The best business automation software

I make a sandwich every day for lunch, and I've put the mayo, turkey, cheese, and veggies in specific places in the fridge so I can grab them all in one go without opening a single drawer. So far, I've got my sandwich-making prep time down to about 45 seconds.

Businesses have a similar mindset when they start pursuing automation, and with the right (BPA) platform, it's possible to streamline tasks far more complicated than putting together a turkey club. 

BPA software allows you to build and implement workflows, integrate systems and apps, and leverage to act and make decisions on your behalf—all with an end toward making business processes run themselves. 

I spent time in dozens of automation tools, trying to understand what worked and what didn't. I also devoured reviews and demos and even asked the folks who use these tools day in and day out. Based on all that, these are the best business automation platforms.

The 6 best business process automation tools

• Zapier for building safely with AI

• UiPath for UI automation

• Microsoft Power Automate for Microsoft ecosystem automation

• ServiceNow for ITSM

• n8n for self-hosted automation

• Airtable for building interfaces for automations

What makes the best business process automation platform?

At face value, it might seem like business process automation software only needs to do one thing: automate business processes. But the best automation platforms do more. Rather than just streamline a bunch of disparate tasks, they help you manage and orchestrate entire business operations from start to finish. 

What that looks like in practice will differ from app to app, but whichever BPA solution you pick, it needs to shine in these core areas:

• Ease of use: Business process automation software should help save you time and money, so tools that require extensive training, complex setup procedures, or constant troubleshooting probably run counter to your goals. Instead, look for low- and apps with user-friendly interfaces, clear documentation, and a proactive customer support team that can walk you through implementation.

• Feature set: The best automation platforms do more than just let you build workflows. Look for features like , analytics dashboards, templates for building interfaces for your automations, testing and debugging tools, and AI agents that integrate directly into workflows. 

• Scalability: Automation is key to scaling your business, but as your business grows, so do your automation needs. To avoid outgrowing one platform and having to start over with a new one, pick with you. This means choosing a tool that can handle increasingly complex workflows, higher transaction volumes, and additional users should you need them. 

• Integrations: Automation tools should integrate with other apps in your tech stack, preferably without making you jump through the hoops of creating bespoke connectors (or paying devs to create them for you). This isn't a popularity contest, but established automation tools will likely fare better in this category, since they've had time and funding to build up a catalog of . API functionality and are also must-haves.

To build this list, I performed my own tests, read through hundreds of user reviews, and got insights directly from business leaders with firsthand automation experience. 

The best business process automation software at a glance

Best enterprise automation software for building safely with AI

(Web)

Zapier pros:

• Connects with over 9,000+ apps

• Very user-friendly

• Enterprise-grade security and controls

Zapier cons:

• Free plan limited to two-step workflows

Let's get the numbers out of the way first: Zapier lets you connect and build workflows across . That's more than double the connectors of its closest competitors. When you want to set up automations quickly without hunting down APIs or writing code, having 9,000+ integrations to choose from is huge.

But what makes Zapier stand out is how your team can give AI agents secure access to those apps. The platform meets you where you are, whether you're prompting through an AI assistant, building in a code editor, or working in a terminal. can be installed into any AI app that supports MCP, including Claude and ChatGPT. is for users who work in code files, and handles terminal installs. Or you can use Zapier's visual workflow builder, with an AI copilot to guide you. The path to installation varies based on how you work, but the capabilities are the same. Credentials are never exposed to the model, and access is centrally governed.

Zapier is a full platform, which means it connects AI tools, automations, and agents across workflows and teams. So, if you're currently using a bunch of isolated AI tools, Zapier can make them communicate, share data, and work together as part of .

And these systems are built with governance in mind. Zapier offers all the you would expect from an enterprise-grade platform:

• SOC 2 Type II certification (independently audited security controls)

• GDPR compliance (built-in data protection and privacy controls)

• Enterprise SSO with SAML 2.0 and SCIM provisioning support

• Detailed connection logging and access monitoring

• Data encryption in transit and at rest with enterprise key management

• Compliance documentation that satisfies most enterprise audit requirements without custom implementation

If this all sounds like a lot to wrap your head around, you'll be glad to know that Zapier is known for its ease of use. And in many cases, you can just start with a pre-made template and make adjustments as needed.

Yes, you're on the Zapier blog, so take a look at for lots of second opinions.

Zapier pricing: Free plan available; paid plans start at $19.99/month for the Pro plan; Enterprise pricing is custom

Best business process automation software for UI automation

(Web)

UiPath pros:

• RPA capabilities for legacy system automation

• Large community and extensive training resources

UiPath cons:

• Requires more coding than other low-code platforms

I don't mean this in a negative way, but UiPath kind of hearkens back to an earlier era of automation—the era when RPA was the buzzy acronym, not API. 

has long been a heavy hitter in the RPA (or ) space, which means it's one of the best tools for automating legacy systems and user interfaces. Unlike an API, which connects applications on the back end, RPA uses software robots to simulate human interaction on an app's front end. So, for software that has a UI but no API functionality, RPA lets you program bots to interact with that UI like a human would, opening up tons of possibilities for automation.

Typically, RPA setup requires a lot more coding than API setup, which is why you'd use software like UiPath to build and program the robots for you.

But while this app works well for automating legacy systems, it's not a relic. You can use both APIs and RPA to build workflows in UiPath, and it features AI agents that can make context-based decisions about what your robots do.

Configuring this mix of traditional RPA and AI can be tricky, though. You or someone else at your company will likely need coding experience to get the most out of UiPath. And though it does come with a suite of over 100 pre-built connectors to other apps, that's a far cry from the thousands that Zapier offers.

UiPath pricing: From $25/month for the Basic plan

Best business process automation tool for Microsoft software

(Web)

Microsoft Power Automate pros:

• Seamless integration with Microsoft 365 ecosystem

• AI-powered features like document processing and workflow creation

Microsoft Power Automate cons:

• Limited functionality outside of Microsoft ecosystem

An automation tool designed to work within one software ecosystem might sound pretty limiting. But when that ecosystem is Microsoft's, we're talking about a ton of software that thousands of businesses around the world use every day.

If your world already revolves around , SharePoint libraries, Teams chats, and Excel tables stored in OneDrive, is the fastest way to make those apps talk to each other without ever leaving .

In practice, this means setting up fully automated flows across Microsoft systems, desktop apps, websites, and cloud services, either through templates or from scratch. As you can probably guess, the more Microsoft software your company uses, the more mileage you'll get out of Power Automate.

This isn't to say you can't integrate it with third-party applications, though. It comes with over 1,000 pre-built connectors and lets you use either APIs or RPA to extend Power Automate to any non-supported services. Do note, however, that this process won't be as smooth or functional as connecting apps on platforms like Zapier.

Microsoft has recently started rolling out a range of AI-powered features to Power Automate, like AI-powered document processing and a Copilot that helps you build automated workflows through natural language conversation (and can even build simple ones on its own).

If you or your business is firmly entrenched in the Microsoft Extended Universe, Power Automate makes a pretty enticing value proposition. But if you've got a more varied tech stack, you may want to consider an ecosystem-agnostic automation tool instead. 

Microsoft Power Automate pricing: From $15/month for the Premium plan

Best business process automation software for ITSM

(Web)

ServiceNow pros:

• Strong ITSM and ITOM capabilities

• AI agents for incident management

ServiceNow cons:

• Steep learning curve and cost

ServiceNow is a mammoth, enterprise-level automation platform with a special emphasis on IT operations. It's been around for over 20 years, but what began as an IT service management (ITSM) tool has since evolved into an AI-powered solution that can handle everything from risk and portfolio management to HR and cybersecurity. 

But IT is still ServiceNow's bread and butter. Its automated workflows help streamline incident management, asset lifecycles, change approvals, and service requests in ways that keep massive IT infrastructures running smoothly. 

Let's look at an example. When an employee requests new software, ServiceNow can automatically check licensing compliance, route the request through the appropriate approval channels, provision the software once approved, and update asset management records—all without any human intervention. 

When you're dealing with thousands of employees, servers, applications, and devices, this level of automation becomes essential. And to further streamline operations, ServiceNow leverages AI to predict potential IT issues before they arise, automatically categorize and triage incidents, and suggest solutions based on historical data. 

Of course, ServiceNow isn't the only on the market. Zapier, for instance, integrates with hundreds of and can . It's also worth mentioning that some users find ServiceNow to be both overly complex and overly expensive. But if you're a big business with big IT needs, it may be what you need.

Or, if you want to pair ServiceNow's ITSM capabilities with more flexible automation tools, you can and get access to integrations with thousands of apps. Try one of these pre-made workflows to get started.

ServiceNow pricing: By request

Read more:

Best self-hosted business automation software

(Web)

n8n pros:

• Free self-hosted version available

n8n cons:

• "Free" isn't really free—the total cost of ownership can be high

• Requires technical knowledge for setup and customization

"Open source" isn't a term you'll hear very often in the automation world, but is (sort of) an exception. While it isn't a fully (since its use is limited in commercial settings), you can download, configure, and self-host the Community version for free, which gives you complete control over your data and workflows. 

This does require a lot of technical know-how, as you'll have to either locally install n8n on a machine running Docker or npm or host it on a virtual private server (VPS). Both options open up several cans of worms. And when you start using it, those worms continue to crawl their way out: you'll need to do platform maintenance, infrastructure troubleshooting, security patching, and custom development.

Alternatively, you can choose from a range of n8n-hosted paid plans that make the app operate much like any other business automation software, though highly customizable and coder-friendly. But if you're going this route, I'd recommend just going with Zapier instead, since it's purpose-built for cloud innovation.

n8n comes with 1,400 pre-made right out of the box (though not all of them are complete app integrations), and you'll have to use an HTTP request node to connect to other apps. This might not be the most hands-off automation tool, but if you're thrilled by the prospect of writing custom JavaScript functions directly in workflows, it'll be right up your alley.

n8n pricing: Free Community edition available; paid plans start at $24/month for the Starter plan

Best business automation tool for building interfaces

(Web, iOS, Android)

Airtable pros:

• User-friendly interface builder that combines database and automation functionality

• Collaboration features make automated workflows accessible to non-technical users

Airtable cons:

• Limited automation capabilities compared to specialized tools

is kind of the black sheep on this list since it's more of an app and database builder than a full-fledged automation platform. But it is capable of automating all kinds of workflows—like automatically notifying team members on Slack, Microsoft Teams, or other apps when relevant Airtable records get updated.

What makes Airtable really shine, however, are its visual interfaces. Most of the apps I've covered so far have a clear focus on backend automation implementation. (Say that five times fast.) Airtable, on the other hand, lets you make automated portals and other tools that people can actually use. This opens up possibilities for cross-team collaboration. 

For example, you could create analytics dashboards that hide the raw, underlying database from end users. And each dashboard can be filtered, sorted, and permissioned independently, so your sales team only sees their leads, business ops only sees their tasks, and stakeholders get high-level summaries without excess detail.

You can build and interfaces using an intuitive, drag-and-drop builder with loads of templates to choose from, then set them up with workflows that automate your business behind the scenes. Just be aware that Airtable doesn't allow for as much complexity as dedicated automation platforms, so if you think you'll need elaborate branching, loops, or cross-tool AI orchestration, stick with Zapier (which also has its own built-in database tool).

Zapier also lets you with thousands of other apps, so using them together will seriously boost Airtable's automation capabilities. Learn more about , or check out one of these pre-made templates to get started.

Airtable pricing: Free plan available; paid plans start at $24/user/month for the Team plan

Turn automation into orchestration with Zapier

I've already stressed that automation is about more than setting up a handful of workflows to run in the background while you go about your day. This is a good starting point, but Zapier lets you do so much more by uniting workflows, teams, and AI tools to create complete . 

With Zapier, automation evolves from a set of isolated tasks into a full-scale AI-powered orchestration layer for your organization. It's not just about triggering an email when a form is submitted—it's about safely uniting your tools, teams, and AI assistants into a single, streamlined ecosystem. Zapier empowers you to:

• Build safely from any entry point: Zapier MCP, SDK, and CLI let you connect any AI model to your entire app stack safely, and without custom auth or credential management.

• Orchestrate end-to-end processes: Coordinate dozens of steps across multiple apps without touching a thing, from lead capture to onboarding to customer follow-up.

• Embed AI directly into workflows: Use AI for content generation, data enrichment, sentiment analysis, decision-making, and more, without leaving your existing tools.

• Connect every department: Sales, marketing, operations, and support can all tap into the same automation backbone, eliminating silos and boosting collaboration.

• Scale without the overhead: As your business grows, Zapier grows with you, letting you add complexity without adding manual work.

Related reading: