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Make.com vs Zapier vs n8n - Which Automation Platform Actually Saves You Money in 2025?

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Usama Navid
Automation platform comparison dashboard
Last updated: May 27, 2025

Last quarter, we ran a 90-day test managing identical automation workflows across Make.com, Zapier, and n8n. The goal? Find out which platform actually delivers the best value when you’re running serious automation at scale.

The results surprised us. And they’ll probably challenge what you think you know about automation costs.

The Test Setup

We created identical workflow sets across all three platforms to ensure fair comparison:

Three team members managed the platforms independently to eliminate bias. We tracked every metric that matters: cost, reliability, setup time, maintenance burden, and actual business impact.

The Cost Reality Check

Here’s what it actually cost to run 50,000 tasks:

Zapier

Make.com

n8n

The Real Winner Depends on Your Situation

For Small Teams (Under 10,000 Tasks/Month)

Winner: Zapier

Surprised? Here’s why: when you’re running under 10,000 tasks monthly, Zapier’s $29.99 Starter plan is actually competitive. The platform’s simplicity means faster setup, less training time, and fewer headaches.

Real Cost Analysis:

For small volumes, paying a premium for Zapier’s polish and ecosystem is worth it.

For Growing Teams (10,000-100,000 Tasks/Month)

Winner: Make.com

This is where Make.com shines. Its visual builder is more sophisticated than Zapier’s, and the operation-based pricing becomes genuinely competitive.

Real Cost Analysis (50,000 tasks):

Make.com saves $500/month vs. Zapier while offering better visual workflow building and more control over execution flow.

For Scale (100,000+ Tasks/Month)

Winner: n8n (by a landslide)

Once you hit scale, n8n’s unlimited execution model is unbeatable. We ran tests at 500,000 tasks/month to prove this.

Real Cost Analysis (500,000 tasks):

At scale, n8n saves thousands monthly. A company running 1M tasks/month saves $40,000+ annually vs. Zapier.

Feature Comparison: What Actually Matters

Integration Ecosystem

Zapier: 5,000+ integrations The clear winner here. If you need to connect obscure SaaS tools, Zapier probably supports them. Their partnerships with almost every platform mean native integrations that just work.

Make.com: 1,500+ integrations Solid coverage of major platforms. The visual scenario builder is actually better for complex multi-branch workflows. HTTP modules are more flexible than Zapier’s webhooks.

n8n: 400+ native integrations Smaller ecosystem, but here’s the key difference: n8n has the most powerful HTTP request node of all three. If an API exists, you can connect to it. You’re not waiting for official integrations.

Workflow Complexity

Zapier: Limited

Make.com: Excellent

n8n: Most Powerful

Debugging and Monitoring

This is where we spent significant time during our test.

Zapier: Basic

Make.com: Good

n8n: Best-in-Class

Development Experience

We tracked actual development time for identical workflows across platforms.

Average Time to Build 10-Step Workflow:

Initial setup time favors Zapier. But once your team learns n8n’s paradigm, development actually becomes faster for complex workflows.

The Hidden Costs Nobody Talks About

Zapier’s App Tax

Zapier charges premium pricing for certain apps. Connecting to Salesforce, NetSuite, or other enterprise tools can add $10-50/month per connection. These add up fast.

For one client, connecting 5 premium apps added $180/month to their bill—a 60% increase over the base plan.

Make.com’s Operation Counting

Make.com counts operations, not tasks. A 5-step workflow = 5 operations. This means complex workflows consume your quota faster than you’d expect.

We hit our operation limit twice during testing because we didn’t account for this properly. Each automation ran fine but used 3-4x more operations than the equivalent Zapier tasks.

n8n’s Technical Debt

Self-hosting n8n means you own the infrastructure. That includes:

Our DevOps team spent about 4 hours/month on n8n maintenance. For a $200/hour consultant, that’s $800/month in hidden costs. But for a company with existing DevOps infrastructure, it’s negligible.

Real-World Performance Testing

We tracked reliability metrics across all platforms:

Success Rate (First Attempt)

Make.com had the highest reliability, though all three performed well. n8n’s self-hosted reliability improved significantly after we optimized our server configuration.

Average Execution Time (10-Step Workflow)

n8n’s self-hosted execution is consistently fastest because there’s no multi-tenant resource contention.

Recovery from Failures

All three handle failures well, but n8n’s ability to create custom error workflows gave us the most control.

Migration Considerations

We migrated workflows between platforms to test portability.

Zapier → Make.com

Difficulty: Moderate

Zapier → n8n

Difficulty: Moderate-High

Make.com → n8n

Difficulty: Low-Moderate

Security and Compliance

For enterprises, this matters significantly.

Zapier:

Make.com:

n8n:

For healthcare, finance, or government sectors, n8n’s self-hosted option often wins by default.

AI and Advanced Features

AI Integration

Zapier:

Make.com:

n8n:

Code Execution

Zapier:

Make.com:

n8n:

Our Recommendations

Choose Zapier If:

Choose Make.com If:

Choose n8n If:

The Hybrid Approach (What We Actually Do)

Here’s what we don’t advertise: we use all three.

Different tools for different jobs. The “best” platform depends entirely on the specific use case.

Cost Projection Tool

Here’s how to calculate your actual costs:

Monthly Tasks: [Your Number]


Zapier Cost:
- 0-750 tasks: $0
- 751-2,000: $20
- 2,001-50,000: $30-799
- 50,000+: Custom pricing


Make.com Cost:
- 0-1,000 operations: $0
- 1,001-10,000: $119
- 10,001-40,000: $299
- 40,000+: Multiple plans or custom


n8n Cost:
- Cloud: $50-700
- Self-hosted: Server costs + maintenance

For most growing businesses, the breakeven point where n8n becomes cheaper is around 75,000 tasks/month.

Final Verdict

There’s no universal winner. Your choice should be driven by:

  1. Current volume (and projected growth)
  2. Technical resources available
  3. Integration requirements
  4. Workflow complexity
  5. Compliance needs

Small teams should start with Zapier. Growing companies should graduate to Make.com. Enterprises at scale should invest in n8n.

The companies that win aren’t the ones using the “best” platform. They’re the ones using the right platform for their specific situation—and knowing when to graduate to the next tier.

Try Before You Commit

Before migrating your entire workflow infrastructure:

  1. Build one production workflow on your target platform
  2. Run it in parallel with your existing solution
  3. Measure real performance and costs
  4. Train your team on the new paradigm
  5. Migrate gradually, not all at once

We wasted a month trying to force-fit Make.com for a use case that needed n8n. Don’t make our mistake. Test your specific scenarios before committing.

What We Learned

After 90 days and 50,000+ tasks across all platforms:

The automation platform wars aren’t about finding one winner. They’re about understanding which tool solves your specific problem most effectively.

The right answer might be all three.