Relief Applications

Monitoring and evaluation tools for NGOs: where each one fits

No single tool collects the data, tracks the indicators, draws the dashboards and writes the donor report equally well. NGOs usually combine two or three. This guide sorts the common ones by the job they do, says what to ask before you choose, and shows the setups we see most often.

The short answer

Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) tools do four different jobs: collecting data, tracking indicators against targets, analysing and visualising, and reporting to donors. KoboToolbox is built for collection, ActivityInfo and LogAlto for tracking results across projects, and Power BI for analysis and dashboards, so most NGOs combine them or use an integrated MEAL module. Choose by the job you struggle with most, the number of projects and donors, and where your people work.

Four jobs, not one

M&E, or MEAL when accountability and learning are added, is a cycle. The tools exist to make four parts of it easier.

  1. Collect: surveys, assessments, monitoring visits, distribution records, on phones or paper.
  2. Track results: the logframe or results framework, the indicators with baseline, target and actual, by period, and the evidence behind each value.
  3. Analyse and show: cleaning, calculating, charts, maps and dashboards.
  4. Report: donor reports in the donor’s format, with sources that stand up to an audit.

Many problems come from using a tool built for one job to do another, such as tracking indicators in a survey tool or building a logframe in a dashboard. Name the job first.

The tools and what they are for

The descriptions below are in general terms, based on what each tool says about itself. Features and prices change, so check each tool’s own pages before you decide.

KoboToolbox
What it is: A free and open-source tool for collecting survey data on phones and the web, widely used in humanitarian work. It was developed by the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative and is now run by an independent nonprofit. Hosted use is free for humanitarian organisations. Forms follow the XLSForm standard.. Fits: Surveys, assessments, monitoring visits, offline collection. Watch for: It collects data. It does not track indicators against targets, so you add another tool for that
ActivityInfo
What it is: An information management platform for monitoring and evaluation, case management, data collection and reporting for humanitarian and development programmes. Fits: Organisations and coordination groups that need partners to report into one structure, and indicators across projects. Watch for: A structured set-up: forms and indicators must be designed well at the start
LogAlto
What it is: A monitoring and evaluation system for international development projects, built around the logframe and indicators. Fits: NGOs that run several projects with donor logframes. Watch for: Collection of survey data is usually done elsewhere and brought in
Power BI
What it is: Microsoft’s business intelligence tool: connects to many data sources and builds dashboards. Fits: Analysis and dashboards on data that lives elsewhere. Watch for: It is not an M&E system. It has no logframe or indicator framework, and someone must build and maintain the model and the data refresh
Spreadsheets
What it is: Excel or Google Sheets. Fits: A single small project. Watch for: Versions, manual totals, duplicate counting of people, and no trail from a figure to its source
An ERP with a MEAL module
What it is: Results, field data, finance and reporting on one base. Fits: Organisations that want indicators tied to projects, budgets and donor reports. Watch for: Check how deep each function goes against a specialist tool

Setups we see most often

  • Survey tool plus spreadsheets. Fine for one project. It stops scaling when several projects and donors need the same people counted once.
  • Survey tool plus a dashboard tool. A good fit when the main need is to analyse and show survey data. Someone has to keep the connection and the model running, and the indicator logic often ends up in the dashboard where nobody can see it.
  • Survey tool plus a results-tracking platform. A common choice for organisations with several projects, since collection and results tracking are separate jobs.
  • An integrated MEAL module. The survey form, the indicator and the donor report are connected, which cuts retyping. It is a good match when you want one base for finance, projects and results.

Whichever you choose, agree one indicator definition per indicator, written down, and one place where each value is entered.

How to choose

Work through these questions with the people who will use the tool. Answers matter more than any feature list.

  • Which of the four jobs causes you the most pain today?
  • How many projects, donors and countries must report into it?
  • Who collects data, on which devices, with what connection?
  • Do you need to count each person once across activities?
  • Which donor formats must you produce, and how much time do you spend on them?
  • Who will build and maintain it, and what skills do they have?
  • What does it cost over three to five years, including training, hosting and support?
  • Where is the data hosted and who can see it?
  • Can you export everything if you change tool?

Whatever the tool, define your indicators

A tool will not fix an unclear indicator. For each one, write a short sheet that says:

  • The exact definition, and what counts and does not count.
  • The unit, and how it is calculated.
  • The source and the method of collection, and how often.
  • The disaggregation: sex, age, disability and others.
  • The baseline, the target and who owns the number.

Put these sheets in an indicator library that every project draws from, so the same thing is measured the same way everywhere.

Data protection in M&E

M&E collects data about people, often sensitive, and shares it with donors and partners. Two habits help. Collect only what the indicator needs, and aggregate or anonymise before sharing. Where you do collect individual-level data, such as in a household survey, decide where it is stored, who can see the raw records and when you delete it. A large or sensitive survey can call for a data protection impact assessment. See our guide to DPIAs for NGOs.

Mistakes we see

  • Choosing the tool before defining the indicators.
  • Using a dashboard as the system of record.
  • Collecting more than anyone analyses.
  • The same woman counted in three activities, because there is no unique ID.
  • No audit trail from a reported figure to the records behind it.
  • A set-up one person understands, who then leaves.

How we can help

Our Information Management and MEAL services cover designing MEAL systems, indicator frameworks, data collection, dashboards and reporting, whichever tools you use. For Expertise France we restructured, automated and visualised the MEAL data system of the EFOR project, which relied on several disconnected tools. We also built a MEAL toolbox for anticipatory action for the Danish Refugee Council.

If you prefer one connected base, Relief One’s MEAL module builds the results framework, collects values by hand, from field forms or from an imported survey (XLSForm) or CSV export, shows each indicator against its target with the calculation behind it, and links feedback and evaluations to the same indicators. Its Field Data Collection module builds forms that work offline and feed those indicators.

Questions and answers

What is the difference between M&E and MEAL?

MEAL adds accountability and learning to monitoring and evaluation. M&E tools and MEAL tools overlap: both track indicators and results, and MEAL tools also handle community feedback and lessons.

Can KoboToolbox track indicators?

It is built to collect data. You can export the data and calculate indicators elsewhere, but it is not designed to hold a results framework with targets, so most teams add another tool or a MEAL module for that.

Is Power BI an M&E tool?

Not on its own. It is a business intelligence tool for analysis and dashboards. It can show M&E data well, but it does not give you a logframe, indicator definitions or an audit trail, and someone has to maintain the data model.

Do we need an M&E tool for one small project?

Often not. A well-kept form tool and a clear indicator sheet can be enough. A tool earns its place when several projects, donors or teams must report into one structure.

How do we avoid counting the same person twice?

Give each person a unique ID at registration and use it across activities, rather than matching names afterwards. Ask any tool you consider how it handles this.

Can we move from spreadsheets without losing our history?

Yes, by importing past values with their dates and sources. Plan the import and clean the data first, and run old and new side by side for one reporting period.

Talk to us about your M&E set-up

Our team designs and builds MEAL systems with the tools you already use, or on one base. Tell us what you struggle with most.

Keep reading

This guide is general information, not legal or technical advice. Reviewed on 11 November 2026 by the team at Relief Applications. Tools are described in general terms from their own public pages and may have changed.