Repetitive tasks that are just waiting to be automated plague productive hours of employees and business owners. Fortunately for us, workflow automation software is a common sight. It is increasingly being adopted by businesses worldwide for freeing employees from bot-work.

This article discusses the what's and why's of workflow automation software and reviews some of the best available solutions. Let’s dive in! 

What is workflow automation software, and why do we need it? 

According to IBM, a workflow is a system for managing repetitive processes and tasks in a particular order. They are the mechanism by which people and enterprises accomplish their work, whether manufacturing a product, providing a service, processing information, or any other value-generating activity.

Workflow Automation Software helps businesses automate repetitive tasks that are time-consuming and mundane.  It also enables teams to optimize workflows to achieve higher efficiency by removing manual attention on redundant tasks. 

Managing workflow is far more complex than checking items off a to-do list. Managers have to handle multiple projects, complex teams, and problems, and that too within a given structure and time. Workflow management tools help organize ideas and help turn them into reality, no matter how crazy things may get sometimes. 

Businesses can easily automate a lot of processes they run daily. Automation-driven software boosts employee productivity and optimizes resource allocation—all this and more at a fraction of the cost, time, and effort.

Some common features of workflow management software: 

• Scheduling tasks
• Email automation
• Managing workflows effectively 
• Evaluating processes and teams 
• Creating and evaluating tasks 
• Sharing a document with others 
• Optimizing resource utilization
• Syncing tasks across the team
• Ensuring smooth collaboration across the team 
• Enhancing employee productivity
• Automating data preparation & data sharing

According to a report, the workflow automation market will reach $18.45 billion by 2023, at a CAGR of 23.56%. However, a general misconception about these apps is that big businesses can only use them, but that is not true.

Small businesses and e-commerce companies need workflow automation as much as large businesses do. Workflow automation software’s primary job is to automate repetitive tasks, but the direct benefit is that it streamlines all information and workflow to ensure everybody is on the same page. Further, it makes managing project progress and productivity easy!

Workflow automation software is easy to set up and use - they do not demand prior technical expertise.  This means anyone can quickly build workflows and streamline tasks and activities to help them manage their teams/tasks. 

List of Top 10 Workflow Automation Software for Small Businesses

With tons of options available in the market, it can get confusing to identify the right fit for your needs. Therefore, we have listed the ten best workflow automation software for small businesses to help you get started. 

Keep the problems you want to solve in mind while you look at the features, and consider your budget fit to decide which solution might be best for you! Most of the software listed in this article offer free trials for a lifetime if you need limited functionalities.

1. SmartTask 

SmartTask is an award-winning all-in-one work management platform that helps with workflow automation, project analysis, task management, time tracking, and team collaboration. It offers CRM, sales tracking, custom analytics, and reporting features. It is also known for its simple user interface, which does not require training.

SmartTask integrates with Zapier, Integromat, and Pabbly Connect, enabling you to connect with more than 1000+ applications to automate your workflows. 

With SmartTask, you can look at all the current projects and their deadlines with the help of “Portfolio View.” You can also automatically reschedule tasks in case of missed deadlines. Furthermore, you can analyze where the delay happened precisely with a “Baseline Comparison.” 

The best feature of this app is Video conferencing, using which you can initiate a video meeting with someone directly from the chat and task window. You can also monitor your team’s performance with the help of productivity scoring and custom charts.

SmartTask has gained popularity as the cost-effective alternative for ClickUp, Asana, and other software applications in the work management space.

Key Features  

• Tasklist, Board, Calendar, Timeline, and Portfolio Views
• Recurring Tasks, Dependencies, & Reminders
• Video Meeting from task and chat view
• Project Milestones, Task Auto-Scheduling, and Workload Management
• Sales Prediction, Call Tracking, and CRM Analytics
• Time Tracking, Instant Messaging, and File Sharing
• Advanced Search, Productivity Scoring, and Custom Charts

Pricing - Free plan with basic features for unlimited users. Paid subscriptions start from $5 per user/month and $8 per user/month when billed annually.

2. Asana 

Asana is a go-to app when businesses are thinking about streamlining workflows. Asana recently launched a new feature named “Workflow Builder” that helps create efficient workflows with the help of a visual tool to connect teams, organize work, and streamline projects in one place.

It also connects with common work apps like Microsoft Teams, Trello, Freshdesk, Google Drive, Evernote, and more than 100+ other apps that make your life easier. Asana also allows you to create your own rules to automate the boring stuff. It also provides customized templates and workflows to help you get started. 

If you want to manage agile software development teams, we recommend using Jira instead of Asana to streamline processes and workflows.

Key Features

• Workflow Builder
• Readymade Templates
• Timeline, Board, List, and Calendar Views
• Task & Project Management
• Team Communication
• Set goals and track them in  one place
• Real-time reporting

Pricing - A free plan for every feature that most startups and small businesses require. Premium and business plans start at $10.99 per user/month and $24.99 per user/month when billed annually.

3. Zapier

Zapier is synonymous with automation. It can automate literally anything and integrate with anyone. Zapier connects with more than 4000+ web apps without writing any code. This makes processes faster and more efficient. 

Also, with so many integrations, you can create custom workflows with Zapier. They also have a separate academy online known as Zapier University that makes people aware of Zapier and its uses. 

The pricing of this amazing tool depends on the tasks and zaps you need for your business. Zaps is a customized integration available on Zapier. It can be a simple lead collecting form or complex workflow automation. 

Key Features

• More than 4000+ integrations 
• Multi-step zaps 
• Unlimited permissions, apps, and guests
• Zapier University
• Great Community

Pricing -  Free plan for up to 100 tasks per month. Paid subscriptions start from $19.99/month to $599/month when billed annually.

4. ClickUp

ClickUp has everything on its platform. It has every feature, starting from Tasks, Docs, Chat, Goals to Apps. It has one of the best docs apps that helps manage and monitor strategy and progress. It also comes with an intuitive design and integrates with various platforms. 

ClickUp has 15+ powerful views and great customization available according to your needs. It also automates routine work and processes with 50+ actions, triggers, and conditions. To start with, you can use pre-built automation templates and customize them according to your needs.  

The best part about ClickUp is its whiteboard, where everyone can post their ideas and discuss them in real-time. It also has a dark mode feature that gives an app a sleek appearance.

Key Features

• Customizable tasks, subtasks, and checklists
• Dashboard, Workload, and Box Views
• Goals and Milestones
• Time Tracking & Estimation
• Real-time reporting
• Bulk Rescheduling 
• Dark Mode

Pricing - Free plan for forever up to 100 MB storage. Paid plans start at $5 to $19 per user/month when billed annually.

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5. Nifty

Nifty reigns as the easiest to use project management solution in the space. Feature rich and intuitive, Nifty serves as the go-to collaboration and automation hub for people who want their project management solution to “just work”. Nifty’s if/then automation builder is complimented with other clever automations throughout the system that make inviting teammates, giving actionable feedback, and converting text-to-tasks as easy as it can be. Perhaps its most beloved feature, Nifty Roadmaps automatically update progress as key tasks are completed. These Roadmaps are easy to read, can be shared publicly without requiring credentials to view, and even scale across the Workspace in Overviews so you can gauge all project progress in a single place.

‍Key Features:

• Roadmap management to align project stakeholders
• Task management with customizable boards that can be specialized for everyone on your team
• Built-in chat and project discussions complete with Zoom, Google, Teams, Skype, and Webex video calling
• Nifty docs for lightweight collaboration, or integrated Google Docs, Sheets, and Slide
• Open API, Custom embeds, and over 1000 integrations

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‍Pricing - Nifty is free to use and starts as low as $5/user/month. The Guest role for clients and freelancers is completely free!

6. CMW Platform

CMW Platform is a low-code business process management software for building powerful business apps, powered with process automation. It gives you the freedom to automate workflows, create web forms, optimize business processes and model business architecture with drag and drop simplicity. More than 20 pre-built solutions provide for quick start, including document tracking, approval process, customer management, etc. The platform allows creating a single digital environment for all the software you use, integrating it via fully Open API. The CMW Platform turns business people into active participants who can create the business applications they need. They have at their fingertips a full set of easy-to-use tools for modeling, executing, and optimizing enterprise processes and workflows.

Key features:

• Graphical process engine to design, automate and modify processes using visualisation, not coding
• Web forms automation for gathering necessary information during process execution
• Task, case and project management
• Flexible reports and analytics to make fact-driven decisions
• Integrations with Microsoft Outlook, Salesforce, DocuSign, Slack and other 3d party software via fully Open API
• Guaranteed reliability with multi-tier Service Oriented Architecture

Pricing: Upon request with free trial option

7. Appy Pie Connect

Appy Pie Connect is one of the best workflow automation tools that allows you to easily connect your different business apps without any coding. Easy-to-use, Appy Pie Connect has everything to help you automate your business processes, right from basic assignments to complex workflows.

A cloud-based workflow automation platform, Appy Pie Connect lets businesses like manufacturing, logistics, IT services, etc., create, edit, and run a wide range of automated tasks and workflows easily and efficiently.

Appy Pie Connect provides a user-friendly and intuitive interface for connecting various apps, helping businesses fill the data gaps between their sales, marketing, and customer care services.

Appy Pie Connect ranks among the Top 5 of G2’s cloud data integration software categories. You can use this amazing workflow builder to connect apps like Zoom, Slack, Discord, Microsoft Teams, HubSpot CRM, Zendesk, Dropbox and many others.

Key Features

• Easily automate workflow without writing a single line of code
• Automate repetitive tasks across multiple environments
• Thousands of readymade templates
• Create custom workflows that fit the way you work
• Apps from different CRM, e-commerce, project & task management categories
• More than 500 apps with dozens of apps added every month
• Features triggers, actions, formatters, filters, and webhooks
• 24/7 customer support
• Complete security of data shared between apps
• Powerful editing tools for integrating web and mobile apps

8. Pipefy

Pipefy is an excellent app focused on making workflows with no code. It allows you to build custom integrations from chat apps to ERPs. It facilitates a seamless flow of information among processes that trigger a response. Its portal also allows you to centralize all your request forms in a single place. 

Pipefy also boosts productivity with automated emails. They also have a list of pre-made templates ready to choose from. 

Key Features 

• Service Portals
• Sharable Forms
• Request Tracking
• Email Automation, Email Templates, and Comments
• Approval Flows
• Dashboard & Process Connections

Pricing - Free plan for first-time users with limited features. Paid plans start from $18 to $30 per user/month when billed annually. They also build custom billing plans.  

9. Nintex

Nintex is a process management and automation platform. It is a very simple app along with an average UI. You can create lead capturing forms with Nintex and improve user experience with advanced logic. You can design complex workflows with the help of Nintex and automate the whole process. You can also easily create documents by importing data from any app in minutes and getting deals done faster.

Nintex has robotic processing automation, using which you can automate all the boring tasks. In short, Nintex is a complete digital transformation kit for you.  

Key Features 

• Process Mapping & Collaboration
• Workflow Automation
• Robotic Process Automation
• Digital Forms & Document Automation
• eSignature
• Process Analytics

Pricing- Starts from $910/month with plans upto $1400/month.

10. Kissflow Workflow

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Kissflow is an end-to-end workflow platform made for people with zero coding experience. It claims to be the internet’s most powerful no-code tool. You can create your workflow visually and make changes to it anytime you want. You can also enable dynamic tracking and directly assign tasks to employees. 

It has a simple UI that is easy to understand. As a result, you can build and edit forms with rich content without writing a single line of code.

Key Features 

• Visual Form & Workflow Designer
• SLA & Escalations
• Automated Workflow Routing
• Algorithmic Task Assignment
• Third-Party Integrations
• Ticketing System
• Contextual Collaboration
• Reporting & Analytics

Pricing - Starts from $10 to $20 per user/month.

11. Integromat

Integromat is very interactive as you can watch how your automation is executed, and that too in real-time. In addition, you can look at how data flows through the scenario. The best part is that Integromat allows you to retrieve data from the past once you run your scenario. It has built-in routers that can divide your task into multiple routes. It has more than 1500+ scenarios ready to help with the initial setup. 

Integromat can connect with almost any app without writing a single line of code because of its HTTP/SOAP and JSON/XML modules. As a result, you can duplicate your scenarios to speed up your work. It also works great on mobile devices.

Key Features

• Real-Time Visualization
• Routers
• Error Handlers
• Aggregators & Iterators
• Discretion
• Triggers
• Scheduling & Filtering 
• Unlimited Steps 
• Templates 

Pricing - Free plan available! Paid plans start from $9/month to $299/month, or a custom plan if you need one. 

12. Automate.io 

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Automate.io is a straightforward and intuitive app with the help of which you can visualize your whole workflow without writing a single line of code. It has pre-built templates and has a drag-drop feature to map data flow. 

You can also create multi-level workflows with the help of advanced logic and connect with 200+ apps using Rest API Connector. 

Key Features

• Drag & Drop Interface
• Pre-Built Automation Templates
• Multi-Step Workflows
• Rest API Connector
• Shared Folders & Unified Billing 

Pricing - Free plan for up to 300 monthly actions with 5 bots. Paid plans start from $9.99/month for personal use to $159/month for business use.

13. Integrify

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Integrify helps companies work efficiently by streamlining processes with the help of visual process designers. It builds responsive, web-based forms to capture leads. 

With the process reporting feature, you can also track and maintain an audit of all your workflows. In addition, you can connect anything with Integrify because of the API.

Key Features 

• Process Builder
• Form Designer
• Service Portal
• Process Reporting
• Process Integration

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Pricing - Integrify provides flexible and customized pricing based on preferred approaches and requirements. 

14. WebWork Time Tracker

WebWork is a time tracking software that automates the whole process of a project’s time tracking and management. It's extensive features track, monitor and deliver the results to you without requiring extra effort. You simply need to set the necessary settings in advance and the tracker will do the rest. These settings include choosing the working hours, the screenshot mode and assigning the tasks. 

WebWork Time Tracker works across all platforms, such as Desktop, Web, Mobile, and Chrome Extension, enabling you to use it wherever is more comfortable to you. Plus, it works not only as a time tracker but also as a project management platform. So, since the importance of project management is being highlighted in increasingly more places, you might need exactly that.

Best for small businesses, large enterprises and freelancers.

‍Key Features

• Task Management Software
• Attendance Monitoring
• App and Website Usage
• 4 Screenshot Modes 
• Billable Hours and Invoice 
• Cross-Platform

Pricing - Free trial of 7 days, plus 30 more days to use and pay later. The paid subscription is $2.99 per user/month. 

15. Chargebee

Chargebee.com is a subscription management software that helps businesses automate their workflow. It enables businesses to manage their subscription plans, invoices, and payments all in one place. Chargebee also has a built-in recurring billing system so businesses can automatically bill their customers on a regular basis. This makes it easy for businesses to keep track of their finances and ensure that their customers are always up-to-date on their subscription payments.

Key Features

• Billing & Invoicing
• Data Import/Export
• Reporting & Statistics
• Activity Dashboard
• Third Party Integrations
• Reporting/Analytics

16. Integrately

Integrately is a no-code automation platform that helps you connect 950+ apps and streamline your business processes. May it be a simple task like sending an email on a new lead or complex automation like updating the CRM, Integrately can do it all without writing a single line of code.

It has millions of ready-to-use 1-click automation recipes that you can use to automate your workflows. Besides, you can also create custom integrations as per your needs. The best part is that they have excellent customer support and provide a dedicated account manager who not only helps your set up automation but also helps find automation opportunities to increase efficiency.

Key Features

• Easy-to-use UI with a step-by-step guide for automation setup
• No learning curve involved
• Ability to create integrations with API-based apps using webhooks that are custom-tailored to your needs.
• Set up customized workflows with conditional logic and filters
• Affordable pricing with the highest number of tasks provided 
• Easy Error Reporting
• 24 x 5 customer support

Pricing

• 14-day free trial available
• Price ranges from $19.99/month to $239/month when billed annually. The number of tasks provided against the pricing are much higher against other similar apps

17. Kommo

A workflow software for small businesses on our list is Kommo. With its competitive prices and amazing cost benefits, it is a high-level software built on AI that offers easy chatbots to program without using a single line of code.

Kommo, formerly known as amoCRM, is a brand that integrates WhatsApp, Twillio, Instagram, email inboxes, YouTube, and plenty of other mainstream (and less known) platforms. Here, a real nodule of the internet can be accessed, managed, and viewed.

The platform can also provide a refined collection of information to help you with marketing initiatives and other competitive elements.

Key features:

1. Google Sheets sync: Sync your data from forms and spreadsheets with your Kommo account. Then, whenever a new data entry is made in Google Sheets, it will automatically appear in your pipeline.

2. Lead scraper: You can use Kommo’s Google Chrome extension to generate leads from any website. With simple tools, you can select the data, and it will automatically create a new lead in your pipeline.

3. Email parsing: Kommo helps you automate the lead-generation process based on your incoming email.

4. Business card scanner: It is possible and easy to create new leads and save contacts with the help of Kommo’s Business Card Scanner tool. 

5. Messenger & call integrations: Integrate the most popular messenger and voice services to communicate with your leads without switching apps.

6. Chat & email templates: You can speed up your response rate by using easy-to-make chat and email templates to take care of your most frequent requests.

7. Customizable lead profiles: Kommo’s interface is fully customizable to fit the needs of your business. For example, you can adjust the feed view and the lead card to ensure you only see what you need and when you need it.

18. Penneo Sign

Penneo Sign is a digital signature software that helps businesses automate their signing processes from A to Z. With Penneo Sign, you can route documents to multiple signers in a particular order, schedule automated reminders, and sign documents with just a few clicks. The main benefits of using Penneo Sign are improved efficiency, high security, and a more convenient client experience.

Penneo Sign allows you and your customer to create both simple and advanced electronic signatures. You can create a simple electronic signature by drawing your signature, uploading a picture of your signature, or typing your name on the document. To create an advanced electronic signature, you will need to use your electronic ID.

Thanks to the built-in security features, Penneo Sign can verify the identity of the signer and protect the signed document against alterations. Therefore, documents signed via Penneo Sign are legally binding and can be used as evidence in court.

Key features:

• Document routing to multiple signers
• Reminder emails
• Simple and advanced electronic signatures
• Pre-built integrations & API
• Dashboard
• Free personal archive for all signers
• Sign multiple documents simultaneously
• Data collection via fillable PDF forms
• Access control
• GDPR-compliant data storage

Pricing:

1. Base plan for $15 per user/month
2. Advanced plan for $25 per user/month
3. Enterprise plan for $45 per user/month

19. EngageBay

EngageBay is a marketing automation software designed specifically for small businesses and startups. With EngageBay, you can capture leads, design and launch landing pages, automate drip campaigns, and analyze campaign performance. 

That said, EngageBay is not just a marketing automation workflow software. It also offers sales enablement tools, customer service features, and a suite of marketing tools to help SMBs offer an outstanding customer experience. 

EngageBay also offers activity timelines, account-based marketing, web analytics, live chat, sales pipelines, and more. 

Key features: 

• Multi-step, visual workflow automation builder, no-code environment
• Triggers, actions, and conditions for automation
• WYSIWYG email and landing page editor
• Dozens of integrations
• 24/7 customer support
• Android and iOS applications
• All-in-one marketing, sales, and customer support software
• Free CRM
• Forever-free plan
• Advanced email marketing

Pricing: A free-forever plan and 3 paid plans, starting from $14.99/month. The Pro plan costs $99/month and offers unlimited contacts. 

Final Thoughts

Deploying a workflow automation software goes a long way in streamlining and future-proofing your business processes. We hope the products we’ve reviewed in this article help you understand what workflow automation software have to offer, and how they could help your business!