While using the trigger when item is modified or created and trying to generate a email based on coulmn status but mail is triggering multiple times

Question

I have built a Power Automate flow using the “When an item is created or modified” trigger.

My requirement is: when a specific column (Status) changes to “Completed”, a completion email should be sent to the client.

However, the issue is that the email is triggering multiple times, even though the condition is applied.

I have already tried the following approaches:

• Added a Condition to check if Status = Completed
• Used a Delay action
• Updated the Status column after sending the email to avoid re-trigger
• Tested with a simplified condition setup

But still, the email keeps triggering multiple times.

To simplify, I even tested with a very basic condition setup, but the issue still persists.

Could someone please help me understand why this is happening and how to fix it?

Moved from Microsoft 365 and Office | Other

Answer 1

Hello @Konjeti, Ramya Smitha

First, I will try to summary your concerns.

You created a Power Automate flow using the trigger “When an item is created or modified”. Your goal is:

• Send one email when the Status column changes to “Completed”

However, the flow is triggering multiple times, even though:

• You added a condition (Status = Completed)
• You used Delay
• You tried updating the item to prevent re-trigger
• You simplified the flow logic

Despite these attempts, the email still fires repeatedly.

For scenarios like this, I recommend posting the detailed use case on the Power Automate Community Forum. The forum is reviewed daily by specialists who share practical experiences, known cases, and recommended approaches that may help identify alternative or advanced solutions.

Microsoft Power Platform Community Forum Thread

I apologize for redirecting you elsewhere, but in this case, broadening the discussion may help you reach a wider audience and potentially receive creative or alternative ideas from other users facing the same challenge. This also increases the overall chance of discovering a suitable solution.

If you receive any updates or find a viable approach, it would be greatly appreciated if you could share it here as well to help others who may be experiencing the same issue. Thank you very much for your willingness to contribute to the community.

Wishing you all the best!

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Answer 2

I have tried the above approaches given still the issue persists, sharepoint list is my data source

Answer 3

The behavior occurs because the flow and its actions follow an “at-least-once” execution model. A single modification in SharePoint can cause the trigger or actions to run more than once, which results in duplicate emails unless the flow is designed to be idempotent.

To prevent multiple emails, the flow must explicitly handle possible duplicates instead of relying only on a simple Status = "Completed" condition or delays. Use one of these idempotent patterns:

1. Check for an existing “completion” marker before sending the email
   • Add a column in the list (for example, CompletionEmailSent = Yes/No).
   • In the flow, before sending the email, add a condition that checks:
     • Status = "Completed" AND CompletionEmailSent = No.
   • Only if both are true, send the email and then update the item to set CompletionEmailSent = Yes.
   • This way, even if the trigger or actions run multiple times for the same change, the second run will see CompletionEmailSent = Yes and skip sending the email.
2. Use a unique key or constraint in the data store
   • If writing to Dataverse or another system, use a key constraint or a unique field so that the same “completion” record cannot be created twice. The flow can attempt the write, and if the record already exists, skip sending the email.
3. Ensure only one active flow is listening to the same event
   • Verify there are no other copies of this flow (in the same or other environments) using the same trigger on the same list and status condition. Multiple active flows on the same trigger can also cause multiple emails.

These patterns make the flow idempotent and resilient to the underlying at-least-once behavior, eliminating duplicate emails even when the trigger or actions run more than once.

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References:

• Troubleshoot common issues with triggers
• Troubleshoot Power Automate trigger issues and errors
• Customize your triggers with conditions