IFTTT, whose name literally spells out its logic, if this, then that, predates almost every other tool in this category by a decade or more, launching in 2010 with a direct pattern: pick a trigger from one service, pick an action in another, and connect them into an "applet" that runs automatically. That basic trigger-action idea shaped how an entire generation of later automation tools, Zapier included, would describe their own products.
Its roots lean consumer and smart-home rather than business software: connecting a phone's location to smart lights, a weather alert to a text message, a new Instagram post to an automatic tweet, use cases built around personal life and connected devices more than CRM-to-spreadsheet business workflows. AI-assisted applet creation has been added more recently, letting a user describe an automation in plain language rather than picking a trigger and action manually.
A free tier covers a limited number of active applets, and paid plans start around $3 a month for more automations and faster trigger checking. For anyone whose automation needs are personal and device-centric rather than business software integration, IFTTT's original consumer and smart-home focus remains more directly relevant than business-oriented competitors built after it.
