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Buyer's Guide
Blue Prism vs. Microsoft Power Automate
March 2023
Executive Summary
Updated on Mar 20, 2022

We performed a comparison between Blue Prism and Microsoft Power Automate based on our users’ reviews in four categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

  • Ease of Deployment: Some users of Blue Prism find deployment to be simple. However, there are also a few reviewers that say it has a medium level of difficulty and can be complex, especially as the number of applications increases. In contrast, users of Microsoft Power Automate generally find deployment to be straightforward.
  • Features: Valuable features of both Blue Prism and Microsoft Power Automate include ease of use and stability.

    Valuable features of Blue Prism include scalability, flexibility, reliability, and robustness. Reviewers would like to see improvement in the laggy control room and also mention that the user interface could be better.

    Valuable features of Microsoft Power Automate include simplicity of automation, native integration with other Microsoft products, and drag-and-drop functionality. Users mention that they find the scalability to be unreliable, and say that the product does not handle complicated tasks very well.
  • Pricing: Reviewers feel that Blue Prism is expensive. Microsoft Power Automate users find the pricing to be reasonable and also point out that there is a free trial version.
  • Service and Support: Users of Blue Prism express that the technical support is good. Only a few Microsoft Power Automate users have had experience using the technical support, and for those that did use it, they mention it was unhelpful.

Comparison Results: The two solutions have similar ratings with regard to ease of use and stability. However, Blue Prism seems to be slightly more favorable because even though it is more expensive, it has a lot of great features to offer, and also has good service and support, unlike Microsoft Power Automate.

To learn more, read our detailed Blue Prism vs. Microsoft Power Automate Report (Updated: March 2023).
Download the complete report
690,226 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Q&A Highlights
Question: What are the main technical differences between Microsoft Power Automate and Blue Prism?
Answer: Adding to the answer here are the finer points: 1. Workflow technical features - a. ability to create a multi-level approval task. b. ability for the workflow engine to wait till the approval or rejection or any action is performed on the tasks. c. ability to delegate the task in the approval chain. e. Log of all activities within the workflow for the purpose of audit or tracing back the history. f. integration with third-party, internal or line-of-business applications for any data retrieval or data push to the system. g. drag and drop features (a kind of no-code solution) wherein the only configuration is required to create a workflow solution. h. user interface-driven or run as a back-end job to support the workflow process. 2. Robotics automation software features - a. a pure-play automation software that can detect images and other user interface elements on the application and interact with them. b. ability to mimic all human actions and steps while interacting with the software product. c. ability to interact with all types of software environments Citrix, Desktop, Server-based, Cloud, Web, Mobile, etc. d. ability to log activities performed on the application automated and perform all transactional activities and re-execute for any failed transactions. e. ability to interact with a standard application using either web services or another integration framework. g. OCR features to identify user interface elements, etc.
Featured Review
Gul Ansari
Researched Microsoft Power Automate but chose Blue Prism: Has very clear guidelines and demarcation on processes and objects which is not present in other tools
Manjula Mahesh
Cross-platform, stable, and scalable
The solution helps automate manual tasks and interacts with multiple applications.
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"Blue Prism currently supports SQL Servers and structured data.""The performance is very good and it is a valuable feature.""The technical support is very good.""We have integrated the product with our centralized infra-monitoring tool, which gives us real-time insights into BOT health and also the health of the underlying resources.""I use the basic features that are very useful.""I like the solution’s simplicity in process and objects. The solution has very clear guidelines and demarcation on processes and objects which is not present in other tools. The tool’s architecture is also very simple and clear. The product’s licensing model is also very simple. Other tools do not have such a simple licensing model.""We find the stability and the ease of reusing code design valuable.""Being able to create an object and use it for multiple processes has been very useful for us."

More Blue Prism Pros →

"I like Power Automate because it is very easy to use for users who don't have IT knowledge.""From my personal experience of using Microsoft Power Automate, I think that the automatic document processing feature is helpful for many organizations in streamlining administrative processes. It is a very good feature. It has helped many enterprises to process documents without spending much time on them.""The most advantageous aspect of the solution is its cloud capabilities.""Technical support is responsive.""Power Automate Desktop allowed me to quickly visually identify parts of a screen and record it. So I can see that I know I'm going to have to click this button here, this field there, and this tab here, and I can literally go and quickly just record all of them and identify them and have them in a list that I can see and say - there's my list of things.""I like that Power Automate gives us a connector to be able to connect different data sources or different software.""It is quick, so I'm quite happy with it. It is also easy to use.""We use Power Automate for applicant tracking and automated around 80 percent of the process."

More Microsoft Power Automate Pros →

Cons
"Blue Prism is a little behind Automation Anywhere in the topics related to maintenance and report building.""The tool needs to work on its security aspect since there is a lot of regulatory compliance for enterprises like the GDPR. The product needs to improve the data login policy as well. They also need to come up with a mechanism where every change and upgrade happens within the element of the target application. Our partner struggles to keep up with the cybersecurity guidelines of my company.""The OCR capability, along with the connectivity with some of the legacy tools, needs to be improved.""Blue Prism could be more scalable.""Emerging technologies adoption is a challenge for every organization, especially the products which address productivity/automation.""It lacks integration with proper AI, and it is a very complex tool to use in general.""The solution is not user-friendly. It has a very high learning curve.""The solution can be improved by switching off data DB and including a report section."

More Blue Prism Cons →

"The solution could have more integration with different platforms.""When you try to create a flow or work on the flow in Microsoft Power Automate you cannot undo changes. There are no options to edit or, undo an action. This feature would be useful. The editing option within the flow can be enhanced.""Sometimes, Microsoft changes the game rules, and the free tools are no longer free, which makes it too hard to explain to customers. It is a SaaS service, so the cost is calculated based on the execution hours. However, we don't know the background of this cost because we cannot touch the infrastructure. They can be more open to developers or customers about this. The infrastructure part must be open for the customers.""Microsoft could offer more AI education and training.""There are frequent version updates and that impacts different algorithms so we have to adjust our code.""The technical support has room for improvement.""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.""The solution is difficult to customize. I would like to see more flexibility when it comes to using different kinds of activities."

More Microsoft Power Automate Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "In the Philippines, fewer companies are using Blue Prism because of its cost. I don't know the price, but I know that its price is higher than UiPath."
  • "There is a one-time purchase fee for this solution."
  • "The licensing is approximately $1,100."
  • "Its license is costlier than UiPath and AA. They should improve its price. We have a two-year contract with them."
  • "My clients tend to feel that the overall implementation cost is a little high."
  • "Blue Prism has a higher cost with respect to RPA enablement, particularly if you are trying to start with RPA."
  • "Blue Prism is a bit higher priced compared to other payment-related or investment-related solutions. At the same time, it also provides more security than those solutions, specifically for the banking and insurance sectors."
  • "The solution is expensive."

    • More Blue Prism Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "We are just using the free products at the moment. We are using the ones that come with the license that we have got."
  • "Microsoft Power Automate is expensive. The full license is quite expensive."
  • "It costs us nothing because we use it on the built-in cost that is a part of our existing license for 365. To use it more extensively, there are different pricing models. Its licensing is complex. It is complex to evaluate the cost in advance. As a result, people don't use it because they don't know what overall cost they are going to incur. There are too many criteria to figure out how much it is going to cost you to use the product to its full extent. Its licensing model should be improved, and the pricing should be more visible and transparent."
  • "Its licensing cost is comparatively less as compared to Automation Anywhere. We have bought a two-year license agreement."
  • "It depends and varies a lot according to the licensing terms. There is no cost to maintain if we have less than 10 forms. Microsoft only charges if there are more than 10 forms. So, most of the companies can survive without paying anything extra. It is included in the Office 365 licensing."
  • "There should be increased transparency about which features attend the pricing."
  • "The price is right. If you have Office 365 It's included."
  • "The license cost could be better."

    • More Microsoft Power Automate Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Answers from the Community
    Tarek Fanous
    Question: What are the main technical differences between Microsoft Power Automate and Blue Prism?
    Ram Chenna - PeerSpot reviewerRam Chenna (CDPL)
    Real User

    Hello,


    There is a subtle difference between Microsoft's flagship workflow product Microsoft Power Automate and an Enterprise Robotics Automation Product as Blue Prism.



    Well, to begin with, the technical community has attempted to use the Power Automate tool to perform Automation as well, but that's not what it is intended for.


    Like any other Workflow Software Tool, Product or Framework, Power Automate is a no-code solution. The business use cases, for which it can be applied are purely workflow scenarios.

    E.g., if you raise a Leave request in HR software which eventually gets to your manager for approval or a  Retail Loan approval workflow Application (in a Banking Application) that has various levels of verification and validation by various departments and individuals before it is either approved or rejected.


    Whereas when we talk about Robotics automation (like Blue Prism) it is a purely out and out Automation software that can automate and mimic all human actions while interacting with an application/software/product in a typical IT-driven organization, eventually requiring no or little human interaction while interacting with an application and can replace the human.


    Hope I have answered the question to an extent. 


    Please do let me know if you have any specific queries you want me to answer.

    Thanks.

    reviewer1800507 - PeerSpot reviewerreviewer1800507 (Senior Consultant at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees)
    Real User

    Hi @Tarek Fanous, 


    Happy to talk you through what I have experienced in RPA. 


    Feel free to reach out to me via DM or LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sh...

    See all 6 answers »
    Questions from the Community
    Should I choose Blue Prism or Microsoft Power Automate?
    Top Answer:Hello Netanya, it depends on your needs and your expertise.  In my humble opinion you can start a big RPA project implementation with Blue Prism which is stable and mature software, in order to… more »
    I am evaluating Blue Prism and UiPath for RPA for my company. Which one d...
    Top Answer:I'm very familiar with UiPath and the RPA industry: was hired by Daniel Dines in 2015 when there were 35 employees and left in 2019 when there were 3K+. I'm a big believer in the product, leadership… more »
    Read all 34 answers   →
    What do you like most about Blue Prism?
    Top Answer:My company decided to go with Blue Prism because of the security it provides.
    Read all 51 answers   →
    RPA that Bots can run without centralized control?
    Top Answer:Yes, Attended Bots  which can run without centralized control Module. RPA Tools like Automation Anywhere, uiPath ,Power Automation they do support this.
    Read all 29 answers   →
    How do I choose between UiPath and Microsoft Power Automate?
    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 »
    Read all 5 answers   →
    How is Automation Anywhere compared to Microsoft Power Automate?
    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
    4th
    out of 55 in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
    Views
    29,585
    Comparisons
    14,825
    Reviews
    36
    Average Words per Review
    491
    Rating
    7.7
    2nd
    out of 55 in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
    Views
    46,513
    Comparisons
    28,094
    Reviews
    51
    Average Words per Review
    577
    Rating
    7.7
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Power Automate, Microsoft Flow, MS Power Automate
    Learn More
    Blue Prism
    Microsoft
    Overview

    Blue Prism is an intelligent, business-developed, no-code automation platform for SaaS deployments as well as for on-premises, public cloud, multi-cloud, and hybrid environments. Unlike other automation technology, Blue Prism combines robotic process automation with expanded artificial intelligence and cognitive capabilities. Blue Prism gives users instant access to the tools you need for building and delegating automations, as well as a digital workforce that is already AI-equipped.

    With Blue Prism’s code-free RPA, deployed through use of their Robotic Operating Model, your business can scale efficiently, improve customer satisfaction, reduce costs, and augment its talent to take on new responsibilities. Blue Prism helps to accelerate operational agility and efficiency by making it easy to automate the most important processes. Allocating everyday tasks to your Digital Workforce gives you immediate increased capacity and allows your teams to focus on their strategic goals. In addition, it delivers a return on investment, increases efficiency gains, and can even introduce new revenue streams.

    “Workforce of the Future”

    Blue Prism’s all-in-one intelligent automation platform consists of:

    • Design Studio with drag-and-drop process automation building, reusable “objects” across your business, and updates to objects and processes saved throughout the process library.
    • Control Room where you can assign processes to digital workers, scale digital worker and task volume ondemand, and gain real-time transparency of process proficiencies.
    • Digital Workforce of autonomous software robots that can learn and mimic business processes like humans and are equipped with six intelligent automation skills:
      1. Knowledge and Insight - The ability to harvest, understand, and deliver insights from multiple disparate data sources.
      2. Visual Perception - The ability to read, understand, and contextualize visual information.
      3. Learning - The ability to derive contextual meaning and adapt to evolving process patterns.
      4. Planning and Sequencing - The ability to optimize workloads and identify opportunities for better outcomes.
      5. Problem-solving - The ability to autonomously solve system, logic, and business problems.
      6. Collaboration - The ability to seamlessly work with both people and systems.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Blue Prism stands out for its enterprise-level functionality, which is why many companies choose it over its competitors. PeerSpot users note that the solution is easy to use, stable, and robust scalability-wise. The security is also top-notch. One user pointed out that "One of the most powerful features in Blue Prism is exception handling. It's one of the features that really differentiates it from other platforms." Blue Prism helps businesses with everything from compliance to quality control and error-avoidance.

    Microsoft Power Automate is an intelligent, cloud-based solution that allows users to boost their productivity by creating automated workflows between multiple services and applications.

    These workflows are used to synchronize files, receive notifications, and retrieve data. The system creates workflows by recording user actions, like mouse clicks, data entry, and keyboard use, which are processed into intelligent, secure workflows.

    Users can easily add intelligence to their workflow automation with AI Builder. AI Builder has a set of AI tools which range from language comprehension to image recognition, as well as hundreds of pre-built connectors and thousands of templates.

    Power Automate utilizes triggers and events to create chain reactions within each workflow so that all manual and repetitive tasks are carried out without any human intervention. The automation of time-consuming manual tasks frees teams up to focus on other strategic opportunities for their organization.

    The workflow creation tool allows users to easily set up custom integrations and processes between Office 365 and third-party applications by using pre-built connectors. These integrations are typically services like data loss prevention and access management services.

    Microsoft Power Automate seamlessly integrates and automates tasks with hundreds of out-of-the-box data sources. Some of the more popular third-party applications include:

    • SharePoint
    • Microsoft BI
    • Microsoft Office
    • Asana
    • Mailchimp
    • Twitter
    • Trello
    • Google Docs
    • Salesforce
    • OneDrive

    Microsoft Power Automate was designed to allow non-technical business users to create their own automated processes with AI builder’s easy-to-use drag-and-drop-based interface, using four different types of automation flows:

    • Cloud flows: Automations that are triggered by a specific event in the cloud or on-premises, such as an email or a social media post related to your organization.
    • Scheduled flows: As soon as a designated time is reached, a scheduled process is triggered and continues to run until it completes all of its assigned scheduled tasks.
    • Desktop flows: This allows users to automate their desktop by recording their screen. The visual flow designer automates mouse and keyboard clicks. Desktop flows can be used for extracting text from files, retrieving files from folders, and more.
    • Business process flows: This automation can be designed in order for employees with different security roles to have a smooth work experience that best suits the tasks they need to perform.

    A few of the major benefits of Microsoft Power Automate include:

    • Automated processes improve workforce productivity and reduce human error.
    • Streamlined repetitive and time-consuming tasks.
    • Constant access to the solution via the mobile app to create, run, and monitor automated workflows from anywhere at any time.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Microsoft Power Automate stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Several major ones are its user-friendly interface, its automation capabilities, and its integration options.

    Thiago R., the head of Digital transformation at Zaact, writes, "Workflow management is what clients select the most. It is very intuitive and pretty much drag-and-drop, so we can create escalation, decision flows, and if-else conditions pretty much by dragging and dropping boxes. Even someone who is not technical can develop a workflow for the business."

    Offer
    Learn more about Blue Prism
    Learn More
    Learn more about Microsoft Power Automate
    Learn More
    Sample Customers
    Coca-Cola, Walgreens, American Express, Royal Bank of Canada, Pfizer, Shop Direct, O2, Siemens, Ascension Healthcare, Jaguar Land Rover
    SNCF, Air France, Avanade
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm20%
    Computer Software Company18%
    Energy/Utilities Company11%
    Comms Service Provider7%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm18%
    Computer Software Company17%
    Comms Service Provider9%
    Government7%
    REVIEWERS
    Manufacturing Company18%
    Computer Software Company15%
    Financial Services Firm13%
    Government13%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company15%
    Financial Services Firm11%
    Comms Service Provider8%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business16%
    Midsize Enterprise7%
    Large Enterprise77%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business17%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise70%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business34%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise52%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise69%
    Buyer's Guide
    Blue Prism vs. Microsoft Power Automate
    March 2023
    Free Report: Blue Prism vs. Microsoft Power Automate
    Find out what your peers are saying about Blue Prism vs. Microsoft Power Automate and other solutions. Updated: March 2023.
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    690,226 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Blue Prism is ranked 4th in Robotic Process Automation (RPA) with 39 reviews while Microsoft Power Automate is ranked 2nd in Robotic Process Automation (RPA) with 52 reviews. Blue Prism is rated 7.6, while Microsoft Power Automate is rated 7.6. The top reviewer of Blue Prism writes "A systematic tool with good security and analysis capabilities". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Microsoft Power Automate writes "Very user-friendly and easy to use but requires better user training at first". Blue Prism is most compared with UiPath, Automation Anywhere (AA), Pega Robotic Process Automation, IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Blue Prism Cloud, whereas Microsoft Power Automate is most compared with UiPath, Automation Anywhere (AA), WinAutomation by Softomotive, IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Kofax RPA. See our Blue Prism 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.