Salesforce Flows vs Apex: When to Use What

Salesforce provides multiple automation tools to build business logic and streamline operations. Among them, Flows and Apex are the most capable choices for complex automation. Although both can be used to achieve similar outcomes, choosing the right tool depends on factors such as complexity, maintainability, performance, and scalability.

Understanding when to use Salesforce Flows and when to opt for Apex is essential for designing efficient, future-proof solutions. This article compares both options and highlights the best use cases for each.

What Are Salesforce Flows

Salesforce Flow is a declarative automation tool that allows administrators and developers to build logic without custom coding. Flows can update records, run calculations, send emails, invoke Apex actions, call external systems, and interact with users through screens. It is part of the Salesforce Automation Suite and is intended to replace legacy tools like Workflow Rules and Process Builder.

Flows support automation types such as:

• Record-triggered Flows

• Scheduled Flows

• Screen Flows

• Autolaunched Flows

• Platform Event-triggered Flows

Flows are considered the recommended low-code tool for most business automations.

What Is Apex

Apex is a strongly typed, object-oriented programming language designed by Salesforce for developers to create custom business logic. Apex can run synchronously or asynchronously and integrates deeply with the Salesforce platform. It is ideal for complex logic, large-scale processing, and requirements that exceed declarative limitations.

Apex is used in:

• Triggers

• Classes

• Batch Apex

• Queueable Apex

• Future methods

• REST services

• Test classes

It provides full control over logic behavior and execution.

Advantages of Flows

Flows offer several benefits, including:

• No coding required

• Faster development and deployment

• Easy to maintain by admins

• Visual representation of logic

• Built-in debugging tools

• Simplified error handling

• Reusable subflows

Additionally, Salesforce continues to invest heavily in Flow capabilities, making it more powerful every release.

Advantages of Apex

Apex stands out because of:

• High scalability

• Full programmatic control

• Support for complex algorithms

• Ability to iterate over large datasets using batch jobs

• External systems integration

• Advanced error handling and logging

• Test coverage control

Apex can solve logic challenges that declarative tools cannot handle efficiently.

Limitations of Flows

Despite improvements, Flows still face constraints:

• Limited support for extremely complex conditions

• Performance challenges with large volumes

• Governor limit considerations

• Harder to implement advanced branching logic

• Debug complexity in large enterprise deployments

Large orgs with complex data models may find Flow logic harder to scale.

Limitations of Apex

Apex limitations include:

• Requires development expertise

• Longer development lifecycle

• Requires testing and deployment steps

• Developer availability dependencies

• Code bloat if overused

Because Apex requires coding, maintenance cost is often higher compared to declarative tools.

When to Use Flows

Flows should be the first choice in many scenarios. Select Flows when:

• The logic is relatively simple to moderate

• You are updating or creating records

• You need a user interface for data entry

• There are approval or decision paths

• You are replacing Workflow Rules or Process Builder

• There are no complex loops or recursion controls

• Admins need to maintain the automation going forward

Examples include:

• Auto-populate fields on record creation

• Send email alerts based on conditions

• Display a guided form for data entry

• Schedule record updates

• Trigger simple validations

Flows provide a quicker and more manageable approach for these needs.

When to Use Apex

Apex should be used when requirements exceed declarative capabilities. Choose Apex when:

• Logic involves deep recursion logic

• Processing massive volumes of data (hundreds of thousands or millions of records)

• Integration with external APIs is required

• Complex joins or calculations are needed

• Custom error logging or transaction handling is required

• Performance becomes critical

• Business rules require layered abstraction

Examples include:

• Batch data cleansing jobs

• Scheduled synchronization with external systems

• Implementing custom REST endpoints

• Complex triggers involving multiple objects

• Multi-step advanced validations

In these cases, Apex offers unmatched control and efficiency.

Using Both Together

In modern Salesforce development, the most common scenario is a hybrid model. Flows can call Apex actions when needed. This approach leverages the strengths of both tools:

• Flow manages orchestration

• Apex handles complex tasks

Examples include:

• Screen Flow that calls Apex to perform a complex calculation

• Flow that creates records, but Apex validates unique conditions

• Record-triggered Flow that offloads heavy logic to Queueable Apex

This hybrid approach strikes a balance between maintainability and power.

Performance Considerations

When dealing with large datasets, Apex is usually the better choice. Batch Apex and Queueable Apex allow processing in asynchronous chunks, preventing limit violations. Flows, while improving, can face governor limit challenges faster due to loop-driven automation.

Large-scale enterprise environments often allocate bulk operations to Apex to avoid Flow performance bottlenecks.

Maintenance and Skill Availability

Flows are easier for administrators to maintain, which reduces dependency on developers. Apex requires coding knowledge, unit testing, and deployment tools, making it harder for non-technical staff to update. For organizations prioritizing agility, Flows may offer long-term benefits.

Future-Proofing

Salesforce’s investment roadmap places automation emphasis on Flow. However, Apex remains critical and will continue to be supported for scenarios requiring powerful logic. Choosing the right tool ensures long-term maintainability and easier upgrades.

Best Practice Guidelines

To decide between Flow and Apex, use these guidelines:

Choose Flow if:

• Logic is straightforward

• Admins must maintain automation

• You need guided UI steps

• Bulk volumes are low to moderate

Choose Apex if:

• Data volume is high

• Integration complexity is advanced

• Performance is critical

• You need custom batch processing

Avoid overlapping complex logic between Flow and Apex on the same object to prevent unexpected behavior.

Conclusion

Salesforce Flows and Apex both offer powerful ways to automate business processes. While Flows are ideal for declarative logic and simplified development, Apex is necessary for complex, high-performance solutions. The best approach is to evaluate requirements carefully and choose the tool that offers the most scalable and maintainable outcome. By leveraging the strengths of each tool appropriately, organizations can optimize automation, reduce technical debt, and ensure long-term reliability of their Salesforce systems.