A Workflow Rule is Salesforce’s original declarative automation. It runs on record save: evaluate criteria, and if they pass, fire one or more actions — field updates, email alerts, tasks, or outbound messages. As of 2026, Workflow Rules are deprecated for new development — you can’t create new ones in fresh orgs and existing ones are being migrated to Flow — but interviewers still ask because plenty of production orgs run on them.
The structure of a workflow rule
Three pieces, configured in order:
- Object — what record type triggers the rule (Account, Opportunity, etc.)
- Evaluation criteria — when to check the rule:
- Created — insert only
- Created, and any time it’s edited to subsequently meet criteria — every save
- Created, and every time it’s edited — every save unconditionally
- Rule criteria — either filter logic (field-value comparisons) or a formula. If TRUE, the actions fire.
The four action types
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Field update | Set a value on the triggering record (or a related parent) |
| Email alert | Send an email using a template |
| Task | Create a Task assigned to a user, role, or record owner |
| Outbound message | Fire a SOAP message to a configured external endpoint |
Actions can be immediate or time-dependent — scheduled for X days/hours after the rule fires.
What workflows can’t do
- Branching logic — there’s no “if A then X, else Y” in a single rule; you’d need multiple rules
- Loops — no collection processing
- Screens — workflows are entirely background-driven
- Modify the record being deleted — workflows only run on insert/update
- Call Apex — you can fire an outbound message, but you can’t directly invoke a class
Why they’re deprecated
Salesforce announced the retirement of Workflow Rules and Process Builder so the platform could invest in Flow as the single declarative engine. The transition guidance: use Migrate to Flow in Setup to convert existing rules, and build new automation in Flow.
Interview note: how to answer in 2026
A strong answer:
- Defines workflows clearly: “Legacy declarative automation that fires on save.”
- Lists the four action types.
- Acknowledges they’re deprecated — and points to Flow as the modern replacement.
- If pressed, knows the evaluation criteria names and the immediate/time-dependent split.
Related questions
- In which order are workflow actions executed?
- What are the evaluation criteria in workflows?
- How is Process Builder different from Workflow?
Verified against: Salesforce Help — Workflow Rules and Migrate to Flow. Last reviewed 2026-05-17 for Spring ‘26 release.