Make vs Zapier: which one for your automation?

Make and Zapier are the two best-known tools for connecting systems without programming. They look alike, but in practice we pick them for different reasons. Here's the honest comparison, plus why we often end up at n8n for our clients.

Zapier: the easy start

Zapier is the easiest to get going with. Hundreds of ready-made connections, a friendly interface, and you'll have your first automation running in no time. The flip side: it charges per task. As soon as your volume grows, the price climbs fast, and more complex logic is harder to build.

Make: more power for your money

Make (formerly Integromat) gives you more control. You build visually with branches, filters and loops, and you pay per operation instead of per task, which often works out cheaper at volume. The learning curve is a bit steeper, but you can do a lot with it.

Where both pinch

With either one you're effectively renting space on someone else's platform. Your data runs through their servers, you're tied to their pricing model, and as you grow you'll feel that in the monthly bill. For a small flow that's fine. For a business that genuinely runs on it, it starts to chafe.

Why we often choose n8n

n8n does what Make does, but you run it in your own environment. No price per task, no vendor lock-in, and your data stays yours. For a business that's serious about automating, that's usually cheaper and safer in the long run. It does take a bit more technical knowledge to set up and maintain, and that's where we come in.

In short

• Just starting, low volume: Zapier is fine for learning.
• More logic, growing volume: Make gives you more for your money.
• Serious automation, data in your own hands: n8n, provided you have it built and maintained.

Want n8n set up and managed without building a team yourself? Have a look at our n8n agency.