Plugnotes X Cognito Forms

Plugnotes vs. Cognito Forms: What are the differences, similarities, pricing, strengths, and weaknesses of each tool?

As the digital market continues to expand rapidly, it's natural to seek ways to automate your business. With so many new and promising options available, it's understandable to question which company is best suited to manage your specific type of business. To help you make an informed decision, we've created a comparison between Plugnotes and other competitors.

If your business deals with asset management, intervention reports, checklists, timesheets, incident management, and others, we recommend checking out the article below. This way, you can take a closer look at the concrete differences between these tools and examine the main arguments for using one versus the other.

Cognito Forms is an online platform that enables users to create, publish, and manage forms with ease. The platform is primarily geared towards marketing purposes and is particularly effective for creating surveys, registration forms, and website forms. From simple contact forms to complex registration applications it also offers features such as conditional logic, payment integration, and data encryption - focuses on form building and data collection for a broad audience.

Plugnotes is a powerful digital solution that emphasizes operational and industrial process optimization. It allows digitizing operations with teams on the field and with complex flows. Offers features like stock management, data collection from field teams, and incident tracking. This makes Plugnotes particularly suitable for businesses seeking to digitize and streamline their unique operational workflows while maintaining a connection with their existing management systems. The software enables businesses to create custom digital forms and manage specific business processes without the need for IT development, seamlessly integrating with existing ERP tools. 

In this article, you can take a closer look at the concrete differences between these tools and examine the main arguments for using one versus the other.

1. BUILD FORMS

To build a form, you will be able to select components and fields in order to structure the data collection. Please, check a list of specific options available for both:

Cognito Forms

• List up to 15 fields/components options: text, date, dropdown, electronic signature, rating scale, file upload, lookup field, and payment;
• Create forms with an unlimited amount of fields;
• Create sections in the form such as general information, intervention details, etc.
• Preview of the form available;
• Configure with a nice look and feel;
• Customize the form layout: set up color, format, background, etc…;
• Use only online.

Plugnotes

• Choose between +30 formats including geolocalisation formulas, tables, multiple lookup fields, external databases, automatic index, pre-filled fields, and barcodes (available soon)…
• Create dynamic forms with database logic and cascade options - to link forms to each other;
• Lookup fields that complete several fields at once, based on a selection;
• Use the Database logic. One-click to fill automatically data bout a product or customer information sourced from another database (external or within Plugnotes) ;
• Approve the cycle of data before it goes into a workflow;
• Add all types of attachments including annotated photos, scanned documents, audio notes, etc…;
• Collect data and share data instructions, technical information, etc…;
• Use the app in online and offline mode.

In a nutshell, Cognito Forms is good for marketing forms with a good-looking look and feel while Plugnotes is better for enterprises looking to optimize operations and efficient data collection through powerful forms.

2. INTEGRATE AND AUTOMATE
To connect forms to external datasets such as ERP systems, accounting tools, Excel, and others, integrations are used. It saves costs by saving time and optimizing information that you already have. Discover here the available options for both tools

Cognito Forms

• Benefit from native integrations: Google Analytics, Zapier, Make, Power Automate;
• Create JSON online webhooks;
• Activate payment in the form: Stripe, PayPal, or Square.

Plugnotes

• Use SSO connection;
• Make custom integrations: Odoo, Business Central, SAP, Bouwsoft, Azure, FTP connection through middleware (Filezilla);
• Connect to Zapier connection with more than 4000 online integrations such as Microsoft 365, Google, Billit, Odoo, and Salesforce.

In a nutshell, Cognito Forms is good for its few native integrations but offers less flexibility to an enterprise with specific tools and custom integration needs. Also, Plugnotes offers an option for all integration contexts.

3. PUBLISH, COLLABORATE, AND ANALYZE DATA

To collaborate and exploit the collected data, you will have several options depending on the tool you're using. Hereby a detail of available options for both tools:

Cognito Forms

• Share form via Public link or Embed form;
• Share reports via Excel, PDF, or Link.

Plugnotes

• Share form via public, private link, or alphanumeric code and edit tables with collected data;
• Create QR codes for shared forms;
• Share database previews with other users (with edition rights);
• Filter views on shared databases (hidden columns, data sets…)
• Export table and multiple datasets in exports and data consultation;
• Create simple and unlimited document templates;
• Export to Word PDF Excel.

In a nutshell, Plugnotes has a big highlight on the internal and external collaboration options. Another interesting functionality is that you can analyze and send data in an organized and structured manner. Also, sending reports to third parties can greatly optimize your time. The analysis is easily comprehensible, and it is unbiased and objective!

4. PRICE

It is essential for potential users to carefully evaluate the features, support, and pricing structure to determine the best fit for their needs and budget.

Cognito Forms

• Free version available;
• Monthly payment: as from 1.200,00 EUR.

Plugnotes

• Annual Payment: as from 5.000 EUR including:
  • 20 forms (70 euros/month / additional form above 100 forms);
  • 10 users (70 euros/month / additional user above 50 forms);
  • Unlimited free contributors; 
  • Access to all features, formats, and automation modules;
  • Monthly on-site training available with Plugnotes experts;
  • Online help center with videos;
  • E-mail and phone support with max 48h answer time;
  • Belgian team and support are available in Dutch and French.
    
    

In a nutshell, sometimes it's not a question of price... Weigh the value provided by the software against its price to ensure that it aligns with your budget. Plugnotes is made to compare development projects (an average of 40.000 euros for one app) with a focus on the industry and deep operations tasks. Its focus is to digitize operations with teams on the field, with complex flows, and industrial needs while Cognito Forms is for free but prepared to deal with online forms, surveys, and non-complex marketing tasks.  

5. OVERVIEW

6. CONCLUSION

If your company is looking to digitize operations with teams on the field and complex flows, and your focus is on the industrial market, then Plugnotes is the perfect choice for your business. Cognito Forms is great for its ease of setup and use, along with advanced features such as integrated payments and extensive sharing options. However, if you are looking for deep customization, tailored integrations, and detailed data management, then Plugnotes is the way to go. It offers a business solution that is flexible and can integrate seamlessly with your existing processes and systems, allowing you to manage your specific operational challenges with ease. This makes it an ideal choice for businesses seeking customized solutions to improve their operational efficiency, rather than a more generalized marketing form creation tool like Cognito Forms.