# n8n vs Zapier for AI workflow automation

> Source: https://theagentsindex.com/compare/n8n-vs-zapier (structured, researched, re-verified)
> Updated: 1 November 2026

n8n's self-hosted Community edition is free, and its Cloud Starter plan runs from €20 a month (about $22) for 2,500 executions. Zapier has a free tier, and its paid plans start at $29.99 a month. Neither sells by the seat in the usual way. n8n allows unlimited users on every plan and meters executions. Zapier bundles users by plan: one on Free and Professional, 25 on Team, unlimited on Enterprise, with price driven by task volume. On n8n's hosted side, the Cloud Business tier jumps to €667 a month (about $745), with no hosted tier between Pro and Business.

n8n installs with Docker, npm or Helm on your own machines, air-gapped if required, and the Community edition needs no licence key. n8n Cloud keeps data in Frankfurt, with no other region published. Zapier cannot be self-hosted. Its privacy statement commits site data to US processing, and no in-region hosting option is offered. On Enterprise, only AI inference can move to a customer's Bedrock account.

Zapier says it holds SOC 2 Type II, SOC 3, GDPR and CCPA. n8n is SOC 2 audited with external pen tests and runs a public Trust Center. Its GDPR cover is a pre-signed DPA. Zapier says it connects 9,000+ apps. n8n offers 500+ integrations, with custom HTTP and API connections for anything else.

Both run agents autonomously and both offer an MCP server. n8n builds workflows from a plain-language description, and its CLI manages workflows and executions over the API from any machine. Zapier's Code step runs code you supply. Its terminal tools are for developers only, and the automation product itself works in a browser. n8n supports bring your own key, open models, model choice and multi-agent work. Zapier names none of these. Complex agent logic can get unwieldy on n8n's visual canvas.

| Fact | n8n | Zapier |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What it is | Workflow automation platform for building and running AI agents on a visual canvas, with code where needed. | No-code automation platform connecting 9,000+ apps, with AI agents, MCP and governance. |
| Pricing | from about $27 a month | free, then $29.99 a month |
| Writes code | Partly | - |
| Debugs and fixes | Partly | - |
| Writes tests | No | - |
| Reviews code | No | - |
| Ships it | Partly | - |
| Multi-agent | Yes | - |
| Open models | Yes | - |
| Model choice | Yes | Partly (Enterprise plan and up) |
| On the command line | Yes | Partly |
| In your pipeline | Yes | - |
| Self-hosted | Yes | No |
| Open source | Partly | - |
| Price per 1,000 requests | Yes | - |
| Free credit | Yes | - |
| Bring your own key | Yes | Partly (Enterprise plan and up) |
| Seat model | No | Partly |
| Admin controls | Yes | Partly (Enterprise plan and up) |
| Audit log | Partly (Enterprise plan and up) | Partly (Team plan and up) |
| Single sign-on | Partly (Business plan and up) | Partly (Team plan and up) |
| Opt out of training | Yes | - |
| Data residency | Yes | Partly |
| Certifications | Partly | Yes |
| Tags | API · Autonomous · Claude · Enterprise · Free tier · GPT · Multi-agent · No-code · Open models · Open source · Self-hosted | — |
| Best for | Ops and automation teams who want to build agentic workflows visually while keeping data on self-hosted infrastructure. | ops and business teams automating work across many SaaS apps without engineering |
| Watch for | Fair-code is source-available, not OSI open-source, so check the licence before commercial resale. | — |
| Full facts | https://theagentsindex.com/n8n.md | https://theagentsindex.com/zapier.md |

## Verdict: n8n or Zapier?

Pick n8n if data has to stay on your own servers or in the EU. It also fits teams where many people build automations, since users are unlimited on every plan, and teams that want to bring their own model keys. Developers who would rather write complex agent control as code may find its canvas a poor fit. Pick Zapier if you want a hosted tool that reaches a very wide range of SaaS apps without engineering, or if your security review asks for SOC 3 or CCPA. Zapier is the wrong choice if self-hosting or in-region hosting is a requirement.