n8n vs Make vs Power Automate: Which Workflow Tool Fits a Small Business?

n8n is a workflow tool built for technical teams: you can run it on your own server for free, or use n8n's cloud, which bills per workflow run however many steps the run takes. Make is a hosted visual builder that bills in credits, usually one per module action, with a free plan and low-cost tiers for modest volume. Power Automate is Microsoft's option, licensed per user and partly included with Microsoft 365, and it is the natural fit when the work lives in Outlook, Teams and SharePoint.

All three connect applications so routine handoffs run on their own. They differ in who hosts them, how they count usage and who on your team can maintain them. This comparison uses each vendor's own pages as of October 2026. If Zapier is also on your list, our Zapier vs Make vs Power Automate comparison covers it.

How do n8n, Make and Power Automate compare?

n8n vs Make: what is the difference?

The biggest differences are hosting and how usage is counted. Make is a hosted service: its pricing page lists every plan, Enterprise included, as hosted on AWS in the EU or North America, and lists no self-hosted edition. n8n can run on your own infrastructure. n8n's documentation describes the Community Edition as free and self-hosted with almost the complete feature set, and its Business plan is self-hosted as well.

Counting changes the bill. n8n's pricing page counts an execution as one run of a whole workflow, however many steps it has. Make counts credits per module action, so a ten-step scenario uses about ten credits per run. Routers and error handlers in Make don't use credits, while its Code app uses 2 credits for every second of code execution and some AI features use more than one.

The trade-off is skill. n8n's documentation says self-hosting requires technical expertise for installation and configuration, that you must provide and manage the infrastructure, and that maintenance is your responsibility. Make asks for none of that, and its visual builder suits someone comfortable with logic but not with servers.

n8n vs Power Automate: which fits a Microsoft 365 business?

If your work runs through Outlook, Teams, SharePoint and Excel, Power Automate starts with an advantage: it is Microsoft's own service, approval workflows are its textbook use, and Power Platform data loss prevention policies govern which connectors can be combined. Microsoft's license guide says basic use with standard connectors is free for work and school accounts, and Power Automate Premium adds premium and custom connectors, desktop flows that cloud flows can start to automate older applications through the screen, and AI Builder credits.

n8n makes sense alongside Microsoft 365 when a developer on staff wants code in the middle of a workflow, or when data must stay on infrastructure you control. Its Code node runs JavaScript and Python; on n8n Cloud you can't import external npm modules, while a self-hosted instance can. The price of that control is running the server, including patches, backups, monitoring and access, which a Microsoft-hosted flow doesn't need.

How do the prices compare at real volume?

List prices as of October 2026, from each vendor's pricing page:

• n8n: Community Edition free to self-host. Cloud plans are priced in euros and billed annually: Starter €20 a month for 2,500 executions and Pro €50 for 10,000. The self-hosted Business plan is €667 a month for 40,000 executions, with single sign-on and Git version control.
• Make: free for up to 1,000 credits a month and two active scenarios; Core $12, Pro $21 and Teams $38 a month at 10,000 credits, with annual billing saving 15% or more.
• Power Automate: standard-connector flows included for work accounts; Premium $15.00 per user per month and Process $150.00 per bot per month, paid yearly, on Microsoft's pricing page.

An illustrative example: a ten-step workflow that runs 1,000 times a month is 1,000 executions on n8n, inside the Starter allowance; about 10,000 credits on Make, the Core plan's monthly allowance; and on Power Automate, free if it uses only standard connectors, or one Premium license for its owner if it needs premium ones. At 20,000 runs a month the picture changes. n8n's €50 Pro cloud plan includes 10,000 executions, so you would look at a larger plan or self-hosting; Make needs about 200,000 credits a month, priced on its plan slider; and Power Automate stays within one Premium user's daily action limit. Price your three busiest workflows on each before you choose.

Which fits a small team?

• Your business runs on Microsoft 365 and nobody wants to manage servers: Power Automate.
• You use many non-Microsoft cloud apps and want visual building without hosting: Make.
• You have a developer, want code inside workflows or need data on your own infrastructure: n8n, self-hosted or on its cloud.
• A mix: common, and fine. Keep Microsoft 365 approvals in Power Automate and run cross-app automations in Make or n8n, with one person keeping an inventory of what runs where.

How NetSys helps

Our AI workflow automation service is platform-neutral across Power Automate, Zapier and Make, chosen per workflow. It starts with a half-day walkthrough of the work with the people who do it, ranks candidate workflows by hours returned and by cost of failure, and writes a one-page design for each: trigger, steps, AI decisions, exceptions and owner. Credentials sit in a service account rather than one person's login, every run is logged, failures alert a named owner, and a monthly review reports runs, failures and hours returned for each workflow.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between n8n, Make and Power Automate?

n8n can be self-hosted or used in its cloud and bills per workflow run; Make is a hosted visual builder that bills per module action in credits; Power Automate is Microsoft's service, licensed per user or per flow and partly included with Microsoft 365. In short, n8n suits technical teams, Make suits mixed SaaS stacks and Power Automate suits Microsoft 365 businesses.

Is n8n free?

The Community Edition is free to self-host, with almost the complete feature set. You still pay for the server and the time to install, update and secure it. As of October 2026, n8n's cloud plans start at €20 a month, billed annually, for 2,500 executions.

Is Make cheaper than n8n?

It depends on the shape of your workflows. Make counts credits per module action, so long scenarios use more; n8n counts one execution per run regardless of length. A ten-step workflow running 1,000 times a month fits both Make's $12 Core plan and n8n's €20 Starter plan, so compare using your own run counts and step counts.

Can n8n replace Power Automate?

For many cross-app workflows, yes. In a Microsoft 365 business it usually complements Power Automate rather than replacing it: Power Automate keeps Microsoft's approvals, data policies and desktop flows for older Windows applications, while n8n handles workflows that need code or self-hosting.

What affects the cost, implementation and support of workflow automation?

Run volume and workflow length set the platform bill, along with how many people need licenses. Implementation depends on the systems involved, error handling and approvals. Support means someone watching failures, renewing expired connections and updating workflows when an application changes; self-hosted n8n adds server upkeep to that list.