When it comes to automating your workflow, monday.com has a few powerful tools to help you accomplish any goal. The right tool for you may depend on where you're at in your monday.com journey. Read on to learn more about the differences between these automation tools and decide which one is perfect for you and your team right now!

 

Automations

What are Automations?

Automations allow you to build flows to automate your work processes within monday.com. They can be entirely custom or built from a pre-prepared template. Automations are an ideal, no-code way to eliminate manual work on a single board or across a pair of boards.

Where do you set up an automation?

On a board. You set up an automation on a single board. It can function across boards, but it lives on your board after it's created.

 

Integrations

What are Integrations?

Integrations are ideal for consolidating your work. With Integrations, you can turn your monday.com account into your work hub. Our Integrations allow you to connect monday.com to external platforms. This is done by choosing a predefined Integration flow to automate the exchange of information between the two platforms. You can send information from one platform to the other. You can also create a two-way sync to automatically update fields in either direction so that there is no confusion when referencing either platform. 

Where do you set up an integration?

On a board. You set up an integration on a single board. It can function across boards, but it lives on your board after it's created.

 

monday workflows

What is monday workflows?

monday workflows is your go-to tool for bringing all of the elements of your workflow together. monday workflows incorporates automation, integration, and simplicity to help you create the harmony your work needs. Entirely customizable and entirely visual, the builder uses drag-and-drop blocks to make your workflow dreams a reality.

Where do you set up a workflow?

Within a workspace. When you create a workflow, it lives in your workspace as a separate entity, listed alongside your boards.

 

Similarities

There are similarities between the three tools. All of these tools:

• are ideal for automating. They can all make your life easier by eliminating manual work. (And, potentially, manual error!)
• allow for customization. While the extent of your options to customize varies by tool, all tools allow for some level of customization. You can build what you need, how you need it!
• run on the same infrastructure. This is a technical note, but it may be helpful if you're integrating with the help of your engineers or IT department. 

 

Differences

There are a few key differences that may help you decide where to get started.

✨ Where Automations shine:

• Automation templates take some of the guesswork and planning out of automating. This is best for processes that don't require many steps. Ideally, the process takes place on one board, though you can use automations across boards. Either way, the best way to use automations is in isolation-- they are not the ideal tool for a larger automating project, such as automating an entire workflow.

✨ Where Integrations shine:

• If you're most interested in integrating monday.com with an external tool, Integrations are ideal. When integrating is your priority, consider using Integrations. However, if integrations are one element of a much larger automation need, consider using integrations within monday workflows. To learn more about which Integrations are available with monday workflows, check out the "monday workflows: Integrations" article.

✨ Where monday workflows shines:

• If you're going big, monday workflows is the only way to go! monday workflows can be used for smaller processes, but it's ideal for building out an extensive workflow across multiple boards and tools. monday workflows is unique in that it gives you the ability to visually build out a workflow, seeing integrations and automations side-by-side on one canvas. The canvas becomes a simple, visual map of how each automated element of your workflow works together.
• If you're working in a language other than English, you'll find monday workflows is easier to work with. While Automations and Integrations will remain in English regardless of the language you're using monday.com in, monday workflows will default to the language that you're using across your monday.com account.

 

How to choose

To figure out where to start, ask yourself the following questions:

 

Which element of my workflow is most important?

Additional questions to consider: Do I only need automations or integrations? If I need both, which is most important?

If you need both and they are equally important, consider the scope of your workflow. 

 

What is the scope of my workflow?

Additional questions to consider: How many elements are you trying to automate together? How many boards will be involved? Will you require enough elements that if they were separate, there might be some confusion when thinking about how they work together?

 

Will automation be essential to keeping my work flowing seamlessly?

Additional questions to consider: If automation will be integral to your work flowing seamlessly, consider monday workflows.

 

 

If you have any questions, please reach out to our team right here. We’re available 24/7 and happy to help.