Power Automate Licensing Guide

Premium, Process, and Hosted Process: Choose the right automation license

Power Automate License Types

Power Automate licensing depends on two factors: what connectors you need and whether you're automating with or without human interaction.

Included with M365

$0 /user/month

Standard connectors for personal productivity

Standard connectors only
Personal flows (no sharing)
M365 service automation
Teams, SharePoint, Outlook

Power Automate Premium

$15 /user/month

Full cloud + attended RPA capabilities

All premium connectors
Custom connectors
Attended desktop flows (RPA)
Process mining (5 processes)
AI Builder credits (5,000/month)

Power Automate Process

$150 /bot/month

Unattended automation at scale

Unattended desktop flows
Runs without user logged in
Scheduled automation
One bot per license
Requires your infrastructure

Hosted Process

$215 /bot/month

Microsoft-managed unattended RPA

All Process features
Microsoft-hosted VM
No infrastructure to manage
Auto-scaling available
Simpler deployment

Understanding RPA: Attended vs Unattended

Aspect	Attended RPA	Unattended RPA
User Interaction	User triggers and monitors	Runs without user
Scheduling	On-demand by user	Scheduled or triggered
Machine State	User logged in	No user session required
Use Case	Assist employees with tasks	Batch processing, overnight jobs
License	Premium ($15/user)	Process ($150/bot) or Hosted ($215)

Connector Types Explained

Standard Connectors (Included with M365)

Microsoft 365: Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Excel
Social: Twitter, LinkedIn
Notifications: Email, Push notifications, SMS (Twilio)
Productivity: Planner, To-Do, Forms

Premium Connectors (Require Premium License)

Databases: SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, Azure SQL
CRM/ERP: Salesforce, SAP, Dynamics 365
Enterprise: ServiceNow, Workday, DocuSign
Azure: Azure Functions, Azure Blob Storage, Key Vault
HTTP: HTTP with Azure AD authentication
Dataverse: All Dataverse operations

Key Insight: If your flow uses even ONE premium connector, the user running it needs a premium license. Check connector requirements before building flows.

Decision Tree: Which License Do You Need?

Answer these questions:

Q1: Do you need premium connectors (SQL, Salesforce, Dataverse, HTTP with AAD)?

No → M365 seeded rights may be sufficient
Yes → Continue to Q2

Q2: Do you need desktop automation (RPA)?

No → Power Automate Premium ($15/user)
Yes → Continue to Q3

Q3: Does automation run with or without a user present?

User present (attended) → Premium ($15/user)
No user (unattended) → Continue to Q4

Q4: Do you want to manage your own infrastructure?

Yes → Process ($150/bot)
No → Hosted Process ($215/bot)

Cost Scenarios

Scenario 1: Sales Team Automation

Need: 20 sales reps need flows connecting Salesforce to SharePoint

Salesforce is premium connector
No desktop automation needed
License: 20 × Premium = $300/month

Scenario 2: Invoice Processing Bot

Need: Nightly batch processing of invoices from email to accounting system

Runs without user interaction
No infrastructure available
License: 1 × Hosted Process = $215/month

Scenario 3: Help Desk Assisted Automation

Need: 5 help desk agents use desktop automation to speed up ticket handling

Attended RPA (user triggers and monitors)
Premium connectors for ServiceNow
License: 5 × Premium = $75/month

Pay-As-You-Go Option

For variable or low-volume automation, consider Power Automate pay-as-you-go:

Cloud Flows: $0.60 per flow run (premium connectors)
Attended RPA: $0.60 per run
Unattended RPA: $3.00 per run

Break-Even Analysis: Premium ($15/month) is cheaper than pay-as-you-go if a user runs more than 25 premium flows per month.

Power Automate in Power Apps Premium

Power Apps Premium ($20/user) includes Power Automate rights:

All cloud flow capabilities
Premium connectors
Flows in context of Power Apps
Not included: Attended or unattended desktop flows (need separate RPA license)

Additional Resources

Disclaimer: Pricing and licensing information provided on this page is for general guidance only and may not reflect the most current Microsoft pricing or licensing terms. Microsoft frequently updates its licensing models, pricing, and feature inclusions. We are not responsible for any inaccuracies or outdated information. Always verify current pricing and licensing requirements directly with Microsoft's official licensing resources or your Microsoft partner before making purchasing decisions.

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