Screen versus record-triggered versus autolaunched flows
Key Takeaway
To pick a flow type, ask two questions: what starts the flow, and does a user need to see or enter anything?
A flow's type decides how the flow starts, whether a user interacts with it, and which elements you can add. Screen flows walk a user through screens. Record-triggered flows run in the background when a record is created, updated, or deleted. Autolaunched flows run in the background only when something else starts them.
Two questions separate the three types
You can tell the three flow types apart by what starts the flow and whether a user needs to see or enter anything.
| Flow type | Has a trigger? | Needs a user? |
|---|---|---|
| Screen flow | No | Yes |
| Record-triggered flow | Yes | No |
| Autolaunched flow | No | No |