ComparisonCereal vs Power Automate Desktop
Cereal vs Power Automate Desktop: an AI browser agent for the sites Power Automate Desktop can’t reach.
Power Automate Desktop is Microsoft’s Windows RPA tool: you build flows step by step, and they replay as built. Microsoft now sells an AI agent too, computer use in Copilot Studio, on Microsoft-hosted models. Cereal’s AI browser agent works out the steps on websites in your own Chrome, with your model and your key, and Repeat replays what it learned without calling the model.
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Goal Notify me when the PS5 Pro on bol.com drops below €450
- ✓ Opened bol.com in your Chrome
- ✓ Rejected cookie banner
- ✓ Searched “PS5 Pro”, opened product
- ✓ Learned: price below €450
● Repeat · 0 model calls
[ 01 / compare ]
How they compare.
| Cereal (coming soon) | Power Automate Desktop | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Your machine, in the free Cereal desktop app. | Your Windows PC for attended runs; unattended and cloud runs need a paid licence. Copilot Studio computer use runs on a Windows machine you register or a Microsoft-hosted Cloud PC.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
| Which browser | Your own Chrome, in a window you can watch, with a separate profile per task. No extension, no new browser. | Your installed Edge, Chrome or Firefox through its extensions, or its built-in Automation browser.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
| Model / BYOK | Bring your own model: Anthropic, Google Gemini, OpenAI, OpenRouter, or any OpenAI-compatible server. Your API key goes only to the AI provider you pick. | Desktop flows use no model. Computer use: Microsoft-hosted OpenAI or Anthropic models, no own key.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
| Local models | Yes: Ollama and LM Studio (best effort; tested on Claude, other models may vary). | No.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
| Repeats without the model | Yes, after the first run: Repeat replays what it learned without calling the AI. If the site changes, the AI picks up where replay stopped. | Desktop flows replay as you built them, with no AI. Computer use calls the model at every step.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
| Asks before buying/sending | Asks for your OK before it buys, pays, deletes or sends anything, including on repeat runs. | Desktop flows run what you built. Computer use: optional human supervision by email; Microsoft says it isn’t a fail-safe.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
| Price | Free. You pay your AI provider directly, or nothing with a local model. | Free with a Microsoft account for local attended runs. Premium $15/user/mo, Process $150/bot/mo, Hosted Process $215/bot/mo (annual). Computer use bills Copilot Credits.checked 2026-10 · microsoft.com |
| Platforms | Tested on macOS and Linux · needs Google Chrome | Windows 10/11 and Windows Server 2016–2025. No macOS, no ARM.checked 2026-10 · learn.microsoft.com |
[ 02 / fit ]
When to pick Power Automate Desktop instead.
- You automate Windows desktop apps, not just websites.
- Your company already licenses Power Platform and wants flows managed there.
[ faq ]Questions.
Questions.
Answered.
Q/01Is it free?
Yes. Free, and free to run: use a free tier such as Gemini’s, a local model, or your own paid key. You pay your AI provider directly, typically cents to a few tens of cents per run (an estimate). Hard limits stop every run at $2 and every task at $5 by default, and you can change them. Free tiers may let the provider use your data; a paid key or local model keeps it private.
Q/02Where do my pages and key go?
Nothing passes through Cereal: your key and pages go only to the model provider you pick, or stay on your machine with a local model. Your passwords are typed by Cereal, not the AI: the model only sees a placeholder, and secret values are removed from logs.
Q/03What happens when the site changes?
After the first run, Repeat replays what it learned without calling the AI, so routine checks cost nothing. If the site changes, the AI picks up where replay stopped.
Q/04Does Cereal run on Mac and Linux?
Yes. Power Automate Desktop runs only on Windows (checked 2026-10). Cereal’s AI browser agent is tested on macOS and Linux, and needs Google Chrome.
Q/05How is computer use different from Cereal’s agent?
Copilot Studio’s computer use runs Microsoft-hosted OpenAI or Anthropic models on a Windows machine, billed in Copilot Credits with an Azure subscription (checked 2026-10). Cereal’s AI browser agent uses your model and your key in your own Chrome, and Repeat replays learned steps without calling the model.