PortForm vs Forminit (formerly Getform)
What is the difference between PortForm and Forminit (formerly Getform)?
Forminit, formerly Getform, and PortForm both accept HTML form posts and store them. Forminit’s pricing page lists configurable retention (30, 90 or 365 days, or custom) on paid plans and by default keeps submissions until you delete them; PortForm deletes after a flat 30 days on every plan and has a store-first delivery order with an MCP server.
New to the category? Read what a form backend is and how a form endpoint works. Last verified: , against Forminit (formerly Getform)'s own pages listed under sources.
Forminit (formerly Getform) and PortForm at a glance
| Topic | Forminit (formerly Getform) | PortForm |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Forminit states it was formerly Getform.io, renamed in January 2026; getform.io redirects to forminit.com. (Forminit homepage) | PortForm. |
| How a form submits | POST /f/{formId}. The Submit Form API accepts application/x-www-form-urlencoded (“HTML native form posts”), JSON, and multipart (required for file uploads). (Forminit documentation: Submit Form API) | A plain HTML form post with a hidden access_key field works with no JavaScript; JSON, multipart and fetch also work |
| Retention | “By default, submissions are kept until you delete them.” Pro and above can set automatic deletion (30, 90, 365 days or custom); spam submissions delete after 30 days. (Forminit pricing) | 30 days of submission history on every plan |
| Retry and failure handling | Not verified from the vendor's current public documentation. | Stored first. The notification email is attempted once, best-effort; a submission with no recorded attempt after 10 minutes gets one late recovery attempt, and failed sends can be retried manually from the dashboard. Integrations are retried automatically, up to 5 attempts over about two and a half hours |
What Forminit (formerly Getform) does well
- Retention you control: keep everything until deleted, or set automatic deletion on Pro and above. (Forminit pricing)
- Free plan with 100 submissions per month, file upload, email notifications and spam protection. (Forminit pricing)
- Spam options documented: Cloudflare Turnstile, reCAPTCHA v3, hCaptcha and honeypot. (Forminit documentation)
- An SDK plus a plain API, and files up to 25 MB per submission. (Forminit documentation)
- A REST API, webhooks, Slack, Discord and Google Sheets from Pro; autoresponder, custom email sender and team workspaces from Business. (Forminit pricing)
Where PortForm differs
PortForm stores each submission first, then attempts the email, then runs integrations. See delivery retries for exactly what is and is not retried.
- Retention. Forminit lets you keep submissions indefinitely by default; PortForm removes submissions after 30 days on every plan and provides CSV and JSON export. If long-lived storage inside the service matters, that is the practical difference.
- Free-plan capability. Forminit’s free plan (100 submissions, 1 form) includes file upload and spam protection; PortForm’s free plan (300 per 30 days, unlimited forms) does not include file uploads, which are Pro.
- Delivery order. PortForm documents store, email (best-effort), integrations with retries. Forminit stores submissions and sends email notifications; its retry policy is Not verified from the vendor’s current public documentation.
Pricing and limits
PortForm’s current prices are on the pricing page and its limits in the docs. Competitor prices are as listed on the dates above and change; check Forminit (formerly Getform)’s own pricing before deciding.
| Topic | Forminit (formerly Getform) | PortForm |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0, 100 submissions per month, 1 form, 100 MB file storage. (Forminit pricing) | 300 submissions per 30 days, unlimited forms, no card |
| Pro | $15.83/month billed yearly ($19 monthly), 5,000 submissions, 5 forms, 1 GB. (Forminit pricing) | $9/month ($91 billed yearly), 10,000 submissions |
| Business | $40.83/month billed yearly, 10,000 submissions, 15 forms, 5 GB. (Forminit pricing) | $29/month, 20,000 submissions |
| Volume | $82.50/month billed yearly, 50,000 submissions, unlimited forms, 10 GB. (Forminit pricing) | No tier above 20,000 submissions. |
Features
| Topic | Forminit (formerly Getform) | PortForm |
|---|---|---|
| Spam protection | Spam protection on all plans; Turnstile, reCAPTCHA v3, hCaptcha and honeypot documented. (Forminit pricing, Forminit documentation) | Honeypot on every plan; hCaptcha on Free; reCAPTCHA and Turnstile on Pro and Agency |
| File uploads | On all plans; up to 25 MB per submission. (Forminit pricing, Forminit documentation) | Pro: up to 3 files per submission, 5 MB each |
| Webhooks and API | From Pro. (Forminit pricing) | Pro and Agency: Slack, Discord, Telegram, Google Sheets, Notion, Airtable, HubSpot and webhooks (Zapier, Make and n8n connect through webhooks) |
| Autoresponder and teams | From Business. (Forminit pricing) | Autoresponder on Pro and Agency. |
When Forminit (formerly Getform) may make more sense
- If you want submissions kept until you delete them rather than for 30 days. (Forminit pricing)
- If you need file uploads on a free plan. (Forminit pricing)
- If you need a tier above 20,000 monthly submissions: Forminit lists Volume at 50,000. (Forminit pricing)
Migrating from Forminit (formerly Getform) to PortForm
Migration means changing a form’s action and key, not moving data automatically. Ready-made forms are in templates, for example Basic HTML contact form and File upload form.
- Forminit posts to /f/{formId}; PortForm posts to one endpoint with a hidden access_key. Update the form’s action and add the key.
- Field names carry over as ordinary submission data. Redirect behavior differs: Forminit’s API returns a redirectUrl in its response, while PortForm answers with a 303 redirect when a redirect field is present.
- Because PortForm keeps 30 days, export from Forminit anything you need long-term: Not verified from the vendor’s current public documentation how its export works.
- If you searched for Getform, note that Getform and Forminit are the same product, so this is the only migration page.
Which should I use?
There is no single answer. It depends on which requirement matters most to you.
- If your priority is you want submissions retained until you delete them, the relevant difference is: Forminit’s default; PortForm keeps 30 days. (Forminit pricing)
- If your priority is you need file upload on the free plan, the relevant difference is: Forminit’s Free plan includes it; PortForm’s file uploads are Pro. (Forminit pricing)
- If your priority is you want a larger free quota across unlimited forms and an agent-facing MCP server, the relevant difference is: PortForm: 300 per 30 days, unlimited forms, MCP on every plan.
Questions about Forminit (formerly Getform) and PortForm
- Is Getform the same as Forminit?
- Yes. Forminit states it was formerly Getform.io, renamed in January 2026, and getform.io redirects to forminit.com.
- What is the difference between PortForm and Forminit?
- Both store submissions from HTML forms. Forminit keeps them until you delete them by default and lets Pro users set retention; PortForm keeps 30 days and documents a store-first delivery order.
- Does Forminit store submissions?
- Yes. Its documentation says it automatically stores your data, and lets you choose how long each form’s submissions are stored.
- Do I need JavaScript?
- No for Forminit: its Submit Form API accepts HTML native form posts. No for PortForm either.
Sources
Every Forminit (formerly Getform) statement above was read from these first-party pages on . Anything not found there is marked as not verified.