Productivity ยท Head-to-head
Make vs n8n
Make (freemium, AI Score 8.7/10) vs n8n (freemium, AI Score 8.7/10). Side-by-side pricing, features, pros and cons, and which to pick.
The verdict
Pick Make ifโฆ
- โyou want our editor's pick for this category
- โyour primary use case is teams building multi-step, branching automations who want to see the whole flow on a canvas rather than describe it as a list of steps.
- โyou need: marketing
Pick n8n ifโฆ
- โyour primary use case is technically comfortable teams who want to self-host their automation and build ai agents that chain llms with operational tools.
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | Make | n8n |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Productivity | Productivity |
| Pricing model | freemium | freemium |
| Headline pricing | Free tier with 1,000 credits/mo; paid from $9/mo for 10,000 credits | Freemium |
| Free tier | Yes, and it runs real scenarios: 1,000 credits a month across 2 active scenarios, with a 15-minute minimum run interval. Annual billing is advertised at 15%+ savings on the paid tiers. | Free self-hosted version with unlimited workflows |
| AI Score | 8.7/10 | 8.7/10 |
| Best for | Teams building multi-step, branching automations who want to see the whole flow on a canvas rather than describe it as a list of steps. | Technically comfortable teams who want to self-host their automation and build AI agents that chain LLMs with operational tools. |
| Editor's pick | โ Yes | โ |
| Use cases | productivity agents marketing | productivity agents |
| Date added | 2026-08-02 | 2025-08-01 |
Pros and cons
๐
Make
Productivity ยท freemium
Pros
- โVisual canvas makes branching and conditional automations readable in a way a linear step list does not
- โRouters and error handler modules cost zero credits, so defensive structure does not inflate the bill
- โ3,000+ connectors including 400+ AI integrations, which covers most of what a small team needs to wire together
- โFree tier runs genuine scenarios on a schedule rather than expiring like a trial
- โEntry pricing starts at $9/mo, well below what comparable platforms charge for a first paid tier
Cons
- รCredits are consumed per module action, so a multi-step scenario burns the allowance far faster than the plan names suggest
- รThe advertised $9, $16 and $29 prices are only the 10,000-credit rung of a slider, and real costs climb from there
- รFree tier caps scheduling at a 15-minute minimum interval and execution at 5 minutes, which rules out anything time-sensitive
- รThe canvas is harder to learn than a form-based builder, which is a real cost for occasional users
- รFull-text log search sits on Pro, so debugging on the cheaper tiers is more painful than it should be
n8n
Productivity ยท freemium
Pros
- โOpen-source with full self-hosting capability
- โAI agent workflow capabilities
- โComplete data privacy when self-hosted
- โVisual node-based editor is intuitive
Cons
- รSelf-hosting requires technical knowledge
- รSmaller app ecosystem than Zapier
- รDocumentation can be sparse for advanced features
- รCloud plans have execution limits
Related comparisons
Updated 2026-08-02. Spec data sourced from official product pages and tracked in our public directory at /tools.