n8n, Make or Zapier: which automation tool to choose

n8n, Make and Zapier are tools that connect your apps so data flows between them without retyping. Zapier is the fastest to start with, Make gives more control in a visual editor, and n8n is the most flexible and can be self-hosted. The choice depends on who will maintain the automations and how many of them you'll run.

All three do the same basic thing. When something happens in one app, say a new form entry, they trigger steps in others: add the contact to a CRM, send an email, add a row to a sheet. The differences are in price, where they run and how technical you need to be.

The comparison in brief

	Zapier	Make	n8n
For whom	Beginners, simple connections	Anyone wanting more logic without coding	Technical teams, more complex systems
How it charges	Per task: each action step that runs counts, the trigger doesn't	Per credit: usually one per module run, some AI and code features use more	In the cloud, per workflow execution, however many steps it has
Free option	Free plan with a small task limit	Free plan with a small credit limit	Self-hosted Community Edition is free
Self-hosting	No, cloud service only	No, cloud service only	Yes, under the Sustainable Use License
Data region choice	No, data is stored in the US	EU or US, chosen per organisation	Wherever you host it; n8n Cloud runs in the EU
Learning curve	Lowest	Medium	Highest
Custom code in steps	Yes, JavaScript and Python	Yes, JavaScript and Python on paid plans	Yes, JavaScript and Python

Prices and plans change regularly for all three, so there are no figures here. Before deciding, check the official pricing pages listed in the sources.

n8n's Sustainable Use License lets you use and modify n8n for your own internal business purposes. You can't sell n8n itself as a service to others without a commercial licence. Using it to run your own company's automations is allowed.

Why the billing model matters more than the plan price

A common mistake is comparing only the monthly price of the cheapest plan. These tools charge by usage, and each one counts usage differently.

Example: an automation that runs five steps for every new enquiry (read the form, save the contact, check for duplicates, send an email, notify the salesperson). Zapier counts each action step as a task, but not the trigger, so that's about four tasks per enquiry. Make counts each module run, so it's about five credits. n8n Cloud counts the whole run as one execution. At a hundred enquiries a month, that's roughly 400 tasks, 500 credits or 100 executions.

The units don't cost the same, so this isn't a price comparison. But it shows how fast usage grows when a tool counts steps.

So first count how many steps your typical workflow has and how often it will run each month. Then compare plans.

When to choose Zapier

Pick Zapier when:

• you need a few simple connections and want to set them up yourself in one afternoon,
• you use widely adopted tools Zapier already has connectors for,
• the volume is small and per-task pricing doesn't bother you.

Zapier counts every action step as a task. Once you have lots of workflows with many steps, the task count grows fast, and so does the plan you need. At that point, compare it with a tool that counts whole runs.

When to choose Make

Make is a good middle step. Its visual editor shows the whole workflow as a diagram, with branches, filters and loops, which is easier to follow for complex flows than a list of steps. It suits businesses with someone who likes to understand how things work, but isn't necessarily a programmer.

When to choose n8n

n8n makes sense when:

• you have, or hire, someone who's comfortable with technical tools,
• you want control over where data runs and are prepared to maintain a server,
• you need steps the ready-made connectors don't cover and that are easier to write in code,
• volume is high enough that per-step billing would be expensive.

Self-hosting isn't free. Someone has to handle updates, backups and making sure the system doesn't stall at three in the morning. That cost belongs in the comparison.

What about GDPR

Each of these tools processes your customers' data while moving it between apps. So it belongs on your list of processors, just like website hosting or email. When choosing, check three things:

1. Where the provider processes data and whether you can choose a region.
2. Whether it signs a data processing agreement (DPA).
3. How it handles transfers outside the EU, for example under the EU–US Data Privacy Framework or standard contractual clauses.

Self-hosting n8n gives you the most control over where data lives, but it doesn't take away your responsibility for the server it runs on.

How to decide in five minutes

Answer three questions:

1. Who will maintain the automations? You, without technical skills: Zapier. Someone who likes to understand systems: Make. A developer: n8n.
2. How many runs a month do you expect? Few: price isn't decisive. Many: compare how usage is counted.
3. How much does data location matter? A lot: n8n on your own server, or a provider with a region choice.

At Alra we write most systems directly in code, because we build custom systems that we then maintain and don't want them tied to one tool. For a business that only wants to connect a form to a sheet, any of these three is enough. If you're not sure where to start, read what AI automation is and where it pays off or look at our automations.