Alternatives guide ยท updated
Best n8n alternatives (2026): 8 automation tools compared
n8n is our #1 tool for AI agents and automation. Hosted plans are priced by workflow executions, and a free self-hosted Community Edition is on GitHub. If you want something simpler, a different pricing model, or an open source agent, these are the alternatives we rank.
Quick picks
The best n8n alternative depends on the job
- Easiest for non-developers
Zapier. Connects 9,000+ apps. Free with 100 tasks a month; Professional from $19.99 a month.
- Visual builder, lower cost
Make. Free with 1,000 credits a month, and most actions use 1 credit.
- Tools and auth for your agents
Composio. Gives MCP clients access to 1,500+ apps. Hobby is $0 with 100,000 tool calls a month.
- Open source agent
Hermes Agent. Free and open source (MIT) agent from Nous Research with persistent memory and messaging gateways.
- Hand off whole tasks
Manus. An AI agent that executes tasks, on credit-based plans.
Side by side
n8n and 8 alternatives compared
| Tool | Our rank | Pricing (from the official site) | Free option | Our verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n8n | #1 of 36 AI agents and automation | Hosted plans are priced by workflow executions: Starter 20 euros, Pro 50 euros and Business 667 euros per month, billed annually. Enterprise is custom. A free self-hosted Community Edition is on GitHub, and startups under 20 employees can apply for 50% off Business.Source: n8n.io, checked | Yes | Open-source workflow automation with strong AI agent nodes; self-hostable. |
| Zapier | #2 of 36 AI agents and automation | Free $0 with 100 tasks per month. Professional from $19.99 per month. Team from $69 per month. Enterprise by contact.Source: zapier.com, checked | Yes | Connects thousands of apps; easiest automation for non-developers. |
| Make | #3 of 36 AI agents and automation | Free at $0 with 1,000 credits a month. Core is $12, Pro $21 and Teams $38 a month as shown with a Save 25% label, priced at 10,000 credits a month. Enterprise is custom. The monthly-billing price was not captured. Credits are the billing unit and most actions use 1 credit.Source: make.com, checked | Yes | Visual automation builder with more control than Zapier at lower cost. |
| Composio | #17 of 36 AI agents and automation | Free $0 for up to 3 members with $2 in one-time credits and up to 10,000 app tool calls a month, no credit card required. Standard $18 per seat per month, each seat adding $18 in credits and 10,000 tool calls to a shared pool. Enterprise is custom.Source: composio.dev, checked | Yes | Tool and auth layer for agents: gives Claude, Codex, Cursor and other MCP clients access to 1,500+ apps through SDKs, a CLI and an MCP gateway. New Instant wallet pays for tools like search, voice and scraping per call with no markup. |
| Hermes Agent | #5 of 36 AI agents and automation | Free and open source under the MIT license. Model providers and optional hosted services cost extra. Nous Portal plans: Free $0 (free models only), Plus $20, Super $100 and Ultra $200 a month, each with monthly credits plus a 10% bonus.Source: hermes-agent.nousresearch.com, checked | Yes | Open-source self-improving agent from Nous Research with persistent memory, skills and messaging gateways. |
| Manus | #4 of 36 AI agents and automation | Credit-based plans with 4,000, 8,000 or 40,000 credits a month, each with 300 refresh credits every day, 20 concurrent tasks and 20 scheduled tasks. Paying annually saves 17%. Team and Enterprise plans are available.Source: manus.im, checked | Not listed | General-purpose autonomous agent that completes multi-step web tasks. |
| Gumloop | #8 of 36 AI agents and automation | Pro starts at $37/mo with a 14-day free trial. Enterprise custom.Source: gumloop.com, checked | Free trial only | Multiplayer AI agent builder: anyone on a team builds agents with any model and integration while IT controls access; Pro from $37 a month. |
| Lindy | #9 of 36 AI agents and automation | Free start with $50 in credits that last 7 days, no card. Team from $29.99/mo for 3,000 credits per active user, with larger credit packs available. Top up at $10 per 1,000 credits. Enterprise custom.Source: lindy.ai, checked | Not listed | AI employee that connects to your tools and does work for the team; start with $50 in free credits, Team from $29.99 a month. |
| Done | #25 of 36 AI agents and automation | Free plan with unlimited tasks, a personal MCP endpoint and 100 AI agent (MCP) calls a month, no card needed. Pro is $5 a month for unlimited agent calls and scheduled routines. Teams is $20 a month for shared workspaces.Source: trydone.app, checked | Yes | An AI to-do list app where you hand a task to Claude, ChatGPT or any MCP agent. It shows its plan, asks when unsure and brings back the work with proof, and nothing is marked done without your OK. Free plan with 100 agent calls a month; Pro is $5 a month. Launched in October 2026, so it is new and has little independent track record. |
Prices come from each tool's official pricing page on the date shown and can change, so check before you buy. Ranks are from our ranking method. Nothing on this page is sponsored.
Questions
Frequently asked
Is there a free alternative to n8n?
Yes. Zapier, Make, Composio and Done list free plans, and Hermes Agent is free and open source. n8n itself has a free self-hosted Community Edition. Sources: each tool's official pricing page, linked in the table.
n8n or Make?
n8n prices hosted plans by workflow executions and can be self-hosted. Make prices by credits, with most actions using 1 credit, and is fully hosted. See our n8n vs Make comparison.
How much does n8n cost?
Hosted plans are priced by workflow executions: Starter 20 euros, Pro 50 euros and Business 667 euros per month, billed annually. Enterprise is custom. A free self-hosted Community Edition is on GitHub, and startups under 20 employees can apply for 50% off Business. Source: https://n8n.io/pricing/, checked 2026-11-10.
Where does n8n rank?
n8n is ranked #1 of 36 for AI agents and automation on AI Tool Podium. Ranking last updated 2026-11-13.
How did you pick these alternatives?
They are the tools we rank for the same job, plus a few from neighboring use cases that people compare it with. Every price comes from the tool's own pricing page, with the date we checked it. Nothing on this page is sponsored.
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