What is iPaaS? The Definitive Guide to Integration Platforms
An iPaaS (integration platform as a service) is a cloud-based platform connecting applications to maintain consistent data flow through them as you work.
Modern organizations use an average of 106 SaaS apps for day-to-day work, strategic planning, and reporting. While that’s slightly down from 112 in 2023 (likely due to AI), it’s still a massive number. When the work you do falls across even a few of these tools, getting a single view on all that work can be a challenge. Integrations powered by an iPaaS give you that visibility and ensures no one ever has to ask “wait, which tool is up to date, again?”
In this guide, you’ll learn how iPaaS works, its benefits, where it’s used, and how it compares to other integration types.
How does iPaaS work?
An iPaaS allows users to set up and deploy integrations for a range of apps from a single platform with little to no technical knowledge. Many iPaaS platforms are no-code, meaning users can use a visual interface with drag-and-drop or dropdown-based features. Some are low-code, meaning that you can achieve most of your integration goals without writing any code, but coding skills get you more out of these platforms.
Whether they expect users to write any code or not, iPaaS tools have these characteristics in common:
- Prebuilt connectors: These platforms close the gap between popular apps using APIs (application programming interface), which translate the data in a tool into something that can be sent to another tool. Prebuilt connectors do that translation, all in a single platform.
- Data mapping and transformation: Data mapping matches data from fields in one tool with fields in another. This can be done automatically, with the iPaaS platform matching similar fields, or manually, to represent more custom workflows. Transformation ensures that data moves consistently, even if it’s slightly different in each tool.
- Trigger-based logic: An iPaaS platform can detect events in each tool and use them as triggers to initiate actions. A work item being reassigned in one tool, for example, could trigger a copy being reassigned in another tool, a new work item being created, or a status being updated.
- Centralized monitoring dashboards: Since an iPaaS is a central platform for managing all the integrations you need, it will usually have some kind of dashboard or reporting features. These allow you to check on the health of your integrations, evaluate your usage, and troubleshoot any issues.
So what does an iPaaS work in practice?
Imagine an organization that sells project management services. The sales team uses Salesforce to track deals and manage conversations with prospects. The team actually delivering the services uses Asana to plan client onboardings. An iPaaS platform can identify a deal in Salesforce the moment it’s marked as won, automatically create a new Asana project to match it, and populate tasks in Asana with essential information already filled in.
Key benefits of iPaaS
The right software integration can completely transform the way your teams work, especially when they come from an iPaaS platform. Here’s how.
No more data silos
Data silos (or tool silos) are much like the agricultural architecture they’re named after: self-contained and difficult to access. When a workflow involves multiple tools, these tools often feel less like links in a chain and more like walls that have to be breached to get to the secrets within. An iPaaS smashes through these silos, keeping data flowing smoothly between tools.
Less manual work
Most workflows that span multiple tools create a significant amount of manual work, from copying and pasting data to constantly switching between tools. Integrations deployed with an iPaaS eliminate much of that manual work without replacing it with the constant maintenance and troubleshooting that comes with other integration solutions.
Faster deployment
Some integrations can take weeks, if not months to deploy. For large organizations that can afford the budget and other resources involved, that kind of slow deployment isn’t an issue. But other teams need the ability to patch holes in their stack when they’re identified, not three months later. An iPaaS gives you a quick, repeatable process for deploying integrations.
Scales with your stack
Most iPaaS platforms offer dozens, if not hundreds of integrations, meaning the platform you use with a small tool stack stays useful even as your stack grows. These platforms typically grow their integration library over time as well, prioritizing new software tools as they become popular.
Centralizes integrations
The ultimate benefit of an iPaaS is its ability to centralize all (or most) of the integrations your teams need in one place. Not only does that mean you’re building integrations with the same process every time, but you can review, audit, and troubleshoot all your integrations in the same place.
Common iPaaS use cases
An iPaaS can be applied to a broad range of use cases. Here are just a few of the most popular.
Coordinated software development
Software development involves specialists working in specialized tools (e.g., GitHub, Azure DevOps), collaborating with project managers and other leaders who spend most of their time in project management tools and similar platforms (e.g., Jira, Asana). An iPaaS can integrate these tools to accelerate sprint planning meetings and give more visibility to everyone involved in a project.
IT service management escalation
IT service management depends on collaboration between developers, engineers, and front-line support agents. Whenever a ticket is escalated, it typically needs to cross from a frontline system (e.g., Zendesk, HubSpot) to a dedicated ITSM system (e.g., ServiceNow). An iPaaS integration allows the ticket to cross that gap without extra manual work or context being lost.
CRM-to-ERP data flow
An ERP (enterprise resource planning) platform usually centralizes most of your workflows in one platform. Your CRM (customer relationship management) tool has the contact information and conversation history for all prospects and customers. Integrating these two platforms unites these two platforms so you have all the information you need no matter where you work.
Marketing-to-sales handoff
When marketers qualify a lead, it’s advantageous for the sales team to act on it as quickly as possible. But the actual handoff can be messy, since it moves between tools. An iPaaS closes the gap between sales and marketing, ensuring everyone has the exact amount of context as deals move down the sales pipeline.
iPaaS vs. automation tools vs. two-way sync
Popular integration options include iPaaS, automation tools, and two-way sync platforms. Automation tools typically cover a broad range of connectors with simple “if-this-then-that” logic, which makes them broadly applicable but usually more limited in integration depth. Two-way sync tools build relationships between work items with deep mappings and transformation features, keeping data flowing back and forth as you work. Here’s each category in more detail.
| Feature | iPaaS | Automation tools (e.g., Zapier, Make) | Two-way sync (Unito) |
| Data direction | Usually one-way | One-way | Two-way |
| Annual cost range | Thousands of dollars a month (or more) | Freemium to thousands of dollars a month | Custom pricing |
| Best for | Managing complex integrations in a single platform | Simple, sequential workflows | Seamless collaboration and real-time data syncing |
| Key limitation | Typically more expensive than other options | No two-way support | Fewer integrations than other options |
iPaaS
Examples: Workato, Boomi, MuleSoft
An iPaaS is an enterprise-grade integration platform that supports hundreds, if not thousands of integrations across both cloud and on-premise tools. These platforms give IT teams and business users a single place for managing all sorts of integrations with pre-built connectors—though sometimes some coding can improve prebuilt connectors. With an iPaaS, users get deep customization, advanced data transformation, one-stop API management, and hybrid deployment options. These platforms can have a high cost, however, with steep learning curves and longer implementation timelines.
Automation tools
Examples: Zapier, Make
Automation tools use simple technology to cover a broad range of actions across thousands of connectors. Need to turn work items in one tool into rows in a spreadsheet? Need a task to automatically move from one section to another when it’s reassigned? These platforms can handle these simple actions and much more. Their main strength is how easy they are to set up and use for most of your tool stack. That said, they can’t handle complex workflows or enable seamless collaboration unless you chain several automations together, which can create significant maintenance requirements.
Two-way sync
Example: Unito
Two-way sync platforms are built from the ground up to sync data between tools back and forth at the work item level in real-time. Whether you’re working across software development tools, ITSM platforms, or spreadsheets, two-way sync tools keep everything up-to-date as you work. These platforms typically offer no-code setup, deep field-level mappings, enterprise-grade security, and more affordable plans than iPaaS platforms.
The integration spectrum: Finding the right fit
No integration solution is one-size-fits-all. Not only does the platform you choose have to support the tools your stack relies on, but elements like technical skills, integration depth, and deployment times need to be evaluated as well. Not sure what you should pick? Here’s a quick framework for making the right choice.
- Pick automation tools when you need one-way task triggers between a few apps. If your integration needs don’t go beyond simple, single actions, than a tool like Zapier or Make will be your best choice.
- Pick iPaaS when you need enterprise-grade integrations and have the technical resources to build and maintain them. On-premise connectivity and centralized API management also require these advanced platforms.
- Pick two-way sync tools when you need bidirectional data consistency at a deep level across systems, whether that’s for ITSM, DevOps, or project management workflows.
Why use Unito for two-way iPaaS
Unito strikes a balance between two-way integrations and enterprise-grade iPaaS. You get deep integrations and advanced security without the lengthy deployment time or coding requirements. With over 60 integrations and true bidirectional sync, Unito stands apart from the integration landscape.
Want to see what Unito can do?
Get a product demo and watch a two-way sync in action.
FAQ: What is iPaaS?
What does iPaaS stand for?
iPaaS stands for integration platform as a service. It allows users to centralize all their integration needs in one platform with prebuilt connectors.
Is Zapier an iPaas?
While Zapier could technically be considered an iPaaS, it’s more of an automation tool. It doesn’t have the deep, enterprise-grade integrations that most iPaaS platforms have.
What’s the difference between iPaaS and SaaS?
iPaaS (integration platform as a service) is a type of integration platform. SaaS (software as a service) describes a way software is built and delivered. An iPaaS can be a SaaS product, but not all SaaS products are iPaaS.