A question a lot of organizations ask us is “While we are still exploring and learning, how can we build and test Power Apps for free?” Well, that is exactly what the Power Apps Developer Plan is for.
In this post, lets chat more about what the Power Apps Developer Plan is, its features, and how it can revolutionize your app development journey. Let’s dive into the world of efficient, low-code application creation!
What is Power Apps Developer Plan?
The Power Apps Developer Plan is a no-cost offering from Microsoft designed specifically for developers working with the Power Platform. It provides a comprehensive development environment that allows for the building and testing of applications using Power Apps, Power Automate, and Microsoft Dataverse.
This plan enables developers to create apps and flows without writing code, using advanced development tools, and connect to various data sources, including custom connectors. Additionally, it includes access to a fully managed, scalable data platform with Dataverse.
This plan is ideal for developers looking to explore and innovate within the Power Platform, providing a robust set of tools and features for comprehensive app development and testing.
What can you do with a Developer Plan?
With the developer environment, you get the following functionality:
| Functionalities | Developer environment |
|---|---|
| Key features | |
| Create and test apps | Yes. You can create unlimited apps for development and test purposes. |
| Share apps | Yes |
| Use Dataverse | Yes |
| Model your data using Dataverse | Yes |
| Enterprise-grade administration of the environment and user policies | Yes |
| Connectivity | |
| Connect to Office 365, Dynamics 365, and other connectors | Yes |
| Connect to cloud-based services like Azure SQL, Dropbox, Twitter, and many more | Yes |
| Use premium connectors like Salesforce, DB2 and many more | Yes |
| Access on‐premises data using an on-premises gateway | Yes |
| Create custom connectors to connect to your own systems | Yes |
| Dataverse | |
| Create and run applications In Power Platform, Dynamics 365, Teams, or Standalone using the .Net SDK or OData API | Yes |
| Model your data in Dataverse | Yes |
| Create a database in Dataverse | Yes |
| Create and use dataflows | No |
| Management | |
| Add coworkers as environment makers and admins | Yes |
| Add coworkers to the database roles | Yes |
| Supports data policies established by the Office 365 administrator | Yes |
| Establish data policies for the developer environment | Yes |
Understanding Capacity Limits
It’s essential to be aware of the capacity limits within the developer environment:
- Flow Runs Per Month: Limited to 750.
- Database Size: Capped at 2 GB.
These limits are in place to maintain the environment’s integrity for development and testing. If you reach these limits, it might be time to consider moving to a paid plan that supports larger capacities and production use
Frequently Asked Questions
Let’s address some common questions:
Who Can Sign Up?: Anyone with a work or school email address can sign up for the Developer Plan.
How to Get the Plan: You can sign up directly on the Power Apps Developer Plan site or get it with Visual Studio Dev Essentials if you’re a user.
Transferring Resources: You can export the apps, flows, and other resources you create in your developer environment to other environments, facilitating a smooth transition from development to production.
Plan Expiration: Your Developer Plan subscription will remain active as long as you are actively using it and not abusing the plan (like using apps for production purposes or exceeding capacity limits).
Multiple Environments: You can create up to three environments within the Power Platform admin center, which provides flexibility and separation for different projects or stages of development.
Choosing the Right Plan for You
When deciding between the Power Apps Plan Trial and the Developer Plan, consider your needs. The Trial is ideal for short-term exploration of Power Apps’ premium functionalities, while the Developer Plan is meant for ongoing development and testing activities.
Conclusion
The Power Apps Developer Plan offers a comprehensive set of tools for developers to create, test, and share business solutions efficiently. With the added benefits of connectivity, Dataverse integration, and the ability to publish to Microsoft AppSource, it’s a plan that not only facilitates development but also supports the growth and distribution of your applications. Keep these features and FAQs in mind as you plan and develop on the Power Platform.