# Softr Workflows: Triggers, Actions, Limits and Stripe Steps

> How to build Softr Workflows: triggers, actions, AI steps, webhooks and code from Pro, monthly action limits per plan, Stripe steps and when to use Zapier.

_Source: https://professionalstoolkit.com/articles/softr-workflows — The Professional's Toolkit · updated November 2026_

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Softr Workflows is the automation builder inside Softr, and every plan includes it, Free among them. Each workflow starts from one trigger (a database change, a form submission, an app button, an incoming email, a webhook or a schedule) and then runs actions, logic steps and AI steps. The real ceiling is a monthly count of executed actions per workspace: 500 on Free, 2,500 on Basic, 10,000 on Pro and 25,000 on Business. At that count your workflows pause until it renews or you upgrade. The Webhook trigger, Call API and Run code need Pro. Our verdict: build natively when the event happens in Softr, and keep Make.com, Zapier or n8n for automations that live mostly in other tools.


**10,000 actions a month** — Workflow actions executed per month on Softr Pro, per workspace; workflows pause at the limit until it renews or you upgrade



- **500 actions** — Workflow actions executed per month on Softr's Free plan, per workspace
- **Pro** — Lowest Softr plan with the Webhook trigger, Call API and Run code workflow steps
- **Once per item** — How every action inside a Softr workflow loop counts toward the monthly action limit


## What each plan lets a workflow do

| Workflow limit (per workspace) | Free | Basic | Pro | Business |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Actions executed per month | 500 | 2,500 | 10,000 | 25,000 |
| Max execution time | 5 minutes | 10 minutes | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Run history kept | 7 days | 1 month | 2 months | 3 months |
| Email trigger, loops, Extract PDF, Scrape webpage, Compress files | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Webhook trigger, Call API, Run code | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Your own AI key for AI actions | No | No | No | Yes |

Enterprise limits are custom, and the comparison table lists unlimited workflows and steps on every plan [1]. What counts is **actions executed**. Triggers do not count, and neither do flow-control steps such as Wait, Branch, Filter and the Bulk actions wrapper. Three things push the tally up: every action inside a loop runs once per item, some actions such as sending email can use more than one execution, and an AI step on Softr's built-in models counts as an action while also spending AI credits. Counts reset monthly with no rollover [2].

When Basic's 2,500 actions keep running out, Pro is the next rung: $119 per month billed monthly with 50 AI credits a month, or $99 per month billed annually, per workspace. By our arithmetic that is $94 more per month than Basic on monthly billing, or $80 more per month on annual billing. Prices are before tax and the yearly plan is paid upfront; the [full pricing breakdown](/articles/softr-pricing) covers builders, app users and refunds. Loops are the usual culprit. Check them before you upgrade.

## Stage one: choose the event that starts the run

Every workflow has exactly one trigger. The Softr Databases triggers (record added, updated, deleted, meets conditions, enters a view) fire instantly and need no specific plan; they stopped polling every minute in February 2026. App triggers cover Submit form, Run custom workflow from an action button, and records created or edited in the interface, and only these synchronous triggers can show the user a wait screen. User added and Comment added are slower: a background service checks for them about once a minute [3].

The built-in triggers carry the plan gates. Email received gives the workflow a Softr inbound address, fires instantly and needs Basic or higher. The Webhook trigger needs Pro: Softr generates a unique POST endpoint per workflow and accepts files up to 10 MB each. Schedules can be one-time or recurring, as often as every minute or as rarely as monthly, with a weekend switch. The timezone defaults to Los Angeles time. Change it first.

Integration triggers exist for 24 tools. Those on Airtable, Gmail, Outlook, Google Sheets, Notion and HubSpot poll about once a minute (for HubSpot, every minute from Pro, as the interval depends on the plan), so a run starts shortly after the change rather than at once; the Airtable trigger offers only Record updated. Attio and Zoho CRM triggers arrive instantly through webhooks, and a bulk edit in Zoho CRM starts one run per record, each spending its own actions. Pick instant triggers when timing matters.

## Stage two: actions, branches and AI steps

The action list covers records in Softr Databases, email through Gmail, Outlook or Postmark, Slack messages, Google Calendar events, Extract PDF, Scrape webpage and ZIP archives. Since June 2026 a workflow can also invite, activate and deactivate app users. Integration actions reach HubSpot, monday.com, Airtable, Salesforce, DocuSign, QuickBooks and many more, and a lot of them run on your own account and plan with the third party, so that side's limits still apply.

Logic needs no code. Branch handles if/else paths, Filter ends a run early and Transform Data applies formulas, all on every plan; Loop walks through a list (nested loops allowed) from Basic up, where Bulk actions arrive. One rule catches people out: **every branch whose condition is true runs**, in parallel, with no else path. Write conditions that exclude each other. Slack messages with Approve and Reject buttons pause a run until someone clicks, so a single run can last minutes, hours or days.

AI actions offer a custom prompt with structured JSON output, plus Write, Summarize and Categorize, on models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Mistral and DeepSeek. On Softr's built-in models they draw on the workspace pool of AI credits: 5 a month on Free, 10 on Basic, 50 on Pro and 100 on Business. Plan credits reset monthly and do not roll over, while add-on credits, sold on every plan, roll over for one month ([pricing details](/articles/softr-pricing)). At zero, AI steps pause with no overage charge. Business and Enterprise can plug in their own key, and the provider bills that usage. The [guide to Softr's AI features](/articles/softr-ai-app-builder) covers credits in depth.


> 💡 **Make branch conditions exclusive:** Every Softr branch whose condition is true runs, in parallel, with no else path. Write conditions that cannot both match the same record.


### The steps that start on Pro for technical builders

Call API sends requests to any REST endpoint, can import a cURL command and saves API keys or OAuth credentials across workflows. Run custom code takes JavaScript or Python; version 1.2.0 allows about two minutes per run and caps fetch at 20 calls per second. There is no file system, no environment variables and no third-party Python packages, and Softr asks you to attach credentials as integrations rather than paste them into code. Respond to Webhook returns text or JSON, so paired with the Webhook trigger (Pro) a workflow can serve as a lightweight API.

## Stage three: test, publish, then read the run log

Building happens in a Testing tab. Event-based triggers need a real test event, and a step's output reaches later steps only after that step has been tested. Every step needs a passing test before you can publish, although branch and filter steps have no test preview. Tests are not runs. Only a published workflow does anything and records executions; unpublishing stops it and keeps the steps, which makes it the safe way to pause a flow you are reworking [2].

The Runs list shows every execution with step-by-step inputs, outputs and errors, kept as long as your plan's run history allows. Since June 2026 you can replay failed executions and let a run continue on error. Retries cover only temporary failures such as rate limits, server errors and timeouts, and cannot be set on loops or steps inside one. Since October 2026 a usage history under Settings, Plan and billing shows runs, steps and credits per workflow over the last 90 days.


> ⚠ **Loops spend actions per item:** Each action inside a Softr workflow loop runs once per item, and AI steps on Softr's models also spend AI credits. At the monthly action limit, workflows pause until it renews or you upgrade.


Few flows start from a blank canvas. A workflow can begin from a template or from a description given to the Workflows AI Co-builder (December 2025), which also helps write JavaScript or Python. Softr's MCP server, free on every plan, can rebuild an automation from a screenshot of its flow, though through MCP an assistant can also permanently delete records, tables and databases, with no undo or trash, unless its access is View only ([full review](/articles/softr-review)). The Softr CLI pulls a workflow into files and pushes edits back as a new draft. The CLI supports a limited set of step types, so integration-heavy flows still belong in the builder.

## Charging customers: Stripe steps and blocks

Stripe joined the workflow integrations in April 2026, and Stripe triggers followed in June 2026. You connect by pasting your Stripe Secret API key into Softr; the actions cover customers, payment intents, charges, coupons, balance, products, prices, subscriptions and invoices [4]. One action deserves care. Cancel subscription ends the subscription immediately; to keep a customer's access until the paid period ends, use Update subscription with cancel at period end. Read that twice before you wire a cancel button.


> 💡 **Cancel Stripe subscriptions at period end:** The Stripe Cancel subscription action in Softr ends it immediately. Use Update subscription with cancel at period end to keep access until the paid period runs out.


The checkout itself lives in app blocks, not in workflows. Stripe Checkout needs your own Stripe account with products and pricing plans, plus your publishable and secret keys in the app settings. The Pricing block handles monthly and yearly cycles, promotion codes and automatic tax, and the Simple Billing block lets app users view invoices, change plan and cancel. On Pro and higher, where custom user groups are available, group conditions can read Stripe purchases or subscriptions, so only buyers see a paid block. A workflow then handles what follows the payment.

## Where Make.com, Zapier or n8n still earn a place

Softr says it works with Make.com, Zapier and n8n alongside its own workflows, and Softr Databases has native connectors for all three: Zapier since July 2025, Make.com and n8n since August 2025. The case for staying native is proximity. Softr Workflows react to in-app actions and database changes and use the app's data and permissions directly, and Softr says its database triggers avoid external rate limits. If the event and the data both sit in Softr, an outside tool adds a hop.

An outside tool still makes sense in three situations. Your trigger may come from a service outside Softr's 24 integration triggers. You may be on Free or Basic, without the Webhook trigger, and want a tool you already pay for to receive the call and write into Softr Databases. Or your automations may span many apps that never touch Softr. On the Zapier route, the Send to Zapier form action does not pass files, and Softr notes that Webhooks by Zapier is a paid Zapier feature.

Moving automations in is partly assisted. Migrate from Airtable (October 2026) brings a base's automations across as draft workflows that stay off until you turn them on, and any Run script step must be rewritten. Softr also says Relay.app is shutting down (post dated July 2026) with no one-click migration, so those flows are rebuilt by hand. Budget a test pass for every imported flow. Drafts never run on their own.


## FAQ

**Can a Softr workflow send notifications to app users?**

Yes. The Send Notification action delivers in-app notifications from Pro and push notifications from Business, and only from a published app; push reaches only users who granted browser permission, and on iOS only those who installed the app as a PWA.

**Can I build Softr workflows from Claude or ChatGPT?**

Yes. Softr's MCP server lets assistants such as Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor create workflows in plain language; it is free on every plan and spends no Softr AI credits, and access to Workflows can be set to Full, Read only or None. Through MCP an assistant can also permanently delete records, tables and databases, with no undo or trash, unless its Databases access is View only.

**Do Supabase steps work on every Softr plan?**

No. The Supabase workflow integration needs Softr Pro or higher; it connects through the SQL / Database action with your project's PostgreSQL credentials.

**Can a Vibe Coding block start a Softr workflow?**

Yes, from Pro. Softr says a Vibe Coding block can trigger a Softr Workflow through a webhook and wait for the response, and the Webhook trigger needs Softr Pro or higher.


## The bottom line

Softr Workflows earns its keep when the trigger is a Softr record, form or button: instant triggers, app permissions and no extra subscription. Size the plan by executed actions, not by the number of workflows, and remember that loops multiply and AI steps also spend credits. Free and Basic cover database-driven flows; webhooks, Call API and custom code start on Pro. Keep Make.com, Zapier or n8n where the automation lives outside Softr, and handle Stripe cancellations with the period-end option.



## Sources

[1] Softr plans and pricing — https://www.softr.io/pricing (2026-11)
[2] Softr docs: Workflows — https://docs.softr.io/workflows/workflows (2026-11)
[3] Softr docs: Trigger Types — https://docs.softr.io/workflows/trigger-types (2026-11)
[4] Softr docs: Stripe integration — https://docs.softr.io/workflows/integrations/stripe (2026-11)
[5] Softr help docs — https://docs.softr.io/start-here/welcome
[6] Softr Terms and Conditions — https://www.softr.io/terms
[7] Softr Privacy Policy — https://www.softr.io/policy