In today’s fast-paced business environment, you can automate many business processes to streamline operations and maximize productivity. You can use Power Automate Desktop to do so.
In this tutorial, I will explain the basics of Power Automate Desktop, the License types, and how to install it on your desktop. Then I will explain how to create a flow using Microsoft Power Automate Desktop.
What Is Power Automate Desktop?
Power Automate Desktop is a desktop automation solution developed by Microsoft that interacts with the local system to automate repetitive desktop processes, such as copying files, renaming files, extracting data from web pages, etc.
Users do not need programming skills or coding experience to use the Power Automate desktop. They can create a flow by dragging and dropping the action into the workspace designer or recording the flow to run it later.
You can use the existing actions or record your own desktop flows to convert the steps into actions and run them later.
There are over 450 pre-built connectors available on the Power Automate desktop. It enables the RPA features [Robotic Process Automation] in Power Automate.
The latest 2025 release wave 1 plan (April 2025 to September 2025) introduces exciting new functionalities that make Power Automate Desktop even more powerful. These updates focus on enhanced AI capabilities, improved security features, and even more seamless integration with the broader Microsoft ecosystem.
Check out Power Automate Desktop Flow Examples
Key Features of Power Automate Desktop
First, let me explain a few key features of Microsoft Power Automate Desktop and why it is a popular automation tool for many organizations.
1. User-Friendly Interface with Low-Code/No-Code Capabilities
One of the most appealing aspects of Power Automate Desktop is its accessibility. You don’t need to be a coding expert to create sophisticated automations. The drag-and-drop interface allows users to create sophisticated logic in automating tasks without writing a single line of code.
2. Seamless Integration with Microsoft Ecosystem
Power Automate Desktop excels at integration with other Microsoft tools, making it a natural extension of your existing technology stack. Whether you’re working with Excel, Outlook, SharePoint, or Dynamics 365, Power Automate Desktop bridges these applications to create cohesive, automated workflows.
3. Robust Recording Capabilities
The desktop recorder function lets you capture your actions as you perform them, automatically generating the corresponding automation script. This feature is particularly useful for beginners who are just getting started with automation.
4. Cross-Application Automation
Unlike many automation tools that are limited to web applications, Power Automate Desktop can work across both modern and legacy applications, Windows desktop applications, and web systems, making it incredibly useful.
Power Automate Desktop Flow License Types
Here are the high-level license types available for Power Automate Desktop, but I always recommend following the Microsoft documentation for the latest plans.
| Free Version | Attended RPA Plan | Unattended RPA Plan |
|---|---|---|
| This is a free version with some limitations. | Available at $40 per user per month plan. | Available at $150 per bot per month. |
| This Flow cannot interact with the cloud flows. | This Flow can interact with the cloud flows. | This Flow can interact with the cloud flows. |
| Can not run the attended Robot Process Automation. | Ability for the user to run an attended Robotic Process Automation(RPA) bot. | Unattended RPA plans are eligible for a base offer for an unattended RPA add-on. |
| It does not include AI builder capacity. | It includes access to AI builder capacity. | It also includes access to AI builder capacity. |
| For personal use | For Enterprise-level use | For Enterprise-level use |
Check out Convert JSON to Custom Object in Power Automate Desktop
Power Automate Desktop Installation Steps
Follow the steps below to install the Power Automate desktop.
- You can open your Power Automate Home page by browsing make.powerautomate.com or by using the app launcher from the M365 Apps section.
- On the left navigation options, click on + Create, and click on the Install drop-down in the top left corner. Then, click on Power Automate on the desktop.
- Now, the Power Automate desktop will start downloading.
- Once the Setup.Microsoft.PowerAutomate.exe is downloaded. Click on it to run or install Power Automate desktop.
- Once the Power Automate desktop flow is open, click Next to install the Power Automate Package.
- Next, it will open Installation details where you select according to your requirement. Select the checkbox ‘By selecting install, you agree to Microsoft’s terms of use’ option. Then click on the install icon.
- Then, it will install the package by showing the image below with a progress tracker.
- After the progress, it will show that the installation is successful. In that window, click on the Launch app button.
- Now, the Power Automate Desktop will open. Sign in with your credentials.
That’s it, now you can have the Power Automate desktop on your system.
Check out How to Schedule Power Automate Desktop Flows?
Create Your First Power Automate Desktop Flow
Now, let me show you the steps on how to create your first Power Automate desktop flow.
Check out the steps below to create a desktop flow in Power Automate.
Here, in this example, I wanted to get the current time and display it as a message.
- Open the Power Automate Desktop app that you have downloaded.
- Then, click on the Flows icon in the left navigation. You can also click on the + New drop-down and add a Flow.
- In the Create a flow dialogue box, provide a flow name and click on the “Create” button. The flow will then be added to my Flows section, where you can design it.
- After that, click on the Edit icon to add the actions to the flow.
- On the left navigation, Actions will be there, where you can add to the desktop flow. Search and add the Get current date and time action. Provide parameters below:
- Retrieve: Select the current date and time
- Time zone: Choose the desired time zone.
Then, click on the Save button.
Since the datetime variable isn't in a text format, the flow converts it to text and selects only the time from it. 
- Then, add a Convert datetime to text action. Specify the parameters below and click on the Save button.
- Datetime to convert: Enter the variable taken.
- Format to use: Select a format from the drop-down.
- Standard format: Choose format option.
- To display the time, add a Display message action. Configure the parameters below:
- Message box title: Provide the Title for the message box.
- Message to display: Enter your display message.
- Message box icon: Select the Information option from the drop-down.
Then, click on the Save button.
- The complete desktop flow is shown in the image below. Now, the flow is ready. Click on the Save icon and then the Run icon.
- When the flow runs successfully, it will display a message box with the current time. You can have a look at the reference image:
This is an Introduction to the Power Automate desktop, how to install it, and how to start creating flows using it.
If you found this article helpful, please let us know your suggestions in the comments section.
You may like the following tutorials:
- Extract Tables from a PDF using Power Automate Desktop
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After working for more than 18 years in Microsoft technologies like SharePoint, Microsoft 365, and Power Platform (Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power BI), I thought will share my SharePoint expertise knowledge with the world. Our audiences are from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, etc. For my expertise knowledge and SharePoint tutorials, Microsoft has been awarded a Microsoft SharePoint MVP (12 times). I have also worked in companies like HP, TCS, KPIT, etc.
