Make vs n8n: which is better in 2026?
Make is better for visual, branching automations at low to moderate volume that a non-developer will look after. n8n is better for long runs, heavy code, high volume or self-hosting. The deciding number is usually how many steps each run has.
The first question to ask
Both tools build the same kind of thing: a trigger, then a chain of steps that move data between apps. They differ in how they bill, where they run and how much code they let you write. We build on both, so this comparison uses each vendor's own pricing pages and documentation, read October 30, 2026, rather than a preference. If you already know you want a hosted, visual tool and need someone to build it, our Make.com automation services page explains how we plan, build and maintain scenarios; this page is for the choice before that.
| Question | Make | n8n |
|---|---|---|
| How it bills | Credits: one per module run (non-AI apps) | Executions: one per full workflow run, whatever the number of steps |
| Free option | Free plan, 1,000 credits a month | Community edition, free to self-host on your own server |
| Where it runs | Make's cloud (no self-hosted edition on its pricing page) | n8n Cloud, or your own server |
| Longest single run | 45 minutes (10 on Free) | 5 minutes on Cloud Starter, 40 on Cloud Pro; self-hosted timeout off by default |
| Custom code | Make Code app: JavaScript or Python, 30 seconds a run on Core, Pro and Teams, 2 credits a second | Code node: JavaScript or Python; external npm modules only when self-hosted |
| Apps, in the vendor's words | "3,000+ native apps" (another line on the same page says 3,500+) | "2,000+ integrations" |
| AI agents | Make AI Agents (open beta), built inside scenarios | AI Agent node with a chat model and at least one tool |
Sources for each row are listed at the end of the page. The app counts are each vendor's own claim and are not measured the same way, so do not read them as a like-for-like comparison.
How does Make vs n8n pricing compare?
Make charges per step: every module that runs uses a credit. n8n Cloud charges per run: one execution covers the whole workflow. So Make is cheaper for short workflows, and n8n gets cheaper as each run gets longer. The crossover sits at roughly six or seven steps per run.
Cost of 10,000 runs a month by workflow length
Make's credits guide says credits replaced operations as the billing unit and that, for non-AI apps, one operation equals one credit. n8n's pricing page says "An execution is a single run of your entire workflow." That one difference drives most of the cost gap.
Monthly cost by volume and workflow length
We priced nine workloads on both tools with the figures each vendor publishes. This is our own calculation; the arithmetic is below the table so you can redo it with your numbers.
| Runs a month | Steps per run | Make credits | Make, estimated | n8n plan that fits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,500 | 3 | 7,500 | $9 (fits a 10,000-credit plan) | Cloud Starter, EUR 20 a month (annual) |
| 2,500 | 10 | 25,000 | $18.98 to $22.50 | Cloud Starter, EUR 20 |
| 2,500 | 25 | 62,500 | $47.44 to $56.25 | Cloud Starter, EUR 20 |
| 10,000 | 3 | 30,000 | $22.77 to $27.00 | Cloud Pro, EUR 50 a month (annual) |
| 10,000 | 10 | 100,000 | $75.90 to $90.00 | Cloud Pro, EUR 50 |
| 10,000 | 25 | 250,000 | $189.75 to $225.00 | Cloud Pro, EUR 50 |
| 40,000 | 3 | 120,000 | $91.08 to $108.00 | Business, EUR 667 (self-hosted only), or free Community edition plus your server |
| 40,000 | 10 | 400,000 | $303.60 to $360.00, on Pro (above Core's 300,000 ceiling) | As above |
| 40,000 | 25 | 1,000,000 | $759.00 to $900.00, on Pro | As above |
Assumptions. Each run starts from a webhook (so there are no empty polling checks), handles one record, and runs every step once. No AI steps, no code steps, no retries. "Steps" means Make modules including the trigger. Make does not print its plan prices as text on its pricing page, so we used the two per-credit prices Make quotes in its own help pages: $0.0009 a credit from its extra credits guide (a $9 plan with 10,000 credits) and about $0.000759 a credit from its subscription guide (Core at $113.85 for 150,000 credits a month). Your tier's real price may fall outside that range, so check it in your account before you buy. n8n prices are in euros as n8n publishes them, billed annually, not converted.
Arithmetic. Make credits = runs x steps. Make cost = credits x $0.000759 (low) and credits x $0.0009 (high); for example 100,000 x $0.000759 = $75.90. n8n Cloud Pro at full use is EUR 50 / 10,000 = EUR 0.005 a run. Make reaches 0.005 a run at 6 steps on the higher rate (6 x $0.0009 = $0.0054) and at 7 steps on the lower rate (7 x $0.000759 = $0.0053), before any currency conversion. Below six steps Make usually costs less; above seven, n8n Cloud usually does.
Two limits change the answer. n8n Cloud Starter stops a run after 5 minutes, so a 2,500-run workload with slow API calls may need Pro anyway. And Make's Core plan tops out at 300,000 credits a month since November 6, 2025, per Make's plans and pricing note; above that you are on Pro.
For Zapier added to the mix, our n8n and Zapier pricing research and the Zapier vs n8n cost calculator use the same per-run method.
Can you self-host Make or n8n?
You can self-host n8n; you cannot self-host Make. n8n's Community edition is free to run on your own server for your own business. Make runs only in Make's cloud. Self-hosting removes n8n's per-run fee but adds server, backup and upgrade work.
n8n's hosting docs say a self-hosted install without a license key runs the free Community edition, and that a Business or Enterprise license key enables those editions on the same install. n8n's Sustainable Use License lets you use or modify the software "only for your own internal business purposes or for non-commercial or personal use." Running your own company's workflows is fine. Selling n8n itself as a hosted service to others is not what the license allows.
We found no self-hosted or on-premises edition on Make's pricing page; every plan there is a hosted subscription.
What self-hosting really costs
- A server. n8n's docs offer Docker Compose or a one-line setup on Linux or macOS. Your hosting bill depends on the provider and size.
- Upgrades. n8n ships often and major versions remove things. Our note on n8n 3.0 breaking changes shows what a version jump can mean for existing workflows.
- Backups, security and uptime. If the server goes down, your automations stop and nobody at n8n will notice for you.
Self-hosting pays off when volume is high or data must stay on your own infrastructure. For a few thousand runs a month, the hosted plans are usually cheaper once you count the hours.
Which is easier for beginners, Make or n8n?
For most beginners Make is easier. Its scenario canvas shows every module, branch and run count, and nothing needs installing. n8n is learnable without code, but it assumes more comfort with JSON and expressions, and self-hosting adds server work.
This is a judgement from our own builds, not a measured test. The practical difference we see: in Make, a non-developer can usually open a scenario someone else built and follow it. In n8n, they can follow the flow, but fixing it often means reading item data and expressions. If the person who will maintain the automation is not technical, that matters more than price.
Both tools keep a run history. Make shows how many times each module ran on the canvas itself. n8n shows each execution with the data at every node, which is very useful for debugging and a lot to take in at first.
Which handles long runs, custom code and high volume better?
n8n, mainly when self-hosted. Self-hosted n8n has no execution timeout by default and can load npm packages in code. Make stops a run after 45 minutes, limits code to 30 seconds on most plans, and charges credits for every step.
Longest single run, in minutes
| Limit | Make | n8n Cloud | n8n self-hosted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Longest run | 45 minutes; 10 on Free | 5 minutes on Starter; 40 on Pro and Enterprise | EXECUTIONS_TIMEOUT default is -1 (no timeout) |
| Code | JavaScript or Python; 30 seconds on Core, Pro and Teams, 300 on Enterprise; 2 credits a second | JavaScript or Python; only the crypto and moment modules can be imported | JavaScript or Python; built-in and external npm modules once enabled |
| Parallel runs | Instant scenarios run in parallel by default | 5 concurrent on Starter; up to 50 on Pro | Depends on your server and setup |
| Incoming webhooks | 300 requests per 10 seconds; 5 MB payload | Not stated on the pages we read | |
| Single slow app call | Most modules wait 40 or 60 seconds | Set per node | |
Sources: Make's errors and warnings guide (45 and 10 minutes, module timeouts), the Make Code release note, Make's webhooks guide and Webhooks app reference; n8n's pricing page, Code node docs and execution timeout docs; all read October 30, 2026.
The volume point follows from billing. A 25-step workflow running 40,000 times a month is a million Make credits; on self-hosted n8n it is 40,000 executions with no per-run fee. Our medical job board feed import is a scheduled, batch-heavy job of the kind we put on n8n for that reason.
Which is better for AI agents, Make or n8n?
Both can run AI agents inside an automation. Make AI Agents are in open beta and can use modules, other scenarios and MCP tools. n8n's AI Agent node is more mature and gives more control over the model, tools and memory, at the cost of more setup.
Make's AI Agent introduction says agents are built inside scenarios and can call modules, other scenarios, MCP server tools and other agents. Cost works differently from normal modules: Make's credits guide says its built-in AI Provider charges credits for tokens as well as operations, while a connection to your own AI provider (paid plans) charges credits for operations only and you pay the provider for tokens. Make added a fallback provider and prompt caching in October; our news note on the Make AI Agent update has the details.
n8n's AI Agent node connects a chat model and at least one tool, and the agent decides which tool to call. If an n8n agent ignores its tools, our n8n AI Agent troubleshooting FAQ walks through the fixes. For either tool, we often find a plain workflow with one AI step does the job more reliably than a full agent; our AI workflow automation page explains how we decide.
When should you move from Make to n8n, or the other way?
Move from Make to n8n when credits rise faster than volume, runs hit the 45-minute limit, or code needs packages. Move from n8n to Make when the team that maintains it is not technical, or a server has become a burden for low volume.
| Sign | What it points to |
|---|---|
| Make bill grows each month while run count stays flat | Long scenarios or iterators running per item; compare the same job as n8n executions |
| ExecutionInterruptedError in Make history | Runs passing 45 minutes; split the scenario or move it to self-hosted n8n |
| Code steps that need an npm package | Self-hosted n8n |
| Nobody on the team can fix the n8n server after an update | Make or n8n Cloud |
| Fewer than a few thousand short runs a month | Stay where you are; the saving rarely covers a rebuild |
Nothing moves between the two tools automatically in our experience; we rebuild each scenario as a workflow (or the reverse), map each module to a node, and run both side by side until the outputs match. Who owns the result matters too: we build on your accounts, as our automation and data ownership FAQ explains, so a move does not lock you to us.
More questions about Make vs n8n
Is Make cheaper than n8n?
For short workflows, usually yes. Make charges a credit per step, so a three-step workflow running 10,000 times uses 30,000 credits, about $23 to $27 at the per-credit prices Make quotes. n8n Cloud Pro is EUR 50 a month billed annually for 10,000 runs. Past six or seven steps per run, n8n Cloud usually costs less.
Is n8n really free?
The self-hosted Community edition is free to use for your own internal business purposes under n8n's Sustainable Use License. You still pay for the server and the time to run, back up and upgrade it. n8n Cloud is a paid service, starting at EUR 20 a month billed annually for 2,500 executions.
Can n8n replace Make?
For most scenarios, yes: both connect apps through triggers, actions, branches and HTTP calls. Check three things first: that n8n has a node or a usable API for each app you use, that the person maintaining it can work in n8n, and whether you want hosted or self-hosted. Plan to rebuild each scenario by hand.
Do you need to code to use n8n or Make?
No for either, for basic flows. Make leans further toward no-code. n8n expects more comfort with JSON data and expressions, and its Code node is there when a step needs JavaScript or Python. Make also runs JavaScript and Python through its Make Code app, limited to 30 seconds a run on Core, Pro and Teams.
What about Zapier?
Zapier fits simple app-to-app links that a non-technical person will own. It bills per task, and triggers do not count. Our n8n vs Zapier comparison covers that pairing, and our Zapier automation services page covers how we build on it.
Which works better with GoHighLevel?
Both connect the same way: a HighLevel workflow sends a webhook to Make or n8n, and Make's HTTP module or n8n's HTTP Request node calls HighLevel's API. Pick on the other factors on this page. Our guide to GoHighLevel integrations by webhook or API shows the routes.
Can you help us choose and build?
Yes. The strategy call and audit are free: we look at your workflows, volume and who will maintain them, then recommend Make, n8n or another route. A small build of two or three automations is about $1,000 at the time of writing, and larger systems get a fixed quote. See our n8n automation services for the n8n side.
Sources and further reading
- n8n pricing (Starter EUR 20 for 2,500 executions, Pro EUR 50 for 10,000, Business EUR 667 for 40,000 self-hosted only, all annual; execution definition; 5 and 40 minute run limits; concurrency), read October 30, 2026.
- Make Help Center, Credits (credits replaced operations; one operation equals one credit for non-AI apps; AI Provider token billing), read October 30, 2026.
- Make Help Center, Extra credits ($9 plan with 10,000 credits, $0.0009 a credit, 25% extra for added credits), read October 30, 2026.
- Make Help Center, Change your subscription (Core $113.85 for 150,000 credits a month, about $0.000759 a credit), read October 30, 2026.
- Make Help Center, Adjustments to plans and pricing (Core up to 300,000 credits, Pro up to 8 million, November 6, 2025), read October 30, 2026.
- Make Help Center, Fix errors and warnings (45-minute and 10-minute run limits, module timeouts), read October 30, 2026.
- Make Help Center, Make Code app (JavaScript and Python, 2 credits a second, 30 and 300 second limits), read October 30, 2026.
- n8n Docs, Hosting (Community edition without a license key, install methods), read October 30, 2026.
- n8n Sustainable Use License (internal business use), read October 30, 2026.
- n8n Docs, Code node (JavaScript and Python, npm modules on Cloud vs self-hosted), read October 30, 2026.
- n8n integrations ("2,000+ integrations"), the Make home page ("3,000+ native apps" and "3,500+ apps") and the Make pricing page (Free plan 1,000 credits; no self-hosted plan listed), read October 30, 2026.
Both vendors change prices and limits often. If a figure here differs from what you see at checkout, the vendor's current page wins.
