Data collection using KoboCollect

Last updated: 19 Sep 2025

KoboCollect is a free, open-source KoboToolbox app designed for data collection on Android mobile devices. Before you get started, install and configure the KoboCollect app.

Once set up, KoboCollect allows you to fill and submit forms from your mobile device, even offline. This article explains how to use the app to collect data, including accessing forms, saving and editing responses, and sending finalized submissions.

Downloading forms

To begin data collection with KoboCollect, you will need to download the KoboToolbox form(s) to your device. Before downloading, ensure you have:

  • At least one deployed form in your KoboToolbox account (either owned by or shared with you).

  • A project (account) set up on KoboCollect.

  • An internet connection on your device.

To download forms to your device:

  • From the main menu, click Download form.

  • Select the form(s) you wish to download individually by tapping the checkbox next to each form, or tap Select All to download all deployed forms.

  • Tap Get Selected.

Downloaded forms will appear when you click on Start new form from the app main menu.

Note: You will need to repeat this process any time an update is made to the form or form media. If you anticipate frequent form updates or are using dynamic data attachments, we recommend enabling automatic form downloads.

Collecting data

Once forms are downloaded, you can begin data collection. Note that once you have downloaded the form(s) in the app, you do not need an internet connection to collect data.

  1. From the main menu, tap Start new form.

  2. Select the form you wish to collect data with.

  3. To change the form language, tap the three dots icon in the top right corner of the screen and click Change Language.

  4. Navigate through questions by swiping left or clicking NEXT after answering.

  5. At the end of the survey, you can choose to Save as draft, Finalize, or Send the form (depending on your project settings).

Option

Description

Save as draft    

The form will be saved to Drafts and can still be edited before finalizing.

Finalize

The form will be saved to Ready to send and can no longer be edited. This option appears only if the Auto send setting is set to Off.

Send

The form will be sent to the server directly or queued until an internet connection is available. It can no longer be edited. This option appears only if the Auto send setting is enabled.

By default, forms and data remain on the device until manually deleted. If you enable Delete after send in the project settings, forms will be deleted automatically once they have been submitted to the server.

Editing drafts

If you saved a survey as a draft, you can edit it before sending it to the server:

  1. From the main menu, select Drafts.

  2. A list of saved draft forms will appear. Select the one you want to edit.

  3. Make the necessary changes, then tap Finalize or Send, depending on your workflow.

Note: You do not need an internet connection to edit a saved form in KoboCollect.

Sending finalized forms to the server

After finalizing your forms, you must upload them to the KoboToolbox server. Forms are often completed and finalized offline, then uploaded in bulk once an internet connection is available. To send your forms to the KoboToolbox server:

  1. Ensure the device has a secure internet connection.

  2. From the main menu, tap Ready to send. A list of finalized forms will appear.

  3. Tap Select All, or manually select the forms you want to upload by ticking the checkbox.

  4. Tap Send Selected to submit the forms to the server.

To verify successful upload, go to the main menu and select Sent. You will see all forms sent to the server, along with their synchronization date.

Note: If your project is set to automatically send finalized forms, the Ready to send page will not appear in the main menu, and you can skip these steps. For more information on project settings in KoboCollect, see Customizing KoboCollect settings.

Deleting saved forms and blank forms

After finalizing data collection and uploading all completed forms to the server, you may want to delete remaining form data from the KoboCollect app, unless automatic deletion is already enabled for your device. This helps protect data privacy and prevents confusion when collecting data for a new project.

There are two types of forms that can be deleted:

  • Saved Forms: These are forms for which data has been filled in, including drafts, finalized forms, and forms that have been sent to the server.

  • Blank Forms: These are empty data collection forms that have downloaded to the device from the Download form page. Only delete these forms once data collection for them has ended.

To delete forms:

  1. From the main menu, tap Delete form. You will see two tabs.

  2. Under Saved Forms:

    • Tap Select All to delete all saved forms, or select individual forms.

    • Tap Delete Selected.

  3. Under Blank Forms:

    • Tap Select All to delete all blank forms, or select individual forms.

    • Tap Delete Selected.

Note: You do not need an internet connection to delete saved forms in KoboCollect. However, if blank forms are accidentally deleted offline, an internet connection is required to recover them for continued data collection. To prevent accidental deletion, you can set access controls in the project settings.