Pipedream vs n8n vs Make vs Zapier

Written head to head: Zapier vs Make · Make vs n8n · Zapier vs n8n, with when to choose each side.

Compared on	Pipedream Free plan · from $29/mo VisitRemove	n8n Free plan · from $20/mo VisitRemove	Make Free plan · from $9/mo VisitRemove	Zapier Free plan · from $19.99/mo VisitRemove
What it is	Workflow automation for developers, with 3,000+ integrated apps and custom code	Workflow automation and AI agent builder you can self-host or use in the cloud	Visual no-code tool for building automated workflows and AI agents across apps	No-code tool that connects web apps and runs automated, AI-assisted workflows
Free plan	100 credits per month (usage capped); 3 active workflows; 3 connected accounts; 1M AI tokens	Self-hosted Community Edition only: free to run on your own server under n8n's Sustainable Use License; there is no free tier on n8n Cloud	1,000 credits per month; 2 active scenarios; 15-minute minimum interval between scheduled runs	100 tasks per month; two-step Zaps only; unlimited Zaps, Tables and Forms
Cheapest paid plan	$29/mo billed annually (Basic)Pipedream pricing	$20/mo billed annually (Starter)n8n pricing	$9/mo billed annually (Core)Make pricing	$19.99/mo billed annually (Professional)Zapier pricing
What it covers	2,000 credits/month included; $348 billed annually.	2,500 workflow executions/month, hosted by n8n.	For 10,000 credits/month; price rises with credit volume.	For 750 tasks/month; price rises with the task tier.
Free trial	None stated	Free trial of n8n Cloud with Pro-level features, capped at 1,000 executions, no credit card required; 14-day free trial of the self-hosted Business plan (credit card required)	None stated	14-day free trial of the Professional plan for new accounts, no credit card required
Platforms	Web, API	Web, Self-hosted, API	Web, API	Web
Integrations (vendor's figure)	3,000+ integrated apps	500+ integrations	3,000+ apps	9,000+ apps
Open source	No	Yes, self-hostable	No	No
Good for	Receiving webhooks from one service and reshaping the data before sending it to another Running scheduled scripts that call APIs without managing servers Adding third-party app connections to a software product or AI agent	Building an AI agent that answers questions from internal documents Automating lead enrichment and CRM updates with custom logic Running automations on a company's own server to keep data in-house	Syncing new e-commerce orders into accounting tools and spreadsheets Routing incoming leads to different teams based on form answers Scheduling recurring reports that pull data from several apps	Sending new web-form leads into a CRM and a Slack channel Copying email attachments to cloud storage automatically Adding new orders or calendar events to a shared spreadsheet
Watch out for	Free plan: 100 credits a month, 3 active workflows and 3 connected accounts Basic is limited to 10 active workflows and 5 connected accounts Premium apps and GitHub Sync need Advanced or higher	No free tier on n8n Cloud; free use means self-hosting the Community Edition SSO, Git-based version control and multiple environments require the Business or Enterprise plan Cloud plans cap monthly executions (2,500 on Starter, 10,000 on Pro) and concurrent executions	Free plan: 1,000 credits a month, 2 active scenarios and a 15-minute minimum interval between runs Each module action uses a credit, so multi-step scenarios use credits faster Team roles and shared scenario templates require the Teams plan or higher	Free plan allows only two-step Zaps and 100 tasks a month Every Zap step, AI step, code run and connector call draws from one shared monthly task allowance Multi-step Zaps, premium apps and webhooks require a paid plan
Made by	Pipedream, LLC (acquired by Workday, Inc.)	n8n	Make (part of Celonis)	Zapier, Inc.

Entry prices are the cheapest paid plan, as each vendor publishes it; “What it covers” says what that price is per (a user, a channel, a brand, a number of contacts). The sources are listed on each tool's page.

Every tool in workflow automation tools is on its category page, with the written head-to-heads on Compare.