n8n vs Zapier (and Make) for small business: an honest comparison

Updated October 21, 2026 · App names checked against vendor documentation; vendors rename things, so search the step picker for the key word if a name differs.

The short answer

• Choose Zapier if you're non-technical, want the most app integrations, and value getting something working today over cost at scale.
• Choose Make if you like visual, flowchart-style building, have higher volumes, and don't mind a slightly steeper learning curve.
• Choose n8n if you (or someone you trust) are comfortable with a bit of technical setup, want maximum flexibility, or want to self-host and keep data on your own server.

For a first automation, any of them will do. The tool matters less than finishing one workflow.

Ease of use

Zapier builds automations as a vertical list of steps: a trigger, then actions. Each step guides you through choosing an app, an event and fields. It's the gentlest learning curve of the three, and it has helpers like Formatter, Filter, Paths and Delay built in.

Make uses a visual canvas where modules connect like a flowchart. Branching, looping over lists and combining data are more natural than in Zapier, but there are more concepts to learn (bundles, iterators, aggregators).

n8n also uses a visual canvas of nodes. It's the most developer-friendly: you can drop into JavaScript or Python in a Code node, call any API with the HTTP Request node, and inspect the data at every step. That power comes with more ways to get things wrong.

Integrations

Zapier has the largest catalogue — it advertises over 8,000 apps — which matters if you use niche, industry-specific software. Make has a large catalogue too. n8n has fewer built-in integrations, but its HTTP Request node can connect to almost any service with an API, and community nodes fill some gaps. Before choosing, check that your three most important apps are supported with the triggers and actions you need, not just listed.

How pricing works (models, not prices)

Prices change often, so check each vendor's current pricing page. What matters is how each one counts usage:

• Zapier counts tasks — roughly, each successful action step in a Zap run. A 5-step Zap that runs 100 times uses far more than 100 tasks.
• Make counts operations (billed as credits) — each module that runs uses them. Similar logic, usually more usage per dollar.
• n8n Cloud counts workflow executions — one run of a whole workflow counts once, however many steps it has. Self-hosted n8n (the Community Edition, under n8n's Sustainable Use License) has no per-execution fee; you pay for and maintain the server.

All three offer free tiers or trials with limits. For a small business running a handful of automations, the cheapest option on paper isn't always cheapest once you count your own time.

Hosting, data and reliability

Zapier and Make are cloud-only: they host everything, handle updates and keep it running. n8n can be used in the cloud or self-hosted. Self-hosting means your data can stay on your own server, which some businesses prefer — but you're now responsible for updates, backups, security and uptime. If nobody on your team wants that job, use a hosted plan.

AI features

All three can call AI models such as OpenAI's through built-in integrations. Zapier offers AI by Zapier steps and a ChatGPT (OpenAI) app; Make has an OpenAI app with modules such as Generate a response; n8n has an OpenAI node plus AI building blocks like the AI Agent, Basic LLM Chain and Text Classifier nodes. For typical small-business uses — drafting replies, classifying emails, summarising reports — any of them is enough.

1. List the 3 apps your first automation must connect: ______ ______ ______
2. Search each tool's integration directory for those apps AND the exact trigger/action you need.
3. Who will build and fix it?  [ ] Me, non-technical → Zapier   [ ] Me, happy with flowcharts → Make   [ ] Someone technical → n8n
4. Expected runs per month: ____ × steps per run: ____ → compare on each pricing page.
5. Any reason data must stay on your own server?  [ ] Yes → consider self-hosted n8n   [ ] No → any.
6. Build ONE workflow in your top pick's free tier. If it takes more than 2 hours to get working, try the next tool.

Our recommendation for most small businesses

If you're reading this because you want your first automation running this week: start with Zapier, build a missed-call text back or lead follow-up, and see how it feels. If costs climb as you add automations, Make or n8n are worth a look — and the logic you've learned transfers directly.