What is Microsoft Power Automate?
Short answer
Power Automate is Microsoft’s tool for building automated workflows, called flows, between apps and services, and for automating tasks on a Windows computer through desktop flows. Microsoft 365 licences include limited use with standard connectors. Paid plans listed on Microsoft’s US page start at $15 per user per month for Premium and $150 per bot per month for unattended automation, shown with a dollar sign and no currency code.
On this page
Power Automate at a glance
- Maker
- Microsoft, part of the Power Platform
- Described by Microsoft as
- “helps you optimize business processes across your organization and automate repetitive tasks”
- Flow types
- Cloud flows (automated, instant, scheduled), desktop flows, and generative actions (preview)
- Sign-up
- Needs a Microsoft work or school email address, per Microsoft’s documentation
- Pricing basis
- Per user (Premium) or per bot or flow (Process, Hosted Process)
- Price currency
- Dollar sign only; the page read does not name the currency
- Last verified
- 12 Oct 2026, from Microsoft Learn and Microsoft’s pricing page
What Power Automate does
Microsoft Learn says Power Automate “helps you streamline your business processes and automate repetitive tasks” and lets you build workflows “with little to no knowledge of coding” using drag and drop. Its connectors link a flow to other services, such as OneDrive, SharePoint or Salesforce. A flow can send a notification or run a longer process across several apps.
Microsoft lists three kinds of flow:
- Cloud flows. Microsoft describes cloud flows as workflows that “connect your apps and services”. There are three types: an automated cloud flow runs on an event, such as an email arriving from a specific person; an instant cloud flow starts when a person selects a button; a scheduled cloud flow runs at set times, such as a daily upload to SharePoint or a database.
- Desktop flows. These “enable you to automate all repetitive desktop processes”. They work with legacy applications such as terminal emulators, modern web and desktop apps, Excel files and folders, and interact with a machine “by using application UI elements, images, or coordinates”. This is robotic process automation (RPA).
- Generative actions (preview). A flow where you state the intent and the AI chooses the actions. Preview features, Microsoft notes, are not meant for production use.
A flow is Microsoft’s word for a workflow. A cloud flow suits software that has a connector or an API. A desktop flow suits software that has neither. The RPA versus AI automation guide explains the difference.
Who it suits
Power Automate is a natural fit for a business already on Microsoft 365, because flows connect to its apps, such as Outlook, Excel, Teams and SharePoint, and because accounts and permissions already exist. A flow that approves a request in Teams or saves an email attachment to SharePoint is the usual kind. Microsoft’s licensing page also lists AI Builder credits, which add AI steps such as form processing to a flow. AI Builder’s overview describes prebuilt models and custom models, and says a cloud flow can automate document processing.
It is less natural for a business that runs mostly on non-Microsoft tools. The Zapier alternatives page, the n8n page and the Zapier page cover other options. Large operations that run many unattended bots may also look at UiPath.
What is included with Microsoft 365
Microsoft’s licensing documentation says users with a Microsoft 365 licence gain “limited rights to use Power Automate”. These “entitle the user to create and run cloud flows with standard connectors”. The comparison table lists these Microsoft 365 limits:
| Item | Microsoft 365 seeded use |
|---|---|
| Daily action limit | 6k per user |
| Standard connectors | Included |
| Premium connectors | Not included |
| Custom connectors | Not included |
| Attended or unattended RPA | Not included |
Windows licences include attended desktop flows with limitations: “Only includes local execution of desktop flow (no orchestration).” A Free licence, available with a work or school account, creates and runs cloud flows (without sharing) and standard connectors only, with a 6k daily action limit per user. Which of these a given Microsoft 365 plan carries in the Philippines: read Microsoft’s Power Platform Licensing Guide for your plan.
Plans and prices Microsoft lists
The page below was read on 12 Oct 2026. Microsoft’s Philippines pricing page was not available to the reader (it returned a not-found error), so the prices come from Microsoft’s US page. The page uses a dollar sign and does not name the currency, so this page does not convert the amounts to pesos. The Philippines page, a reseller quote and your tax position may differ.
| Plan | Price on the US page | What it includes (Microsoft’s list) |
|---|---|---|
| Free trial | Free, 30-day trial | Cloud flows, standard connectors only |
| Premium | $15.00 per user per month, paid yearly | Cloud flows, attended desktop flows (RPA), process and task mining, Dataverse 250 MB database and 2 GB file |
| Process | $150.00 per bot per month, paid yearly | Cloud flows, unattended desktop flows (RPA), Dataverse 50 MB database and 200 MB file |
| Hosted Process | $215.00 per bot per month, paid yearly | Same as Process, plus a Microsoft-hosted virtual machine on Azure |
| Process Mining add-on | $5,000.00 per tenant per month, paid yearly | Available only as an add-on to Premium |
Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.
Microsoft Learn adds that a Premium licence includes premium connectors, 40k daily actions per user and one attended bot. A Process licence includes up to 250,000 actions per day and one unattended bot. Microsoft’s licence page also lists a 90-day self-provisioned trial for users, while the pricing page states a 30-day free trial; the two pages describe different trial routes, so check which one you are offered.
Power Automate pricing and “power automate cost” searches lead here. Costs outside the licence: connectors to non-Microsoft services may be premium, and AI Builder usage consumes service credits. Whether Philippine tax is added at checkout: not confirmed from the pages read.
Limits
- Connector class matters. Standard connectors come with Microsoft 365 use rights. Premium and custom connectors need Premium, a Process licence or a qualifying Power Apps or Dynamics 365 context.
- Action limits apply. Microsoft lists daily action limits per licence.
- Desktop flows depend on screens. They interact with UI elements, so a software update that changes a screen can break a flow. Unattended runs need Process capacity and a machine.
- Environments. Microsoft notes you cannot easily move components between environments, so choose the environment before building.
- Sign-up. Microsoft’s documentation says you need a work or school email address to sign up for Power Automate. Free personal-account use of desktop flows exists, as the desktop documentation lists sign-in with a Microsoft account.
- Data location. If flows touch customers’ personal data, the Data Privacy Act of 2012 applies to your business. The AI automation guide lists the checks.
Power Automate with AI
Power Automate’s home page offers Copilot to build cloud flows from a description when your organization has AI enabled, and the cloud flow documentation says an admin can disable it. See the Microsoft Copilot guide for the wider Copilot picture. Microsoft’s Copilot Studio is listed on the pricing page for building agents, prepaid in Copilot Credit Commit Units. Review what an AI step produces before it acts on a customer record.
Alternatives
Zapier, Make and n8n price by tasks, operations or executions instead of users. UiPath focuses on RPA. Compare by working out how many runs a month your workflows make and how many users build them. The Zapier alternatives comparison is the place to start.
Frequently asked questions
What is Power Automate?
Microsoft’s service for building automated flows between apps and services, and for automating tasks on a Windows computer through desktop flows.
What does Power Automate do?
It runs flows that start from an event, a button or a schedule and then perform actions in connected services. Desktop flows copy mouse and keyboard actions in apps that have no connector.
Is Power Automate free?
Microsoft lists a Free licence with a work or school account for cloud flows with standard connectors, and a 30-day free trial of paid features on its pricing page. Paid plans start at $15 per user per month on the US page.
Is Power Automate included in Microsoft 365?
Microsoft 365 licences include limited use rights: cloud flows with standard connectors, a 6k daily action limit per user, no premium connectors and no RPA.
What is a Power Automate flow?
A flow is one automation. Types are automated, instant and scheduled cloud flows, and desktop flows.
How does Power Automate compare with UiPath?
Both offer RPA. Power Automate also offers cloud flows and sits inside the Microsoft ecosystem, while UiPath is an RPA specialist. See the UiPath page.
Sources
All sources were read on 12 Oct 2026.
- Microsoft Learn, What is Power Automate?, updated 19 November 2025.
- Microsoft Learn, Overview of cloud flows, 24 July 2026.
- Microsoft Learn, Introduction to desktop flows, 23 August 2026.
- Microsoft Learn, Types of Power Automate licenses, 22 September 2026.
- Microsoft Learn, Deep dive on specific licenses, 22 September 2026.
- Microsoft Learn, Explore the Power Automate home page, 16 September 2026.
- Microsoft Learn, Overview of AI Builder, 14 January 2026.
- Microsoft, Power Automate pricing (US page).