The short verdict
Pick Make if you're a non-technical owner or small team that wants a visual, no-code builder, a free plan to learn on and lots of ready-made app modules. Pick n8n if someone on your team is comfortable with code and servers, your workflows are long or run very often, or you want to self-host for full control of your data.
Make vs n8n at a glance
| Make | n8n | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Non-technical owners and small teams | Technical teams, developers, AI-agent builders |
| Free option | Free plan: 1,000 credits/month | Free self-hosted Community Edition; free cloud trial |
| Billing unit | Credits: most module actions use 1 | Executions: one full workflow run = 1, however many steps |
| Entry cloud plan | See Make pricing | Starter: €20/month billed annually |
| Next plan | Core, Pro and Teams (prices on Make's page) | Pro: €50/month billed annually |
| Small-company discount | Start-up Plan: 50% off Business if under 20 employees and eligible | Start-up Plan: 50% off Business if under 20 employees and eligible |
| App integrations | 1,000+ ready-made apps plus custom API calls | All integrations (nodes) on every plan, plus HTTP requests and code steps |
| Hosted data location | See Make's documentation | EU (Frankfurt) for hosted plans |
| Support on entry plans | See Make's pricing page | Community forum (email support on Enterprise) |
| Our rating | 9.0/10 | Not currently ranked |
Sources: Make pricing and n8n pricing, checked 22 October 2026. Make's paid plan prices weren't readable when we checked, so we haven't quoted them.
Ease of use
Both tools use a visual canvas where you connect steps (Make calls them modules, n8n calls them nodes). The difference is who they're designed for. Make is aimed at business users: modules are pre-built for common app actions, data mapping is point-and-click, and you rarely need to think about code. n8n is aimed at technical users: it's just as visual, but it leans on JavaScript or Python code steps, raw HTTP requests and data-structure concepts for anything non-standard.
Our honest take: a spreadsheet-confident small-business owner can be productive in Make within an afternoon. n8n rewards technical skill, and without it you may get stuck.
Pricing: credits vs executions
This is where the two differ most.
Make bills in credits. Each module action (reading a record, writing a row, sending a message) generally uses one credit, while router and error-handler modules use none. The free plan includes 1,000 credits a month. A 5-step scenario that runs 100 times a month uses roughly 500 credits.
n8n bills in executions: one complete run of a workflow counts once, regardless of how many steps it has. Its pricing page says "if it doesn't run, you don't pay". So the same 5-step workflow running 100 times is 100 executions. For long, complex workflows this can be much cheaper; for short, simple ones the difference is smaller.
n8n's cloud plans start at €20 a month (Starter) and €50 a month (Pro), billed annually. The self-hosted Community Edition is free, but you pay for and maintain your own server, which has real costs in time and money.
AI and agents
Both platforms support AI steps inside workflows. n8n puts AI agents front and centre: its pricing page lists an AI Agent node, MCP server and client support, human approval for tool calls, and chat interfaces on every plan, plus an AI Assistant with monthly credits. Make offers AI modules for summarising, classifying and generating text, and notes that some AI features use more credits than standard actions. If building AI agents is your main goal and you have technical help, n8n has the edge; for adding a "summarise this email" step to an everyday workflow, both are fine.
Data and hosting
n8n says its hosted plans store data in the EU (Frankfurt, Germany), and self-hosting lets you keep data wherever you choose. That can matter for UK businesses with strict client-data requirements. For Make, check its documentation for your organisation's hosting region.
Who should pick which?
Choose Make if…
- Nobody on your team writes code.
- You want a free plan to learn on and lots of ready-made app modules.
- Your workflows are short to medium length.
Choose n8n if…
- You have a developer or technically confident team member.
- Your workflows are long or run thousands of times a month.
- You want to self-host, or build AI agents with fine control.
Bottom line
For most small businesses, Make is the more practical choice: easier to learn, a usable free plan and a big library of ready-made modules. n8n is excellent for technical teams and heavy, complex workloads, especially if you're happy to self-host. Still deciding between more options? See our Zapier alternatives guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is n8n cheaper than Make?
It can be for long workflows, because n8n bills per full workflow execution while Make bills credits per module action. For short workflows the difference is smaller. n8n's self-hosted Community Edition is free, but you pay for hosting.
Does Make have a free plan?
Yes. As of October 2026, Make's free plan includes 1,000 credits a month.
Is n8n free?
The self-hosted Community Edition is free. Hosted cloud plans start at €20 a month billed annually (Starter), with a free trial.
Which is easier for beginners, Make or n8n?
Make. It's designed for business users with pre-built modules and point-and-click mapping. n8n is more powerful for developers but has a steeper learning curve.
Where does n8n store data?
n8n says its hosted plans store data in the EU, on servers in Frankfurt, Germany. Self-hosted data lives wherever you run it.
Related guides
- Make vs Zapier for small business
- The best Zapier alternatives for small businesses
- Make.com free plan explained for small businesses
- Systeme.io vs ClickFunnels for small businesses
- See our full ranking of AI tools for small business
Prices and plan limits change frequently. We note the date we checked each fact; always confirm on the vendor's official pricing page before buying. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.