People have their favorite action type and gun and will deny that they kick more. But if you are serious about soft recoiling guns, when you compare the same load in each, a gas operated auto will have lower peak recoil than any other action type. And obviously, the heavier the gun, the lighter the recoil. It's really that simple.
I went to Argentina bird hunting back in the late 90s. Before the trip I bought a Rem. 1100 20 ga that weighed an astonishing 8 lbs. It was the heaviest 20 ga I have ever seen and also the lightest recoiling 20 that you could imagine. Comes in handy when shooting case after case of shells or heavy turkey loads. But it is not a gun I would enjoy carrying very far.