About Microsoft Power Automate
Power Automate is Microsoft's workflow and process automation product within the Power Platform. It lets people automate repetitive work across apps, systems and websites using cloud flows, desktop flows for robotic process automation, and AI features.
It connects to a large library of connectors and works alongside Dataverse, Power Apps, Power Pages, Power BI and Copilot Studio. Microsoft describes it as a way to build an agentic enterprise, with guided tours, documentation, a community and learning resources. Security and governance features cover how flows and data are managed across an organization.
Power Automate is sold as a commercial cloud service with a free trial, a start-free option and per-region pricing published by Microsoft. It suits both business users building simple flows and IT teams that govern larger automation programs, particularly those already using Microsoft 365.
Key features
- Cloud flows for app integration
- Desktop flows for RPA
- Large library of connectors
- AI-assisted flow building
- Dataverse and Power Platform integration
- Security and governance controls
Good fit for
- →Automating approvals and notifications
- →Automating legacy desktop tasks
- →Connecting Microsoft 365 with other apps
- Tags
- workflow-automation
- rpa
- microsoft
- power-platform
- cloud-flows
- low-code
- microsoft-365
- saas
Microsoft Power Automate: questions and answers
- What is Microsoft Power Automate used for?
- Microsoft Power Automate provides cloud flows and desktop robotic process automation to automate work across Microsoft 365 and other apps. It is a good fit for automating approvals and notifications, automating legacy desktop tasks, and connecting Microsoft 365 with other apps.
- How much does Microsoft Power Automate cost?
- Microsoft Power Automate is a paid product with no free plan.
- Is Microsoft Power Automate open source?
- No. Microsoft Power Automate is proprietary (closed-source) software. Open-source alternatives to Microsoft Power Automate include AstronRPA, n8n and Windmill.
- What are some alternatives to Microsoft Power Automate?
- Microsoft Power Automate competes with Zapier, Workato and UiPath. For open-source options, see Enlisted's ranked list of open-source Microsoft Power Automate alternatives.
Open-source alternatives to Microsoft Power Automate
See all
AstronRPA
Workflow Automation
Agent-ready RPA suite with out-of-the-box automation tools. Built for individuals and ente
Apache-2.0vs UiPath★ 5.4k
n8n
Workflow Automation
n8n is a workflow automation platform that uniquely combines AI capabilities with business
OSSvs Zapier★ 206k
Windmill
Workflow Automation
Open-source developer platform to power your entire infra and turn scripts into webhooks,
OSSvs Retool★ 18k
ByteChef
Workflow Automation
Open-source AI agents and workflow automation. Self-host or embed in your SaaS. Apache 2.0
OSSvs Zapier★ 1k
Activepieces
Workflow Automation
AI Agents & MCPs & AI Workflow Automation • (~400 MCP servers for AI agents) • AI Automati
OSSvs Zapier★ 25k
Automatisch
Workflow Automation
The open source Zapier alternative. Build workflow automation without spending time and mo
OSSvs Zapier★ 14k
SaaS alternatives to Microsoft Power Automate
See all
Zapier
Workflow Automation
Zapier is a no-code automation platform that connects thousands of apps, with AI agents, tables, forms and an MCP integration for AI tools.
SaaS
Workato
Workflow Automation
Enterprise integration and automation platform with recipes, connectors and AI agents
SaaS
UiPath
Workflow Automation
Robotic process automation and agentic automation platform for the enterprise
SaaS
Automation Anywhere
Workflow Automation
Cloud-native RPA and AI process automation platform for large organizations
SaaS
Zoho Flow
Workflow Automation
Zoho's no-code workflow builder that links Zoho apps and third-party tools
SaaS
Azure Logic Apps
Workflow Automation
Azure service for building workflows that connect cloud and on-premises systems
SaaS

