n8n

Replaces Zapier

License stamp: Source-available. Sustainable Use License (fair-code); files with ".ee." are separately licensed Read from the LICENSE file.
GitHub says: NOASSERTION (GitHub could not match a single license, which is why we read the file)
Self-host difficulty: unrated No docker-compose file at the repository root, so we do not score it.
Activity: ★ 209,963 stars · last push 2026-11-10 · checked 2026-11-10
Repository: github.com/n8n-io/n8n
GitHub description: "Fair-code workflow automation platform with native AI capabilities. Combine visual building with custom code, self-host or cloud, 400+ integrations."

Self-host vs Zapier

Self-hosting saves about $780 a year for 20 seats: SaaS $2,400 vs self-host $1,620 (server $144, backups $36, admin time $1,440). Break-even at about 14 seats at these numbers.

Admin hours start from our guess for difficulty unrated and are yours to edit. Zapier price: $19.99 a month flat (Professional plan). No per-seat price. Task-based, no per-seat price: Professional from $19.99/mo; Team from $69/mo (25 users); Free $0. Source: vendor pricing page, checked 2026-11-10.

Other Zapier alternatives

Pl. 01

OPEN CORE

Activepieces

replaces Zapier

MIT core; packages/ee and server ee code are under a proprietary licence

★ 25k●●●○○push 2026-11-10

Pl. 02

OPEN CORE

Windmill

replaces Zapier

Apache-2.0 / AGPL-3.0 parts plus a proprietary licence for certain enterprise features

★ 18k●●●○○push 2026-11-09