n8n vs Zapier
n8n and Zapier compete in Agents and automation. We show the editorial position of each and the published criteria — AI Rankings never crowns a paid “winner” and never reorders for sponsorship.
Position in the Agents and automation ranking
Position comes only from the ranking criteria (rule R1). When there's an affiliate link, it's labeled and never changes the order (R5).
Side by side
| Criterion | n8n | Zapier |
|---|---|---|
| Ranking position | #1 | #2 |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Starting price | — | US$ 19.99/mo (Professional plan, billed annually) |
| Speaks Portuguese? | not verified | not verified |
What we verified
n8n
n8n
- Best for
- Technical teams (IT Ops, SecOps, DevOps, sales and developers) that need to automate workflows and AI agents visually, with the ability to go deeper with code and connect to anything.
Verified on October 29, 2026 · official site
- On the free plan
- n8n offers a self-hosted Community Edition that is free and runs without a license key, with almost the complete feature set. Excluded are features such as variables/environments, SSO (SAML, LDAP), projects, external secrets and Git-based version control. The cloud plans include a free trial with no card.
Verified on October 29, 2026 · official site
- Why it's ranked here
- Most flexible for AI and agent workflows, with a self-hosting option and source-available (fair-code) license.
Verified on October 29, 2026 · official site
Zapier
Zapier
- Best for
- People who want to connect apps and automate tasks without code, with 9,000+ integrated apps.
Verified on October 30, 2026 · official site
- On the free plan
- Free-forever plan: unlimited Zaps, Tables and Forms, with 100 tasks per month, two-step Zaps and Zapier Copilot.
Verified on October 30, 2026 · official site
- Why it's ranked here
- Connects 9,000+ apps and has a free-forever plan; since every step in a Zap uses tasks, cost climbs at high volume.
Verified on October 30, 2026 · official site
How we compare
Both are judged by the same Agents and automation criteria:
Number of integrations, flexibility for complex AI workflows, self-hosting option, learning curve and cost per run.
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