n8n is a workflow automation tool that chains your apps, APIs and AI models into steps on a visual canvas. You can run it on n8n's cloud or on your own server. It differs from Zapier in four ways: hosting, billing, app count and the skill it asks of the builder.
Most teams look into n8n at one of two moments. One is a Zapier bill that grew because a 5-task lead flow now runs hundreds of times a month. The other is a developer saying the team can build it in n8n, while the marketing lead has no idea what that commits the business to.
The name is short for "nodemation," and you say it n-eight-n, according to the README on n8n's GitHub page. Jan Oberhauser started the project in Berlin in 2019.
On this page
- What is n8n and how does a workflow run?
- How do n8n AI agents work?
- n8n vs Zapier at a glance
- How n8n pricing compares with Zapier's task billing
- When self-hosted n8n makes sense
- How many apps each one connects
- Who builds the workflow, and who fixes it when it breaks
- What the n8n license allows
- Pros and cons of n8n
- Is n8n a good Zapier alternative for your team?
- How to test n8n before you switch
What is n8n and how does a workflow run?
Every n8n workflow starts with a trigger node and passes data along a chain of nodes, each doing one job. The trigger might be a form entry, a webhook from your website, a new row in a Google Sheet or a schedule such as every weekday at 9 a.m. Later nodes look up a contact, skip existing customers or post to your sales channel.
You connect nodes by dragging lines between boxes. After each run, n8n shows the data that passed through every node, so you can see which step broke and what it received.
Two features set n8n apart from simpler tools. The Code node runs your own JavaScript or Python when no ready-made node does the job. And the HTTP Request node, n8n's docs say, can "query data from any app or service with a REST API."
One execution is one full run of a workflow, from trigger to last node. The step count doesn't change it, and that rule drives most of the price gap with Zapier.
How do n8n AI agents work?
An n8n AI agent is a node inside a workflow. It reads the input, calls a language model and decides which of your attached tools to use. The model can come from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google or an open-source provider, and n8n's GitHub page says you can switch providers without rebuilding the workflow.
Because the agent sits in a workflow you can open, you decide where a person steps in. The n8n home page lists human-in-the-loop approvals, guardrails, evaluations and logs of past agent runs. Put an approval before the customer's inbox, and an AI follow-up can't promise a refund nobody agreed to.
Zapier sells agents as a separate product, Zapier Agents, which counts usage in activities rather than tasks. Zapier's help center puts the free tier at 400 activities a month. Both platforms support MCP, the open protocol that lets assistants such as Claude and ChatGPT call outside tools, though on Zapier each MCP tool call uses two tasks.
Whichever tool you pick, limit what each agent can reach. Microsoft has warned about AI agents that hold too many privileges inside a company, and an n8n agent holding your CRM credentials carries the same risk.
n8n vs Zapier at a glance
The prices below come from each vendor's site in October 2026. Both quote their lowest figure on annual billing, Zapier in US dollars and n8n in euros.
| Factor | n8n | Zapier |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting | n8n Cloud, or self-hosted with Docker on your own server | Zapier's cloud only |
| What you pay for | Executions: one full workflow run, any number of steps | Tasks: each successful action step |
| Entry paid plan | Starter, €20 a month for 2,500 executions | Professional, $19.99 a month for 750 tasks |
| No-cost option | Community Edition to self-host; Cloud has a trial only | Free plan with 100 tasks a month, two-step Zaps only |
| Ready-made integrations | 500+ native, 2,000+ in the directory, plus HTTP Request for REST APIs | 9,000+ apps |
| Building style | Visual canvas with optional JavaScript and Python | No-code editor with Copilot, an AI assistant |
| AI agents | Agent nodes inside workflows, with approval steps | Zapier Agents, billed in activities |
How n8n pricing compares with Zapier's task billing
n8n's pricing page defines an execution as "a single run of your entire workflow," whatever its length or data volume. Zapier counts one task for each successful action step. Triggers, filters, paths and failed steps cost nothing, according to Zapier's help article on task usage. So the two price lists don't compare plan for plan.
Take a business that gets 300 inquiries a month through its website form. Each inquiry starts a flow with five actions: it adds the lead to the CRM, checks for a duplicate, alerts sales, sends a welcome email and logs it in a sheet.
- On Zapier, the trigger costs nothing and each lead uses 5 tasks. So 300 leads use 1,500 tasks a month, double the 750 in the entry Professional tier at $19.99. You'd need a bigger tier.
- On n8n Cloud, each lead is one execution, so 300 leads use 300 executions. That fits the Starter plan's 2,500 at €20 a month, with room for eight times the volume.
The gap closes for two-step automations, where one task and one execution cover the same work. It widens once you pass your Zapier tier: Zapier's blog puts extra tasks at 1.25 times the normal rate on annual plans and 2.5 times on monthly ones.
n8n Cloud offers a trial with 1,000 executions but no permanent free plan. Self-hosted n8n is free to license, so the cost moves to a server and the person who runs it. Price those hours too. Two days of developer setup can cost more than a year of a $19.99 plan.
When self-hosted n8n makes sense
Zapier runs every Zap on its own servers, so you have nothing to install or patch. With n8n you can pick n8n Cloud, which is equally hands-off, or your own server or private cloud. On a server with Docker, n8n's one-line setup installs it with curl -fsSL https://get.n8n.io | sh. The script downloads n8n and starts it on port 5678.
Self-hosted, your customer records, lead data and API keys stay on servers you control, which counts when a client contract or a privacy rule says where you may process personal data. A clinic sending appointment reminders has a stronger case for it than a shop posting products to social media.
It also opens up the Code node. On your own instance you can import external npm packages. On n8n Cloud, the Code node offers only the Node.js crypto module and the moment package.
The trade is ownership, and n8n's guide to choosing between Cloud and self-hosting says installation and configuration need technical knowledge. Once you self-host, the server bill, updates, backups, uptime and security patches are yours. The default install uses SQLite, and the docs suggest Postgres for teams and production.
Some features cost money even when you host n8n yourself. SSO, environments and projects need a Business or Enterprise plan. Business costs €667 a month on annual billing for 40,000 executions, and for now n8n offers it only for self-hosting.
How many apps each one connects
With 9,000+ apps, Zapier has far more prebuilt integrations. The n8n home page lists 500+ native integrations, and its integrations directory shows 2,000+ entries. With a niche booking tool or a regional accounting app in your stack, Zapier is likelier to have a connector.
The HTTP Request node narrows the gap by reaching any service with a REST API. You can even paste a cURL example from the vendor's API docs to fill in the request. The catch is who sets it up, because reading API docs, handling authentication and mapping fields is developer work for most marketers.
So the app count matters most to teams without technical help. A stack of Google Sheets, a CRM, an email platform and one AI model has nodes on both platforms.
Who builds the workflow, and who fixes it when it breaks
Zapier built its editor for people who don't write code. You pick a trigger app, pick an action app, map the fields and turn the Zap on, and Copilot, Zapier's AI assistant, helps draft the steps. Ease of use is the main thing the higher task bill buys.
n8n is harder to learn. The canvas is visual, but expressions and data structures reward someone who knows how data moves between systems. The payoff is control: loops, branches and custom code sit in one workflow you can read from left to right.
If an AI assistant will write your Code node, read what vibe coding means for a business first. Code nobody reads is a risk anywhere it touches customer data.
A harder test is who fixes a broken workflow at 8 a.m. on a Monday. In Zapier, the person who built the Zap can open the run history and correct a field mapping. In a self-hosted n8n setup, the fault could sit in a node, the server, the database or an expired certificate, and that needs someone technical on call.
What the n8n license allows
n8n's source code is public on GitHub, where the project has passed 200,000 stars. Many comparison articles call it open source, but n8n doesn't. It calls its model fair-code and ships the software under its own Sustainable Use License. The Open Source Initiative doesn't accept licenses that limit use, and this one does.
The license lets you use, modify and redistribute n8n with three limits. You may use or modify it only for your own internal business purposes or for non-commercial or personal use. You may give it to others only free of charge and for non-commercial purposes. And you can't remove n8n's licensing or copyright notices.
Automating your own sales and operations work sits inside the license. The license page also says paid consulting, such as building n8n workflows for clients, needs no separate agreement. You need one if your customers get access to n8n to connect their own accounts and build workflows.
Pros and cons of n8n
n8n's main pros are per-run billing, self-hosting and code access. Its main cons are the learning curve and a smaller app catalog than Zapier's. The details below come from n8n's pricing page and GitHub README.
On the plus side:
- Starter includes unlimited users and active workflows, so adding a colleague doesn't raise the bill.
- n8n's GitHub README lists 9,000+ workflow templates you can copy and adapt.
- Moving up to Pro costs €50 a month for 10,000 executions, four times Starter's volume.
On the minus side:
- Starter runs 5 production executions at once, and extra runs wait in a queue until a slot frees up.
- Execution logs last 7 days on Starter, against 30 on Pro, so an old failure can vanish before anyone checks it.
Is n8n a good Zapier alternative for your team?
n8n is a good Zapier alternative when someone on your team can maintain it, and a poor one when nobody can.
Pick Zapier if your automation builders are marketers or operations staff with no developer nearby. Short flows and less common apps favor it too. A five-person agency connecting forms, a CRM and an email tool will usually go live faster on Zapier.
Pick n8n Cloud if you have someone technical and your workflows run many steps or high volumes, or if you want AI agents with approval steps you can see. An online store pushing 2,000 orders a month through a seven-action flow would use 14,000 Zapier tasks, against 2,000 n8n executions that still fit the Starter plan.
Self-hosted n8n is the pick when data has to stay on your own infrastructure and you have someone to run the server.
Running both works too. Zapier handles short, low-volume connections the marketing team owns, and n8n runs the long flows a developer maintains. A custom CRM for your sales team should ship with a REST API so both tools can reach it.
How to test n8n before you switch
n8n is easiest to judge on one real workflow, so test it before you move anything:
- List your three busiest Zaps. Multiply each one's action steps by its monthly runs to get your real task count.
- Rebuild the busiest one on the n8n Cloud trial, which gives you 1,000 executions without a credit card.
- Run both versions for a week and check that they create the same records in your CRM.
- Name the person who fixes the n8n version when it fails. If nobody can, keep that flow on Zapier.
Most of those steps touch customer records. If your leads still live in a spreadsheet, read what a CRM does for a small business before you automate. If the flow sends a welcome email, check how to keep automated email out of the spam folder too. Automation repeats whatever your domain setup gets wrong.
Send your step 1 numbers to our n8n and Zapier automation team for an answer within one business day.
Frequently asked questions
n8n is a workflow tool for multi-step work between apps, such as lead routing, CRM updates, reports and AI agents. One workflow can take a web form lead, add it to the CRM, skip existing customers and alert sales in a single run. Because n8n bills per run, it suits long or high-volume flows.
Yes, if you self-host the Community Edition, but you pay for the server and the time to run it. n8n Cloud has no permanent free plan. It offers a trial with 1,000 executions, and paid plans start with Starter at €20 a month on annual billing for 2,500 executions.
Not by the Open Source Initiative's definition. n8n publishes its code on GitHub under its own Sustainable Use License, which it calls fair-code. You can use and modify it for internal business or personal use, but letting customers build workflows on your n8n instance needs a commercial agreement with n8n.
n8n is the better fit for technical teams, long or high-volume workflows and businesses that must self-host. Zapier suits non-technical teams that want 9,000+ ready-made app connections and the fastest setup. You can also run both, with marketing owning the Zapier flows and a developer owning the n8n ones.
Yes. You build an n8n AI agent as a node inside a workflow, connected to a model from a provider such as OpenAI, Anthropic or Google. You can add human approval steps and guardrails and review logs of past agent runs, so a person can check an AI-written reply before a customer sees it.