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Fortra's Automate vs Zapier comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 11, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.7
Organizations achieve significant ROI in three months using Fortra's Automate through labor savings, productivity boosts, and efficiency enhancements.
Sentiment score
6.1
Zapier offers time-saving automation with varied ROI, often seen as cost-effective and a valuable investment despite indirect impacts.
Fortra's Automate has effectively replaced the workload of an entire employee, saving us significant time and money.
Chief Technology Officer at DOB Systems LLC
It has reduced our expenditures in terms of purchasing more products and employing more technicians.
System Administrator
On a scale from one to ten, I would rate the ROI as nine.
Project Manager - DevOps Engineer at ACC
In a scenario where employing three resources for three months might cost approximately $18,000 to $20,000, Zapier provides substantial cost savings.
Chief Technology Advocate at PURESOFT GLOBAL LLC
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.5
Fortra's Automate support is responsive and knowledgeable, though improvements in user interface and navigation are suggested.
Sentiment score
7.0
Zapier's customer support is generally rated positively for efficiency, though some desire improved live chat options.
They don't always understand the processes I'm trying to implement.
Senior Data Analyst at a financial services firm with 1-10 employees
They handle customers like me to get to the exact issue, detailing where that issue originates from a technical point of view, the resolution, and the summary they provided.
Software Engineer at Cateina Technologies
I would rate the technical support as a nine out of ten because it is quite fast and courteous.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Their technical support is good; they respond promptly and are very helpful.
Go High Level Manager at Virtual Worker Now
This can help if you need assistance, as you can communicate with the community and support system, and most issues are already resolved by AI.
Automation Engineer at Axe Automation
The experience was positive with prompt responses from their team.
Chief Technology Advocate at PURESOFT GLOBAL LLC
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Fortra's Automate is scalable, flexible, cost-effective for SMBs, with high availability, failover support, but limited to Windows.
Sentiment score
7.4
Zapier is adaptable for small to mid-size businesses, but scaling can be costly and less suitable for complex automations.
The scalability of Automate also scores a ten out of ten.
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
I can deploy it on multiple infrastructures such as cloud, on-premises, or in a hybrid model.
Software Engineer at Cateina Technologies
It is easy to increase one bot or one studio without needing to buy another orchestrator, which can be quite expensive.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Zapier is suitable for small or simpler automation but not for complex ones.
Automation Engineer at Axe Automation
Scaling it gets quite expensive, and while I cannot evaluate it purely from a technology perspective, compared to Workato, I would give Zapier a seven for scalability.
Product Owner | Integration
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Fortra's Automate is reliable, resource-heavy, stable, and support-assisted, with infrequent issues, particularly on large files or tasks.
Sentiment score
6.7
Most users find Zapier reliable, despite occasional connectivity issues and challenges with integration changes affecting performance.
The stability of the solution is a ten out of ten.
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
For stability on a scale from one to ten, I would give it a solid nine.
Cloud Engineer - ll at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
It has very robust features, and it is not prone to instability.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
In my current company, we had significant challenges with Zapier regarding maintenance, as Zaps were often broken, not necessarily due to Zapier, but due to changes in the input variables.
Product Owner | Integration
 

Room For Improvement

Fortra's Automate struggles with an outdated interface, limited integrations, high pricing, and lacks robust features and community support.
Zapier needs better Google Sheets features, API support, UI improvements, enhanced logic functions, documentation, and integration capabilities.
This is a significant concern, especially with critical workloads where visibility into errors is essential.
DevOps Engineer at Teksphere Global Services Limited
My major recommendation would be for easier upgrade paths between major versions.
Project Manager - DevOps Engineer at ACC
When new employees join our company, we created automation so they receive AWS credentials and all their AWS access and cloud access.
Cloud Engineer - ll at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
The error message options in the dashboard should be improved. It should be user-friendly so that beginners or non-technical users can figure out the problems and solutions on their own.
Webflow Developer at Qureos
You can build similar or dependent automations in one Zap, which helps with understanding the process without switching between different records.
Product Owner | Integration
Having flexibility in creating more complex automation would eliminate the need to transform data within the source or destination.
Business Intelligence Developer at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
 

Setup Cost

Fortra's Automate offers budget-friendly pricing per bot, cheaper than competitors, with options for single or unlimited use.
Zapier's pricing ranges from free to $800, depending on usage, with mixed opinions on cost versus time-saving benefits.
Competitors are often more expensive than Automate.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
It offered what we wanted at a good, competitive price.
Senior Data Analyst at a financial services firm with 1-10 employees
It does a lot but also costs a lot.
Chief Technology Officer at DOB Systems LLC
The pricing is in accordance with market standards and even lower in some cases.
Chief Technology Advocate at PURESOFT GLOBAL LLC
The pricing of Zapier is slightly higher compared to other market automation tools such as Pabbly, Make.com, and N8N, which have good features but are priced lower than Zapier.
Go High Level Manager at Virtual Worker Now
 

Valuable Features

Fortra's Automate provides an intuitive, flexible platform with low-code automation and seamless integration, boosting productivity across various industries.
Zapier seamlessly connects apps for task automation, offering intuitive interfaces with advanced features like webhooks and multi-step zaps.
Automate's non-reliance on additional orchestrators makes it quite cost-effective.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
In my opinion, the best feature Automate offers is the scheduling.
DevOps Engineer at Teksphere Global Services Limited
Automate's compatibility with existing IT infrastructure has impacted our business operations positively by providing smooth integration with other software that we use, such as Gmail, Jira, and Microsoft 365 apps, which gives us a unified platform instead of having to keep switching from one software to another, saving a lot of time and streamlining the whole workflows.
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
They have approximately 7,000 connections.
Product Owner | Integration
The automation capabilities are impressive.
Business Intelligence Developer at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
Creating integration points through webhooks is particularly useful for anyone working on integration projects.
Chief Technology Advocate at PURESOFT GLOBAL LLC
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortra's Automate
Ranking in Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) (4th)
Zapier
Ranking in Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies
16th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Data Integration (17th), Cloud Data Integration (12th), AI Software Development (14th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies category, the mindshare of Fortra's Automate is 1.8%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zapier is 0.6%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Fortra's Automate1.8%
Zapier0.6%
Other97.6%
Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies
 

Featured Reviews

Jane Rachma Kiniti - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
Automate has streamlined workflows and increased efficiency with powerful automation
The best features of the solution are the flexible automation features, it is rich with beautiful connectors, and it is easy to use with little to no coding knowledge required to get started, so anybody can use the tool. The intuitive interface of Automate has an intuitive design, which makes it easy to learn and use even without a strong technical background, and it has a drag-and-drop interface, which makes everything so easy and straightforward. The error handling capabilities in complex automation tasks are powerful, as it handles all types of tasks, whether complex or simple. I've never faced any problems even when dealing with complex tasks, so everything is super smooth and highly reliable, even when dealing with big tasks, as it has never slowed down. Automate's compatibility with existing IT infrastructure has impacted our business operations positively by providing smooth integration with other software that we use, such as Gmail, Jira, and Microsoft 365 apps, which gives us a unified platform instead of having to keep switching from one software to another, saving a lot of time and streamlining the whole workflows. The automated analytics have helped improve our business processes since it has increased our efficiency by automating our everyday tasks, freeing up time for us to focus more on strategic activities such as analyzing data and developing new business strategies. It is also cost-saving. By minimizing manual labor, it decreases human errors that can lead to costly mistakes. By automating the tasks, it helps to save costs, and it also improves our accuracy by reducing these errors to ensure that tasks are done almost perfectly.
RL
Product Owner | Integration
Diverse integration options support workflow automation while pricing and support need improvements
You can build similar or dependent automations in one Zap, which helps with understanding the process without switching between different records. I would appreciate quicker response times and more direct interactions. It would be great to have a direct contact person for support, but bigger companies usually have solution partners handling support. I do not have a solution partner for Zapier due to using it for small use cases.
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881,114 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
6%
Performing Arts
6%
University
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Retailer
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise9
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business30
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What is your primary use case for HelpSystems AutoMate?
I use Fortra's Automate for IT operations as an automated repetitive workflow task, handling tasks like file transfer, job scheduling, SAP data pools, and system notifications.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra Automate?
I am somewhat aware of Fortra's Automate's pricing, and I can say it is budget-friendly—not too cheap or too high. The pricing is on point.
What needs improvement with Fortra Automate?
Fortra's Automate is good overall, but the advanced logic is somewhat challenging. Some of the more complex branching and error handling require digging into documentation or trial and error before...
What do you like most about Zapier?
The product's most valuable feature is automation.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zapier?
The pricing is in accordance with market standards and even lower in some cases. The license setup cost is reasonable.
What needs improvement with Zapier?
In my opinion, what could be improved in Zapier is its UI, which operates as a one-line system. Compared to Make.com and other tools that have a drag-and-drop system, this is lacking. If the scenar...
 

Also Known As

HelpSystems Automate, Automate
No data available
 

Overview

 

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
BuzzFeed, Groupon, Spotify, Columbia University, FOX
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortra's Automate vs. Zapier and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,114 professionals have used our research since 2012.