Airtable Automation Limits: What You Need to Know

Airtable automations are a powerful way to streamline workflows, minimize repetitive tasks, and improve overall productivity. However, Airtable imposes two key limits on automations: (i) the total number of automations you can have per base; and (ii) the number of automation runs allowed per month. Understanding these limits is essential to ensure your workflows operate efficiently without interruptions. Let’s break it down.

What Are the Two Types of Automation Limits?

1. Total Automations Per Base

Each Airtable base can have up to 50 automations. This limit includes both active (turned on) and inactive (turned off) automations. Even if you’re not using some of your automations, they still count toward the total. If you hit this cap, you’ll need to consolidate workflows or delete unused automations to make room for new ones.

2. Automation Runs Per Month

The number of automation runs per month depends on your Airtable plan:

• Free Plan: 100 automation runs/month

• Team Plan: 25,000 automation runs/month

• Business Plan: 100,000 automation runs/month

• Enterprise Plan: 500,000 automation runs/month

An automation run is counted every time an automation workflow is triggered, regardless of whether it completes successfully or fails, or whether it executes one action or multiple actions.

What Counts as an Automation Run?

1. Triggered Events

Each time the trigger condition for an automation is met—such as when a new record is created or updated, or a scheduled time arrives—it counts as one run. This applies even if the automation fails to execute successfully.

2. Grouped Actions

An automation can include multiple actions (e.g., sending an email, updating a record, posting to Slack). These actions are grouped under a single trigger, so no matter how many actions the automation performs, the entire process counts as one run.

How to Optimize Both Automation Limits

Managing these two limits effectively is key to maximizing the potential of Airtable automations. Here are some strategies:

1. Consolidate Automations

• Instead of creating multiple separate automations with similar triggers, combine them into a single automation with conditional logic or multiple actions. This reduces the number of automations and keeps you within the 50-automation limit.

2. Be Specific about Conditions

• Use very specific conditions under the "When a record matches conditions…" trigger, to ensure that automations only run when necessary. This prevents runs from being consumed unnecessarily.

3. Audit and Streamline

• Regularly review your automations to deactivate or delete workflows that are no longer in use. This helps free up space within your 50-automation cap and ensures runs aren’t wasted.

4. Minimize Testing

• Plan your automation logic carefully to reduce the number of tests during development.

5. Use Batch Processes

• If your workflows involve updating many records, consider using Airtable scripting or third-party tools like Zapier, Make, or N8N, to perform batch updates without triggering excessive automation runs. Check this post for more information on what automation software is best for you.

What Happens If You Exceed These Limits?

1. If You Reach the 50-Automation Cap:

• You won’t be able to create new automations until you delete or consolidate existing ones.

2. If You Exceed Your Monthly Run Limit:

• Automations will stop functioning until the next billing cycle begins.

• To prevent disruptions, upgrade to a plan with a higher run limit if your workflows consistently exceed your current quota.

Conclusion

Understanding both the 50-automation limit per base and the monthly automation run limits is critical to building efficient, scalable workflows in Airtable. By consolidating workflows, optimizing automation logic, and tracking your usage, you can ensure your processes run smoothly without hitting these constraints. Airtable automations are a powerful tool, and with proper planning, you can leverage them to their fullest potential while staying within your plan’s limits.