How to Check if SharePoint List Already Exists in Power Automate?

While working on a Create List with Different Types of Columns flow in Power Automate, I encountered a situation where I needed to check if a SharePoint list with a specific display name already existed. If the list doesn’t exist, the flow should create one. But if it already exists, the flow should send a notification instead of trying to create it again.

In this tutorial, I will show you how to check if SharePoint list already exists in Power Automate. We will use the Power Automate Send an HTTP request to SharePoint action to verify the list’s existence.

Check if SharePoint List Already Exists in Power Automate

Before creating the flow, ensure you have a SharePoint list. I created a SharePoint list (Task Tracker).

Now follow the below steps:

1. Create a new Instant Cloud Flow and choose Manually trigger a flow as the trigger. Then, expand the trigger action and add a Text input field where users can enter the SharePoint List Name.

2. Then add a Send an HTTP request to SharePoint action from sharePoint Connector with the below parameter:

• Site Address: Select the SharePoint Site Address
• Method: Select “GET” as the method
• URI: Provide the below URI:

_api/web/lists/GetByTitle('@{triggerBody()?['text']}')

• Header: Use the below headers to make REST API calls to SharePoint:

{
  "Accept": "application/json;odata=verbose",
  "Content-Type": "application/json;odata=verbose"
}

Now, click Save and run the flow manually. It will ask for the list name—provide the list name (in my case, ‘Task Tracker’), then click Run Flow. After the flow runs successfully, click on the ‘Send an HTTP Request to SharePoint’ action, copy the body part, and paste it somewhere safe as required in the following steps.

3. Add Parse JSON action from the Data Operation connector. Then, in the Content field of the Parse JSON action, select the Body of the Send an HTTP Request to SharePoint action from Dynamic Content.

Click Use sample payload to generate schema for the JSON data. Paste the copied Body content into the Generate from sample window and click Done. The generated schema will look something like this:

4. Add the condition action and set the values such as:

@{body('Parse_JSON')?['d']?['Title']}  Is equal to @{triggerBody()?['text']}

5. In this true section add a Compose action in the value provide the below expression:

List Present.

 In the false section add a Compose action then in the value provide the below expression:

List Not Present.

Now, click Save and run the flow manually. It will ask for the list name, provide it (in my case, ‘Task Tracker’), then click Run Flow after the flow runs successfully. You can see the true section compose action run, which means the list is present.

However, the problem arises when you give any list name that does not exist on the SharePoint site. In that case, send an HTTP request to SharePoint action field like below:

So to fix this follow the below steps:

Edit the existing flow, then click on the ‘Parse JSON’ action. Next, go to the Settings tab, and under the Runs After section, expand ‘Send an HTTP Request to SharePoint.’ Check the ‘Has Failed’ checkbox, as shown in the screenshot below:

Do the same thing in the condition action like the below screenshot:

Now, click Save and run the flow manually. It will ask for the list name, provide any name that does not exist on the SharePoint site, then click Run Flow after the flow runs successfully. You can see the false condition will run successfully.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, we learned how to check if a SharePoint list already exists in Power Automate using the Send an HTTP Request to SharePoint action.

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