6 Best Activepieces Alternatives in 2026

The best Activepieces alternative depends on why you picked Activepieces in the first place. If it was self-hosting, move to n8n: it is the only other tool here with a free self-hosted edition, although its licence is fair-code rather than MIT. If you use Activepieces Cloud and want more depth, Make is the strongest hosted option, Zapier has the most apps, Pipedream suits developers, Pabbly Connect is the low-cost pick and Power Automate belongs in Microsoft 365 companies.

Two things about Activepieces are rare, so check them before you switch: its Community Edition is MIT-licensed, and it charges one credit per run no matter how many steps the run has. None of the six alternatives matches the first, and only n8n comes close on the second.

Every tool in the workflow automation category is in the directory if you want to look wider. Facts below come from each vendor's own pages, read on 25 September 2026, in US dollars unless stated.

Where Activepieces stands today

Activepieces is a no-code flow builder with AI agents, tables and MCP servers, and code steps that can use npm packages. Its pricing page claims more than 760 integrations (the GitHub README says 200 pieces, so treat the count as approximate), and every piece is open-source TypeScript.

The plans on 25 September 2026:

• Free: 100 credits a day for one user, reset daily. Runs past the limit wait until the next day.
• Plus: $20 a month flat for 10,000 credits and up to five users. Extra credits cost $0.007 each.
• Team: $200 a month for 50,000 credits and 25 users, with single sign-on and standard roles.
• Ultimate: custom pricing, with SCIM, custom roles, audit logs, Git sync and dedicated workers.

A run costs one credit however many steps it has. AI steps cost more (2 to 20 credits by model) unless you bring your own AI key on Plus or above. Every plan can run on Activepieces' cloud or on your own servers, and the Community Edition is MIT-licensed, with team features under a commercial licence.

Teams usually start looking elsewhere when they need an integration that is not yet a piece, want single sign-on without the $200 Team plan, or find self-hosting more work than expected.

How we chose these alternatives

We began with the workflow automation category in the Automate Basics directory. To make this list, a tool had to meet three tests on its own pages, read on 25 September 2026:

1. A published, self-serve price, so you can compare costs without a sales call.
2. Conditional branching, meaning a workflow can split into different paths depending on the data, because most Activepieces flows past the beginner stage rely on it.
3. A free plan, a free self-hosted edition or a free trial, so you can rebuild one flow before paying.

Six tools passed. Those that did not:

• Workato publishes no prices; its pricing page offers a demo.
• IFTTT's Pro+ plan adds filter code and conditional logic to skip or change actions, but an applet does not split into separate paths.
• Gumloop's pricing page labels its workflow builder as legacy, with AI agents now the main product.
• Relay.app shut down in September 2026.

We order the six by how well they keep what Activepieces users usually value: self-hosting first, then a billing unit that does not punish long flows, then entry price. That order is our judgement from published facts, not a performance test.

Activepieces alternatives compared

For head-to-head detail on the hosted options, see Zapier vs Make and Make vs n8n.

1. n8n

Best for: teams that self-host Activepieces and want to keep their data on their own servers.

n8n is the only tool on this list you can run yourself for free. Its homepage points to Docker deployment and the full source on GitHub, and the Community Edition costs nothing beyond your server. The canvas branches with If and Switch nodes, and Code nodes take JavaScript or Python. The homepage claims more than 500 integrations, with HTTP requests for anything missing.

Billing is the closest match to Activepieces. n8n counts one full workflow execution however many nodes it passes through, so long flows are not penalised. On n8n's cloud, Starter is $24 a month, or $20 a month billed yearly, for 2,500 executions, and Pro is $60 a month, or $50 billed yearly, for 10,000. All plans include unlimited users.

Where it falls short: the licence. n8n's GitHub page describes it as fair-code under the Sustainable Use License and the n8n Enterprise License: source available and self-hostable, but not open source in the sense MIT is. If your company's policy requires an OSI-approved licence, n8n will not pass. Single sign-on, Git version control and environments need the self-hosted Business plan or Enterprise.

See n8n in the directory, or start with the n8n basics guide. Source: n8n pricing.

2. Make

Best for: Activepieces Cloud users who want a more powerful hosted builder and do not need self-hosting.

Make's visual canvas is where most Activepieces users will feel at home fastest. Routers split a scenario into several branches, each with its own filter, and Make's pricing page lists more than 3,000 apps, well beyond the Activepieces piece library. Make is part of Celonis.

The free plan includes 1,000 credits a month and two active scenarios, with at least 15 minutes between scheduled runs. Core starts at $9 a month billed yearly for 10,000 credits, with unlimited active scenarios and API access.

Where it falls short: the meter. Make charges one credit for each module action, so a twelve-step scenario uses around twelve credits per run where Activepieces would charge one. There is no self-hosted edition, and single sign-on is Enterprise only.

See Make in the directory. Source: Make pricing.

3. Zapier

Best for: teams whose missing Activepieces piece is a niche app, since Zapier has the largest catalogue.

Zapier's homepage claims more than 9,000 apps. Branching is handled by Paths, which Zapier describes as conditional logic that sends a Zap down different actions depending on the data. It also offers Tables, Forms, AI agents and an MCP server.

The free plan allows 100 tasks a month and two-step Zaps only, which is not enough for branching. Professional starts at $19.99 a month billed yearly, or $29.99 monthly, for 750 tasks, with multi-step Zaps and webhooks. Team starts at $69 a month billed yearly and adds SAML single sign-on, which is cheaper than the Activepieces Team plan. New accounts get a 14-day Professional trial without a card.

Where it falls short: Zapier counts a task for each action step, and 750 tasks is a small allowance next to 10,000 Activepieces credits at a similar price. It is hosted only.

See Zapier in the directory. Source: Zapier pricing.

4. Pipedream

Best for: developers who used Activepieces mainly for code steps and want more languages.

Pipedream runs code steps in Node.js, Python, Go and Bash with most npm and PyPI packages, well beyond the TypeScript-only code in Activepieces. Its pricing page lists HTTP and webhook triggers and more than 3,000 integrated apps. Branching (if/else, switch and parallel) is listed as control flow operators on the Advanced plan, $49 a month billed yearly, not on Free or Basic.

The free plan gives 100 credits a month, three active workflows and three connected accounts. Basic is $29 a month billed yearly for 2,000 credits, ten active workflows and five connected accounts. Pipedream's documentation defines a credit as 30 seconds of compute at 256 MB of memory.

Where it falls short: no self-hosting and a closed licence, so it is the opposite of what brought many people to Activepieces. The limits on active workflows and connected accounts bite early on Free and Basic, and branching needs Advanced. Single sign-on needs the Business plan, priced by quote. Workday agreed to buy Pipedream in November 2025, and the homepage now leads with tools for AI agents.

See Pipedream in the directory. Source: Pipedream pricing.

5. Pabbly Connect

Best for: small businesses that want low running costs and have flows with many internal steps.

Pabbly Connect does not count triggers or internal steps such as filters, routers, formatters and iterators as tasks, according to its pricing page. Only actions that reach an external app use a task, which lands it closer to Activepieces' per-run meter than Make or Zapier. It has routers for branching, a JavaScript and Python code module on paid plans, a human approval step, MCP servers and more than 2,000 integrations.

The free plan gives 100 tasks a month with unlimited workflows, each limited to two steps. On 25 September 2026, Standard was $14 a month billed monthly for 10,000 tasks (discounted from a listed $19), with lower rates on longer terms and one-off lifetime plans with fixed monthly task limits.

Where it falls short: hosted only, and closed source. Team members are not available on monthly plans. Its pricing page shows local currency by location and marks the Standard price as a discount, so check the current figure in yours.

See Pabbly Connect in the directory. Source: Pabbly Connect pricing.

6. Microsoft Power Automate

Best for: organisations on Microsoft 365, where flows run inside Teams, Excel and SharePoint.

Power Automate adds a condition step to cloud flows so they can take a yes or a no path, according to Microsoft Learn. Microsoft's product page lists more than 1,400 connectors, Copilot for building flows in plain language, desktop automation of Windows apps, and governance tools such as managed environments and data loss prevention.

Pricing is per licence, not per run. Premium costs $15 per user a month, paid yearly, and includes cloud flows and attended desktop flows. Unattended bots cost $150 per bot a month on the Process plan. A 30-day trial covers cloud flows with standard connectors.

Where it falls short: it is a Microsoft service, so there is no self-hosting and no open licence. It works best when most of your apps are Microsoft's, and every published price is billed yearly.

See Power Automate in the directory, or read our Power Automate alternatives guide the other way round. How it compares with Zapier is in Zapier vs Power Automate. Source: Power Automate pricing.

Reasons to stay on Activepieces

Leaving is not always the answer. Stay if:

• Your legal or security team requires an OSI-approved licence. Only the Activepieces Community Edition on this list is MIT.
• Your flows are long. One credit per run is hard to beat once flows pass five or six steps, and moving to a per-action meter can multiply the bill.
• The gap is one missing integration. Pieces are open-source TypeScript, and the pricing page's FAQ says anything with an API can be reached through the HTTP piece or a webhook in the meantime.

The baseline figures are on the Activepieces directory page.

A quick way to decide

1. Self-hosted today? Test n8n first. It is the only alternative that keeps the same deployment model.
2. On Activepieces Cloud? Count steps per run in your busiest flows. Many steps favour Pabbly Connect or n8n Cloud; few steps make Make or Zapier competitive.
3. Need a specific app? Search the Zapier and Make app lists before anything else.
4. Microsoft shop? Price Power Automate against the licences you already hold.

Rebuild one flow in your chosen tool and run it alongside the original for a couple of weeks before moving the rest. Our Zapier alternatives guide explains why a gradual move costs less than it looks.

Next step

Open the directory pages for n8n and Make, the two alternatives most Activepieces users should test first, and check each plan against the step counts from your own flows.

Drafted with AI assistance from our own research and Search Console data, and reviewed by the Automate Basics team before publishing. Tools and prices change; check the linked official source before you act.

Try this now

Count the steps in your five busiest Activepieces flows and multiply by their monthly runs. That number, not the plan price, tells you what Make, Zapier or Pabbly will cost you.