Make vs n8n
Make is visual no-code tool for building automated workflows and AI agents across apps. n8n is workflow automation and AI agent builder you can self-host or use in the cloud. Here is how they compare on price, free plan, platforms and the jobs each does best, from each vendor's own pages.
| Make | n8n | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Visual no-code tool for building automated workflows and AI agents across apps | Workflow automation and AI agent builder you can self-host or use in the cloud |
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | $9/mo billed annually (Core) | $20/mo billed annually (Starter) |
| 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) |
| Platforms | Web, API | Web, Self-hosted, API |
| Integrations (vendor's figure) | 3,000+ apps | 500+ integrations |
| Open source | No | Yes, self-hostable |
| Made by | Make (part of Celonis) | n8n |
Choose Make if…
- Price matters: its cheapest paid plan is $9/mo against $20/mo.
- The job is syncing new e-commerce orders into accounting tools and spreadsheets.
- The job is routing incoming leads to different teams based on form answers.
Choose n8n if…
- You need to run it on your own servers or want the source code.
- The job is building an AI agent that answers questions from internal documents.
- The job is automating lead enrichment and CRM updates with custom logic.
Still weighing it up?
If neither is quite right, Make and n8n are also compared with their other rivals: Zapier vs Make, Zapier vs n8n and Zapier vs Microsoft Power Automate.
To see them doing real work, read Power Automate Alternatives for Teams That Aren't All-Microsoft and Zapier Alternatives for When the Task Limits Start to Bite.
What Make does
- Visual scenario builder with routers and filters
- 3,000+ app integrations, including 350+ AI apps
- Maia by Make for building automations and agents through conversation
- Make AI Agents (beta) and AI Toolkit using Make's AI provider or your own LLM key
- Make MCP Server so AI tools can run scenarios
- Make API access from the Core plan
Watch out for
- 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
What n8n does
- Visual workflow canvas with optional JavaScript and Python code steps
- AI agent building with a choice of models
- 500+ integrations plus custom HTTP and API requests
- Self-hosting through the Community Edition or Business and Enterprise licences
- Billing per full workflow execution, not per step
- Unlimited users and workflows on all plans
Watch out for
- 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
Questions
Is Make or n8n cheaper?
On published entry prices, Make is cheaper: $9/mo billed annually (Core) for Make against $20/mo billed annually (Starter) for n8n. What each plan includes differs, so compare the limits too.
Do Make and n8n have free plans?
Both do. Make: 1,000 credits per month; 2 active scenarios; 15-minute minimum interval between scheduled runs. n8n: 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.