NoteForms
Create beautiful forms to fill your Notion databases
TL;DR: Create beautiful forms to fill your Notion databases. Reached $37000 MRR with 100000 users.
Key Metrics
As of 2024-11
Milestones
Pricing
Tech Stack
Timeline
2021-05-13
Notion releases public API; Julien decides to build form builder inspired by Airtable forms
2021-05-17
MVP built in 4 days with account creation, Notion connection, form creation, submissions
2021-05-19
First public announcement on Twitter
2021-05-23
MVP launched publicly, shared on r/Notion and Facebook groups
2021-05-25
Someone hunts NotionForms on Product Hunt, 27 upvotes
2021-05-29
Reaches 100 users within 6 days of public launch
2021-06
Considers selling on TinyAcquisitions; receives $6K offer, declines
2021-06
Pro plan launched at $15/month with 40% lifetime discount for early adopters
2021-07
First paid subscription from photographer who valued support quality
2021-07
User video on r/Notion hits 376 upvotes, major signup spike
2021-08
Reaches ~$3K MRR, enough to cover rent
2021-10
Feature prioritization system established using Notion table; Canny.io deployed
2021-12
First copycat launches on Product Hunt
2022-01
Enterprise plan launched at $39/month with team collaboration
2022-01-29
Second Product Hunt launch: #1 Product of the Day, hunted by Ben Lang
2022-02
First vacation in nearly a year: 2 weeks in Sri Lanka
2022-02
Reaches ~$5K MRR
2022-03
Receives $65K acquisition offer, declines
2022-04
Hires first full-time developer Chirag
2022-05
Enterprise plan reaches 25% of total revenue
2022-07
Reaches $10K MRR milestone, 14 months after launch
2022-09
Receives $350K acquisition offer at $85-90K ARR, declines
2022-12
Product Hunt awards Maker Grant
2023-01
Launches OpnForm, open-source standalone form builder to diversify from Notion
2023-05
Reaches ~$22K MRR
2023-06
Rebrands from NotionForms to NoteForms
2023-08
Team grows to 3; 42,000 users, 1,120 paid subscribers
2023-12
Annual revenue reaches $346K for 2023
2024-01
Notion launches native forms; NoteForms differentiates with advanced features
2024-06
Begins AirFormTable for Airtable
2024-09
Reaches $37K MRR with 100,000+ registered users
2024-12
Annual revenue reaches $623K for 2024
Distribution
Viral Loop
Every free form displays Powered by NoteForms link. Since less than 25% use Pro, most forms carry backlink creating both direct discovery and SEO value.
→ 55% of all customer acquisitions. Domain authority 62, 43K+ Google clicks, 336K+ annual visitors.
SEO
Compounding backlinks from thousands of free forms plus user-created content.
→ SEO and word of mouth became dominant acquisition channels.
Posted on r/Notion at launch. User-generated video later went viral.
→ 26 upvotes initially, user video hit 376 upvotes.
Product Hunt
Recruited Ben Lang as hunter, launched on weekend, created interactive demo.
→ #1 Product of the Day.
Launches
Accidental hunt, 27 upvotes
#1 Product of the Day, hunted by Ben Lang
r/Notion post 26 upvotes; user video 376 upvotes
Notion Made Simple group 111 reactions
Growth Story
Julien Nahum built NoteForms in 4 days when Notion released its API in May 2021, becoming the first form builder for Notion. He launched free, acquired 100 users in 6 days via Notion communities, then introduced a $15/month Pro plan. The built-in Powered by NoteForms viral loop drove 55% of acquisitions, growing to 62 domain authority and 336K+ annual visitors without paid marketing. Reached $10K MRR in 14 months, hit #1 on Product Hunt in Jan 2022, grew to $37K MRR and $623K annual revenue by 2024 with 100K+ users, bootstrapped with team of 3.
Key Insights
- →Built and launched MVP in 4 days when Notion released its API, establishing first-mover advantage
- →Kept product free for first 2-3 months to validate demand, reaching 100 users in 6 days through community posts
- →Embedded Powered by NoteForms link on every free form, creating viral loop driving 55% of acquisitions
- →Free tier unlimited forms/submissions, paywalling only appearance features, maximizing form creation and backlinks
- →Launched Pro at $15/month (half competitor average), offered 40% lifetime discount to early adopters
- →Achieved #1 Product of Day on Product Hunt by recruiting Notion Head of Community as hunter and launching on weekend
- →Heavy investment in customer support drove word-of-mouth; first paying subscriber converted because of support quality
- →Declined three acquisition offers as multiples did not match growth trajectory
- →Diversified against platform risk by building OpnForm (open-source) and AirFormTable (Airtable)
- →Hired first developer after 12 months when solo burnout set in, accelerating feature shipping
Challenges
- !Platform risk from total dependency on Notion API, especially when Notion announced native forms
- !Solo founder burnout after nearly a year without vacation
- !Copycat launched on Product Hunt and performed well
- !Rebranding from NotionForms to NoteForms due to trademark concerns
- !Multiple acquisition offers that were tempting but had low multiples
Target Audience
Notion power users, teams, and businesses who need to collect data via forms and route submissions directly into Notion databases
Problem Solved
Notion lacked native form-building functionality comparable to Airtable's built-in forms, forcing users to rely on clunky Zapier workarounds or manual data entry to get external data into their Notion databases