· Alternatives
Zapier alternatives: 6 tools that cost less per run, or do more
Zapier is easy to start and costly to scale. Here is where to go when the task bill grows, or when you want agents and workflows on one meter.
Short answer: Make is the closest no-code alternative and the cheapest to start (free plan, Core at $16 a month in the US). n8n is the better deal for long, frequent workflows because it bills one execution per run ($24 a month for 2,500). Activepieces has a free plan and an open-source edition. Gumloop and Lindy replace Zapier Agents; Copilot Studio fits Microsoft 365 companies.
Prices were read on each vendor's pricing page on November 15, 2026. This site sells no automation tool of its own.
Why look for a Zapier alternative?
Zapier does one thing better than anyone: it connects 9,000+ apps with no code. The reasons people look elsewhere are on its own pricing page:
- You pay per action. A task is counted every time a Zap completes an action, so a 10-action Zap costs ten times a 1-action Zap on every run.
- AI steps can cost more. Task usage varies with the AI model tier.
- Agents are a separate add-on. 400 free activities a month, then $33.33 a month billed annually for 1,500.
- Overage is priced higher. Past your tier, pay-per-task applies "at a higher per-task rate".
- One user below Team. Free and Professional are single-user plans; Team starts at $103.50 a month billed monthly.
The full picture is in our Zapier pricing guide and Zapier review.
The 6 alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Score | Entry price | Billed in | Free plan or trial | Integrations | Self-hosting | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 MakeFrom $16/mo · checked Nov 15, 2026 | 9.1/10 | From $16/mo | Credits | Free plan | 3,500+ | No | Check price at Make |
 n8nFrom $24/mo · checked Nov 15, 2026 | 9.5/10 | From $24/mo | Workflow executions | Free self-hosted edition | 500+ | Yes | Check price at n8n |
 ActivepiecesFrom $20/mo · checked Nov 15, 2026 | 9.4/10 | From $20/mo | Credits (one per run) | Free plan | 770+ | Yes, limited | Check price at Activepieces |
 GumloopFrom $37/mo · checked Nov 15, 2026 | 8.5/10 | From $37/mo | Credits | Free trial | 400+ | No | Check price at Gumloop |
 LindyFrom $29.99/mo · checked Nov 15, 2026 | 8.6/10 | From $29.99/mo | Credits, per seat | Free credits | 3,000+ | No | Check price at Lindy |
 Copilot StudioFrom $200/mo · checked Nov 15, 2026 | 7.8/10 | From $200/mo | Copilot Credits | Free trial | Not stated | No | Check price at Copilot Studio |
The closest alternatives: Make and n8n
Make: same idea, a canvas, a lower price
Make is where most Zapier users land. It is also no-code, connects 3,500+ apps, and shows the whole scenario on a canvas, which makes branching logic easier to follow than a vertical list of steps. The US entry price is $16 a month for 10,000 credits, with a free plan of 1,000. Make counts every module action including the trigger, so it is not automatically cheaper on long workflows, only cheaper per unit. Side by side: Make vs Zapier.
n8n: when your Zaps got long
n8n counts one execution per workflow run, whatever the number of steps. A workflow with 12 actions that runs 2,000 times a month is roughly 24,000 tasks on Zapier and 2,000 executions on n8n, inside the $24 Starter plan. The price you pay is complexity: n8n is low-code, with 500+ native integrations instead of 9,000. It also has an AI Agent node and human approval on every Cloud plan, and a self-hosted edition. Side by side: n8n vs Zapier.
Are there free Zapier alternatives?
Yes, and two of them are more generous than Zapier's own free plan of 100 tasks a month:
- Make Free: 1,000 credits a month, 2 active scenarios, a 15-minute minimum interval.
- Activepieces Free: 1,000 credits a month, unlimited flows, up to 5 users, no card. A run is one credit however many steps it has.
- n8n Community Edition: no license fee if you host it yourself, for internal business use.
Free plans differ in what they hold back. We compare the limits in free AI agent builders.
Are there open source Zapier alternatives?
Activepieces is the nearest thing to an open-source Zapier: flows, 770+ apps, and a Community Edition you can run on your own servers. Activepieces says the Community Edition is the automation core, while Agents, Chat and access controls belong to the paid plans. n8n can be self-hosted too, but its license is fair-code and not open source in the strict sense. For agent-first open-source tools, see open source AI agents.
What do you give up by leaving Zapier?
Be honest with yourself about three things before you move. The catalog: Zapier lists 9,000+ apps, and no alternative here comes close, so check that every app you use has a connector on the other side. The safety net: triggers, filters and formatting steps cost nothing on Zapier, while Make counts the trigger module. And the habit: your team already knows where everything is. A migration pays off on the expensive workflows, rarely on the small ones.
Alternatives to Zapier Agents
If what you pay Zapier for is the Agents add-on, two tools are built around agents from the start.
Gumloop: agents for the whole team, one price
Gumloop sells one Pro plan: $37 a month with unlimited seats and agents, 20,000 credits and 35+ models. Agents get skills, 400+ connectors and shared company context. The meter follows model list prices plus an 8% orchestration fee, so the bill depends on the model you choose. There is a 14-day trial and no free plan. More in the Gumloop review.
Lindy: an assistant instead of a builder
Lindy works in Slack, email and your calendar, with 3,000+ integrations and approvals before anything goes out. It costs $29.99 a month per active user for 3,000 credits each. Choose it if you want inbox, meetings and follow-ups handled without designing anything. More in the Lindy review.
For Microsoft 365 companies: Copilot Studio
If your company runs on Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio builds agents on top of your existing data and admin tools. It is not a cheap Zapier replacement: a pack of 25,000 Copilot Credits costs $200 a month, or you can pay as you go through an Azure subscription. It makes sense when the alternative is another vendor your IT team has to approve. More in the Copilot Studio review.
Video: “How to Build an AI Customer Support Agent (No Code, Step by Step)”, from the Botpress channel on YouTube.
Which alternative is cheapest for your workflow?
| Compared | Activepieces9.4/10From $20/mo checked Nov 15, 2026 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | No-code | No-code | Low-code, source-available | No-code, open source |
| Entry price | From $29.99/mo | From $16/mo | From $24/mo | From $20/mo |
| Billed in | Tasks (and agent activities) | Credits | Workflow executions | Credits (one per run) |
| Free plan or trial | Free forever plan with 100 tasks a month and two-step Zaps; Agents Free adds 400 agent activities a month | Free plan with 1,000 credits a month and 2 active scenarios | No free cloud plan. The self-hosted Community Edition is free to run under n8n's Sustainable Use License; you pay for your own server. | Free forever plan with 1,000 credits a month, no card; the open-source Community Edition is free to self-host (without Agents and Chat) |
| Integrations announced | 9,000+ | 3,500+ | 500+ | 770+ |
| Self-hosting | No, cloud only | No; an on-prem agent for local networks is Enterprise only | Yes: Community Edition on your own server (Sustainable Use License, fair-code, not an OSI open-source license) | Yes: open-source Community Edition on your own servers; Activepieces says paying adds Agents and Chat |
| Official page | Check price at Zapier | Check price at Make | Check price at n8n | Check price at Activepieces |
Use your busiest workflow as the yardstick. Count its actions and its runs per month:
- Few actions, few runs (3 actions, 300 runs): any free plan except Zapier's covers it. Stay simple.
- Few actions, many runs (2 actions, 10,000 runs): per-action tools need 20,000 or more units; n8n Pro covers 10,000 executions for $60, and Activepieces Plus covers 10,000 runs for $20.
- Many actions, many runs (12 actions, 2,000 runs): this is where per-run billing wins clearly.
Then weigh the migration. Rebuilding twenty Zaps takes real hours, and a cheaper tool that nobody on the team can maintain is not cheaper. Move the two or three expensive workflows first and leave the small ones where they are.
Our 3 picks from this guide
Frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Zapier?
Make for most non-technical teams (no code, 3,500+ apps, from $16 a month in the US); n8n for long or frequent workflows thanks to per-run billing; Activepieces if you want a free plan or an open-source edition.
Is there a free alternative to Zapier?
Yes. Make and Activepieces both have free plans with 1,000 credits a month, and n8n's Community Edition is free to self-host for internal use.
Is there an open source alternative to Zapier?
Activepieces publishes an open-source Community Edition. n8n is source-available under a fair-code license. Langflow is MIT-licensed but aimed at developers building agents.
Is Make cheaper than Zapier?
At entry, yes: $16 a month for 10,000 credits in the US against $29.99 for Zapier Professional at its lowest task tier, both billed monthly. Make also counts trigger modules, so compare on your own workflow.
Who are Zapier's main competitors?
Make and n8n for workflow automation, Activepieces as an open-source rival, and Gumloop and Lindy for agents. All are scored in our ranking.