n8n — Free Alternative to Zapier

At a glance

GitHub repo

n8n-io/n8n

GitHub stars

210,058 (checked 11 November 2026)

Licence

Sustainable Use License (fair-code)

Main language

TypeScript

Replaces

Zapier

Paid price it replaces

$19.99/month (Starter, billed annually; $29.99/month billed monthly)

Best for

Anyone paying for Zapier who keeps hitting the monthly task cap, and anyone building multi-step AI workflows.

Prices were checked on the vendor's pricing page on 11 November 2026 and may have changed since. Star counts are a snapshot from the same date.

What n8n does

n8n is a workflow automation platform with a visual drag-and-drop builder and AI built in from the start. You connect apps such as Gmail, Slack, Google Sheets and OpenAI as nodes on a canvas, and data flows from one node to the next. It supports more than 400 integrations, so most everyday automations — a new form submission creating a row and sending a message, for example — need no code at all.

The pricing difference is the point. Zapier's Starter plan costs $19.99 a month when billed annually ($29.99 a month billed monthly) and allows 750 tasks a month across 20 Zaps. A self-hosted n8n instance does not bill per task: a workflow that runs end to end counts as one execution, however many steps it has inside. That matters most for AI workflows, where one useful run can chain a dozen model calls and tool lookups.

There is one honest label to get right. n8n is not open source under the OSI definition. It is fair-code software under the Sustainable Use License, which is free to self-host and use but forbids using it to compete directly with n8n's own cloud service. That restriction does not affect normal use, but this article does not call n8n purely open source, because it is not.

n8n can also run in the cloud on a paid plan if you do not want to host anything. The free path is self-hosting: one Docker command starts it, and the web interface opens in your browser. If you already pay for Zapier and your automations keep hitting the task cap, n8n is the first repo in this series worth trying.

Why it is worth using for free

• Self-hosted runs are not billed per task — one multi-step AI workflow counts as one execution
• More than 400 app integrations, with AI nodes built in rather than bolted on
• Free to self-host under the Sustainable Use License; no task cap, no per-seat charge
• Visual builder is fast to learn, and workflows export as JSON you can back up or share

How to use n8n

The fastest start is Docker. Run `docker run -it --rm --name n8n -p 5678:5678 -v n8n_data:/home/node/.n8n n8nio/n8n`, then open http://localhost:5678 in your browser and create an owner account.

Build your first workflow: add a trigger node (for example, a form submission or a schedule), connect an app node such as Gmail or Google Sheets, then press Execute to run it once and see the data flow. Add an AI node when you want a model to summarise, classify or draft text inside the workflow. Save the workflow and switch it to Active when you want it to run on its own.

Frequently asked questions