CraftForms

What CraftForms is

CraftForms is a WordPress form builder that lives in the Gutenberg block editor. It is for site builders, agencies and small businesses that want forms, quote calculators and booking flows built the same way they build pages. The company's FAQ says it is "built from the ground up for the block editor, not retrofitted onto it", and that every form is a native Gutenberg block. The pages do not state a company location or founding year. A free Community Version covers the basics and paid plans add the business features.

What you build and how

The editor. "If you can edit a page in WordPress, you already know how to build a form in CraftForms." You get the drag-and-drop layout, inline editing and block panel controls you already use. The company says the whole builder, including fields, settings, email templates, submit actions and conditional logic, is managed through the Gutenberg interface and that nothing in the standard workflow requires touching code. Its comparison table also lists a native Elementor widget and a native Bricks element, and a Contact Form 7 importer for people moving existing forms in. Forms inherit the theme's typography, colors and spacing, and the Default and Modern styles are theme-aware.

Fields and look. The table lists a repeater field, swatches in color, image, text and card styles, a live data display called the Info block, file uploads, a QR code or barcode field and a Layered Image that composites a preview image from selected options. The FAQ adds that file uploads go to the WordPress Media Library, with file types and maximum size configurable per field. The comparison table marks digital signatures with a dash, so the page does not claim them.

Logic and calculation. The Pro tier holds the calculation engine. Smart Variables are "virtual values you define on the form" and can be used in price formulas, conditional logic and email templates. Expression variables use "50+ built-in functions covering math, rounding, date arithmetic, string manipulation, and array operations". Price matrix variables give 2D lookup tables, and a live running total is shown to the user. The final price is "always validated server-side on submission". Together with image and color swatches, the company says that makes a full visual product configurator. The home page speaks to makers of printers, wallpaper, window and shutter products and furniture, with "bespoke configurators that price themselves". Multi-step forms and save and resume are marked "Soon" and "roadmap" in the comparison, so they are not live.

Submit actions. The free version offers 3 actions that can be stacked on one form: save the submission as a structured record in WordPress that you can browse and export, send a plain-text email, and send an HTML email from a template built in the Gutenberg Email Template designer. The comparison table also shows a webhook action, register user and create post. Pro registers WordPress users by mapping fields to username, email, password, names, role and custom user meta, with automatic password generation and duplicate detection. Create post maps fields to a post type's title, content, excerpt, author and more.

Email and spam. Every outgoing email is logged with recipient, subject, timestamp and delivery status, so a failure shows in the email log with the message body. SMTP can be configured per form. Spam protection is behavioral: it watches "mouse movement, focus events, keystroke patterns, timing, and paste behavior" and assigns an invisible score. The company says there is "no CAPTCHA, no checkbox".

Bookings, orders and documents. The comparison table lists a hotel-style booking datepicker with slots, a calendar view, per-date and per-slot inventory tracking, seasonal rates, and iCal sync with Airbnb and Booking.com. It also lists stock management, a built-in orders system with analytics and reporting, and PDF generation from designed templates. The home page suggests an event sign-up, a quiz that prints results to PDF, or a B&B booking form that emails a branded confirmation. Stripe payments are listed, and WooCommerce integration is listed too.

Developers. The free version includes a REST submission endpoint for every form. Pro adds the full API for submissions, submission management, email and SMTP management and CSV or JSON export, plus a custom endpoint slug, cross-origin submission, required request headers acting as a lightweight API key, and a custom form action URL. Forms can also embed on external sites in a self-sizing iframe that keeps calculations and logic.

What the pages say about price and limits

The Community Version "includes the visual form builder, email templates, and SMTP server manager - free, forever. No credit card needed", with no submission limits, no plugin branding and invisible spam protection. Paid plans on the pricing block:

• Indie, €50.99 a year, up to 5 WordPress site activations, annual updates and support.
• Startup, €129.99 one-time, unlimited site activations with lifetime updates and support.

Both list email templates, booking and scheduling fields, Stripe checkout through your own Stripe account, PayPal checkout through your own PayPal account, all blocks and form starters, and priority email support. A 14-day money-back guarantee covers all paid plans. One caution: a comparison bullet cites a "$149.99 LTD" lifetime deal, which differs from the €129.99 shown in the plan block, and the table marks PayPal payments "Soon" while the plan lists PayPal checkout. Check both before buying. A Facebook group and documentation are linked for the community. No compliance certifications or customer counts appear.

Who it suits, and who might look elsewhere

CraftForms suits a WordPress builder who lives in the block editor and wants one plugin for forms, price calculators and bookings. A shop that quotes jobs by dimensions and options can use the price matrix and live total. A small guesthouse can use the booking datepicker and iCal sync. An agency maintaining many client sites can look at the lifetime plan for unlimited activations.

The caveats are concrete. Multi-step forms and save and resume are not yet available. The calculation engine, conditional logic and file uploads sit in the paid tier. The comparison page is the company's own, so its "where WPForms still has an edge" list is useful: beginner friendliness, 1,800+ pre-built templates and 6M+ active installs. It is WordPress-only.