Zapier Alternatives: Who Stacks Up Against This Automation Giant?

Why should we do routine manual work if there are automation solutions? Hundreds of them focus on particular tasks or are applicable in specific fields.

At the same time, there are automation and integration platforms suitable for many types of business (and even personal) work. Zapier is one of them, but not the single solution.

Let’s take a look at some of the significant competitors of Zapier below!

Zapier: An Automation Platform

Zapier is a workflow automation tool helping users automate routine tasks by integrating multiple apps. 

Wade Foster, Bryan Helmig, and Mike Knoop founded Zapierint Columbia, Missouri, in 2011 as a startup. The team first applied for funding in the winter 2011 funding cycle but was rejected. 

They then built an initial prototype consisting of 25 apps. The YCombinator startup seed accelerator accepted these apps in the summer 2012 funding cycle.

The company then relocated to Mountain View, California, in 2012. 

Later in October 2012, Zapier received $1.3 million in seed funding led by the global venture investment firm Bessemer Venture Partners. 

Zapier achieves automation by creating a workflow that triggers appropriate actions when specified events occur. These workflows are called Zaps. You can create as many Zaps as required to accomplish tasks without manual intervention.

Zapier provides over 3000+ integrations with many well-known apps such as Gmail, Google Calendar, Excel Integrations, Google Sheets, Stripe, Instagram, Facebook, and  SMS, to name a few. 

Zapier saves time by automating monotonous and repetitive manual tasks, freeing you to focus on strategizing business moves. For example, many marketing and sales personnel rely on Zapier to follow up on leads generated on Facebook by using email software and immediately sending them the relevant information. 

Zapier’s employee strength is about 500+ people and increasing as the employee satisfaction rating is around 4.7 out of 5 stars. 

Zapier acquired a fellow no-code start-up called Makerpad for an undisclosed sum of money in March of 2021 and has reportedly crossed the $100 million ARR mark last summer. 

Zapier’s Competition

Numerous small businesses invest in automation tools that help relieve them from daily repetitive duties to focus more on productive tasks and reduce work-related stress.

Zapier, as we have already seen, provides a Saas tool that automates tasks by integrating web apps and passing data between them. 

Zapier’s competitors include Automate.io, Integromat, IFTTT, PieSync, Workato, Coupler.io, LeadsBridge, Microsoft Flow, and ZigiOps.

This article reviews three competitors – Workato, IFTTT, and Coupler.io.

Zapier’s Competitor – Workato

Workato is a cloud-based tool that is a free alternative to Zapier and provides a wide range of features for professionals, teams, and small businesses.

Workato features a user-friendly iPaSS (Integration Platform as a Service) platform with an intuitive interface that helps create integrations and automation. This tool is based on no-code technology and allows users to define their workflows to suit their needs without prior coding knowledge.

Workato is equipped with pre-built connectors called Community Recipes to help set up your workflow within minutes. You can use these connectors as-is or customize them to your needs. 

Using Workato, you can integrate and automate applications, processes, workflows, APIs, and data from multiple sources.

Features of Workato

Cost-effective

Workato is much more affordable than other full-featured integration services while providing better integration capabilities. 

It is compatible with native data models of apps, can iterate through complex data structures, and delivers robust and easy mapping.

Security

Workato has incorporated numerous checks and controls such as encryption and data masking to ensure the privacy of customers’ data.

Advantages of Workato over Zapier

• Smart Triggers: Workato allows free users to use smart triggers such as conditional triggers, duplicate detection triggers, etc., to create complex workflows. However, in Zapier, only premium users can avail these smart triggers.

• Scalability: Workato is highly scalable compared to Zapier. Workato can support hundreds of thousands of users without negatively impacting performance.

• Pricing: Workato is a free version that provides basic functionality, which you can upgrade to various quote-based plans.

Zapier’s Competitor – IFTTT

Source: IFTTT

IFTTT, which stands for If This Then That, provides a software platform that connects apps. IFTTT helps you connect services so that tasks are auto-triggered and completed. Combinations of associated services are called “Applets.”

Services are the devices and applications in daily use. Applets tie these services together to create a logical flow to accomplish specific tasks.  

 An Applet is a single workflow that connects two or more apps and triggers a task based on the condition applied. “Applets” are similar to a “Zap” in Zapier.

Linden Tibbets and co-founder Jesse Tane established IFTTT in 2010. In 2012, IFTTT entered the IoT world by integrating with Belkin Wemo devices. 

By 2014, the company recorded an impressive sales figure of over USD 170m.

Features of IFTTT

Scalability

Compared to Workato’s scalability related to users and their groups, IFTTT, among other automation tools, constantly adds new connections and integrations. So you can choose needed automation from the list and make their combinations.

Convenience

Many users admit the visually appealing interface of this tool. Indeed, it’s user-friendly. Besides, there are mobile versions of IFTTT that you can install on your smartphone, and it will remind you of some actions to make.

Advantage of IFTTT over Zapier

• Intelligence: IFTTT assists in building a smart home. With IoT integration, IFTTT is an ideal solution for connecting all household appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, lights, fans, and toasters. Zapier cannot integrate with IoT devices and is limited to integrating only web applications.

• Pricing: IFTTT focuses on several types of users, and its pricing is way less expensive than Zapier has. The minimum pricing plan costs $1.99/month.

Except for individual use, IFTTT offers plans for professionals and developers. 

The Developer plan starts at $199/year. With this plan, you can expand the reach of your APIs to 20 million users, 200,000 users, and 650+ services.

Zapier’s Competitor – Coupler.io

Source: Coupler.io

Coupler.io is a service for data integration. With Coupler.io, you can automatically sync up information between platforms. Use this data to generate live dashboards and business reports, translate raw data and manipulate it, and collect and backup data insights in one place. 

Railsware, a product studio, built Coupler.io. For some time, it was just an add-on. Since March 2020, Coupler.io has become a complete product ready to automate the process of integrating data from various sources such as Shopify, HubSpot, Trello, QuickBooks, and more. 

You can create a custom integration with any platform you use with the help of JSON API.

Coupler.io can automate data export into Google Sheets, Excel, or BigQuery. You just need to choose an existing connection, e.g., one of Excel integrations or any other, and transfer your data automatically.

Features of Coupler.io

Automate integration workflows

Once you set up the workflow rules, you can automate the flows to run at a scheduled time and generate reports or create informative dashboards.

Stakeholder collaboration

Integrating data into a single destination enables you to derive various reports and build visually eye-catching and meaningful dashboards. Coupler.io lets you easily share these dashboards with all the relevant stakeholders. 

Security

The tool does not hold the data within itself but acts as an intermediary while transferring data from one app to another. Consequently, the data of the customer remains secure.

Advantage of Coupler.io over Zapier

Simplicity: Coupler.io isn’t a direct alternative to Zapier. However, if you’re running a small business or need just a set of automation, this option is for you. It’s simple to use and provides integrations with popular platforms. No coding skills or complex setup are required.

Pricing: Coupler.io is free. There are only limits to import size and synchronization runs. Paid plans start at $24/month, while Zapier’s is $29.99/month. Coupler.io’s plans are flexible, so any type of user (or group) can find the best option.

Final Words

All these integration tools make one’s life easy. With the numerous tasks to accomplish each day, an automation tool that integrates various applications and performs duties without manual intervention is a godsend. 

Each Zapier alternative has its pros and cons. It can be suitable for a few users and not for others. 

To choose the most suitable one:

• clearly understand what you need to automate
• what’s the scope of automation
• check their trials
• evaluate pricing plans
• stick to the budget