Best place to start
Starter
The best place to start when you are not sure.
$79/month
- CPU
- 2 vCPU
- Memory
- 4 GB RAM
- Storage
- 80GB (~40-50GB usable)
- Traffic
- 20 TB
- Best for
- Starting small and saving money
Managed ODK server hosting
Managed ODK server hosting without the server-admin work.
SurveyLoopr deploys a dedicated ODK Central server and handles provisioning, TLS, login branding, and the control workflow from one dashboard. Plans start at $79 per month with no SurveyLoopr-imposed cap on users, forms, or submissions. Server capacity still applies, and pausing is available for up to three months.
Operations ledger
Provisioning and ODK installationSurveyLoopr
TLS and server controlsSurveyLoopr
Forms, users, and fieldworkYour team
Responsibility split
Keep control of fieldwork. Hand off the server workflow.
Managed ODK hosting replaces recurring server administration with a dedicated ODK Central environment controlled from the SurveyLoopr dashboard.
| Task | Self-hosted | SurveyLoopr |
|---|---|---|
| Provision compute and install ODK | Your team | SurveyLoopr |
| Configure TLS | Your team | SurveyLoopr |
| Apply login branding on supported ODK Central versions | Your team | SurveyLoopr dashboard |
| Choose when to update | Your team | SurveyLoopr update control |
| Pause and resume between rounds | Manage infrastructure and billing | SurveyLoopr workflow |
Server lifecycle
From provisioning to the next collection round.
SurveyLoopr pauses a server by preserving it as a snapshot, stopping live compute, and pausing subscription billing; the current pause window is up to three months.
- 01
Provision
SurveyLoopr creates the dedicated ODK Central environment.
- 02
Collect
Your team manages forms, users, and field operations.
- 03
Pause for up to 3 months
A snapshot preserves the server while live compute and subscription billing stop.
- 04
Resume
Restore the server when the next collection round begins.
Login branding
Make the ODK login experience recognizable to your team.
Supported ODK Central 2026.1 or newer deployments can use SurveyLoopr's login-title, description, logo, hero-image, and theme controls.
“ODK Central hosting with SurveyLoopr is fantastic. The performance is solid and the ability to pause servers between rounds is a huge cost saver.”
Server customization
PNG logo with transparent background, 150x150px minimum
arced-int.png uploaded
Drag a new image here or upload file.
Vertical image, 4:5 crop recommended
Login.jpg uploaded
Drag a new image here or upload file.
ARCED International
A title for your server login.
Sign in to continue to your workspace.
Instructions or a short welcome message.
Choose a preset color theme for ODK Central.
Preview
Your login page will look like this.
ODK CentralLog in
ARCED International
Sign in to continue to your workspace.
Email address *
Password *
Log inReset password
ODKserver.surveyloopr.com
Capacity
Choose server resources, not submission bundles.
SurveyLoopr does not impose form, user, or submission-count limits. CPU, memory, storage, and traffic remain finite.
Professional
More capacity for busy production programs.
$149/month
- CPU
- 4 vCPU
- Memory
- 8 GB RAM
- Storage
- 160GB (~100-120GB usable)
- Traffic
- 20 TB
- Best for
- Teams that need more room
Enterprise
The most capacity in our standard plans.
$249/month
- CPU
- 8 vCPU
- Memory
- 16 GB RAM
- Storage
- 320GB (~250GB+ usable)
- Traffic
- 20 TB
- Best for
- Demanding or critical operations
The homepage checkout confirms billing interval and final plan details before payment.
Transparent comparison
Compare who operates the server and how pricing scales.
| Decision | Self-hosted ODK | SurveyLoopr | ODK Cloud Standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting monthly price | Infrastructure and staff time vary | $79/month | $199/month when paid yearly |
| Server administration | Your team | SurveyLoopr workflow | ODK |
| Submission policy | No software cap; server capacity applies | No SurveyLoopr cap; server capacity applies | 10,000/month on Standard |
| Active projects | Infrastructure capacity applies | Server capacity applies | 1 active project on Standard |
| Infrastructure model | Your cloud account or hardware | Dedicated ODK Central server | ODK Cloud |
Checked July 17, 2026ODK's official pricing page
Questions before checkout
Managed ODK hosting FAQ
What is managed ODK Central hosting?
Managed ODK Central hosting gives your project a dedicated ODK environment without making your team provision and configure the server. SurveyLoopr handles the deployment workflow and controls, while your team manages forms, users, and fieldwork.
Verified July 17, 2026
How long does deployment take?
Deployment typically takes about 2–5 minutes, but image availability and DNS can take longer. The dashboard reports deployment progress, so this is not a guaranteed completion time.
Verified July 17, 2026
What does SurveyLoopr manage?
SurveyLoopr handles server provisioning, ODK installation, TLS configuration, supported login-page branding, update controls, and the pause-and-resume workflow. Your team remains responsible for its forms, users, collection design, and field operations.
Verified July 17, 2026
Which server plan should I choose?
If you are not sure, start with Starter. SurveyLoopr checks your server regularly and emails you when CPU, memory, or storage reaches 80%. You can then move to a larger plan and pay only the price difference for the time left in your current billing period.
Verified July 17, 2026
Are users, forms, or submissions capped?
SurveyLoopr does not impose a form, user, or submission-count cap on server plans. Every server still has finite CPU, memory, storage, and traffic, so choose capacity for your workload.
Verified July 17, 2026
Can I use existing XLSForms?
Yes. You can upload existing XLSForms to ODK Central after deployment. Moving historical submissions is a separate migration task and is not represented here as an automatic SurveyLoopr migration service.
Verified July 17, 2026
How does server pausing work?
Pausing creates a server snapshot, stops the live compute instance, and pauses subscription billing. The current pause window is up to three months; resume the server before that window ends.
Verified July 17, 2026
Can I customize the ODK login page?
Yes. Supported ODK Central 2026.1 or newer deployments can use SurveyLoopr's login-title, description, logo, hero-image, and theme controls. The interactive preview on this page demonstrates that shipped workflow.
Verified July 17, 2026
What is the difference between SurveyLoopr, self-hosting, and ODK Cloud?
Self-hosting leaves infrastructure administration with your team. SurveyLoopr provides a dedicated managed ODK environment from $79 per month. ODK Cloud is managed by ODK and its Standard plan is $199 per month when paid yearly.
Verified July 17, 2026
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