Action flows are user-defined automated sequences of steps that perform actions in Zendesk and external systems based on a defined event that initiates ortriggersthe workflow. Action flows can run in response to their configured action flow trigger events or be initiated by agents using agent copilot auto assist. The steps within an action flow can include Zendesk actions as well as actions that occur in external systems.

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Summary: ◀▼

Action flows let you build automated workflows that trigger from events or agent copilot auto assist and run steps across your support system and external systems. The action builder helps you create and edit these workflows, with support for branches, custom actions, ticket, user, organization, and custom object data. Keep in mind limits on flow count, steps, rate limits, and action credits.

Action flows are user-defined automated sequences of steps that perform actions in Zendesk and external systems based on a defined event that initiates or triggers the workflow. Action flows can run in response to their configured action flow trigger events or be initiated by agents using agent copilot auto assist. The steps within an action flow can include Zendesk actions as well as actions that occur in external systems.

The Action flows page in Admin Center includes a visual workflow builder, referred to as the action builder, that is used to create and edit action flows. The action builder is designed to make it easier to make multi-system workflows that integrate Zendesk with external systems.

To learn which external systems admins can connect to Zendesk to create automated workflows with action builder, see the the Connector actions reference.

This article contains the following topics:
  • Considerations for using action flows
  • Accessing the Action flows page

Considerations for using action flows

Consider the following before you start using action flows:
  • You can create a maximum of 100 action flows.
  • Each action flow can contain a maximum of 60 steps. The action flow trigger is excluded from this count.
  • The number of action flows and custom actions you can execute per second is rate limited. See Rate limits and bursts.
  • Zendesk actions don't count towards your Zendesk API rate limits, but custom actions in action flows do.
  • When creating branches within an action flow, you can configure only one condition per branch.
  • The branch step supports the evaluation of conditions only on text, number, decimal, true/false, date, date time variables, and objects, as well as checking arrays of tags.
  • You can connect to only one instance of each connected system.
  • Most standard ticket, user, and organization fields are supported. All custom ticket fields are also supported. However, the following limitations apply:
    • Custom lookup relationship fields only support variables or manual inputs, and you must use the ID of the related object record to specify values.
    • If entering values manually for custom multi-select fields, you must use the tag value rather than the name.
    • Numeric and decimal custom ticket fields are treated as text outputs. This means only conditional operators for text can be used to evaluate these fields.
  • Objects, including custom objects, are supported as inputs and outputs. However, when configured in the action builder, you can pass the entire object.
  • The following limitations apply to custom actions for agent copilot auto assist:
    • Auto assist action flow triggers and custom action steps can be added to action flows, but will function only if you have purchased the Zendesk Copilot add-on.
    • Only custom actions that were created or updated after March 13, 2025 are available as steps for action flows.
    • Custom action steps don't support the use of files or attachments.
    • Updates made to custom actions that are already used in action flows aren't reflected in the action flow's step. To use the updated version of a custom action in an existing action flow, you must delete the custom action step and re-add it.
  • Each account includes an allowance of action credits based on their plan. See Monitoring the usage of action credits and action flow activity.

Rate limits and bursts

The following rate limits apply to action flows and custom actions:
  • Custom action flow triggers support up to 2,000 incoming API requests per minute.
  • Action flows and custom actions support bursts of up to 1,000 executions. For example, 100 workflows per second for 10 seconds.

    For custom actions, this applies to custom action executions by action flows and auto assist cumulatively.

  • Action flows and custom actions support 10 executions per second outside of bursts.

The burst allowance for action flows and custom actions recharge whenever your usage for any given second is below the per-second limits described above. The spare execution count is added back to the burst allowance. For example, if you run 2 action flows in a second, then 8 action flow executions are added back to your burst allowance.

Additionally, you don't have to wait for the burst allowance to fully recharge before using it again. As soon as any portion of the burst allowance is replenished, that amount is immediately available for use.

Accessing the Action flows page

The Action flows page in Admin Center is used to create, edit, and delete your action flows.

To access the Action flows page
  • In Admin Center, click Apps and integrations in the sidebar, then select Actions > Action flows.

Action flow resources

Use the following articles to create action flows:
  • Creating action flows to automate processes across Zendesk and external systems
  • Connecting external systems to action builder for use in action flows
  • Action flow steps and actions reference
  • Editing and managing action flows
  • Creating custom action flow triggers
  • Connecting to MCP servers and using MCP tools in action flows
  • Using custom code steps in action flows
  • Creating and managing custom actions
  • Monitoring the usage of action credits and action flow activity
  • Recipes and example
    • Understanding the difference between looking up and searching for custom object records in action flows
    • Recipe: Converting an API token webhook to an action flow
    • Recipe: Using custom code to process response data from MCP tools in action flows
    • Recipe: Automatically creating a time off request in BambooHR after it's approved in a Zendesk ticket
    • Recipe: Escalating Zendesk tickets by creating incident reports in Confluence
    • Recipe: Using action flows to send emails to your Inside Sales team when a Zendesk ticket is identified as a lead (Gmail)
    • Recipe: Looking up the sales playbook in Google Drive when a Zendesk ticket is identified as a lead
    • Recipe: Logging new Zendesk tickets in a Google Sheet
    • Using templated action flows to synchronize asset data with Jamf Pro
    • Recipe: Automatically creating a handover meeting in Microsoft Calendar when a ticket is reassigned
    • Recipe: Using an action flow to maintain a centralized incident log in Microsoft Excel
    • Using templated action flows to synchronize assets with Microsoft Intune
    • Recipe: Use action flows to email Sales team when a ticket is identified as a new prospect opportunity (Microsoft Outlook)
    • Recipe: Notifying agents in Microsoft Teams of newly assigned tickets
    • Recipe: Notifying agents in Slack of newly assigned tickets
    • Recipe: Using action flows to notify managers when a request for hardware is approved (Workday connector)
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