Migrate to SurveyLoopr: ODK Central & Kobo Migration

You migrate to SurveyLoopr by exporting your XLSForms from ODK Central or KoboToolbox, deploying a managed ODK Central server, uploading the same form files, and having enumerators re-scan a QR code in ODK Collect. Because every one of these platforms speaks the XLSForm standard, your questions, skip logic, and translations carry over with little or no rework.

There is no lock-in to escape and no proprietary format to convert. This is a self-serve move you can finish in an afternoon — not a vendor project.

What carries over when you migrate?

• Your forms. XLSForms are portable across ODK Central, KoboToolbox, SurveyCTO, and SurveyLoopr. The same file publishes on the new server unchanged in almost all cases.
• Your field app. ODK Collect is the same Android app regardless of which server it points at. Enumerators keep the app they already know.
• Your data. Historical submissions export as CSV or XLSX and stay with you. Your collected data is yours to keep, move, and archive.

How do I move an ODK Central server to SurveyLoopr?

If you self-host ODK Central and want to stop maintaining the server, the move is straightforward because both ends run the same software.

Step 1: Export your forms and submissions

On your current server, download each published form as an XLSForm, and export its submissions as CSV or XLSX. Keep these files — the forms rebuild your surveys on the new server, and the submission exports preserve your historical data.

Step 2: Deploy a managed server on SurveyLoopr

Create a SurveyLoopr account and deploy a dedicated managed ODK Central environment — no Linux, Docker, or certificate work. Deployment typically takes about 2–5 minutes, but image availability and DNS can take longer. SurveyLoopr handles provisioning and TLS; customers maintain their own backup and export practices. The exact in-product flow is covered in Getting a Server, and the trade-offs between self-hosted and managed are in the ODK hosting guide.

Step 3: Recreate projects and upload forms

Create a project on the new server and upload your XLSForm files. They publish as-is in nearly all cases. If a form uses a media attachment or external data file, upload those alongside it.

Step 4: Re-point ODK Collect and verify

Open the new project's settings, generate its QR code, and have one device scan it in ODK Collect. Run a test interview, confirm the submission lands on the new server, then move the rest of your devices.

How do I migrate from KoboToolbox to ODK?

Migrating from KoboToolbox follows the same path, because KoboToolbox is itself built on ODK technology. Your Kobo forms are XLSForms already.

Step 1: Download each form as XLSForm from Kobo

In KoboToolbox, open a project and download the form as XLS/XLSForm. This is your complete survey — questions, logic, translations, and constraints in one file.

Step 2: Export your Kobo submissions

Download submissions as CSV or XLSX per project. Kobo allows exports even on the free Community Plan, so your historical data comes with you.

Step 3: Deploy a server and re-upload

Deploy a SurveyLoopr server, create a project, and upload the same XLSForm. Kobo-specific question types are the rare exception that needs a small edit — if one trips the upload, LooprAI can fix the syntax, or the best ODK alternatives guide explains the trade-offs.

Step 4: Re-point ODK Collect

Enumerators scan the new QR code from your ODK Central project settings. Same app, new server. Full context on the switch is in the KoboToolbox alternatives guide and the ODK vs KoboToolbox comparison.

How do I verify the migration worked?

Do not hard-cut the whole team on day one. Verify first:

1. Publish and pilot. Upload the form, connect one device, and run a full test interview including any GPS, media, or repeat-group questions.
2. Confirm the submission. Check that the test submission appears on the new server with all fields and attachments intact.
3. Enable the audit log. If you want per-interview timing and GPS, enable the audit log before real fieldwork — it cannot be added retroactively.
4. Move the team. Once one device works end to end, re-point the remaining devices.

What you gain after migrating

Once you are on SurveyLoopr, the server work disappears and two things get added on top of standard ODK Central: an AI XLSForm workspace (LooprAI) for building and fixing forms in plain language, and DataSnap for audit-log-based data-quality monitoring during fieldwork. You keep ODK's data ownership and the XLSForm standard, and drop certificate renewals, version upgrades, and backup babysitting.

"Migrating to managed ODK isn't relearning a platform — it's the same forms and the same app, on a server you no longer have to maintain."

— Mehrab Ali, SurveyLoopr

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