XLSForms

XLSForms is an open standard for authoring forms used in mobile data collection. It translates spreadsheet-based definitions into XForms, enabling data collection apps to display, validate, and submit form responses. The format is widely used in humanitarian, development, and research contexts because it provides a simple authoring workflow with powerful form logic.

Form design in XLSForms relies on three core worksheets: survey, choices, and settings. The survey sheet defines each question with columns such as type, name, label, hint, relevant, constraint, and calculation. The choices sheet defines options for select questions with columns like list_name, name, and label. The settings sheet provides form metadata such as form_title, form_id, and version. Optional worksheets can extend behavior, such as repeats and media references.

A spreadsheet is converted to an XForm by tools such as the PyXForm library or online XLSForm converters. The resulting XForm can be deployed to OpenRosa-compatible servers and used by mobile form runners like ODK Collect, KoboToolbox, or other XForm-enabled apps. XLSForms support features such as skip logic, repeat groups, constraints and calculated fields, multilingual label support, and data validation.

XLSForms has become a de facto standard for interoperable mobile surveys, enabling collaboration between researchers, implementers, and field teams. While the approach greatly simplifies form authoring, very complex or customized behaviors may require direct XForms editing or alternative tooling beyond the XLSForm workflow.