Poll Everywhere alternative · Async today · Live in P1

A free Poll Everywhere alternative without per-audience pricing on async.

Pulseware ships free async polls — single-choice, multi-select, yes/no, NPS, rating, image, open-text, ranked-choice, word cloud — with public results, embeds and QR codes. Poll Everywhere's K–12 and higher-ed tiers price on audience size; Pulseware's async polls have no audience cap on legitimate use, and the Creator plan is A$19/month for 10,000 votes.

Make a free poll Poll with a QR code

Free async polls today · Live mode in P1 · mentioned competitor names are trademarks of their respective owners. Pulseware is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.

Build a poll in 30 seconds

Type a question, share a link. No sign-up needed to start.
Live presenter mode with join codes, lobby and sub-second updates ships in P1 (weeks 5–8). SMS voting is intentionally out of scope — use the QR code for smartphone audiences. Email us to be notified when live mode lands.

Pulseware vs Poll Everywhere

A fair comparison.

Poll Everywhere is the longest-standing presenter polling product, with SMS voting, K–12 / higher-ed tiers, and tight PowerPoint integration. Pulseware Polls is async-first today, with presenter mode in P1. The comparison below is most useful when SMS voting and education pricing are not the deciding factor.

Feature Pulseware Poll Everywhere
Free poll creation ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
Free audience cap 1,000 votes / month (no per-audience cap) 25 responses / poll
Async poll mode ✓ Yes partial
Live presenter view P1 (weeks 5–8) ✓ Yes
SMS voting (text to vote) Pulseware uses QR codes instead — voters scan and vote on their phone. ✕ No ✓ Yes
PowerPoint add-in ✕ No ✓ Yes
Google Slides integration ✕ No ✓ Yes
8 embed styles for websites ✓ Yes partial
Server-generated QR per poll ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
Word cloud ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
Ranked-choice voting ✓ Yes partial
CSV / Excel export on Free ✓ Yes partial
Anonymous by default ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
AI question drafting on Free ✓ Yes ✕ No
AUD billing ✓ Yes ✕ No
Higher-education / K–12 pricing ✕ No ✓ Yes

When Pulseware is a better fit

  • Your audience answers from smartphones (QR is easier than SMS now).
  • You want web-embedded polls and a multi-question survey side from the same builder.
  • You want unlimited active polls without per-audience pricing on async.
  • You want AUD billing and Australia-built privacy posture.
  • You want AI question drafting on the Free plan.

When Poll Everywhere may still be a better fit

  • Your audience cannot use smartphones and you need SMS voting.
  • You need a PowerPoint add-in or Google Slides integration today.
  • You are buying for a higher-education or K–12 institution with that-specific pricing.
  • You need the live presenter view immediately and cannot wait for P1.

Plan details last checked: 3 June 2026. Source: official Poll Everywhere page . Recheck the official page before making a purchase decision.

Poll Everywhere is a trademark of its owner. Pulseware is not affiliated with or endorsed by Poll Everywhere.

What Pulseware deliberately does not do.

Three differences worth being upfront about. We do not offer SMS voting — voters use the QR code and answer on their own phone, which works for smartphone-equipped audiences but not for venues with feature-phone constituents. We do not ship a PowerPoint add-in or Google Slides integration in P0–P3. And we do not offer K–12 or higher-education pricing tiers today; education customers go through the standard plan ladder until the customer count justifies a tier. If any of those three are critical, Poll Everywhere is the better fit today.

Keep exploring Pulseware

A few more ways to use the survey maker, each one designed for a different moment.

Common questions

Specifically about switching from Poll Everywhere — pricing, features, integration gaps.

What works today and what is on the roadmap?
Today: nine async poll question types, public results page, QR + 8 embed styles, anonymous mode, CSV/Excel export, AI question drafting. P1: live presenter view, join codes, Q&A board. P2: Slack and Teams apps, AI summaries, webhooks. P3: verified voting and certified result reports.
Does Pulseware have SMS voting?
Not at P0. Poll Everywhere is unique in offering SMS as a voting channel for in-person audiences without smartphones. If SMS voting is critical to your use case, stay on Poll Everywhere or pair Pulseware's QR code with a smartphone-first audience.
Is there a PowerPoint add-in?
No PowerPoint add-in at P0. Use the live presenter view (P1) in a separate browser window alongside your deck, or embed the poll URL as a hyperlink on a slide. A PowerPoint add-in is on the long-term roadmap (P3+).
How does education pricing compare?
Pulseware does not yet offer education-specific plans. The Free plan covers 5 active polls and 1,000 votes/month — enough for a single class but not a department. Education pricing is sales-led; email pulseware@gmail.com for a quote.
Can I download responses?
Yes — CSV and Excel exports are on every Pulseware plan including Free. The full poll history is exportable, including timestamps, anonymised IP hashes, and UTM tags.
How do you handle accessibility?
WCAG 2.2 AA is the target. The voter-facing runner is keyboard-navigable, screen-reader-friendly, has focus rings, and meets contrast ratios at build time. Full statement on the accessibility page.

How this page was created

This page was written and reviewed by the Pulseware product team. We crosschecked every comparison row against Poll Everywhere's published plans page on the date below.

Last reviewed:

A free Poll Everywhere alternative for smartphone audiences.

QR-first, embed-friendly, AUD pricing. Async today, live presenter mode in P1.

Make a free poll Poll with a QR code