Validation and rules
Require fields, block values, mark spam, or route submissions based on the content. Rules run before a submission is accepted or counted.
Hosted form backend
The form backend for HTML forms, static sites, and custom apps.
Point any HTML form at a FreelyForm endpoint. We validate and store every submission, deliver it to your inbox, and keep a per-channel delivery record — without server code or a proprietary form builder.
Native HTML and JSON · File uploads · Signed webhooks · Spam controls
Your page
NameAda Lovelace
Emailada@example.com
MessageQuote for 500 scarves, please.
Send
Delivered200
- Submission stored14:02:11
- Email to ada@example.com14:02:13
- Signed webhook14:02:14
- Autoresponse queued14:02:14
freelyform.com
What is a form backend?
A form backend is the server-side half of a web form. It receives the POST request, validates and stores the fields, notifies the people who need to see it, and returns a response to the browser.
FreelyForm provides that backend as a hosted endpoint. Static sites and front-end apps can accept submissions without running a server, writing a mailer, or maintaining a database.
Why use one
Everything after submit, handled.
Most forms fail after the visitor clicks send: mail lands in spam, a field is missing, an attachment is lost, or nobody notices that delivery stopped. FreelyForm makes the post-submit path visible and repeatable.
Delivery you can inspect
Owner notifications and autoresponses each have a status, error message, and retry action. No guessing whether the mail left the building.
Verified recipients
Recipients confirm their address once. Until then submissions are stored safely as pending and delivered automatically after confirmation.
File uploads
Accept images, PDFs, and documents with a MIME and extension allowlist, per-form limits, and a configurable retention period.
Webhooks and alerts
Send signed payloads to your own endpoint, Discord, or Telegram. Failed deliveries are retried and kept in a replayable log.
Submission API
Query submissions, export CSV, inspect delivery attempts, and retry failed channels with account-scoped API keys.
How it works
Three steps from form to inbox.
No SDK is required. The endpoint accepts standard form posts, so the integration is mostly a copy-and-paste change.
-
Create a form and copy the endpoint
Give the form a name, add up to five recipients, and choose whether to show a message, redirect, or return JSON after submit.
-
Verify the inbox that should receive mail
Each recipient confirms once by email. Submissions received before confirmation are retained and queued for delivery afterwards.
-
Point your existing form at the endpoint
Set the
actionattribute, keep your field names, and submit. Add/embed.jsif you want inline success and error states without a redirect.
<form action="https://freelyform.com/f/FORM_ID" method="POST">
<input type="text" name="name" required>
<input type="email" name="email" required>
<textarea name="message"></textarea>
<button type="submit">Send</button>
</form>Already using JavaScript? POST JSON with an Accept: application/json header and read the structured response. See the quickstart or browse the API reference.
Side by side
FreelyForm and Formspree, feature by feature.
Formspree is the established benchmark. This table is a practical comparison, not a claim that one product is right for every team.
| Capability | Formspree | FreelyForm |
|---|---|---|
| HTML and JSON form endpoint | Yes | Yes |
| Email notifications | Yes | Yes |
| Autoresponse to the submitter | Professional and above | Every account |
| File uploads | Yes, 5 files × 25 MB | Yes, 5 files × 25 MB by default |
| Custom notification templates | Business | Yes |
| Rules and conditional handling | Yes | Require, block, spam, route |
| Partial submissions and resume links | Not in the public feature list | Yes |
| Signed webhooks and replay | Webhooks available | HMAC signature, retries, delivery log, replay |
| Custom sending domain or SMTP | Yes | BYO SMTP with TXT verification |
| Submission and management API | Available | Included |
| Entry price | From $15/month, monthly billing | Free during early access |
See the full Formspree comparison for migration notes and where each product is a better fit.
Use cases
One endpoint, several kinds of forms.
The same ingest path handles contact forms, quote requests, application forms, support intake, and file submissions.
Contact forms for static sites
Add a working contact form to GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Netlify, Vercel, or any static host without a serverless function.
Static site setup →Forms in React and Next.js
Keep your component and validation layer. POST to the endpoint with fetch and show the structured response inline.
React example →File and document intake
Accept resumes, briefs, screenshots, or scanned documents with allowlists, size limits, and a retention policy.
File upload setup →Webhook-driven workflows
Deliver submissions to a CRM, helpdesk, spreadsheet service, or custom automation with a signed payload.
Webhook setup →Reliability and abuse
Delivery is a state, not a hope.
Each submission keeps its own delivery history. When a channel fails, the reason is visible and the retry is explicit.
- Per-channel records. Email, autoresponse, and webhook attempts are tracked separately.
- Automatic retries. Transient failures are retried with backoff; permanent failures stay visible for review.
- Suppression list. Hard bounces, complaints, and unsubscribes stop future sends to the affected address.
- Origin allowlist. Restrict a form to the domains you expect instead of accepting posts from anywhere.
- Rate limits and captcha. Per-form limits, a custom honeypot field, and optional Turnstile slow down abuse.
- Rules before storage. Required-field and block rules reject bad input with a clear 422 response.
- Encrypted SMTP credentials. Bring-your-own SMTP passwords are encrypted with AES-256-GCM.
- Retention controls. Set how long submissions are kept and let attachments expire on a schedule.
Early access note: FreelyForm does not publish an uptime SLA yet. The delivery log and retry controls are the operational record.
For developers
A form API that stays out of your markup.
Send JSON, inspect the response, and manage the same data from the API that powers the dashboard.
curl -X POST https://freelyform.com/f/FORM_ID \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-H 'Accept: application/json' \
-d '{"name":"Ada","email":"ada@example.com","message":"Hello"}'const expected = createHmac('sha256', secret)
.update(timestamp + '.' + rawBody)
.digest('hex');
// header: x-freelyform-signature
// value: t=<timestamp>,v1=<expected>Form backend questions, answered
Do I need a server to use FreelyForm?
No. FreelyForm hosts the endpoint that receives your form. Any HTML form can POST directly to it, and static hosts such as GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Netlify, and Vercel can use it without server-side code.
Can I keep my existing HTML form?
Yes. Change the form action to your FreelyForm endpoint and keep the field names you already use. Native HTML posts, JSON requests, and multipart file uploads are supported.
Where do submissions go?
Every submission is stored in your FreelyForm account and queued for delivery to the recipients you configure. Each delivery channel has its own status, error detail, and retry action.
Can I receive file uploads?
Yes. Forms can accept multiple files with a MIME and extension allowlist, per-form count and size limits, and an attachment retention period. Files are downloadable from the submission view.
How much does FreelyForm cost?
FreelyForm is free during early access while billing is being built. Accounts currently have no monthly submission cap; per-form rate limits and fair-use safeguards apply.
Put your forms on a backend that keeps a record.
Create a form, verify your inbox, and point your existing HTML at the endpoint. No server, no SDK, no rewrite.
POST https://freelyform.com/f/FORM_ID