSurvey across five judges — operations manager 7.3 to 6.5, HR lead 6.8 to 6.0 — while the data protection officer's 6.4 to 0 is a split the verdict flags as anomalous.

**Choose LimeSurvey if:**
- You need research-grade form building — conjoint/CBC, maxDiff, relevance equations and 80+ languages — where the mean stands 7.5 to 6.8 with five judges leaning LimeSurvey against one, and five of six judges gave it 9.
- Your team sends mass invitations with bounce handling, quotas and unique access codes per respondent; three judges lean LimeSurvey here, and we found no public information on SurveyMonkey quotas, reminders or unique links.
- You need the option of EU data residency: LimeSurvey's data residency attribute is EU-optional, SurveyMonkey's is US default, and five judges lean LimeSurvey on sovereignty with means tied at 5.7.
- You want to run the software yourself — the verdict documents a free self-hosted Community Edition under GPLv2, and three judges lean LimeSurvey on hosting and administration.
- Your procurement excludes US Cloud Act subprocessor exposure, which is SurveyMonkey's listed attribute; LimeSurvey's subprocessor exposure is listed as unknown.

**Choose SurveyMonkey if:**
- You need crosstabs with statistical significance, password-protected or SSO-enforced dashboards, and an SPSS export — six judges lean SurveyMonkey on analysis and reporting, 7.0 versus 4.8.
- Your team analyzes open-ended responses — SurveyMonkey documents AI sentiment and thematic analysis, while we found no public information on LimeSurvey open-text analysis.
- You want published team pricing: Team Advantage €30 per user per month and Team Premier €75 per user per month, from 3 users billed annually; pricing transparency leans SurveyMonkey 6.2 to 5.2.
- You need a European contracting entity — SurveyMonkey's legal entity jurisdiction is Ireland, and the verdict credits a published subprocessor list and an online DPA with standard contractual clauses.

## Overall

| | LimeSurvey | SurveyMonkey |
|---|---|---|
| Panel rating | 3/5 | 3/5 |
| Provenance | EU-Made | Rest of world |
| Sovereignty | not determined | not determined |

## The bench's picks

| Judge | LimeSurvey | SurveyMonkey | Pick |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Market Researcher | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | LimeSurvey |
| The Operations Manager | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | LimeSurvey |
| The HR Lead | 3.5/5 | 3/5 | LimeSurvey |
| The Academic Researcher | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | LimeSurvey |
| The Data Protection Officer | 0/5 | 3/5 | SurveyMonkey |
| The Skeptic | 3.5/5 | 3/5 | LimeSurvey |

## Criterion by criterion

Bench average per criterion, out of 5; the lean counts which product each judge scored higher.

| Criterion | LimeSurvey | SurveyMonkey | The bench leans |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form & survey building | 4/5 | 3.5/5 | LimeSurvey, 5 of 6 judges |
| Distribution, response collection & workflows | 3/5 | 3/5 | LimeSurvey, 3 of 6 judges |
| Survey analysis & reporting | 2.5/5 | 3.5/5 | SurveyMonkey, 6 of 6 judges |
| Consent, GDPR & respondent data | 3/5 | 3/5 | LimeSurvey, 3 of 6 judges |
| Hosting choice, teams & portability | 3/5 | 3.5/5 | LimeSurvey, 3 of 6 judges |
| European sovereignty | 3/5 | 3/5 | LimeSurvey, 5 of 6 judges |
| Pricing transparency | 2.5/5 | 3/5 | SurveyMonkey, 2 of 6 judges |

## Sovereignty, side by side

| Dimension | LimeSurvey | SurveyMonkey |
|---|---|---|
| Legal entity | Not determined | Not determined |
| Hosting location | Not determined | Not determined |
| Hosting options | Not determined | Not determined |
| Open source | Not determined | Not determined |
| Data processing agreement | Not determined | Not determined |
| Transfer impact assessment | Not determined | Not determined |

## Facts, side by side

Only facts both products carry under the same definition; each is the vendor's own dated statement ([S*n*] → Sources).

| Fact | LimeSurvey | SurveyMonkey |
|---|---|---|
| Data · Free account deletion | 4 · 24 · 4 [S1] | SurveyMonkey Basic (free) · yes [S2] |
| Legal · Address | Hamburg · Papenreye 63 · Germany · 22453 [S3] | Dublin 2 · 70 Sir John Rogerson's Quay · Ireland · D02 R296 [S4] |
| Legal · Entity name | LimeSurvey GmbH [S3] | SurveyMonkey Europe UC [S4] |
| Legal · Register | Hamburg District Court · HRB 13762 [S1] | CRO Ireland · 532327 [S4] |
| Legal · VAT number | DE301233134 [S1] | IE3223102GH [S4] |
| Pricing · Price changes | 6 · quarterly · yes [S1] | end of current billing cycle · yes [S5] |

## Sources

- [S1] Terms of service: https://www.limesurvey.org/terms-conditions (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S2] Privacy policy: https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/legal/privacy/ (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S3] Legal notice: https://www.limesurvey.org/legal-notice (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S4] Legal notice: https://www.surveymonkey.com/about/imprint/ (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S5] Terms of service: https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/legal/terms-of-use/ (checked 2026-10-28)

## Questions

### Which is better, LimeSurvey or SurveyMonkey?

As of 29 Oct 2026, the panel rates both 3/5. Weighted by what each judge cares about, 5 of the 6 judges pick LimeSurvey and 1 picks SurveyMonkey. Which one fits depends on the criteria that matter to you; the table on this page shows both side by side, and each judge’s reading has its own page. Both were scored by the same AI bench under the same rubric, from public evidence only, [as the methodology describes](https://whats-best.ai/methodology).

### Is LimeSurvey or SurveyMonkey European?

LimeSurvey is European (EU-Made). SurveyMonkey is not European by provenance (Rest of world). Provenance is read from each company’s own legal pages: who builds it and who owns it.

### Do LimeSurvey and SurveyMonkey have a free plan?

As of 29 Oct 2026, LimeSurvey’s own pages state a free plan; SurveyMonkey’s pages as captured do not. Each product page links the pricing page it was read from.

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Cite as: whats-best.ai, "LimeSurvey vs SurveyMonkey", AI panel comparison, as of 2026-11-04. https://whats-best.ai/compare/limesurvey-vs-surveymonkey