8 Best n8n Alternatives in 2026

The closest n8n alternative is Activepieces, because it is the only other tool here you can self-host with an open-source core. If you want to stop running a server, Make gives you a similar canvas in the cloud for less, Pipedream suits people who mostly wrote Code nodes, and Zapier suits teams who want the simplest editor. We checked each vendor's plans on its own pricing page on 25 September 2026.

Why people leave n8n tends to fall into three camps: the licence (n8n calls itself fair-code, not open source), the work of running a self-hosted instance, or the cost of n8n Cloud, which starts at $20 a month billed annually for 2,500 executions and has no free tier (n8n pricing, checked 25 September 2026). Each tool below answers one of those.

To weigh them side by side, see every workflow automation tool in our directory with its current price and free plan.

How we chose these 8

We took the tools in the Automate Basics directory, where every record is built from the vendor's own pages and carries the date it was read. The pool was the workflow automation category plus three AI-agent builders from the AI agents category (Gumloop, StackAI and Flowise), and we kept those that:

• are still on sale to new customers. Flowise is out: its team stopped development on 29 July 2026 and archived the repository. Relay.app is out: its site says it shut down in September 2026.
• run multi-step workflows across apps with conditions or branching, the job n8n does,
• publish plans on their own site, or say plainly that they sell through sales.

IFTTT was left off: an Applet has one trigger, and its only code is filter code on Pro+, far short of n8n's branching and Code nodes (IFTTT plans, checked 25 September 2026). StackAI, from the AI agents category, was left off: it is an enterprise AI-agent platform with no self-serve paid plan.

We ordered the list for someone leaving n8n: how much of n8n's control you keep (self-hosting, code, licence), then how clear the pricing is, then how much rebuilding the move takes. The order is our editorial judgement on those criteria. Every figure was read on the vendor's pricing page on 25 September 2026.

n8n alternatives compared

1. Activepieces

Best for: teams that want to keep self-hosting, under a permissive licence.

Activepieces is the most direct swap. You can run it on your own server, and its Community Edition is released under the MIT licence, with enterprise features under a separate commercial licence (Activepieces on GitHub, checked 25 September 2026). For anyone whose legal team balked at n8n's Sustainable Use License, that difference is the whole reason to move.

The builder is friendlier to non-developers than n8n's, with TypeScript available when you need custom logic, and the site counts 760 integrations. Its hosted plans start with a free tier of 100 credits a day for one user; Plus is $20 a month for 10,000 credits and up to five users, and Team is $200 a month for 50,000 credits, 25 users and SSO. Usage over the allowance costs $0.007 a credit (Activepieces pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: open-source core, self-hostable, simple credit pricing. Cons: a much smaller app catalogue than Zapier's, and less room for heavy custom code than n8n's Code nodes.

See Activepieces in our directory.

2. Make

Best for: people who like n8n's canvas but no longer want to run the server.

Make builds workflows, which it calls scenarios, on a visual canvas of connected modules with routers and filters, so an n8n user feels at home within an hour. The difference is that it is cloud-only and billed in credits, one per module action. The free plan gives 1,000 credits a month, two active scenarios and a 15-minute minimum between runs. Core is $9 a month billed annually ($10.59 billed monthly) for 10,000 credits with unlimited active scenarios and one-minute scheduling (Make pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: a comparable visual builder with a real free tier and a low entry price. Cons: long workflows eat credits quickly, where n8n would count one execution, and there is no self-hosting at all.

See Make in our directory or the full Make vs n8n comparison.

3. Pipedream

Best for: developers whose n8n workflows were mostly Code nodes.

Pipedream treats code as a first-class step: any step can run Node.js, Python, Go or Bash (Pipedream docs), next to prebuilt actions for more than 3,000 apps. Triggers include webhooks, schedules, email and app events. Workday now owns Pipedream, according to Workday's February 2026 results release.

Credits are based on compute: one covers 30 seconds at the default 256 MB of memory per workflow segment (Pipedream docs). Free gives 100 credits a month, three active workflows and three connected accounts. Basic is $29 a month billed annually for 2,000 credits, ten workflows and five connected accounts, and Advanced is $49 a month billed annually with unlimited workflows and two-way GitHub sync (Pipedream pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: the strongest code experience here, with Git sync on Advanced. Cons: cloud-only, and the Basic plan's limits on workflows and accounts are tight.

See Pipedream in our directory.

4. Zapier

Best for: teams handing automation to non-technical colleagues.

Zapier is the opposite trade to n8n: much less control, much less setup. A Zap is a list of steps rather than a canvas, the homepage claims more than 9,000 connected apps, and there is nothing to host. The free plan allows 100 tasks a month on two-step Zaps; Professional is $19.99 a month billed yearly or $29.99 monthly for 750 tasks, with a 14-day trial and no card required (Zapier pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: the biggest catalogue and the easiest editor, with Code by Zapier steps when you need a script (the pricing page lists 1 second of runtime per step on Free and 30 seconds on paid plans). Cons: action steps draw tasks, so a workflow with 12 action steps that n8n counts once as one execution costs 12 tasks here (Zapier's built-in filters, formatters and paths are free), and there is no self-hosting.

See Zapier in our directory or the Zapier vs n8n comparison. Our Zapier alternatives guide covers why task-based bills climb.

5. Microsoft Power Automate

Best for: organisations standardised on Microsoft 365 and Windows.

Power Automate covers cloud flows between apps and desktop flows that drive Windows software (RPA), with native experiences in Teams, Excel and SharePoint and more than 1,400 prebuilt connectors according to Microsoft's product page. Premium is $15 per user a month paid yearly; unattended bots are $150 per bot a month, or $215 on Microsoft-hosted machines. There is a 30-day trial and no free plan on the pricing page (Power Automate pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: desktop automation n8n does not offer, and identity managed by your existing Microsoft tenant. Cons: clumsy outside Microsoft's ecosystem, and no self-hosting.

See Power Automate in our directory.

6. Pabbly Connect

Best for: running a lot of simple workflows on a small budget.

Pabbly Connect bills only action steps in external apps: triggers and internal steps such as filters, routers, formatters and iterators are free. It supports code steps in JavaScript and Python and lists more than 2,000 apps. Standard is $16 a month billed annually for 10,000 tasks, with lower rates for longer prepayment, and the free plan gives 100 tasks a month on two-step workflows (Pabbly Connect pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: low cost per useful action. Cons: cloud-only, a less capable builder than n8n for complex logic, and billing terms worth reading closely.

See Pabbly Connect in our directory.

7. Gumloop

Best for: teams that used n8n mainly to build AI agents.

Gumloop is now an agent platform first: its pricing page lists unlimited agents and seats, 35 or more AI models with your own API keys allowed, and a Gumloop MCP and CLI for developers, while workflows are labelled legacy. Pro starts at $37 a month with 20,000 credits, an 8% orchestration fee and a 14-day trial (Gumloop pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: built around agents and model choice. Cons: no free plan, no self-hosting, and a legacy label on the workflow side that n8n users rely on.

See Gumloop in our directory.

8. Workato

Best for: enterprises that outgrew a self-hosted instance and need governance.

Workato is an enterprise integration and automation platform covering APIs and governed AI agents. It publishes no prices; the pricing page leads to a demo, a trial request or a sales contact (Workato pricing, checked 25 September 2026).

Pros: governance, audit and scale that a single n8n instance does not give you. Cons: no self-serve plan and no published price, so budgeting starts with a sales call.

See Workato in our directory.

Should you leave n8n at all?

Two fixes keep people on n8n. If cost is the issue, remember that Cloud Pro is $50 a month billed annually for 10,000 executions, and each execution covers every step in the run, which is often cheaper than per-step meters for long workflows. If running the server is the issue, the Community Edition is still free and the hosted plans remove that job for you.

If you do move, rebuild your busiest workflow first and run both for a week. New to automation platforms generally? Our n8n basics guide and Zapier vs Make vs n8n breakdown explain the building models each tool uses.

Ready to shortlist? Browse the workflow automation category to compare current prices and free plans for all eight.

Try this now

Export one of your busiest n8n workflows as JSON and count its steps and monthly runs. Multiply them out under each tool’s meter (executions, credits or tasks) before you look at plan prices.