FM BetterForms

A streamlined way to make your trusted FileMaker database accessible on the internet, for your clients and external users.

Expand the power of your FileMaker solution with FM BetterForms!

Logo for Claris FileMaker certified developer

Many FileMaker users like yourself want to extend their database’s reach by adding web features that are robust yet easy to interact with. We understand the complexity and technical hurdles this transition can present and want to introduce you to a solution you may not have considered yet.

What is FM BetterForms

BUILD BEAUTIFUL WEB-BASED INTERFACES

Using FM BetterForms, we can build beautiful web-based interfaces that interact directly with your FileMaker solution.

These web apps are fully standards-compliant, easy for people to learn and use, and have very competitive hosting and licensing costs.

How can Portage Bay and FM BetterForms help?

SAY GOODBYE TO DUPLICATE DATA ENTRY

We can design dynamic forms that respond to your user’s input and feed data directly into FileMaker.

What Does FM BetterForms allow you to do?

INTEGRATE SMOOTHLY WITH YOUR EXISTING SOLUTION

BetterForms integrates smoothly with your application’s existing FileMaker security setup and solves the sometimes complex issues associated with managing and hosting a ‘full stack’ web application, while still allowing you to embrace the most popular and current web user interface elements in use today. 

Read about how we're using FM BetterForms here and here.

Blog Posts about FM BetterForms

Word Cloud of terms related to business growth and strategy.

Grow Your Business Through Build, Grow, Learn

Last week I had the good fortune to attend the Build, Grow, Learn conference in Greenville, SC.  The conference was put on by long-time FileMaker …
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Logo for FM BetterForms, used for creating FileMaker web apps

FM BetterForms: Creating a Modern Web Application with Your FileMaker Data

We have been using FM BetterForms for several years to readily create modern, fully web standards-compliant applications for our clients. After …
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CEO Update & DrSnip: Web App Success Stories

We all know that Claris has added significant new capabilities in the last several versions of FileMaker Pro for creating custom web …

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FM BetterForms

FM BetterForms is not just a web front end for your FileMaker Pro solutions. It’s very much the front end that FileMaker has been needing for some …

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Dan Smiley
Dan Smiley
2024-02-16
Portage Bay Solutions has been an absolute game-changer for our company's software and technology needs. From the very first interaction, their team demonstrated a deep understanding of our unique challenges and offered innovative, tailor-made solutions that have significantly improved our operations and efficiency. Their expertise spans a wide range of software solutions, ensuring that regardless of the complexity of the problem, they have the skills and knowledge to address it effectively. What sets Portage Bay Solutions apart is not just their technical acumen but their customer service and support. They are incredibly responsive, always ready to assist with any queries or issues that arise. This level of support has been invaluable, giving us the confidence that we have a reliable partner in our corner. Their team exhibits a genuine commitment to our success, taking the time to understand our business goals and aligning their services to help us achieve them. This proactive approach has led to significant improvements in our workflows, productivity, and overall technological capabilities. Moreover, Portage Bay Solutions consistently delivers on time and within budget, which is crucial for planning and financial forecasting. Their transparent communication throughout the project lifecycle ensures that there are no surprises, and we always know where we stand. In conclusion, Portage Bay Solutions has been a pivotal partner for our company. Their blend of technical expertise, customer service, and genuine commitment to our success has made them an invaluable asset. I highly recommend Portage Bay Solutions to any business looking to enhance their software and technology capabilities. Their team is not just a service provider; they are a partner in your success.
Tom Halsted
Tom Halsted
2023-03-10
We have utilized FileMaker Pro support services from Portage Bay Solutions for many years. They have always responded to our support requests quickly. They have a deep knowledge of our FileMaker Pro tools and systems, resolve our issues and answer our questions in detail, and are great to work with. I highly recommend them.
Galen Callahan
Galen Callahan
2022-10-06
Portage Bay has helped us develop an extremely efficient and powerful system to grow and operate our Aerospace and Defense machine shop into becoming AS9100 and ISO 9001 certified. I recommend them for not only their experience and professionalism in developing software in general, but also their exceptional organization and project management. Their general business aptitude, through suggestions and feedback, has greatly aimed the project down a very good path. This is a very rare and powerful type of competence that helped us keep focused on the most value added areas, allowing us to stay on budget and on time. Thank you everyone at PBS!
Eugenius
Eugenius
2022-08-29
Our team at Eugenius has had the pleasure to work with Portage Bay on various projects and ongoing support for our mutual clients over the past few years. The team at Portage Bay is wonderful to work with. Their team has excellent customer service, communication and trouble shooting skills. They're always willing to go the extra mile doing a deep dive to resolve any issues that arise. They go above and beyond to develop efficient, secure, custom application solutions for their clients. We look forward to working with them for more years to come.
Maria Speer
Maria Speer
2021-11-02
We hired Portage Bay Solutions to bring us from Filemaker 6.0 to 19, we were pretty resistant to change. John, Brandynn and the team did a fantastic hob understanding our requirements and offering solutions that have made our database so efficient. We could not be happier! I HIGHLY recommend them for all your filemaker needs!
Harlan Brown
Harlan Brown
2021-01-29
Portage Bay Solutions has been a supplier to this division of 3M (Specialty Glass Group, Seattle, WA), for over 25 years. John Newhoff and his team have created Quality Management databases including customized physical property management systems unique to our industry. They have been a valuable partner instrumental to our growth.
Carolyn Carmines
Carolyn Carmines
2018-12-10
The team at Portage Bay built us (MEg TV) a rock solid, masterfully constructed database which proved to be intuitive and highly customized to our needs. Good, smart people who can take a complicated, layered set of specs, wrangle it and complete it on time and on budget. What more could you want??
Carla Marsh
Carla Marsh
2018-12-08
John and his team at Portage Bay Solutions are exquisitely skilled at Filemaker’s database creation and development. They reviewed my database, collaborated with me on what my end user experience should be, and made some invaluable recommendations on how to get to that optimal end user experience. Portage Bay was easy to communicate with throughout the process and responsive to my company’s needs and requests. They get my highest recommendation!
Jo Ollila
Jo Ollila
2018-11-28
Portage Bay built a fully customized EMR solution using FileMaker for our group of medical practices. They also developed an iOS app for physicians and patients on FileMaker and finally helped us migrate the EMR application from local servers to AWS. These were all huge undertakings but the team did a tremendous job on all fronts. We have worked with Portage Bay for nearly 10 years and they feel more like an internal partner than an external vendor. We are grateful for the breadth and depth of their FileMaker expertise.
David B
David B
2018-11-27
Working with Portage Bay has been an excellent partnership. They really paid attention to what we asked for and even suggested a few things we hadn’t considered. Their breadth of FileMaker experience is obvious.

Let's Talk.

We invite you to connect with us—give us a call, schedule a 15-minute consultation, or drop us a message through our form. We look forward to discussing your FileMaker solution and exploring whether FM BetterForms is the right fit for your project.

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FAQ

What is FM BetterForms?

FM BetterForms is a tool designed to help FileMaker developers create dynamic web applications using their existing FileMaker skills. It acts as a bridge between FileMaker solutions and web technologies.

How do I get started with FM BetterForms?

To start with FM BetterForms, you'll need a FileMaker Server and an active FM BetterForms account. Install the BetterForms application on your server and use the dashboard to manage your projects.

Can I use FM BetterForms with any version of FileMaker?

FM BetterForms is compatible with FileMaker 16 and later. It requires the use of FileMaker Data API to integrate your FileMaker database with the web app.

What are the key features of FM BetterForms?

Key features include real-time data sync with FileMaker, customizable templates, and support for various web technologies, allowing for extensive customization and functionality in web apps.

Is there a trial version available for FM BetterForms?

Yes, FM BetterForms offers a trial version, allowing developers to test its features before committing to a subscription. Details can be found on their official website.

How does FM BetterForms handle security?

FM BetterForms uses SSL/TLS encryption for data transmission and allows for additional security measures like OAuth and Multi-Factor Authentication to secure the web apps.