CheckFlow vs Pneumatic (2026): Supported IT & HR Specialist vs Free Open-Source BPM
As of October 2026, Pneumatic's cloud plan is free: unlimited users, no credit card, no time limit, built on an open-source engine. CheckFlow can't beat $0 on price and we won't pretend it can. What $9/user/month buys is specialist IT and HR tooling and a vendor that answers when you need help. Here's the honest comparison.
In this comparison:
The Short Answer
If price is the deciding factor, Pneumatic wins outright: as of October 2026 its Free plan costs nothing for unlimited users and workflows. The catch is in what free includes. Support is community-only through GitHub, with no vendor SLA; dedicated support, SSO and on-premise deployment sit in an Enterprise plan whose price is only set on a discovery call. And the platform itself is a general-purpose BPM tool built around simple linear workflows; it has a limited set of form control types, offers poor visual oversight when running large numbers of concurrent processes, and lacks the data capture depth, conditional routing sophistication, and reporting capabilities that IT and HR operations teams need.
CheckFlow is purpose-built for IT and HR recurring processes: 19 structured control types, conditional branching, nested linked checklists, recurring scheduling, a compliance audit trail, and IT/HR-specific templates — at $9/user/month (annual) with no seat minimums. Chat, email and scheduled video support come with every plan, and every plan's price is published, Enterprise included.
CheckFlow vs Pneumatic at a Glance
| CheckFlow | Pneumatic | |
|---|---|---|
| Recurring checklist scheduling | ||
| Conditional logic | ||
| Step-level data capture | 19 control types | Basic form fields |
| Approval step that holds the process | Yes | Not available |
| Concurrent process dashboard | Full data grid | Limited visibility |
| Nested / linked checklists | ||
| IT/HR-specific template library | ||
| Free plan, unlimited users | ✗ 14-day free trial, then per user | $0, no time limit |
| Vendor support included | Chat, email and video, every plan | GitHub community on Free; dedicated on Enterprise |
| SSO | Enterprise plan, published price | Enterprise plan, custom price |
| Native mobile apps (iOS/Android) | ✗ Web-based | |
| Open source (self-hostable) | ✗ | Apache 2.0, on GitHub |
| Multi-tenant / MSP support | ✗ | |
| Zapier / Make / API | Yes (REST API v3 + webhooks) | |
| Data sets (reference tables with auto-fill) | Yes | Not documented |
| Standalone tasks outside a checklist | Yes | Not documented |
| Team-wide analytics dashboard | Yes | Limited |
| MCP server for AI agents | Yes (every plan) | Not documented |
| SOC 2 Type II | ||
| Free guest users | Unlimited | |
| Pricing (as of October 2026) | $9/user/month (annual) · Enterprise: $18/user/month | Free (unlimited users) · Enterprise: custom |
| Lower sticker price | ✗ | $0 at any team size |
Pricing Comparison
Pneumatic pricing below was checked against its published pricing page in October 2026.
Pneumatic Pricing
- Free: $0 — unlimited users, workflows and tasks, no credit card, no time limit
- Free plan runs in Pneumatic's managed cloud, with self-serve API integrations
- Free plan support: community only, via GitHub
- Enterprise: custom pricing, scoped on a discovery call — adds an implementation team, on-premise or private cloud deployment, custom integrations, an SLA with dedicated support, SSO, and backup and disaster recovery
- Core engine is open source (Apache 2.0) and can be self-hosted
- Mobile apps for iOS and Android
CheckFlow Pricing
- $9/user/month billed annually (or $10/user/month monthly)
- Chat, email and scheduled video support included
- Enterprise plan (SSO, dedicated database, priority support) at a published $18/user/month
- IT and HR template library included
- 19 data capture control types, nested checklists, full audit log
- Free unlimited guest users
- 14-day free trial, no credit card required
Free vs Per-User: What Each Option Actually Costs
There is no team size at which CheckFlow costs less than Pneumatic's Free plan, so comparing monthly bills settles nothing. The useful question is what each option leaves you to handle yourself. Prices as of October 2026.
| Price | Support | Who runs it | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pneumatic Free | $0, unlimited users | Community, via GitHub; no SLA | Pneumatic's cloud; you set up integrations yourself |
| Pneumatic self-hosted | $0 licence (Apache 2.0) | Community, via GitHub | Your team: servers, upgrades, backups and security patches |
| Pneumatic Enterprise | Custom, quoted after a discovery call | Dedicated support with an SLA | Pneumatic, in its cloud, your private cloud or on-premise |
| CheckFlow Business | $9/user/month (annual) or $10 monthly | Chat, email and scheduled video | CheckFlow, on Microsoft Azure |
If your team is comfortable building its own workflows and asking questions on GitHub, Pneumatic Free is hard to argue with. If you want an SLA or SSO from Pneumatic, you are into an Enterprise contract with no public price. CheckFlow sits between the two: a fixed, published per-user price with support and IT/HR depth included. See CheckFlow’s full pricing →
Start free trialFeature Deep Dive
Limited Control Types
Pneumatic's workflow steps support form fields for data entry, but the range of control types is narrow compared to CheckFlow's 19 named controls. There is no approval step that holds the process until a specific authorised person signs off, no table data capture control, and no file upload field with structured metadata. For IT change management workflows that require a formal sign-off step, or asset management processes that capture structured tabular data, these gaps are significant. Pneumatic's form fields are better suited to simple data collection in straightforward linear processes.
Concurrent Process Visibility
When running dozens of concurrent instances of the same workflow — which is common in IT operations (multiple simultaneous onboardings, active change requests, open access provisioning) — Pneumatic provides limited visual oversight. There is no dashboard equivalent to CheckFlow's data grid that lets a manager filter, sort, and act on all active runs across a template. Users report that getting a clear picture of which processes are in progress, which are overdue, and who is responsible requires navigating individually rather than through a consolidated operational view. For teams managing high volumes of concurrent processes, this is a meaningful operational gap.
IT and HR depth
CheckFlow is built specifically for IT operations and HR teams. New employee onboarding, IT asset handover, access provisioning, change approval, leaver checklists, security audits — these are first-class template categories designed around the approval flows, conditional routing, and data capture requirements those teams face. Pneumatic is a general-purpose BPM platform; it can model any workflow, but there are no pre-built IT/HR templates to start from.
Free versus supported
There is no pricing maths to do here. Pneumatic's Free plan is $0 whether you have five users or five hundred, so CheckFlow at $9 per user per month (annual billing) is always the more expensive line item. The difference is in who you call when something goes wrong. On Pneumatic Free, help comes from the community on GitHub and there is no service level agreement. A dedicated support team, a 4-hour response on critical incidents, SSO and custom legal terms all belong to Pneumatic Enterprise, which has no published price. CheckFlow includes support on every plan and lists its Enterprise price on the pricing page, so you know the cost of SSO before you talk to anyone.
Open source and self-hosting
Pneumatic's core engine is open source under the Apache 2.0 licence, publicly available on GitHub, and can be self-hosted. For organisations with data sovereignty requirements, regulatory restrictions on third-party SaaS, or infrastructure teams that want to manage the platform directly, this is a meaningful differentiator. Self-hosting moves the work rather than removing it: your team owns the servers, upgrades, backups and security patching. Pneumatic will run a managed on-premise or private cloud deployment, but only as part of an Enterprise contract. CheckFlow is a cloud-only SaaS product.
Multi-tenant and MSP use cases
Pneumatic supports multi-tenant deployments, making it suitable for managed service providers who need to run separate workflow environments for different clients under a single platform. It also offers a white-label partner programme. CheckFlow is designed for single-organisation use.
Mobile access
Pneumatic offers native iOS and Android apps. CheckFlow is web-based and works on mobile browsers but does not currently have dedicated native apps. For field teams or organisations where staff primarily access workflows from mobile devices, this is worth factoring in.
Data capture and audit
CheckFlow's 19 named control types (file upload, date, dropdown, table, members, embed and more), its approval steps and per-step audit trail are built around the compliance logging requirements of IT and HR. Pneumatic supports form-style data capture within workflow steps, but the depth and structure of CheckFlow's control taxonomy is designed specifically for compliance use cases.
Who Should Choose CheckFlow vs Pneumatic?
Choose CheckFlow if you:
- Want vendor support and a published price without negotiating an enterprise contract
- Run IT or HR operations and want specialist templates
- Need 19 structured data capture control types
- Want nested checklists with parent-child tracking
- Need a full compliance audit log
- Want recurring scheduled operational checklists
Choose Pneumatic if you:
- Want a $0 tool and are comfortable with community support through GitHub
- Need open source / self-hosted deployment for data sovereignty
- Are an MSP needing multi-tenant workflow environments
- Don't need approval steps that hold the process, or structured table data capture
Looking for more options? See our full guide to Pneumatic alternatives.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Pneumatic really free, and what do you give up?
Yes, as of October 2026. Pneumatic's Free plan costs $0 for unlimited users and workflows, with no time limit, hosted in Pneumatic's cloud. What you give up is vendor support: help on the Free plan comes from the community on GitHub, with no SLA. Dedicated support, SSO and on-premise deployment are part of Pneumatic Enterprise, which is priced per customer after a discovery call. CheckFlow costs $9/user/month on annual billing, includes support on every plan and publishes the price of every plan.
Can Pneumatic be self-hosted?
Yes. Pneumatic's core engine is open source under Apache 2.0 and publicly available on GitHub, so organisations that require on-premises or private cloud deployment can self-host it. Doing so makes your team responsible for hosting, upgrades and security; a deployment managed by Pneumatic requires an Enterprise contract. CheckFlow is a cloud-only SaaS product.
Does Pneumatic have IT and HR process templates?
Pneumatic is a general-purpose BPM platform without a vertically specialised template library. CheckFlow ships with templates built specifically for IT operations and HR teams — onboarding, offboarding, IT asset management, access provisioning, change approval, and security audits.
Does Pneumatic have the same data capture controls as CheckFlow?
No. CheckFlow offers 19 named control types including table/grid data capture, file uploads, date pickers, URL fields, member pickers and embeds, plus approval steps that hold the process until a named person signs off. Pneumatic supports basic form fields within workflow steps but does not offer structured table data controls or an approval step that holds a run. CheckFlow has no built-in signature field; you embed an e-signature tool or connect one through Zapier. For workflows that require formal sign-off or asset tracking in tabular format, CheckFlow's control library is significantly deeper.
Does CheckFlow have a mobile app?
CheckFlow is fully functional on mobile browsers but does not currently have a native iOS or Android app. Pneumatic offers dedicated mobile apps for iOS and Android. If your team primarily runs workflows from smartphones, this is worth considering.
Is there a free trial for CheckFlow?
Yes — 14 days, no credit card required. Start your free trial now.
More CheckFlow comparisons
Still weighing up your options? See how CheckFlow stacks up against the other tools on your shortlist.
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CheckFlow delivers deeper IT and HR tooling at $9/user/month, with support included and no enterprise contract to negotiate. Start your 14-day free trial.
14-day free trial, no credit cardFull refund in your first 30 daysUS or EU hostingFree help moving your checklists