Comparison · updated 19 October 2026
n8n vs Zapier: what it costs once your automations grow.
Zapier is the easiest tool to start with and connects to over 9,000 apps, but it bills every successful action as a task, so the price climbs with each step you add. n8n counts one execution per run, however many steps, and can be self-hosted for free. For a few simple automations Zapier is fine; for long, frequent or AI-heavy workflows n8n costs a fraction as much.
30 min · Fixed quote before we build · Projects from $2,500
The short version
We build most client automations on n8n (a WhatsApp support agent that reads voice notes and photos, daily social publishing), we published 30 free n8n workflows, and we work inside Zapier when a client already runs on it. The difference that decides most projects is how each tool counts usage.
Zapier bill growing? We move the work to n8n.
We rebuild your Zaps as n8n workflows, self-hosted or on n8n Cloud, test them with your real data and keep them running. One workflow starts at $2,500, with a fixed price you approve first.
Pricing side by side
| n8n Cloud | Zapier | |
|---|---|---|
| Free option | Community Edition: self-hosted, free, no execution limit | Free: 100 tasks a month, two-step Zaps only, checks every 15 minutes |
| Entry plan | Starter: €20 a month (€24 billed monthly), 2,500 executions | Professional: $19.99 a month ($29.99 billed monthly), 750 tasks, 1 user |
| At 10,000 | Pro: €50 a month, 10,000 executions | Professional: $129 a month for 10,000 tasks |
| For a team | Business, self-hosted: €667 a month ($800 in the US), SSO | Team: $69 a month for 2,000 tasks, 25 users, SSO |
| How usage is counted | Per execution: one run, however many steps | Per task: every successful action step |
| Not counted | Manual test runs, sub-workflows, error workflows | Triggers, Filter, Paths, Formatter, Delay, Looping and failed steps |
| When you run out | Cloud runs fail with an error until you upgrade | Extra tasks are billed, up to 3 times your plan, then held |
From n8n.io/pricing and zapier.com/pricing on 19 October 2026, billed yearly unless stated.
Real workflows, priced on both
| Workflow | n8n Cloud | Zapier |
|---|---|---|
| 3 steps, 500 runs a month | 500 executions: Starter, €20 | 1,000 tasks: Professional 1,500, $39 |
| 15 steps, 2,000 runs a month | 2,000 executions: Starter, €20 | 28,000 tasks: Professional 50,000, $289 |
| An AI step with 2 tool calls, 1,000 runs | Counted inside the run: 1,000 executions | Up to 15 tasks a run on the default model tier: 15,000 tasks |
Billed yearly. Zapier counts the action steps of a Zap, so a 15-step Zap uses 14 tasks a run; the trigger is free. The free plan only allows two-step Zaps, so the 3-step example needs a paid plan. On n8n the AI model's tokens are billed by your AI provider; Zapier's AI tasks include them.
The gap grows with every step you add, because Zapier bills each action and n8n bills the run. Across the 30 workflows in our free library the median has 7 action steps, so a typical workflow costs 7 Zapier tasks every time it runs.
What happens at your limit
- n8n Cloud: once you reach your monthly executions, new runs fail with an error. They are not queued or retried, triggers keep firing, and executions reset on the 1st of each month. You can retry failed runs by hand after upgrading.
- Zapier: extra tasks are billed automatically, up to three times your plan's task limit. After that, tasks are held until the billing cycle ends.
- Self-hosted n8n has no execution limit at all; you pay for the server.
AI agents
n8n's AI Agent node puts a model, memory and tools inside a workflow, with MCP support and an approval step before a tool runs. A whole agent run counts as one execution, so the WhatsApp agent we built costs one execution per incoming message, whatever it does inside. Zapier now bills AI by model tier: a step costs 1, 3 or 5 tasks a run (Standard, Advanced, Premium), plus the same again for each tool it calls, and new steps default to Premium. With your own API key the rate drops to 1 task per step and per tool call.
Hosting, data and compliance
n8n is the only one of the two you can run on your own server, so customer data can stay on infrastructure you control; its cloud runs in Frankfurt. Zapier is cloud only. Zapier says it does not support health data covered by HIPAA and does not sign business associate agreements, so US clinics should keep patient data out of it.
Ease of use
Zapier is the simpler of the two: a non-technical person can connect two apps in minutes, and it has ready-made connections to far more apps. n8n asks more of you (expressions, code nodes, error handling) and gives more back: branching, loops, retries and versioning without paying per step. For an app n8n does not cover, its HTTP Request node connects to any service with an API.
When to choose which
- Choose Zapier for a few short automations you build and maintain yourself, especially between popular apps.
- Choose n8n when workflows have many steps or run often, when an AI agent is involved, or when data has to stay on your server.
- Weighing Make too? Our n8n vs Make comparison prices the same workflows there.
- Already on Zapier? Keep the small Zaps and move the long, busy ones first: that is where the tasks go.
Questions, answered.
Is n8n cheaper than Zapier?
For anything beyond a few small automations, by a wide margin. A 15-step workflow running 2,000 times a month fits n8n's €20 Starter plan but needs Zapier's $289 Professional tier (billed yearly, 19 October 2026).
Is n8n free?
The self-hosted Community Edition is free with no execution limit. n8n Cloud starts at €20 a month billed yearly.
Does Zapier count triggers as tasks?
No. Triggers, Filter, Paths, Formatter, Delay and Looping steps are free; every successful action step counts as a task.
Is Zapier easier than n8n?
Yes, for a first automation. n8n has a steeper start and more depth. If someone builds it for you, the difference stops mattering and the bill starts to.
Can n8n replace Zapier?
For almost every workflow, yes. Zapier has ready-made connections to more apps, but n8n reaches any app with an API through its HTTP Request node.
Is Zapier HIPAA compliant?
No. Zapier says health data covered by HIPAA is not supported and it does not sign business associate agreements. Self-hosted n8n keeps the data on servers you control.
Which is better for AI agents?
n8n: a whole agent run counts as one execution. On Zapier, an AI step costs up to 5 tasks a run on the default model tier, plus the same for every tool call.
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