n8n vs Zapier vs Make in 2026: Real Costs, Features and Which to Choose

Choose Zapier if you want the easiest setup and the most app connections, Make if you want visual multi-step workflows at the lowest cost, and n8n if you run high volumes, need code or AI agents, or want to self-host. Price follows from how each tool bills: Zapier charges per successful action, Make per credit, n8n per complete workflow run. For the same 6-step workflow running 2,000 times a month, that means $129 a month on Zapier, $20 on Make and $20 on n8n, billed annually as of October 2026.

The short verdict

• Zapier: best for non-technical teams, quick wins and rare apps. It is the most expensive per unit of work by a wide margin.
• Make: best value for most small businesses that build their own automations. Visual, cheap, unlimited users, but credits drain quickly on long workflows and loops.
• n8n: best for high volumes, long workflows, custom code, AI agents and data control. It asks for more technical comfort, and self-hosting adds maintenance.

n8n vs Zapier vs Make: side-by-side comparison

All prices and limits below come from each vendor's official pricing page, read on October 27, 2026.

The learning curve row is our own assessment, not a vendor figure. Annual billing saves 33% on Zapier, 29% to 31% on Make and about 17% on n8n, according to each pricing page.

Tasks vs credits vs executions: how each tool bills

Zapier tasks. A task is one successful action, such as creating a contact or sending an email. Triggers never use tasks, and neither do Filter, Paths, Formatter, Delay, Looping, Tables or Forms steps. Failed actions are free. Some steps cost more than one task: AI by Zapier depends on the model tier you pick, code with extended runtime uses more, and each Zapier MCP tool call uses 2.

Make credits. Every module that reads, searches, creates, updates, deletes, transforms, aggregates or iterates data uses credits, usually 1 per action, and that includes the trigger module. Routers and error handler modules are free. Some AI features run on Make's AI Provider and can use more than 1 credit. Unused credits expire at the end of the term.

n8n executions. One complete run of a workflow is one execution, whether it has 3 steps or 30. Only production runs count: manual tests, sub-workflows, error workflows and polls that find nothing are free.

The consequence: the more steps a workflow has, and the more it loops over items, the more n8n's model pays off. Actions repeated inside a loop are billed on every pass in Zapier and Make, while n8n still counts one execution.

What each tool costs at 3 monthly volumes

The test workflow is a typical lead intake: a webhook trigger, then 5 standard actions (create or update the CRM contact, send a confirmation email, post a Slack alert, add a row to Google Sheets, create a follow-up task). Per run, that is 5 tasks on Zapier, 6 credits on Make (5 actions plus the trigger) and 1 execution on n8n. Each tool is priced at the smallest tier that covers the volume, on its entry plan.

Over a year on annual billing, that is $588, $1,548 and $3,468 on Zapier; $132, $240 and $780 on Make; $240, $240 and $600 on n8n Cloud. Self-hosting n8n removes the subscription but adds a server and maintenance time, which we cost out in our n8n pricing guide.

Three things can move these numbers:

• AI steps. On Zapier, an AI by Zapier step can cost more than 1 task depending on the model tier; on Make, AI Provider features can use several credits. On n8n, an AI step stays inside the single execution, but you pay the model provider or n8n's prepaid Gateway credits.
• Teams. Zapier Professional has one seat. Shared workspaces need Team, from $69 a month billed annually for 2,000 tasks. Make and n8n include unlimited users on every plan.
• Hitting the limit. Zapier switches you to pay-per-task billing at a higher rate, or pauses your Zaps if it is turned off. Make stops scenarios until you buy more credits and queues incoming webhooks. n8n Starter and Pro are capped, so you move up a tier.

n8n vs Zapier

This is the widest gap of the three. At 2,000 runs of our test workflow, Zapier costs $129 a month billed annually and n8n $20, more than six times less, and the gap grows with each step you add. n8n also lets you write JavaScript or Python, build AI agents with your own model keys and self-host for free.

Zapier earns its price in other ways. It connects 9,000+ apps, so niche industry tools are more likely to be there. Anyone on the team can build a two-step Zap in minutes, and there is no server to maintain. Pick Zapier when the people building automations are not technical, volumes are low, or a key app only exists on Zapier. Pick n8n when workflows are long, volumes are high, or you need code, agents or data control.

n8n vs Make

Make and n8n are closer than they look. Both use a visual canvas, both include unlimited users, and both handle branching logic well. At low volume with short workflows, Make is cheaper: $11 a month billed annually buys 10,000 credits, against $20 for 2,500 n8n executions.

The break-even depends on steps per run. At 2,500 runs a month, Make's $20 tier buys 20,000 credits, which is 8 credits per run (20,000 ÷ 2,500). If your runs average 8 credits or fewer, Make costs the same as n8n Starter or less. Above 8, or with loops over many items, n8n is cheaper, and the gap widens with volume. Make has the larger app catalog (3,500+ against n8n's 2,000+). n8n has code-first flexibility and the self-hosting option.

Zapier vs Make

For the same money, Make does far more work: 10,000 credits for $11 a month billed annually, against 750 Zapier tasks for $19.99. Make also includes unlimited users, routers and filters on its free plan, and a canvas that shows complex logic more clearly than Zapier's list of steps.

Zapier stays ahead on ease of use and app coverage (9,000+ apps against 3,500+), and its triggers are free while Make bills the trigger module. For a non-technical owner who needs three simple automations next week, Zapier is still the fastest route. For anyone building more than a handful of multi-step workflows, Make is usually the better deal.

Zapier alternatives: how to migrate without breaking anything

If you are moving off Zapier to Make or n8n, these steps keep leads and invoices flowing during the switch:

1. Inventory your Zaps. Export the list with each Zap's monthly task usage from Zapier's task usage and Zap history pages. Often, a few Zaps account for most of the bill.
2. Start with the most expensive workflow, not the most complex one. That is where the savings are, and it tells you quickly whether the new tool fits.
3. Rebuild, do not copy. Map each Zapier step to a Make module or an n8n node. Filters and Paths become routers, filters or IF nodes; Formatter steps become built-in functions or expressions. Plan for a rebuild rather than a clean import.
4. Reconnect apps under company-owned accounts, not a former employee's login, and document which credential each workflow uses.
5. Swap triggers carefully. Forms and webhooks need the new URL. For polling triggers, make sure the new workflow does not reprocess old records on its first run.
6. Test in parallel without duplicates. Point the new workflow at a test sheet or sandbox CRM for a week, compare its output with the live Zap, then switch.
7. Set up error alerts on day one: an error workflow in n8n, error handlers in Make. A silent failure costs more than any subscription.
8. Turn old Zaps off, do not delete them, for 30 days, so you can roll back if something was missed.

Before rebuilding anything, check whether each workflow still earns its place: our list of AI automations that save real time helps sort the useful from the habitual. If you are also weighing AI agents on these platforms, start with what an AI agent actually is. And if you would rather hand the migration over, our automation and AI team works from a fixed quote, delivered within 72 hours of a free 30-minute call.