Workflow automation tools connect the apps a business already uses and move data between them, so nobody has to copy it by hand. A workflow starts with a trigger, such as a new form submission, a paid invoice or a new row in a spreadsheet, then runs a series of steps: look up a record, branch on a condition, create a task, send a message.
The tools differ in three ways. App coverage decides whether the connectors you need already exist. The builder ranges from a simple list of steps to a visual canvas to code, which limits how complex your logic can get. And each vendor meters usage differently, per task, per operation or per run, so the same workflow can cost very different amounts. A few can also be self-hosted.
At a glance
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|
 Zapier | Best for non-technical teams linking many SaaS apps with short, simple automations | Free plan | 14 days |
 Make | Best for teams that need branching, multi-step automations without writing code | Free plan | No |
 n8n | Best for technical teams that want to self-host automations or run long, code-heavy workflows | Free plan | 14 days |
 Workato | Best for IT teams that need governed integrations across many enterprise systems | Free plan | Yes |
 Pipedream | Best for developers whose AI agent or app needs users to connect their own accounts | Free plan | No |
5 of 5 tools
The ranking
In order, with what each tool is for and what it costs. Use the filters above to narrow the list.
Best for non-technical teams linking many SaaS apps with short, simple automations
Zapier is an automation platform that connects business apps through Zaps, a trigger followed by actions, across what Zapier says are more than 9,000 apps. Plans are priced by monthly tasks: each successful action step uses one, while triggers and filters use none.
Free plan
paid from $19.99/mo
Best for teams that need branching, multi-step automations without writing code
Make is a no-code automation platform where teams build multi-step scenarios on a visual canvas, with routers, iterators and error handlers. Plans are priced by monthly credits, and each module action in a scenario, such as adding a Google Sheets row, uses one credit.
Free plan
paid from $9/mo
Best for technical teams that want to self-host automations or run long, code-heavy workflows
n8n is a workflow automation tool for technical teams, with a visual builder, code nodes and AI agent nodes, run on n8n Cloud or self-hosted for free. Cloud plans are priced by monthly executions, and one execution is a full workflow run however many steps it has.
Free plan
paid from €20/mo
Best for IT teams that need governed integrations across many enterprise systems
Workato is an enterprise integration and automation platform where IT teams build recipes across 1,200+ connectors, with SSO and development, test and production environments from its Standard edition. Editions are quoted, and usage is billed in Workato credits or tasks on top.
Free plan
paid from $75/mo
Best for developers whose AI agent or app needs users to connect their own accounts
Pipedream now sells Connect, managed authentication and prebuilt API tools for developers adding integrations to AI agents and apps. Its Workflows automation product takes no new signups and shuts down on March 31, 2027.
Free plan
paid from $99/mo
Head to head
Feature-by-feature matchups between leading Automation & Workflow Software tools, with a clear verdict.
Methodology
We compare the tools on this page using what can be checked from the outside: published pricing and plan limits, documented features, and each vendor's own security, compliance and support documentation. This is desk research, not hands-on testing. Where something can only be judged by using a product, we say so rather than imply we measured it.
What we weigh here:
How the order is set:
Buyer's guide
Each tool bills a different unit. A Zapier task is one successful action step, a Make credit covers most module actions, including the one that fetches the data, and an n8n execution is a whole workflow run. Workato meters tasks or credits under a quoted contract. A workflow that receives a form entry, creates a CRM contact, branches and sends an email uses two Zapier tasks, about three Make credits and one n8n execution per run. Multiply one real workflow by your monthly volume and compare those totals, not plan prices. Pipedream no longer sells Workflows to new customers.
A capable builder doesn't help if your app has no connector. Zapier says it integrates more than 9,000 apps, Make lists more than 3,000, Workato counts more than 1,200 connectors and n8n's homepage over 500. List every system your automation must touch and check each for the triggers and actions you need; a generic HTTP step can fill a gap, but your team then maintains that connection.
The differences show when an API call fails. Make schedules reruns after connection errors and timeouts at growing intervals and can replay an earlier run with its original trigger data. Zapier has error handler paths and, from Professional up, autoreplays errored runs. n8n can start an error workflow that sends an alert, and Workato's Handle errors block retries failed actions up to three times. Make keeps 30 days of logs on its paid plan, Zapier 29 to 69 days of history.
n8n is the one tool here with a free self-hosted edition. The Community Edition has no license fee, so the cost moves to your own server and the time to install, update, back up and secure it, and its license covers internal business and non-commercial use. SSO, Git version control and environments need the Business license, €667 a month billed yearly for 40,000 executions. Price that work against a hosted plan at your volume.
FAQ
Entry paid plans start at $9 a month billed yearly for 5,000 Make credits, €20 a month billed yearly for 2,500 n8n Cloud executions and $19.99 a month billed yearly for 750 Zapier tasks. Workato quotes its editions, and its self-service Pro plan costs $75 a month for 2,500 credits. The units aren't equal: a Zapier task is one successful action step, a Make credit covers most module actions, including the one that fetches the data, and an n8n execution is a whole workflow run. A Zap with a trigger and four actions that runs 1,000 times uses 4,000 tasks; in n8n the same workflow is 1,000 executions. Price your real workflows, not the plans.
Choose Zapier if people without a technical background will build and maintain the automations, or if you need an app Make doesn't cover: Zapier says it integrates more than 9,000 apps, against the 3,000+ Make lists. Choose Make for automations with branching, lists and data reshaping, and when volume matters. Its paid plan costs $9 a month billed yearly for 5,000 credits, against $19.99 a month billed yearly for 750 tasks on Zapier Professional, though Make charges a credit for most module actions while Zapier charges only for successful action steps. See Make vs Zapier.
When your data has to stay on servers you control, or when you have people to run a server and your volume makes hosted pricing expensive. In this category n8n is the one tool with a free self-hosted edition. The Community Edition has no license fee, but your team installs, updates, backs up and secures it, and it lacks SSO, Git version control and environments; those need n8n's self-hosted Business license, at €667 a month billed yearly for 40,000 executions. Without someone to maintain a server, a hosted plan is the simpler choice.
It depends on the tool, so check retries, error branches, run history and replay before committing. Make schedules reruns after connection errors and timeouts at growing intervals, offers error-handler modules, and can replay an earlier run with its original trigger data on every plan. Zapier has error handler paths, and from Professional up it can autoreplay errored runs. n8n can start a separate error workflow to send an alert, and Workato's Handle errors block retries failed actions up to three times. Failed actions don't count toward usage on Zapier or Workato.
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