Is Cockroach Labs or Microsoft Power Automate better?

Neither clearly leads. Cockroach Labs starts at Free and Microsoft Power Automate at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Cockroach Labs or Microsoft Power Automate?

Cockroach Labs starts at Free and Microsoft Power Automate at Free.

Does Cockroach Labs or Microsoft Power Automate run on more platforms?

Cockroach Labs runs on AWS, GCP, Azure. Microsoft Power Automate runs on Web, Cloud, Desktop.

Can I use Cockroach Labs for free?

Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.

What is Cockroach Labs best used for?

Cockroach Labs is most often used for distributed sql database for scalable applications, multi-region deployment and failover. Of those, distributed sql database for scalable applications and multi-region deployment and failover are not what Microsoft Power Automate is typically brought in for.

What can Cockroach Labs do that Microsoft Power Automate cannot?

Cockroach Labs covers Distributed SQL, Automatic Sharding, Multi-region Replication, Geo-partitioning. Microsoft Power Automate covers Automated flows, Instant flows, Scheduled flows, Desktop automation. Both handle SOC2, HIPAA, Encryption.

Database & Data Management · head to head

Cockroach Labs vs Microsoft Power Automate

Cockroach Labs

Database & Data Management

The cloud-native distributed SQL database

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Microsoft Power Automate

Automation & Integration

Automate tasks across cloud and on-premises apps

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: Cockroach Labs basic and Standard tiers limited to AWS and GCP (select regions only); Microsoft Power Automate free plan limited to 750 flow runs/month and standard connectors only; premium connectors require paid plans
They diverge on capability: Cockroach Labs covers Distributed SQL, Microsoft Power Automate covers Automated flows.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cockroach Labs and Microsoft Power Automate actually diverge.

Attributes where Cockroach Labs and Microsoft Power Automate differ
Attribute	Cockroach Labs	Microsoft Power Automate
Pricing model	freemium	Unknown
Platforms	AWS, GCP, Azure	Web, Cloud, Desktop
Category	Database & Data Management	Automation & Integration
Founded	2015	2016

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Cockroach Labs

Distributed SQL
Automatic Sharding
Multi-region Replication
Geo-partitioning
ACID Transactions
Horizontal Scaling
Survivability
PostgreSQL Compatibility

Only in Microsoft Power Automate

Automated flows
Instant flows
Scheduled flows
Desktop automation
Process mining
Business process flows
Approval workflows
500+ connectors

Both cover

SOC2
HIPAA
Encryption

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Cockroach Labs

Distributed SQL database for scalable applicationsnot Microsoft Power Automate
Multi-region deployment and failovernot Microsoft Power Automate

Microsoft Power Automate

Workflow Automationnot Cockroach Labs
Data Integrationnot Cockroach Labs
Process Automationnot Cockroach Labs
App Integrationnot Cockroach Labs
API Connectivitynot Cockroach Labs

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Cockroach Labs

Basic and Standard tiers limited to AWS and GCP (select regions only)
Azure support restricted to Advanced tier only
Basic tier limited to 50 million RUs and 10 GiB storage per month
Advanced tier starts at $0.60/hour for 4 vCPUs minimum
3 TiB maximum storage on Basic and Standard tiers, 10 TiB per node on Advanced

Microsoft Power Automate

Free plan limited to 750 flow runs/month and standard connectors only; premium connectors require paid plans
Not suitable for long-running workflows; can fail unexpectedly without warning
Limited to simple linear logic; fails with complex workflows involving multiple stakeholders
Tasks cannot automate at scale when requiring more than approximately 60 users

Pricing, plan by plan

Cockroach Labs

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Cockroach Labs review.

Microsoft Power Automate

Free

FreeFree
- 750 flow runs/month
- Standard connectors only
- Basic cloud flows
Premium$15/user/month
- Cloud flows (DPA)
- Attended RPA
- 250 MB Dataverse database
Process$150/bot/month
- Unattended automation
- Cloud and desktop flows
- 50 MB Dataverse database
Hosted Process$215/bot/month
- Microsoft-managed virtual machine
- Unattended automation
- Same Dataverse entitlements as Process plan

Which should you pick?

Choose Cockroach Labs if

You need distributed sql.
You want to start without paying.
You work on AWS, GCP, Azure.
You also want automatic sharding.

Cockroach Labs review

Choose Microsoft Power Automate if

You need automated flows.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Web, Cloud, Desktop.
You also want instant flows.

Microsoft Power Automate review

Questions people ask

Is Cockroach Labs or Microsoft Power Automate better?: Neither clearly leads. Cockroach Labs starts at Free and Microsoft Power Automate at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cockroach Labs or Microsoft Power Automate?: Cockroach Labs starts at Free and Microsoft Power Automate at Free.
Does Cockroach Labs or Microsoft Power Automate run on more platforms?: Cockroach Labs runs on AWS, GCP, Azure. Microsoft Power Automate runs on Web, Cloud, Desktop.
Can I use Cockroach Labs for free?: Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Cockroach Labs best used for?: Cockroach Labs is most often used for distributed sql database for scalable applications, multi-region deployment and failover. Of those, distributed sql database for scalable applications and multi-region deployment and failover are not what Microsoft Power Automate is typically brought in for.
What can Cockroach Labs do that Microsoft Power Automate cannot?: Cockroach Labs covers Distributed SQL, Automatic Sharding, Multi-region Replication, Geo-partitioning. Microsoft Power Automate covers Automated flows, Instant flows, Scheduled flows, Desktop automation. Both handle SOC2, HIPAA, Encryption.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Microsoft Power Automate: Is Power Automate included with Microsoft 365?

Yes. If you have an eligible Microsoft 365 subscription, you can use Power Automate at no extra cost for flows relying only on standard connectors (SharePoint, Outlook, Teams). Premium connectors (Salesforce, SAP, Oracle) require paid plans.

Source

Microsoft Power Automate: How many flow runs are allowed on the free plan?

Power Automate's free tier (included with Microsoft 365) is limited to 750 flow runs per month and standard connectors only. Out of 900+ total connectors, the free plan only includes Microsoft ecosystem apps and limited third-party apps.

Source

Microsoft Power Automate: What's the difference between Premium and Process plans?

Premium ($15/user/month) provides attended automation with cloud flows and standard RPA. Process plan ($150/bot/month) enables unattended automation where bots run without human intervention on virtual machines for high-volume, repetitive tasks.

Source

Microsoft Power Automate: Does Power Automate support long-running workflows?

No. Power Automate is not suitable for long-lasting workflows because they can run without warning and fail unexpectedly. The platform is built for linear, branching logic (if-then) rather than complex, multi-step business processes involving multiple stakeholders.

Source

Cockroach Labs vs Microsoft Power Automate

Cockroach Labs

Microsoft Power Automate

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Cockroach Labs

Only in Microsoft Power Automate

Both cover

What people use each for

Cockroach Labs

Microsoft Power Automate

Where each one falls short

Cockroach Labs

Microsoft Power Automate

Pricing, plan by plan

Cockroach Labs

Microsoft Power Automate

Which should you pick?

Choose Cockroach Labs if

Choose Microsoft Power Automate if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Cockroach Labs

More on Microsoft Power Automate

Keep looking

Other head to heads