[ POST LAST UPDATED JANUARY 30, 2022 TO REFLECT UPDATES TO ASANA AND FLOWSANA RULES]
As you may know, Asana recently introduced an If-Then Rules capability. A number of users have asked how this functionality compares to Flowsana’s If-Then Rules. In response, here are some tables comparing Asana vs. Flowsana.
While Asana has a few triggers and actions that Flowsana does not have (yet!), you’ll see that overall Flowsana can handle almost all rule conditions and actions that Asana can, plus Flowsana provides a number of important capabilities that Asana does not, including, for example, support for tags and the ability to auto-create new Asana projects.
It’s also important to note that Flowsana’s If-Then Rules comprise only one of its five different types of workflow automation – Flowsana does much more than just If-Then Rules!
Rules Comparison - Conditions/Triggers
| Condition/Trigger | Asana Premium | Asana Business | Flowsana |
|---|---|---|---|
| Task added | No | YES | YES |
| Task put in a certain column/section | Limited | YES | YES |
| Task moved out of a certain column/section | No | No | YES |
| Task assigned (to any user) | No | No | YES |
| Task assigned to a certain user | No | YES | YES |
| Task unassigned | No | No | YES |
| Certain tag added to task | No | No | YES |
| Certain tag removed from task | No | No | YES |
| Task marked complete | Limited | YES | YES |
| Task changed to incomplete | No | No | YES |
| Certain custom field set to a certain value | Limited | Dropdown-list fields only | YES |
| Task added to a certain other project | No | No | YES |
| Task marked as a Milestone | No | No | YES |
| Task name contains certain words or text | No | No | YES |
| Due Date set or cleared | No | YES | No |
| Due Date approaching or past due by a certain amount | No | YES (not immediate, only at midnight) | YES (both immediate and at midnight) |
| Start Date approaching or past due by a certain amount | No | No | YES (both immediate and at midnight) |
| Comment added | No | YES | No |
| Attachment added | No | YES | No |
| Dependent task no longer blocked | No | YES | No |
| Approval completed | No | YES | No |
Rules Comparison - Actions
| Action | Asana Premium | Asana Business | Flowsana |
|---|---|---|---|
| Add task to another project | No | YES | YES |
| Move task to another project | No | YES | YES |
| Move task to certain column/section | Limited | YES | YES |
| Assign task to a certain user | No | YES | YES |
| Unassign task | No | YES | YES |
| Add certain tag to task | No | No | YES |
| Remove certain tag from task | No | No | YES |
| Mark task complete | Limited | YES | YES |
| Change task to incomplete | No | YES | YES |
| Set a certain custom field to a certain value | Limited | Dropdown-list fields only | YES |
| Set or modify task's name to a certain value | No | No | YES |
| Set task's due date | No | YES | No |
| Add collaborators to task | No | YES | No |
| Add a comment | No | YES | No |
| Set task as an Approval task | No | No | YES |
| Send an email notification to certain users | No | No | YES |
| Create a new project from a template | No | No | YES |
| Add subtasks from a template | Limited | Limited | YES |
| Move task's project to another team | No | No | YES |
| Archive task's project | No | No | YES |
What does “Limited” mean in the Asana Premium column?
While the Asana Business-level subscription allows you to create your own custom rules (just as you do in Flowsana), the rules capability in Asana’s Premium-level subscription consists of a limited set of predefined rules that you can choose from. Specifically, here are the options you have in Asana Premium:
Asana Premium Predefined Rules
| Condition/Trigger | Action |
|---|---|
| Task moved to a certain column/section | Mark task complete |
| Task moved to a certain column/section | Set a certain custom field to a certain value |
| Certain custom field changed to a certain value | Mark task complete |
| Certain custom field changed to a certain value | Move task to a certain column/section |
| Task marked complete | Set a certain custom field to a certain value |
| Task marked complete | Move task to a certain column/section |
Additionally, Flowsana’s rules support variable substitution, allowing you to insert values from custom fields, as well as task, project, and section names, in a number of places.
You can include any of the following text strings:
{task.[custom-field-name]}
{task.name}
{project.name}
{section.name}
and Flowsana will replace the string with the value specified by it.
You can use these special strings in the following places:
- The If task contains the word or phrase ______ rule condition
- The Set custom field ______ to the value ______ rule action
- The Set task name to ______ rule action
Lastly, Flowsana’s rules can be applied to your My Tasks list whereas Asana’s rules cannot.