Platforms that connect apps and run repeatable processes, hosted or self-hosted, priced per task, per execution or per credit. Because the billing units differ, each listing explains what you are actually paying for.
2 tools
Workflow automation platform that combines a visual canvas with optional custom code and AI agent features. It can run on n8n Cloud or be self-hosted, and its pricing is based on workflow executions rather than steps.
Paid plans from EUR 20 per month, billed annually
Hosted automation platform that connects thousands of apps and AI models through multi-step workflows (Zaps), with governance tools for larger organizations. Pricing is based on tasks per month.
Free plan available; paid plans from USD 19.99 per month, billed annually
To evaluate a software free plan, first decide whether it is a permanent plan, a time-limited trial or a credit grant; then convert its caps into your expected usage, check seat limits, find out what happens when you exceed a limit, review history retention and export, read the terms of use, map security features to tiers and price the first paid tier. This guide applies those steps to free plans recorded from official pages on 24 October 2026, including Firecrawl, Apify, Zapier, Supabase, Vercel, Notion, GitHub Copilot and Cursor.
n8n and Make both connect apps through automated workflows, but n8n charges per workflow execution and can be self-hosted, while Make charges in credits (most actions use one) as a hosted service. This research-based comparison covers pricing models, documented features, security claims, scaling and when to choose neither. No hands-on testing was done.
To evaluate an AI automation tool, define one process and a baseline, decide whether AI is needed at all, list non-negotiable data and security requirements, model costs at low and high volumes, check AI-specific risks, score two or three candidates and run a bounded pilot. This guide gives the steps, a scorecard and a clearly hypothetical worked example.
Zapier is a hosted, no-code automation service priced per task; n8n is a workflow tool you can run in its cloud or on your own servers, priced per workflow execution. The two models produce very different bills for the same automation, so this comparison starts with how each one charges and then covers hosting, limits and who each suits.