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Getting Started with Record-Triggered Flows
Record-triggered flows automatically run when someone creates, updates, or deletes a record in Salesforce. After they’re triggered, they perform actions such as updating records, creating records, and sending emails. There are two types of record-triggered flows. Learn how they differ so you can use the one that works best for your situation.
Required Editions
| View supported editions. |
| User Permissions Needed | |
|---|---|
| To open, edit, create, activate or deactivate a flow using all flow types, elements, and features available in Flow Builder, including Einstein and Agentforce for Flow: | Manage Flow |
What Are Record-Triggered Flows?
Record-triggered flows are different from other types of flows. Screen flows require someone to click through screens, and scheduled flows run at specific times (like every day at midnight). Record-triggered flows run automatically in the background whenever someone creates, updates, or deletes a specific type of record.
After you activate a record-triggered flow, it runs every time—whether through the Salesforce interface, a spreadsheet import, or an API integration.
Why Use Record-Triggered Flows?
Imagine you're managing opportunities. Every time someone closes a major deal, you create a follow-up task, send an email to the sales manager, and update a discount field. That's lots of manual work, and it's easy to forget a step.
With record-triggered flows, you set up the automation one time, and it runs automatically every time. No more forgetting important steps, no more manual data entry, and no more inconsistent processes. The flow watches your records 24/7 and acts whenever a record meets your conditions.
Think of record-triggered flows as tireless assistants that never sleep, never forget, and always follow your rules exactly. They're perfect for:
- Enforcing data quality and business rules consistently across your org.
- Eliminating repetitive manual tasks that waste time.
- Ensuring important follow-up actions never get missed.
- Keeping related records in sync automatically.
- Standardizing processes so everyone follows the same steps.
- Responding instantly to changes without human intervention.
What Can Record-Triggered Flows Do?
Record-triggered flows are incredibly versatile. Here are a few examples of what you can automate:
- Update fields on a record before it's saved, such as calculating a discount or setting a status.
- After you save a record, create a related record, such as a task or case.
- Send email notifications when important changes happen, such as alerting a manager about a high-value opportunity.
- Prevent bad data from being saved by validating records and showing error messages.
- Generate confirmation codes, reference numbers, or other auto-calculated values.
The Two Types of Record-Triggered Flows
Record-triggered flows come in two flavors, and understanding the difference helps you choose the right one for your needs:
| Flow Type | When It Runs | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
| Before-Save Flows (Fast Field Updates) | Right when someone clicks Save, before Salesforce writes the record to the database. | When you want to update fields, validate data, or prevent duplicates on the triggering record. Up to 10 times faster than after-save flows because they skip an extra save operation. |
| After-Save Flows (Actions and Related Records) | After Salesforce saves the record to the database and assigns it a record ID. | When you want to create records, send emails, or connect to external systems—anything beyond updating or checking the triggering record. |
Learn more in Choose Between Before-Save and After-Save Record-Triggered Flows
Determining When the Flow Triggers
Deciding when you want your record-triggered flow to start running begins with the business outcome you want. Consider what changes to which object starts the automation. For example, when you qualify a lead, mark an opportunity Closed Won, or escalate a case. That tells you the object, whether you care about create, update, or delete, and which field or state change matters.
Use the Start element to set the trigger (when a user creates, updates, or deletes a record). Then, add entry conditions so the flow runs only when the record matches those criteria. Conditions keep the flow from running on every change and help you stay within limits while targeting the right records.
Learn more in How Entry Conditions Work in Record-Triggered Flows.
How to Work with the Triggering Record
In record-triggered flows, the triggering record is the record whose creation, update, or deletion starts the flow. You work with this record throughout the flow by using the Triggering {Record} ($Record) resource, which is available in every element in the flow. This variable's API name is $Record, and the label is Triggering {Record}, where {Record} is the object of the record. For example, Triggering Contact.
$Record reflects the saved version of the record. It's a record variable and gives you the current field values of the triggering record right before the flow runs. Use $Record to perform actions later in the flow. For example, create a related opportunity for a Triggering Account, or send an email to the Triggering Contact.
Learn more in Using the Triggering Record in Record-Triggered Flows.
Tips for Success
Here are a few tips to help you succeed with record-triggered flows:
- Start simple. Build a basic flow that does one thing well, then add complexity as you get more comfortable.
- Always test in a sandbox before activating flows in production. You can experiment without affecting real data.
- Use clear, descriptive labels and descriptions for your flows and elements. It makes it easier for you or someone else to update the flow in the future.
- Add entry conditions to your triggers so flows run only when necessary. This improves performance and prevents unnecessary flow runs.
