Last updated: May 2026
Compare monthly costs across Make.com, Zapier, n8n Cloud, and raw API builds — find the cheapest platform for your workflow volume.
Your Automation Usage
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Estimated monthly cost by platform
Platform comparison — detailed breakdown
| Platform | Plan needed | Monthly cost | Included ops | Cost / 1K ops | Best for |
|---|
Prices as of May 2026 — verify with provider before purchasing. make.com/pricing · zapier.com/pricing · n8n.io/pricing
Cost at scale — all platforms
| Platform | 1K ops | 10K ops | 50K ops | 100K ops | 500K ops |
|---|
Scale table reflects cheapest available plan at each volume. n8n Cloud ops = workflow executions (full runs). Self-hosted n8n infra cost (~$10/mo VPS) not shown.
Make.com & Zapier: Both charge per individual step (operation/task). Every module/action in a workflow counts. A 5-step workflow running 2,000 times = 10,000 operations. Overage ops are charged at $9 per 10,000 on Make (Core/Pro), and Zapier uses tiered overage rates. Zapier tasks and AI steps are billed identically.
n8n Cloud: Charges per workflow execution (full run), not per step. A 10-step workflow running 1,000 times = 1,000 executions. This makes n8n dramatically cheaper for complex workflows. Self-hosted n8n is free with unlimited executions — you only pay for the VPS (~$5–20/mo).
Raw API / build-yourself: Infrastructure cost is near zero for webhook endpoints. The real cost is developer time to build and maintain the integration — typically hours/month. Shown as $0/mo + dev time in this calculator.
Team member pricing: Make Teams ($29/mo) includes 3 users. Zapier Team ($69/mo) includes unlimited users. n8n Cloud plans allow multiple users. If your team exceeds a plan's user limit, the next tier up is selected.
Automation platforms use fundamentally different billing models, which makes direct comparison tricky. Make.com and Zapier count every individual step in a workflow as one operation or task. Run a 5-step workflow 1,000 times and you've consumed 5,000 operations. n8n Cloud counts whole workflow runs as executions regardless of how many nodes the workflow contains — so the same 5-step workflow running 1,000 times uses only 1,000 executions.
This calculator uses your declared "workflow complexity" (steps per workflow) to estimate Make/Zapier operation counts from your total operation input. For n8n, it back-calculates executions by dividing total ops by average steps per workflow. It then finds the cheapest plan that covers your volume on each platform, adds overage charges where applicable, and flags the cheapest option.
The "team members" input affects which tier is selected: Make Core/Pro are single-user; Teams unlocks 3 users. Zapier Team has unlimited users. Always check the current provider pricing page before committing — plans and included volumes change frequently.
At low volumes (under 1,000 ops/month) Make.com's free tier wins. From 1,000–10,000 ops Make.com Core at $9/mo is cheaper than Zapier Starter at $19.99/mo. n8n Cloud Starter at $20/mo charges per full workflow execution rather than per step, so it becomes competitive when your workflows are long (5+ steps). At very high volumes (100K+ ops), self-hosted n8n on a $10/mo VPS is the clear winner at near-zero marginal cost.
An operation (also called a task or step) is a single action executed by a workflow. If a Zap has 3 steps and runs 1,000 times per month, that's 3,000 operations. Make.com and Zapier count each step separately. n8n Cloud counts full workflow executions (runs), not individual steps — so a 10-step workflow that runs 1,000 times = 1,000 executions on n8n but 10,000 operations on Make/Zapier.
n8n's self-hosted version is free and open-source with no operation limits. You pay only for the server — typically $5–20/month for a basic VPS on DigitalOcean, Hetzner, or Fly.io. The n8n Cloud plans ($20–$50/mo) are paid. The catch with self-hosting is setup time and maintenance: you need to install n8n, configure SSL, and handle updates. For non-developers, n8n Cloud is usually easier despite the cost.
Six ways to cut costs: (1) Combine steps — merge multiple lookups into one API call to reduce operation count. (2) Use filters early — add conditions at the start of workflows so most runs stop before reaching expensive steps. (3) Batch operations — schedule hourly batches instead of per-event triggers to reduce execution count. (4) Move to n8n self-hosted once you have technical resources. (5) Audit inactive workflows — unused automations often sit on paid tiers consuming included operations. (6) Upgrade strategically — sometimes a higher plan with more included ops is cheaper than paying overages on a lower plan.
As of May 2026, Zapier AI steps count as regular tasks — there is no separate surcharge for LLM-powered actions within a Zap. However, if you use Zapier's built-in AI features like Zapier AI Actions or Canvas, those consume tasks at the same rate as any other step. Make.com similarly treats AI modules like any other operation.
Make.com and Zapier count every individual step (module/action) in a workflow as one operation. n8n Cloud counts full workflow runs as executions regardless of how many nodes the workflow contains. A 10-step workflow running 500 times = 5,000 operations on Make but only 500 executions on n8n Cloud. This makes n8n significantly cheaper for complex, multi-step workflows with many nodes.
Make.com (formerly Integromat) is the strongest option for complex multi-step workflows with branching logic and data transformation — its visual builder handles scenarios that would require multiple Zaps in Zapier. Zapier has the largest app library (6,000+ integrations) and the simplest setup experience, making it the default choice for non-technical users. n8n targets developers and technical teams who want full control: self-hosted deployments, custom JavaScript in nodes, and no per-operation billing for the self-hosted version.
The billing architecture difference matters more at scale. At 50,000 operations/month with 10-step workflows, Make charges roughly $44/mo (Core + overages), Zapier charges $49–$69/mo (Professional or Team tier), but n8n Cloud at $50/mo covers 10,000 executions — meaning those 50,000 ops at 10 steps each = only 5,000 executions, well within the Pro plan. The crossover point where n8n Cloud becomes cheaper than Make depends on your average steps per workflow: longer workflows favor n8n more strongly.
For teams building AI-powered automations with LLM calls in each workflow, the per-step billing on Make/Zapier penalizes complexity. An AI enrichment workflow with 15 steps (trigger → fetch record → call GPT → format → send Slack → log to sheet…) burns operations fast. n8n Cloud or self-hosted n8n makes those workflows dramatically more affordable at scale.