Fortra's Automate vs Microsoft Power Automate comparison

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1,959 views|998 comparisons
94% willing to recommend
Microsoft Logo
41,102 views|22,547 comparisons
87% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Fortra's Automate and Microsoft Power Automate based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Robotic Process Automation (RPA) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Fortra's Automate vs. Microsoft Power Automate Report (Updated: March 2024).
770,428 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"It gives us a central place to schedule tasks and run them distributed.""We have found the pricing to be very reasonable.""The interface is simple, user-friendly, and very intuitive.""A great feature that you seldom see in these kind of systems is the ability to use a database as trigger to launch a task. This is something I asked for a few years ago and that was added.""It's very easy to use. That's a big selling point for it. It has got a drag-and-drop interface, so you can quickly deploy bots.""The most valuable feature is the drag-and-drop interface, which is very Windows-like.""The licensing of the product is very good. You only need to license it once and then you have it forever.""This tool has machine learning and voice recognition and computer vision, which are both quite useful aspects. These aren't available in other tools. It's a good addition to this tool and it gives the solution an edge on the market."

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"The initial setup is pretty straightforward.""The solution is very easy to use. It's a code three platform that works very easily with documents to create custom automations.""Microsoft Power Automate is very easy to use.""You can automate almost everything in your organization by simply dragging and dropping and selecting a few options, whether it's an Excel spreadsheet or other on-premise data.""The initial setup isn't too difficult.""It is a stable solution.""Third-party integrations with third-party applications are quite easy.""The most valuable feature is the ability to integrate across multiple systems."

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Cons
"We really need a free development environment for customers. Building and testing automation on production isn't ideal.""Error messages should be better. For error status, there should be better documentation because a lot of times, error messages that you get are quite vague. For example, you get a message saying that the workflow has run into an unknown status, which is vague. It just tells you that it failed, but you don't know how or why it failed. It makes debugging difficult.""The interface could be more user-friendly and easier to navigate.""The documentation for errors needs improvement as many of the error messages we receive are very vague.""I believe we need to test various OCR tools that assist in evaluating, let's say, six different customer resyncs. We analyze their spending patterns and documentations, but current OCR support has limitations, requiring highly standardized documents, which isn't always the case. With a more advanced OCR system, we could improve processes related to credit risk management and legal matters. We're exploring how to integrate Fortra's Automate with our CRM platform, taking cues from instances where Salesforce seamlessly merged with Automate. However, we use a different CRM, Insight for New Enterprise, and we're seeking ways to connect the automation process within our CRM. We aim for the automation to continue smoothly, even in instances where traditional automation methods might face hurdles.""The solution has a very weak knowledge base.""The intelligent automation feature could be improved. It's interesting because it's simple, but the automation quality isn't always good. It's easy to use, but sometimes you need to make a slight improvement to the automation, and that's not so easy.""The vendor is currently working on a solution that allows us to automatically create a process that is based on a document that we receive via email."

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"The solution is difficult to customize. I would like to see more flexibility when it comes to using different kinds of activities.""What needs improvement in WinAutomation by Softomotive is its stability. Stability is quite important to me. Another area for improvement in the solution is robot scheduling because it's not 100% accurate, in particular, it's 90% accurate. The monitoring of the robot could also be improved because it's not very straightforward, and you have to look in a few places or at least two places which means that monitoring is not a one-glance process.""Its licensing model should be improved. The pricing should be more visible and transparent. When you consume services, there are too many criteria to figure out how much it is going to cost you to use the product to its full extent. It should also support visual process editing, which is a standard feature for BPMN 2.0 compliance. They should improve the visual designer.""It would be good to have some kind of on-premises solution for BPMN users, but I don't think Microsoft will ever go back to the on-premises solution. They all train their clients to use their online services. It is easy, but it doesn't follow the industry-wide standards. I can only use the processes that Microsoft gives us. I can't map a business process by using other standards or notations, such as Business Process Management (BPM). I have to use whatever Microsoft gives us. I would like to have support for some standards because if we decide to use another BPM tomorrow, we will have to remap everything in notation to transfer from this solution. This is the only block or obstacle that I see in using this solution. It is closed in its infrastructure.""Microsoft could offer more AI education and training.""The thing which needs the most improvement is really the documentation. It should have better details of the processes.""We are looking to see more features implemented there are already available in UiPath or Automation Anywhere.""I was working on it for around three days and then took a break of about two days. When I went back to it, all of the Excel, and all the Excel functions, just disappeared. Completely vanished. When I looked up the help, it said that sometimes that happens when you're not connected to the internet."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "Compared to other products, the pricing model for this solution is much more convenient, flexible, and adaptable to the Portuguese reality."
  • "I like the way this solution is priced because you can buy a license, or you can buy the software outright."
  • "It comes with a package that costs approximately $20,000 USD per year."
  • "While solutions like UiPath and Blue Prism cost around $11,000-$12,000 for each license, this product costs around $7,000 and you can keep it forever."
  • "I'm only involved in running the product and maintaining the systems, so I can't speak to the cost."
  • "The pricing is quite reasonable. We can run the process with one bot. The limitation is at the server level because they have some resources, and sometimes that is enough. It isn't too expensive, so you can get a good return off of one, and you can also have a pack of five bots that is quite competitive."
  • "From a distributor's perspective, one of the biggest selling points of Automate is its price point."
  • "The cost is a bit high for a small business like ours, but we manage with Fortra's Automate."
  • More Fortra's Automate Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "This solution is bundled with our Office 365, so there is no additional licensing fee."
  • "You pay for use and if you want a premium connector or adapter, but a lot of things are available for free."
  • "Power Automate is a much less expensive product than the competition."
  • "This solution is reasonably priced and offers a free trial period."
  • "There are many different ways to license it."
  • "There is flexibility in pricing."
  • "This solution can save money when used for simple tasks specifically using only Microsoft products."
  • "There is zero licensing cost. It comes with our Microsoft Office subscription."
  • More Microsoft Power Automate Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:We use it for specific cases, mainly secure file transfers, which are vital for us. And it works for us.
    Top Answer:I'm only involved in running the product and maintaining the systems, so I can't speak to the cost.
    Top Answer:There is room for improvement regarding cloud functionality; there are a few missing features, and the logging could be better, especially air logging. We can go into logging events and create our own… more »
    Top Answer:Yes, Attended Bots  which can run without centralized control Module. RPA Tools like Automation Anywhere, uiPath ,Power Automation they do support this.
    Top Answer:Microsoft‌ ‌Power‌ ‌Automate‌ ‌is‌ ‌intuitive‌ ‌and‌ ‌easy‌ ‌to‌ ‌integrate‌ ‌and‌ ‌use.‌ ‌I‌ ‌like‌ ‌that‌ ‌there‌ ‌is‌ ‌no‌ ‌coding‌ ‌experience‌ ‌necessary,‌ ‌and‌ ‌appreciate‌ ‌the‌ ‌automated‌… more »
    Top Answer:‌Neither‌ ‌solution‌ ‌requires‌ ‌any‌ ‌coding‌ ‌experience,‌ ‌and‌ ‌both‌ ‌are‌ ‌easy‌ ‌to‌ ‌use‌ ‌and‌ ‌have‌ ‌great‌ ‌drag-and‌ ‌drop‌ ‌functionality.‌ ‌The‌ ‌training‌ ‌and‌ ‌resources‌ ‌for‌ ‌AA‌… more »
    Ranking
    Views
    1,959
    Comparisons
    998
    Reviews
    10
    Average Words per Review
    1,398
    Rating
    8.5
    Views
    41,102
    Comparisons
    22,547
    Reviews
    33
    Average Words per Review
    457
    Rating
    8.3
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    HelpSystems Automate, Automate
    Power Automate, Microsoft Flow, MS Power Automate, WinAutomation by Softomotive, ProcessRobot by Softomotive
    Learn More
    Fortra
    Video Not Available
    Overview

    Automate is an easy-to-use RPA software solution that boosts your productivity by transforming virtually any business or IT process. Get scalable automation capabilities whether you need a solution for one department, a small business, or an enterprise-wide Center of Excellence (CoE) initiative—Automate is built and priced right for employee-driven automation for any organization.

    Automate allows you to get up and running fast with no-code automation for both GUI and back-end functionalities. Form-based development lets you quickly build bots and leverage over 600 pre-built automation actions. Powerful out-of-the-box API and native integrations bring together the applications that keep your business running. And with the Automate Recorder, easily build, update, and deploy robust, UI-driven automation. Plus, bots can be deployed as attended or unattended with concurrent execution of tasks—no restrictions.

    A Key Part of Fortra (the new face of HelpSystems) Automate is proud to be part of Fortra’s comprehensive portfolio. Fortra simplifies today’s complex business landscape by bringing complementary products together to solve problems in innovative ways. These integrated, scalable solutions address the many challenges you face in streamlining your operations. With the help of Automate robotic process automation and other solutions, Fortra is your relentless ally, here for you every step of the way on your automation journey.

    Microsoft Power Automate is a powerful tool that streamlines and automates tasks within an organization. 

    It is used for workflow automation, data integration, and creating automated notifications and approvals. 

    Power Automate connects different applications and services, such as SharePoint, Excel, and Outlook, to automate data transfer and synchronization. 

    Sample Customers
    Aldergrove Financial Group, Preferred Health Professionals, Mindbeam Technologies, First Credit Union in British Columbia, Vestcom International, Prime Liberty Benefits, University of Tampa, CNLBancshares, World Precision Instruments, BJ's Restaurants, Globe Pequot Press, Accudata Technologies, Norton Healthcare, Pacific Toxicology Laboratories
    1. Coca-Cola 2. General Electric 3. Siemens 4. Accenture 5. Deloitte 6. Johnson & Johnson 7. Ford 8. Nestle 9. Procter & Gamble 10. IBM 11. Amazon 12. Google 13. Microsoft 14. Adobe 15. Cisco 16. Oracle 17. SAP 18. Intel 19. HP 20. Dell 21. Verizon 22. AT&T 23. T-Mobile 24. Walmart 25. Target 26. Home Depot 27. McDonald's 28. Starbucks 29. Nike 30. Apple 31. Facebook 32. Twitter
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Security Firm14%
    Financial Services Firm14%
    Insurance Company14%
    Manufacturing Company14%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company14%
    Financial Services Firm13%
    Manufacturing Company9%
    Healthcare Company8%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company24%
    Financial Services Firm17%
    Manufacturing Company13%
    Government9%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm13%
    Computer Software Company12%
    Manufacturing Company10%
    Government6%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business55%
    Midsize Enterprise25%
    Large Enterprise20%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business28%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise56%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business38%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise49%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise67%
    Buyer's Guide
    Fortra's Automate vs. Microsoft Power Automate
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Fortra's Automate vs. Microsoft Power Automate and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    770,428 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Fortra's Automate is ranked 5th in Robotic Process Automation (RPA) with 21 reviews while Microsoft Power Automate is ranked 2nd in Robotic Process Automation (RPA) with 123 reviews. Fortra's Automate is rated 8.2, while Microsoft Power Automate is rated 7.8. The top reviewer of Fortra's Automate writes "Can automate several processes with only one bot and is easy to implement, administer, and use". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Microsoft Power Automate writes "Provides valuable integration with other Microsoft tools". Fortra's Automate is most compared with UiPath, MOVEit, Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, Automation Anywhere (AA) and Blue Prism, whereas Microsoft Power Automate is most compared with UiPath, Automation Anywhere (AA), Blue Prism, IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Tungsten RPA. See our Fortra's Automate vs. Microsoft Power Automate report.

    See our list of best Robotic Process Automation (RPA) vendors.

    We monitor all Robotic Process Automation (RPA) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.