Choose FormWork when a small team needs a complete request-and-approval process without a large starting subscription or separate workflow purchase. Stages, approvals, internal fields and automations are included from £19 a month excluding VAT. Choose Formstack when generated documents, formal signatures or Salesforce-native forms are central to the job.
The decision at a glance
| Your situation | FormWork | Formstack |
|---|---|---|
| 60 requests a month need approval and sequential handoffs | Starter includes stages, approvals and automations at £19/month excluding VAT | Forms starts at $99/month; workflow entitlements depend on the product |
| Several trusted colleagues build and maintain the process | Unlimited members included, with shared account access | Forms starts with one builder; Suite with three |
| Every request ends in generated documents and formal signatures | PDF templates plus an external signing integration | Suite combines Forms, Documents and Sign |
| Forms must operate natively inside Salesforce | Build a connection with APIs | Separate Salesforce-native products |
The FormWork examples below assume sequential work and a team allowed to see the same records. Restricted staff visibility or independent parallel tracks require a different design or platform.
When FormWork is a better fit
Low volume still needs approvals, reminders and handoffs
Consider a new starter’s equipment request: the manager supplies a start date and equipment list, a budget holder approves it, IT records the laptop asset tag and facilities arranges access. FormWork keeps those sequential handoffs on one entry, with an owner, due time and actions for each stage. Salary, bank details, health information and employment documents stay in the HR system.
The same product includes approval links, internal fields and a personal work queue. Approvers outside the account can decide by emailed link without becoming members. All features are available on each FormWork plan; the tiers change capacity rather than unlocking stages or automations. FormWork pricing.
Formstack also has approvals and workflows. Its comparison guide distinguishes Forms Approvals, Workflow Forms and Workflows, and places Workflows step logic and approvals in Suite plans or the Workflows Pro add-on. FormWork wins on the starting package when you need advanced sequential handling at modest volume: those tools are included on Starter, even if you run only a few dozen requests a month.
An example process in FormWork. Owners, due times and approval stages are available on every plan.
The follow-up has business logic of its own
An onboarding entry may need a reminder before its start date, a different route for a contractor and an API call to an equipment system. FormWork automations can branch, loop over requested items, wait, update records and react to a stage or approval decision.
Internal team fields can also have calculations, conditions and validation. Staff can record an equipment budget or an external reference without adding those questions to the manager’s form. Recorded automation runs show the steps, inputs, outputs and failures. You can test changes without contacting external systems or altering real entries.
Choose FormWork when maintaining and diagnosing that form-centred logic is the difficult part. A connected AI assistant can configure the draft process and automations, prepare a publish review and help investigate a failed run.
Several people should be able to improve the process
The operations coordinator should not become the only person who can fix a question or change a reminder. FormWork includes unlimited members who can build, configure automations and publish, alongside the plan’s limited admin seats. You can bring IT and operations colleagues into the same trusted working account without paying for another builder. Member permissions.
Formstack’s starting Forms plan includes one builder and Suite includes three; price extra builders or a different plan if more people need that access. In FormWork, drafts and publishing let your team review question, stage and automation changes together. Members share access to all entries and can change the setup, so this model suits a trusted team rather than staff with restricted roles.
When Formstack is a better fit
Choose Formstack when documents and formal signatures are central. Its Suite combines Forms, Documents and Sign, with document deliveries and e-signatures included. FormWork can generate PDFs from templates, but its signature field is a form answer. A dedicated document-signing journey needs an external service.
Choose Formstack for a Salesforce-native application. Its separate Salesforce offerings put forms and documents in that environment. FormWork can connect to APIs, but an integration is not a Salesforce-native application. Formstack product options.
Do not choose FormWork for independent parallel work tracks or restricted staff visibility. Each entry has one current stage, even when several people approve it. Everyone in a FormWork account can open every entry, and members can build and publish. An HR process where IT must not see HR records needs separate accounts or a different access model. See security and access. Confirm the required Formstack product and permissions in a demonstration before buying it for that requirement.
A small team process versus a full suite
For 60 equipment requests a month and up to 15 executed automation steps per entry, FormWork Starter is £19 per month excluding VAT. That uses 900 of its 1,000 monthly steps and 60 of its 100 entries. It includes three admins and unlimited members, within limits of 1,000 stored entries and rows, 5 GB of files and three projects. Larger volumes, accumulating records or longer workflows can require Pro at £49 per month. FormWork pricing.
Formstack advertises Forms from $99 per month, or $83 per month paid annually, with one builder. Suite starts at $299 per month, or $250 paid annually, with three builders, Forms, Documents and Sign, 250 monthly document deliveries and unlimited e-signatures. These are advertised starting prices in USD; confirm workflow entitlements and applicable tax for the plan you buy. Formstack pricing.
For equipment requests, internal approvals and API handoffs, FormWork lets you buy the needed process at its starting price. The $99 Forms price alone does not establish the cost of a matching Formstack workflow; include the required add-on or Suite. If each request needs formal signed documents, include Suite’s value and FormWork’s external signing cost. Prices retain their original currencies.
Try one request from approval to fulfilment
Start a 30-day FormWork trial and use the equipment portion of our employee onboarding walkthrough. Or ask a connected assistant to draft an equipment request with budget approval, IT and facilities handoffs, internal asset fields and a reminder before the start date. Have a second colleague edit the reminder and inspect its test run.
In Formstack, price and demonstrate that same process, including the builders and assignment options you need. Test a document and signature too if they are part of the real job. Check what each colleague can see before adding personal information.
When moving from Formstack, inventory document templates, signing flows, integrations and access rules. Recreating the intake form does not transfer the surrounding Suite or Salesforce application.
Written by the FormWork team from the linked official documentation, checked on the review date above. The equipment request is an illustrative example.