n8n vs Zapier
Thinking of swapping Zapier for the open-source n8n? Here’s the honest trade-off.
115k TypeScript Sustainable Use License 4 days ago
What you give up vs Zapier
- Source-available (Sustainable Use License), not true OSI open source; some enterprise features (SSO, log streaming, external secrets) are gated behind paid tiers.
- Self-hosted instances require you to manage your own queue/Redis and Postgres for scaling and reliability.
- Far fewer pre-built app connectors than Zapier's 6,000+ catalog.
- Concurrency and execution throughput on the free self-hosted tier require manual queue-mode tuning.
What you gain
- • Full data ownership — self-host n8n on your own infrastructure.
- • No per-seat SaaS bill (Zapier: per-task billing that punishes scale).
- • Open-source code you can audit and extend (Sustainable Use License).