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n8n vs Make: which is cheaper for your workflow? Executions vs credits by runs and steps (checked November 2026)
n8n and Make price the same workflow in different units. n8n counts executions: one per run, however many steps the workflow has. Make counts credits: one for each module that runs, and for a polling trigger one for every check, even a check that finds nothing. So which one costs less depends on two numbers you already know about your workflow: how many times it runs a month, and how many steps each run has. This page works through a grid of both from the published plan prices, then covers the counting rules that change the answer and the limits that aren't about price. To include Zapier, see n8n vs Make vs Zapier pricing.
The short answer
- n8n counts runs; Make counts module runs. A run with an instant trigger and 5 actions is 1 n8n execution and 6 Make credits.
- Small, short workflows cost less on Make. Make's Free plan has 1,000 credits a month, and its 10,000-credit size is $9 a month on Core, billed annually. n8n has no free hosted plan: Starter is 20€ a month billed annually for 2,500 executions. In every cell of our grids where Make's price is published, Make costs less.
- Each extra step adds to Make's count and not to n8n's. 1,000 runs with 20 actions are 21,000 Make credits, more than the 10,000-credit size Make prices in its page text, while n8n's Starter plan still holds the 1,000 runs.
- A polling trigger costs Make a credit per check: 2,880 credits a month at every 15 minutes before any action runs. n8n counts a poll only when it finds new data.
- Loops follow the same rule. Make uses a credit for every item each module handles; on n8n a loop is part of one execution.
- Free ways in: Make Free (1,000 credits a month, 2 active scenarios). n8n Cloud has a 14-day trial with 1,000 executions, and the self-hosted Community Edition is free if you run the server.
How each one counts
| What happens | n8n | Make |
|---|---|---|
| One run: instant trigger or webhook, then 5 action steps | 1 execution | 6 credits: 1 for the trigger, 1 per action |
| A polling trigger checks and finds nothing | Not counted | 1 credit |
| A schedule starts the workflow | 1 execution every time it fires | Each run uses credits for its modules: a trigger 1 per run even when it finds nothing, a search 1 per run |
| One run handles 50 items with 2 steps each | Still 1 execution | 100 credits for the 2 steps × 50 items, plus the module that found them |
| Filters and routers | Part of the execution | 0 credits |
| Error handling | Error workflows aren't counted | Error handler modules use 0 credits |
| Calling a sub-workflow or subscenario | Only the parent execution counts | The Scenarios app modules use 0 credits (below) |
| Testing | Manual runs from the editor aren't counted | Replayed runs use credits like standard runs |
From n8n's Understand executions page and Make's How features use credits, Subscenarios and Scenario run replay pages. On Make, a search uses 1 credit per run however many results it returns, and an action 1 credit for each item (bundle) it processes. If the items arrive as one array, an Iterator uses 1 credit to split it, and the modules after it 1 credit per item.
Subscenarios and sub-workflows
- n8n: when a workflow calls another with the Execute Sub-workflow node, "only the parent (top-level) execution counts."
- Make: the Subscenarios page says "Scenarios run via the Scenarios app don't consume credits", and that with the Scenarios app "you can call scenarios, pass the inputs, and return outputs free of charge". Calling a scenario through the Webhooks or Make apps instead uses credits for each operation, and the Scenarios app can only call scenarios in the same team. The pages we read don't say in so many words whether the other modules inside a subscenario still use credits as usual. Make shows the credits used per module in scenario history, so check one run before you build on it.
Grid 1: instant trigger or webhook
Each run handles one new item and starts from an instant trigger or a webhook: on Make, 1 credit for the trigger plus 1 per action; on n8n, 1 execution. One active workflow, prices per month billed annually. n8n's pricing page shows euros; the dollar figure in brackets uses the European Central Bank's reference rate for November 13, 2026 (1 € = $1.1052).
- n8n column: the smallest hosted plan that holds the runs. It doesn't change with the number of steps.
- Make cells: credits a month · Free, or the price of the 10,000-credit size on Core ($9).
- Make cells over 10,000 credits: Make's pricing page text only shows the price of the 10,000-credit size, so the cell shows the break-even instead: the most Make could charge per 1,000 credits at that size and still cost less than n8n in the same row (n8n's dollar price ÷ the credits in thousands). For scale, at the 10,000-credit size Core is $0.90 per 1,000 credits, Pro $1.60 and Teams $2.90.
| Runs a month | n8n (any number of steps) | Make, 1 action | Make, 5 actions | Make, 10 actions | Make, 20 actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 200 · Free | 600 · Free | 1,100 · $9 | 2,100 · $9 |
| 500 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 1,000 · Free | 3,000 · $9 | 5,500 · $9 | 10,500 · $2.11 |
| 1,000 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 2,000 · $9 | 6,000 · $9 | 11,000 · $2.01 | 21,000 · $1.05 |
| 2,500 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 5,000 · $9 | 15,000 · $1.47 | 27,500 · $0.80 | 52,500 · $0.42 |
| 5,000 | Pro 10K, 50€ ($55.26) | 10,000 · $9 | 30,000 · $1.84 | 55,000 · $1.00 | 105,000 · $0.53 |
| 10,000 | Pro 10K, 50€ ($55.26) | 20,000 · $2.76 | 60,000 · $0.92 | 110,000 · $0.50 | 210,000 · $0.26 |
| 50,000 | Pro 50K, 120.83€ ($133.54) | 100,000 · $1.34 | 300,000 · $0.45 | 550,000 · $0.24 | 1,050,000 · $0.13 |
How to read it:
- Top left, Make costs less. Free or $9 against n8n's 20€. That holds at any rate the European Central Bank has published for the dollar: at the euro's lowest, $0.8252 on October 26, 2000, 20€ was $16.50.
- Moving right, the break-even falls. At 1,000 runs with 10 actions, Make costs less if its 11,000-credit size is under $2.01 per 1,000 credits, more than twice Core's $0.90 at the 10,000 size. At 2,500 runs with 10 actions the break-even is $0.80, below that $0.90: Make only costs less there if its price per credit is lower at the bigger size. Make's Extra credits page says "Higher-tier plans have lower per-credit costs", but the prices of those sizes weren't in the pricing page's text, so read them off the slider on Make's pricing page.
- Bottom right, n8n's way of counting wins out. 10,000 runs with 20 actions are 210,000 Make credits a month; n8n's Pro plan holds the same 10,000 runs at 50€. Make would have to charge under $0.26 per 1,000 credits.
- n8n's column only moves with runs: Starter up to 2,500, Pro 10K up to 10,000, Pro 50K up to 50,000 at 120.83€ a month (1,450€ a year). Beyond that, n8n's hosted plan is Enterprise, priced by sales; the self-hosted Business plan starts at 40,000 executions.
How far each plan goes
The same thing from the other side: how many runs a month each Make size holds, by the number of actions per run. n8n's Starter holds 2,500 runs and Pro 10,000, whatever the number of steps.
| Actions per run | Make Free (1,000 credits) | Make 10,000 credits ($9 on Core) | Make 10,000 credits, polling every 15 minutes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 500 | 5,000 | 7,120 |
| 3 | 250 | 2,500 | 2,373 |
| 5 | 166 | 1,666 | 1,424 |
| 10 | 90 | 909 | 712 |
| 20 | 47 | 476 | 356 |
With an instant trigger, a Make run costs 1 credit more than its actions. With a trigger that polls every 15 minutes, the 2,880 checks come first and the actions share what is left of the 10,000, so the last column assumes each check picks up all the items waiting for it. The Free plan can't take a 15-minute poll at all: the checks alone are 2,880 credits.
Grid 2: polling trigger every 15 minutes
The same runs, but the workflow starts from an app's trigger that checks for new data every 15 minutes, the shortest interval on Make's Free plan.
- Make: 2,880 checks in a 30-day month at 1 credit each, plus 1 credit per action for each item. One check's credit covers all the items it finds.
- n8n: only the polls that find new data count, so there are never more executions than items, and never more than 2,880 a month. The n8n column is the smallest plan that holds that maximum. From 5,000 runs up it is Pro 10K; if no more than 2,500 of the month's polls find something, Starter is enough.
| Runs a month | n8n (polling, at most) | Make, 1 action | Make, 5 actions | Make, 10 actions | Make, 20 actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 2,980 · $9 | 3,380 · $9 | 3,880 · $9 | 4,880 · $9 |
| 500 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 3,380 · $9 | 5,380 · $9 | 7,880 · $9 | 12,880 · $1.72 |
| 1,000 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 3,880 · $9 | 7,880 · $9 | 12,880 · $1.72 | 22,880 · $0.97 |
| 2,500 | Starter 2.5K, 20€ ($22.10) | 5,380 · $9 | 15,380 · $1.44 | 27,880 · $0.79 | 52,880 · $0.42 |
| 5,000 | Pro 10K, 50€ ($55.26) | 7,880 · $9 | 27,880 · $1.98 | 52,880 · $1.05 | 102,880 · $0.54 |
| 10,000 | Pro 10K, 50€ ($55.26) | 12,880 · $4.29 | 52,880 · $1.05 | 102,880 · $0.54 | 202,880 · $0.27 |
| 50,000 | Pro 10K, 50€ ($55.26) | 52,880 · $1.05 | 252,880 · $0.22 | 502,880 · $0.11 | 1,002,880 · $0.06 |
How to read it:
- Make's Free plan drops out. Every cell is above its 1,000 credits.
- With few runs, polling costs Make more than an instant trigger: 100 runs with 5 actions are 3,380 credits here against 600 in grid 1. With many runs it can cost less, because each check's credit covers several items: 10,000 runs with 1 action are 12,880 credits here against 20,000.
- On n8n, polling never costs more than an instant trigger, and at 50,000 runs it costs less: at most 2,880 executions, which fits Pro 10K instead of Pro 50K.
Worked example: an hourly sync of 50 rows
A common job that shows the gap: every hour, read the new rows of a spreadsheet (say 50 each time) and create a contact in a CRM for each one. Our arithmetic, in a 30-day month:
- n8n: a Schedule Trigger every hour is 720 executions, however many rows each run handles. That fits Starter's 2,500: 20€ a month billed annually.
- Make: each run uses 1 credit for the search and 1 for each contact it creates, 51 credits × 720 runs = 36,720 credits a month. That is above the 10,000-credit size Make prices in its page text. To cost less than n8n's 20€ ($22.10), Make's plan for that size would have to be under $0.60 per 1,000 credits, a third less than Core's $0.90 at the 10,000 size.
In our automation cost calculator, that is 720 runs with 50 actions and an instant start, since the search uses the trigger's 1 credit per run.
Limits that aren't about price
From the two pricing pages' comparison tables and FAQs:
| Limit | n8n Cloud (Starter / Pro) | Make (Free / Core, Pro, Teams) |
|---|---|---|
| Free way in | No free hosted plan. 14-day trial with 1,000 executions, 5 at a time, 180-second timeout. Community Edition: free to self-host | Free plan, 1,000 credits a month |
| Active workflows | Unlimited on every plan | 2 on Free, unlimited on paid plans |
| Shortest schedule | No minimum on the pricing page | 15 minutes on Free, 1 minute on paid plans |
| Longest run | 5 minutes on Starter, 40 on Pro | 5 minutes on Free, 40 on paid plans |
| Runs at the same time | 5 on Starter, 20 or 50 on Pro (by plan size) | A shared parallel capacity per organization, in processing units; no number per plan on the pricing page |
| At busy times | Not listed | Priority execution: High on Pro, Priority on Teams |
| At the monthly limit | Overage fees "Capped" on Starter and Pro, with no further detail published | Scenarios stop until credits are added; extra credits cost 25% more than plan credits |
What happens when too much runs at once:
- n8n Cloud: production executions over the plan's limit wait in a queue and run first-in, first-out. Manual, sub-workflow and error executions are outside the limit.
- Make: per the Parallel Capacity page, instant scenarios without a webhook response queue their data; scheduled scenarios start late; responsive webhooks and on-demand scenarios such as subscenarios get an HTTP 429 reply ("Too many executions running in parallel on organization level"), and the data isn't processed unless the caller retries.
When Make's credits run out, its pricing FAQ says incoming webhooks queue up to your webhook queue storage, and polling scenarios search for records since their last successful run once credits are added. Running out is covered in more detail in Make credits explained, and n8n's quota in n8n executions explained.
AI steps
- Make: an AI step is a module, so it uses at least 1 credit like any other. On Make's own AI Provider (in Make AI Toolkit and Make AI Agents), it also uses credits for the tokens, from the same credits as the rest of your scenarios, at a rate that depends on the model. With your own API key, it is 1 credit per operation and the AI provider bills you for the tokens. Rates and a worked example are in Make credits explained.
- n8n: an AI step is part of the execution, so it doesn't change your execution count. You pay for the model either with your own API key or with Gateway credits, a prepaid balance on n8n Cloud Starter and Pro (not Enterprise or self-hosted n8n), billed per request at the rates on n8n's service pricing page. Those rates weren't in the page's text, so we don't list them. New Cloud users and trials get a small amount of free credit; top-ups need a paid plan, expire 12 months after purchase and aren't refunded. When the balance reaches zero, nodes on Gateway credits stop until you add more, and nodes on your own API key keep running.
- The difference that matters: on Make, heavy AI use draws on the same credits as everything else and can push you into a bigger plan size. On n8n it is a separate balance (or your own provider's bill), and your execution quota doesn't move. n8n's Assistant, which helps you build workflows, has its own allowance again: 1,600 credits a month on Starter and 4,000 or 9,600 on Pro, depending on plan size.
Which one to choose
These follow from the grids and the limits above:
- Make costs less to start if your workflows are short, start from instant triggers or webhooks, and stay within 10,000 credits a month. Its Free plan holds about 166 runs a month of a 5-action workflow.
- n8n costs less as workflows get longer: a run counts once with 2 steps or 50, and a loop over many items stays one execution. It also suits workflows that poll for data, because empty polls are free.
- To run the server yourself, n8n's Community Edition is free to self-host; you pay for the server and the upkeep (what self-hosting n8n costs).
- Check the limits as well as the price: Make Free's 2 active scenarios and 15-minute interval, n8n Starter's 5 executions at a time and 5-minute maximum run.
To put your own runs, actions and polling interval in, use the automation cost calculator; it shows n8n, Make and Zapier side by side.
Check the current numbers
- n8n pricing and Make pricing
- How each one counts in detail: n8n executions explained and Make credits explained
- With Zapier as well: n8n vs Make vs Zapier pricing, Zapier tasks explained and the automation cost calculator
Sources
- n8n pricing page (plans, comparison table, FAQ) — https://n8n.io/pricing/, checked
- Make pricing page (plans, comparison table, FAQ) — https://www.make.com/pricing, checked
- n8n docs: Understand executions (how executions count towards quotas) — https://docs.n8n.io/build/understand-workflows/understand-executions, checked
- n8n docs: Understand concurrency (n8n Cloud) — https://docs.n8n.io/deploy/use-n8n-cloud/understand-concurrency, checked
- n8n docs: Try free then choose a plan — https://docs.n8n.io/deploy/use-n8n-cloud/start-your-free-trial, checked
- n8n docs: Gateway credits — https://docs.n8n.io/deploy/use-n8n-cloud/gateway-credits, checked
- n8n docs: Top up Gateway credits — https://docs.n8n.io/deploy/use-n8n-cloud/gateway-credits/top-up-gateway-credits, checked
- Make Help Center: How features use credits — https://help.make.com/how-features-use-credits, checked
- Make Help Center: Subscenarios — https://help.make.com/subscenarios, checked
- Make Help Center: Scenario run replay — https://help.make.com/scenario-run-replay, checked
- Make Help Center: Parallel Capacity — https://help.make.com/parallel-capacity, checked
- Make Help Center: Extra credits — https://help.make.com/extra-credits, checked
- European Central Bank: euro reference rate for the US dollar (1.1052 on November 13, 2026) — https://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/eurofxref-graph-usd.en.html, checked