Free · No signup · Updated June 2026

Find the automation tool that's actually cheapest for you.

Real pricing for n8n, Make, Pipedream, Zapier and more — matched to your real usage, not marketing pages. Answer 3 questions, get your pick in 30 seconds.

7
tools tracked
30+
pricing plans
weekly
data refresh
$0
to use this site

Find my best tool

Answer 3 questions about your role, volume, and budget — get a ranked, personalized match with the cheapest pick flagged.

Start the finder

Compare Tools

Pick any 2–4 tools and see pricing, limits, features, and plans side by side. Or browse all plans at once.

Compare tools

Pricing & Limits

Full table of ops limits, workflow caps, execution timeouts, and log history for every tool. Filterable.

See all limits

Frequently asked questions

Self-hosted n8n costs ~$8/mo (server only) with unlimited ops — cheaper than any Make plan for high volumes. On cloud, Make Core at $9/mo gives 10,000 ops while n8n Cloud Starter at $20/mo gives only 2,500 ops, making Make cheaper for cloud users under 10k ops/month. Compare n8n vs Make →
Yes, significantly. n8n self-hosted costs ~$8/mo with unlimited operations. Zapier charges $49/mo for just 2,000 tasks. Even n8n Cloud at $20/mo (2,500 ops) beats Zapier's $20/mo Starter plan which includes only 750 tasks. Compare n8n vs Zapier →
n8n Cloud starts at $20/mo (Starter: 2,500 ops, 5 workflows) and $50/mo (Pro: 10,000 ops, 15 workflows). Self-hosted n8n costs only your server (~$8/mo on a basic VPS) with no ops or workflow limits. Full n8n pricing breakdown →
Make offers a free plan with 1,000 ops/month. Paid plans start at $9/mo (Core, 10,000 ops), $16/mo (Pro), and $29/mo (Teams). Additional ops cost $9 per 10,000. Make is the most affordable cloud option for mid-volume automation. Full Make pricing breakdown →
Make has the most generous free plan at 1,000 ops/month with unlimited workflows. Zapier and Pipedream free tiers are limited to 100 ops/month. n8n, Activepieces, and Automatisch are free when self-hosted with no limits. See all free plan limits →
Pipedream Basic at $29/mo (2,000 credits) vs Zapier Professional at $49/mo (2,000 tasks) — Pipedream wins on price. But Zapier has 7,000+ integrations vs Pipedream's 2,000, so the right choice depends on which integrations you need. Compare Pipedream vs Zapier →
No. Make and Zapier are cloud-only. If you need self-hosting for GDPR compliance or cost control, consider n8n (Sustainable Use license), Activepieces (MIT license), Automatisch (AGPL), or Node-RED (Apache 2.0).
Self-hosting n8n on a VPS (e.g., Oracle Free Tier, Hetzner ~$4/mo, or DigitalOcean ~$6/mo) gives you unlimited ops and workflows for almost nothing. The n8n community edition is free — you only pay for the server. n8n self-hosted vs cloud cost →

Part of the Cost.io network

AutomationCost.io is one of a family of independent, data-driven cost-comparison sites. Same honest method, no marketing fluff — just the real number for your usage.