Data collection apps allow you to gather a wide variety of information. If you need to collect data in the field, you might need a specific tool that can be easily used by your team members even when they’re offline.
How to choose the right data collection tool?
Ideally, these tools should allow you collect almost any type of information, without having to worry about the Internet connection. We have checked some of the most powerful data collection tools and have selected the following five that we think are the best apps for gathering data in the field.
Device Magic
Device Magic is a mobile forms software that can collect data using mobile devices without an Internet connection. This app is great for pre-filling form data because make sure your team doesn’t need to type any more than absolutely necessary thanks to pre-fill form fields with the dispatch feature. This app delivers accurate data from the field in real-time and can get integrated with other business tools such as Box, Slack, Evernote, SQL, Zapier, and more. Users can attach images directly from their phone’s photo library, add signatures or sketch diagrams, then send them along with the rest of the form data.
Device Magic Pricing: From $25/month per device for the Standard plan with unlimited forms and submissions. The Dispatch feature is only available with the Enterprise plan (get a custom quote).
Fulcrum
This is one of the best data collection apps for geolocation with custom maps. It is a mobile forms platform commonly used to build custom apps for collecting data in the field. Using this software, you can create your own data collection apps on the web and import data from the field and geolocate it thanks to on-board GPS. Fulcrum advanced geolocation features allow you to add details about a user’s work and field data submitted through forms. It also permits the use of basemaps from online or offline sources, like Google Street View, satellite imagery, and OpenStreetMap, and custom map servers. By using Fulcrum, you can collect almost any type of data, including audio clips, signatures, videos, or barcodes and overlay different GPS locations onto a variety of different maps to visualize patterns from their data.
If you need to share your form data, you can export it in different formats including Excel, CSV, Google Earth, and Shapefile. You can also create PDF reports from your iOS or Android app and share them. If that’s not enough, you can even create embeddable maps to add to your website, blog, or dashboard in order to get real-time visualizations of data from the field.
Fulcrum Pricing: From $22/user/month for the Essentials plan that includes 20 GB storage.
This app can get integrated with Zapier’s Fulcrum integrations.
Magpi
This data collection app offers a feature is called IVR, or interactive voice response, great voice-first experience that’s very easy to set up as a digital form. This characteristic allows you to use your forms as interactive voice phone calls, with respondents answering by pressing the phone’s numeric keypad.
Magpi makes mobile data collection easy and allow you to create forms that work on all mobile devices, without the need for internet. This app lets you import multiple messages in a spreadsheet, and it offers a similar function with contact lists. The application also allows the generation of reports based on the data collected (Reports tab) for the Pro and Enterprise profiles, which ease the analysis of the information.
Magpi Pricing: Free for up to 20 forms per account; from $500/month for unlimited forms that also includes 50 messages credits, which are required to use IVR
FastField
Using this app, you can build digital inspections, checklists, work orders, and business forms in a few simple steps. The forms builder allows users to create and deploy forms in a fast and simple manner. It offers multiple platform support, allowing users to create and manage forms on different devices. Users can even collect data without an internet connection. In this case, forms save the data locally and then sync with the platform automatically once reconnected. FastField also supports image capture with annotations and drawings and built-in integrations with DropBox, Google Drive, Sharepoint, and more. For some scenarios, like home repairs or site inspections, you would need to aggregate field workers’ notes and assessments into a professional PDF to share with the homeowner or facility manager.
Using the FastField service, you can create your own forms and database apps in minutes without any technical expertise. This app eliminates this repetitive task by allowing you to export data directly into a Word or PDF template you designed. The initial Word report will have a table with your form’s field titles on the left and the fieldkeys on the right. You can customize the template to your liking. Once you’ve set up this process for the form, you can then directly export any form submission into the Word template you created.
FastField Pricing: $20/user/month for unlimited forms. FastField can get integrated with Zapier’s FastField integrations.
DataScope
DataScope is a business app designed to create different types of forms without even managing software development or programming. Using their Form Builder, you can create your forms, and then analyse the information you’ve gathered via powerful and personalized dashboards It has many functionalities, so it can be used to assign tasks to be fulfilled in a specific place and timeframe, to collect data offline, manage field teams, and share business insights. It can also be used to analyse the information you’ve collected via powerful and personalized dashboards. DataScope can also connects with Zapier and with 1,300+ other apps, including Google Sheets, Google Drive, and Gmail.
DataScope Pricing: $35/month for unlimited submissions, unlimited mobile forms apps and task assignment module.
DataScope is a platform which allows various industries to streamline, organize and evaluate the work of their field staffs thanks to online forms which provide real time indicators 100% adaptable to any field.
