SharePoint Designer 2013 support ended: what to use for workflows and forms now

Short answer: SharePoint Designer 2013 is past its support end date, and the modern tools take over its jobs. Power Automate covers workflows, Power Apps covers custom list forms, and list Rules cover simple notifications. Match each thing Designer did for you to one of these.

What the dates say

Microsoft's lifecycle page shows extended support for SharePoint Designer 2013 ended in July 2026. Microsoft's support page on workflow retirement says "SharePoint Designer 2013 will not be supported beyond that timeframe." For Microsoft 365, the same page says creating and running SharePoint 2013 workflows from Designer against SharePoint Online was turned off for existing tenants starting April 2, 2026.

What "unsupported" means on your own servers: a Microsoft staff reply on Microsoft Q&A (labeled Microsoft External Staff, April 2026) said it found no Microsoft announcement that Designer 2013 would be blocked from connecting to SharePoint Server Subscription Edition, so it was "expected to remain technically functional, though fully unsupported." That reply is not an official Microsoft statement. SharePoint 2013 workflows in Microsoft 365 are a separate matter. See "SharePoint 2013 workflow stopped working".

Map each old Designer job to a modern tool

Step 1. Make a list of what you used Designer for. Then find each item below.

A workflow on a list or library. Use Power Automate. Microsoft's Learn page says: "Microsoft Power Apps and flows within Microsoft Power Automate are your tools of choice" for business users building apps and automations in SharePoint. Open the Automate menu on the list, pick Power Automate, and choose Create a flow.
An approval. Microsoft's support page says: "If basic approval functionality is needed, then the Approvals in Lists & Document Libraries are also a good choice." For custom steps, build the approval in Power Automate.
A changed list form (fields moved, hidden or locked). Use Power Apps. On the list toolbar, open Integrate, pick Power Apps, and choose Customize forms. Microsoft's tutorial says "The Power Apps studio appears and loads your form onto the canvas."
An email alert when something changes. Use list Rules. Microsoft's support page says "Rules are the simplest form of automation in lists," and that they can notify someone about changes to a column, new items, or deleted items.
A site-wide workflow or a reusable workflow. Microsoft's comparison table marks "Site workflows" and "Reusable workflows" as "Not available" in Power Automate, so plan a different design, such as one flow per list.

Exact names may differ on your screen.

Publishing a changed list form

In Power Apps Studio, save the form, then choose Publish to SharePoint and confirm. Open the list afterward and check it. Only a published version shows up for people using the list.

For simple field order and sections without Power Apps, see "Customize SharePoint list form sections". To choose between the two, see "Power Apps vs list forms".

Things that behave differently in Power Automate

Microsoft's Learn guidance lists these differences:

Flows have a "30 day lifespan." A long wait needs a flow that restarts itself, and the page says this may need a Premium license.
Run history is kept for runs in the last 28 days. The page suggests logging to a list if you need more.
Calls to SharePoint's REST API can use the action "Send HTTP Request to SharePoint". See "Power Automate send HTTP request to SharePoint".

Guard against a flow that fires twice

If your new flow runs when an item is created or modified and then updates that item, it can trigger itself. Our advice, not a Microsoft rule: add a Yes/No column called "Sent" whose default value is No. Have the flow test for No first, run its action, and finish by changing the column to Yes. See "Power Automate flow triggers itself, infinite loop".

If you still need Designer

Microsoft's support page says SharePoint Server Subscription Edition keeps supporting SharePoint 2013-based workflows beyond July 14, 2026, and that professional developers use Visual Studio to build and publish workflows. This applies to servers you run, not to Microsoft 365. If you run Microsoft 365 only, plan on Power Automate.

When to get help

You can build all of this yourself in Microsoft 365. If you would rather have it built and tested for your team, I do that. A tracker like this is a fixed price: $5,000 for one, built in 2 weeks. See "What a SharePoint tracker costs to build". Bring one example of the problem to a free call.

Tell me what's still manual

I am Al Davies. I run 250 High Street LLC and build SharePoint trackers and Power Automate flows for operations teams. I work remotely. The first call is free, and I will not try to sell you anything.

See trackers I built: Tools I built

FAQ

When does SharePoint Designer 2013 support end?

It ended. Microsoft's lifecycle page shows extended support ended in July 2026.

What replaces SharePoint Designer for workflows?

Power Automate. In a list, select Automate, then Power Automate, then Create a flow.

What replaces SharePoint Designer for custom list forms?

Power Apps. On the list toolbar, open Integrate, pick Power Apps, and choose Customize forms.

Can I still use SharePoint Designer 2013 after support ends?

On your own SharePoint Server Subscription Edition, a Microsoft staff reply on Microsoft Q&A said it was expected to stay technically functional but fully unsupported. That is not an official statement. In Microsoft 365, Microsoft turned off its 2013 workflows against SharePoint Online starting April 2, 2026.

What replaces Designer email alerts on a list?

List Rules. Microsoft says they can notify someone about column changes, new items, or deleted items.