The Microsoft Power Automate Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Microsoft Power Automate in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Microsoft Power Automate
The Insider’s Guide
Cloud workflows and desktop RPA in the Microsoft Power Platform
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among automation tools, read from Microsoft Power Automate’s own pages.
Made by Microsoft · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Microsoft Power Automate’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Microsoft Power Automate’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.8
GPA, above 32 of the 40 other automation tools we grade
Power Automate is Microsoft's automation service. Cloud flows link apps and services through prebuilt connectors, and desktop flows use robotic process automation (RPA) to operate Windows and web applications through their interfaces. It also covers process and task mining, and Copilot can draft a flow from a plain-language description. A free license handles standard connectors; premium connectors, flow sharing and unattended bots need paid licenses.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about Microsoft Power Automate, taken from its own pages and our grades.
- 1
Best for automation for companies already on Microsoft 365
Power Automate does cloud flows between apps and desktop bots that click through old Windows software with no API.
- 2
Paid plans start at $15 a month for each person
As its pricing page puts it: $15 per user / month, paid yearly.
- 3
There is a free plan
Power Automate Free license: create and run cloud flows with standard connectors only, without sharing them, plus desktop flows authored and run locally in attended mode.
- 4
It runs on 2 platforms
Web and Windows.
- 5
Cloud flows
Automated, scheduled and instant flows connect cloud apps, and on-premises services through a data gateway. Microsoft cites more than 1,400 prebuilt, certified connectors, and custom connectors can be built.
- 6
Desktop flows (RPA)
Power Automate for desktop builds or records flows that operate Windows and web applications through their interfaces. Attended runs happen with a person present; unattended runs need a Process license.
- 7
Copilot authoring
Copilot in Power Automate creates, edits and extends flows from a natural-language description, in both the cloud designer and the desktop app.
- 8
A 2.8 GPA, above 32 of 40
That is against the other automation tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
To replace Microsoft Power Automate you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
Microsoft Power Automate at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $15 per user / month, paid yearly
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- 30-day free trial per the pricing page; Microsoft's licensing docs describe a 90-day self-service trial license
- Runs on
- Web, Windows
- Made by
- Microsoft
- Category
- Automation
- Our grade
- 2.8 GPA, good
The report card
Best for automation for companies already on Microsoft 365
Power Automate does cloud flows between apps and desktop bots that click through old Windows software with no API. Premium is $15 a user a month paid yearly, but a bot that runs with nobody watching needs a $150-a-month Process license. The desktop app is Windows only with no ARM support, the phone app lost support in August 2026, and the licensing itself takes reading.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | B | Premium is $15 a user a month paid yearly, at the low end of this category, and it covers premium and custom connectors, attended desktop flows and process mining data. The expensive part is unattended work: a Process license is $150 a bot a month, and hosted bots are $215. |
| Free plan and trial | B | The free license covers cloud flows with standard connectors, and desktop flows authored and run locally in attended mode. You can't share a flow or use premium connectors, but one person could get real work done. A Microsoft 365 license covers the same ground. |
| Features | B | It covers the whole job, both halves of it: more than 1,400 certified connectors for cloud flows, plus desktop RPA that clicks through Windows software with no API, with process and task mining and Copilot to draft a flow. UiPath sits in this category doing the same two halves, so the ground isn't Microsoft's alone. |
| Ease of use | C | No store rating on record, and the licensing alone takes reading: which connectors are premium, which plan a bot needs, how Dataverse capacity is counted. Copilot drafts flows from a description, and the standalone phone app lost support in August 2026, so mobile means the browser. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web plus a Windows desktop app, with 1,400+ connectors, custom connectors and an on-premises gateway, and flows that run inside Teams, Excel and SharePoint. The desktop app is Windows only, ARM machines aren't supported, and the phone app is gone. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Microsoft Power Automate is for
- Fits if your company already pays for Microsoft 365 or Dynamics 365
- Works for teams where an old Windows program has no API and someone retypes its data every day
Who it is not for
- Pricey if you want bots running unattended, at $150 a bot a month, or $215 hosted
- Skip it if your desktop work isn't on Windows, because that's all the desktop app runs on, and not on ARM
- Tight if you're staying free, with standard connectors only and no sharing of flows
- Watch out: the phone app reached end of support on August 31, 2026, so mobile means the browser or Teams
- Watch out: the pricing page says the trial is 30 days, while Microsoft's licensing docs describe 90
Good to know
Good for
- Organizations already licensed for Microsoft 365 or Dynamics 365
- Automating older Windows applications that have no API
- Approval processes that run through Teams and SharePoint
Worth knowing
- The free license and Microsoft 365 licenses cover standard connectors only; premium and custom connectors need Premium at $15 per user / month.
- Unattended desktop flows need a Process license at $150 per bot / month, and the machine must be registered by a Premium user.
- The desktop app runs only on Windows 10, Windows 11 and Windows Server, and devices with ARM processors are not supported.
- The standalone iOS and Android app reached end of support on August 31, 2026; Microsoft points mobile users to the browser portal and Teams.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$15
A month to start, for each person. There is a free plan too
Microsoft Power Automate has a free plan. Paid plans start at $15 per user / month, paid yearly.
The free license covers cloud flows with standard connectors, and desktop flows authored and run locally in attended mode.
Power Automate Free
$0
Free license described in Microsoft's licensing docs: cloud flows with standard connectors only, no sharing, and desktop flows run locally in attended mode.
Power Automate Premium
$15
per user / month, paid yearly
Cloud flows with standard, premium and custom connectors, attended desktop flows, process and task mining with 50 MB of data, and 250 MB of Dataverse database capacity.
Power Automate Process
$150
per bot / month, paid yearly
One bot for unattended desktop flows, or a license for a cloud flow that any number of users can run, with up to 250,000 actions a day.
Power Automate Hosted Process
$215
per bot / month, paid yearly
Unattended desktop flows on a virtual machine that Microsoft manages and hosts on Azure, so there is no machine of your own to maintain.
Process Mining add-on
$5,000
per tenant / month, paid yearly
Add-on for the Premium plan only: 100 GB of process mining data, with 2 GB of Dataverse database and 1 TB of file capacity.
The free plan
Power Automate Free license: create and run cloud flows with standard connectors only, without sharing them, plus desktop flows authored and run locally in attended mode.
Trying it first
30-day free trial per the pricing page; Microsoft's licensing docs describe a 90-day self-service trial license
Read from microsoft.com on Oct 5, 2026.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
2
Places it runs: Web and Windows
Cloud workflows and desktop RPA in the Microsoft Power Platform. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, AI features, templates, workflow automation.
UiPath sits in this category doing the same two halves, so the ground isn't Microsoft's alone.
- Cloud flows
- Automated, scheduled and instant flows connect cloud apps, and on-premises services through a data gateway. Microsoft cites more than 1,400 prebuilt, certified connectors, and custom connectors can be built.
- Desktop flows (RPA)
- Power Automate for desktop builds or records flows that operate Windows and web applications through their interfaces. Attended runs happen with a person present; unattended runs need a Process license.
- Copilot authoring
- Copilot in Power Automate creates, edits and extends flows from a natural-language description, in both the cloud designer and the desktop app.
- Process and task mining
- Analyzes how a process actually runs to find steps worth automating. Premium includes 50 MB of mining data per user, and a tenant-wide add-on provides 100 GB.
- Microsoft 365 integration
- Flows can be built and run from inside Teams, Excel, SharePoint and OneDrive. Microsoft 365 licenses include the right to create and run cloud flows with standard connectors.
- Governance and hosted machines
- Managed Environments and data loss prevention policies give admins control over flows. Hosted Process runs unattended bots on virtual machines that Microsoft manages.
Where it runs
- Web
- Windows
What it works with
- Microsoft Teams
- SharePoint
- Excel
- OneDrive
- Power BI
- Dynamics 365
- SAP
- Salesforce
Microsoft Power Automate is made by Microsoft.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
32/40
Other automation tools it is graded above
Microsoft Power Automate's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 32 of the 40 other automation tools we grade, and level with 5.
It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 29 of 40) and worst on ease of use (C, above 3).
Its paid plans start at $15 a month for each person, against a middle price of $18.50 for the category: 8 of the 29 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 1 tool scores higher and costs less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 41 automation tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Microsoft Power Automate’s own letter is outlined.
- BValue for moneyAbove 21 of 40
- BFree plan and trialAbove 29 of 40
- BFeaturesAbove 17 of 40
- CEase of useAbove 3 of 40
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 10 of 40
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 33 automation tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Microsoft Power Automate is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace Microsoft Power Automate you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 32 of the 40 other automation tools we grade. It costs $180 a year.
What you could make
- Templates: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
- A real app for Windows. Something home-made would be a web page.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Microsoft Power Automate’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
UiPath, Zapier, Make, n8n and Zoho Flow
The 5 tools Microsoft Power Automate is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.6GPA
UiPath
Free plan · from $25/mo
Enterprise platform for RPA, AI agents and process orchestration.
- Only UiPath lists macOS and Linux apps.
- UiPath is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Microsoft Power Automate also covers templates.
- 2.6GPA
Zapier
Free plan · from $19.99/mo
Workflow automation across 9,000+ apps, with AI agents.
- Only Microsoft Power Automate lists a Windows app.
- Only Zapier lists a browser extension.
- Microsoft Power Automate also covers templates.
- 2.8GPA
Make
Free plan · from $9/mo
Visual automation builder for multi-step scenarios and AI agents.
- Only Microsoft Power Automate lists a Windows app.
- Only Make lists iOS and Android apps.
- Microsoft Power Automate also covers templates.
- 2.4GPA
n8n
Free plan · from €20/mo
Workflow automation and AI agents you can self-host.
- Only Microsoft Power Automate lists a Windows app.
- n8n is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Microsoft Power Automate also covers templates.
- 2.4GPA
Zoho Flow
Free plan · from $25/mo
Integration platform for cloud and on-premises apps, with AI.
- Only Microsoft Power Automate lists a Windows app.
- Zoho Flow also covers no-code.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
14
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Microsoft Power Automate free?
Microsoft Power Automate has a free plan. Power Automate Free license: create and run cloud flows with standard connectors only, without sharing them, plus desktop flows authored and run locally in attended mode.
How much does Microsoft Power Automate cost?
Microsoft Power Automate lists 5 plans. Power Automate Free: $0.
What platforms does Microsoft Power Automate work on?
Microsoft Power Automate is available on Web and Windows.
Does Microsoft Power Automate have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Microsoft Power Automate is listed for Web and Windows.
Does Microsoft Power Automate have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Microsoft Power Automate is listed for Web and Windows.
Is Microsoft Power Automate open source?
Microsoft Power Automate is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 5, 2026.
Does Microsoft Power Automate have an API?
Yes. Microsoft Power Automate offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Microsoft Power Automate integrate with?
Microsoft Power Automate's listing names Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, Excel, OneDrive, Power BI, Dynamics 365, SAP and Salesforce.
Does Microsoft Power Automate have a free trial?
Yes. 30-day free trial per the pricing page; Microsoft's licensing docs describe a 90-day self-service trial license.
Who makes Microsoft Power Automate?
Microsoft Power Automate is made by Microsoft.
What are the alternatives to Microsoft Power Automate?
The closest alternatives to Microsoft Power Automate in our directory are UiPath, Zapier, Make, n8n and Zoho Flow.
How does Microsoft Power Automate compare with other automation tools?
Microsoft Power Automate's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 32 of the 40 other automation tools we grade, and level with 5.
Is Microsoft Power Automate good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Microsoft Power Automate B for value for money. Its paid plans start at $15 a month for each person, against a middle price of $18.50 for the category: 8 of the 29 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of Microsoft Power Automate?
To replace Microsoft Power Automate you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Microsoft Power Automate’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Microsoft's own pages on 5 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-08-27.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Microsoft. Prices change, so check microsoft.com before you buy.
- microsoft.com/en-us/power-platform/products/power-automate
- microsoft.com/en-us/power-platform/products/power-automate/pricing
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-platform/admin/power-automate-licensing/types
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-platform/admin/power-automate-licensing/deep-dive-on-specific-license
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-platform/admin/power-automate-licensing/faqs
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-automate/desktop-flows/requirements
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-automate/mobile/overview-mobile
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Microsoft Power Automate, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-power-automate
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Microsoft Power Automate: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-power-automate
Know someone choosing between automation tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-power-automate/guide
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See our other guides
The best-graded automation tools after Microsoft Power Automate, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Automation Insider's GuideEvery one of the 41 automation tools we grade, compared
- IFTTT Insider's GuideSimple trigger-and-action automations for apps and smart devices3.0 GPA
- Node-RED Insider's GuideOpen-source, flow-based programming tool for event-driven apps3.0 GPA
- Ui.Vision Insider's GuideOpen-source browser and desktop automation with computer vision3.0 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Microsoft Power Automate’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Microsoft Power Automate is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Microsoft. Prices and plans change: check microsoft.com before you buy.