Alternative to UiPath: Fortra's Automate

As the RPA market has evolved three types of vendors have emerged based on increasing sophistication — and often — greatly increased costs. At one end you’ll find low-code or no-code automation products that offer desktop automation or productivity for individuals but can lack the functionality that would allow automation efforts to grow in number and complexity. At the opposite end, you’ll find enterprise-wide automation solutions, often called Center of Excellence (CoE) automation. These solutions offer many robust features and are great for productivity, but they may also require additional and/or ongoing spend for consultation services or highly trained staff to wring ROI.

In the middle you’ll discover the best of both models, products that combine robust features with a powerful, easy-to-use platform that even non-coders can understand. By empowering citizen developers and power users alike to create automation, companies can bring greater efficiencies, scalability, and modularity to their processes.

Comparisons between RPA solutions can help you better understand your needs and what product would be the best fit for your company. Automate from Fortra is an automation solution built with the citizen developer in mind, so you can cost-effectively scale your efforts as the needs of an enterprise evolve. UiPath, arguably the biggest player in the RPA market, lies more firmly on the CoE automation path with a focus toward large-scale automation.

Consider the following key differentiators between Automate and UiPath.

Key Reasons Automate Is a Worthy Alternative to UiPath

Ease of Use

To derive maximum ROI from an RPA solution, it must be easy to use. When evaluating RPA software, ask yourself this question: Can my business or other non-technical users develop effective bots, or will I need to hire consultants or personnel with specialized skills?

With any RPA software, insist on drag-and-drop functionality and a strong graphical user interface (GUI) that makes creating bots relatively straightforward. Automate and UiPath both offer code-free programming functionalities, but users surveyed for the 2021 Robotic Process Automation Data Quadrant Report gave Automate a distinct advantage, with 91% reporting they were satisfied with Automate’s code-free offerings, compared with 85% of UiPath users. Likewise, Automate bested UiPath on the usability and intuitiveness of the software, 86% versus 85%.

You also want to consider the skill level of your users. Overly sophisticated functionality may require consultant assistance to implement and leverage effectively, which can drive up costs and lengthening time to value. And once that’s complete, who will handle day-to-day monitoring, new bot development, and oversight?

Automate offers the perfect alternative to UiPath, as both power and non-technical users can quickly build and manage their own bots at companies of any size. The solution scales in numbers and sophistication as companies automate more processes. Users can jump-start automation efforts with a Build-A-Bot Workshop that includes how to prioritize automation projects and practical, hands-on training.

Total Cost of Ownership

To find the true cost of any software solution, you need to look beyond just the licensing and implementation costs. Is the software cost tied to the number of bots deployed? Is there a price difference between attended and unattended bots? And as previously mentioned, can current staff build and maintain bots without programming knowledge, or do you need to hire specialists?

Be sure to ask about any potential hidden costs that can negatively impact ROI, including add-on charges for expansion, additional fees for attended versus unattended bots, or rising prices for additional bots. 

Automate’s approach to automation is collaborative, developing purpose-built tools that satisfy the gamut of automation needs, from individual processes to bots deployed across the enterprise. An intuitive, easy-to-use interface requires no programming knowledge, which minimizes technical debt. Automate’s unlimited bots licensing option allows companies to grow and adapt as business needs change. Users can also deploy bots as attended or unattended with no restrictions or hidden costs to scale.

When evaluating products, be sure to consider potential technical debt that each solution could amass as technical specifications change. If something goes awry, who will fix it? An employee or a consultant?

Compare Automate to UiPath Based on Customer Reviews

Customer reviews are an important criteria when considering RPA software options. In the 2021 Robotic Process Automation Data Quadrant Report, Automate earned top ratings in eight of 18 categories and scored in the top two in four additional categories. Let’s examine several key areas side by side, comparing Automate to UiPath.

Overall Satisfaction

Overall satisfaction with software includes such factors as whether the product works as advertised and whether it will deliver value to the enterprise. Automate ranked in the top two in terms of overall satisfaction with product features, as well as overall vendor capabilities and the ability to deliver value.

Technical Capabilities

Automate outperformed UiPath in four categories that rate vendor capabilities and ranked in the top two in four additional categories. Top Automate categories versus UiPath include:
•    Ease of implementation: 89% vs. 88%
•    Ease of administration: 87% vs. 85%
•    Vendor support: 86% vs. 83%
•    Usability and intuitiveness: 86% vs. 85%

Product Features

Among six overall product features, Automate bested UiPath in three categories and ranked in the top two in overall feature satisfaction. Top Automate categories versus UiPath include:
•    Central deployment (version control, bot repository): 89% vs. 85%
•    Code-free programming: 91% vs. 85%
•    Unsupervised launch (bot action based on schedule or trigger): 87% vs. 84%

Why Automate as a Top Choice for RPA

Companies of all sizes rely on Automate to tame manual processes. A top-rated RPA platform, Automate’s robust software is easy to use and administer, with a graphic interface and drag-and-drop functionality that delivers employee-driven automation for one department or across the enterprise. No-code automation makes it easy to build, manage, and update bots as business needs change. Users can start small, then quickly grow the number of bots, bringing efficiencies and a quicker ROI. Among UiPath alternatives, Automate is a worthy opponent.