Manilla vs Google Forms
A form is built for one submission. Document collection is rarely just one.
Forms works well when a client fills everything in one sitting and hits submit. It stops working the moment they don't have the bank statement handy yet, submit anyway, and now need to come back later — Forms has no idea what's still outstanding, so that follow-up is back to you, by message.
| Decision criteria | Manilla | Google Forms |
|---|---|---|
| What the client sets up | Nothing — they open a link | Nothing, sometimes an account |
| Documents and answers together | One request, both | Often files only |
| Knowing what's still missing | Live per-field status | All-or-nothing submit |
| Chasing | They see what's left | You, repeatedly |
| How it looks to them | Your firm's name and colour | The form vendor's UI |
| Next client, same list | Saved as a template | Duplicate the form |
SwitchingBuilt for the same request, sent more than once
A Manilla request stays open until every item is filled — a client can submit the fields they have today and come back for the rest tomorrow, and the page always shows exactly what's still missing, to them and to you. Save it once as a template and the next client gets the identical checklist without rebuilding the form.
QuestionsBefore you switch
Why not just keep using Google Forms?
It's fine for a genuine one-shot submission. It gets painful the moment a client needs to add one more file later — Forms has no “still missing” state, so chasing that last item falls back on you messaging them directly.
Do uploaded files still end up in my Google Drive?
No — files land in Manilla's own storage and are downloaded individually from the request page or the Files dashboard. There's no automatic Drive sync today.
Can I reuse the same request for every client, like a form template?
Yes — save any request as a template and send the identical checklist to the next client in a couple of clicks, the same way you'd duplicate a Form.