Verdict
Does n8n's execution-based pricing and self-hosting suit a technical team better than per-task tools?
n8n prices by monthly workflow executions, with unlimited users and workflows on all plans. Cloud Starter is €20 a month and Pro €50 on annual billing, and Business (€667 a month) is self-hosted only.
Who should consider it. Consider it if you want predictable execution-based pricing, or to run automation on your own infrastructure.
Start here: first steps with n8n
Editorial guidance based on the vendor details we recorded. We have not tested n8n, and we do not describe its screens or settings.
- Who should start with it
- Technical teams that want unlimited users and workflows, or to self-host.
- Before you create an account
- Pick one real job, for example "Automate apps and workflows", and prepare invented or non-sensitive input for the first try.
- Read the vendor's data and privacy terms. Our privacy review checklist lists what to look for.
- Commercial-use terms: we have not verified them. Read the vendor's terms for the plan you will use.
- Which plan to start with
- No free plan is confirmed. Start with the free trial. Cloud trial: 1,000 executions with no credit card. Business has a 14-day trial that requires a credit card.
- A first small task
- Try a small version of a real case like this one: A developer team that wants to run automation on its own servers (Business).
- How to tell whether it helps
- Time the job by hand first. Then record minutes taken, minutes of editing and credits or usage used. Use the trial scorecard.
- Common first-week mistakes
- Spending credits or usage on experiments without noting how much one job used.
- Putting private or customer data in before reading how the vendor handles it.
- When to consider another tool
- Anyone who wants prices in dollars: the page lists euro prices.
- Anyone who needs monthly-billed prices up front: only annual prices are shown.
Alternatives: Zapier, Make. Reasons to switch.
What n8n actually does
- Runs workflows with unlimited users and workflows on all plans, counted by workflow executions regardless of complexity.
- Cloud plans are hosted by n8n. Business is self-hosted with a licence key that must ping n8n's licence server daily.
- Cloud plans include assistant credits (1,600 on Starter, up to 9,600 on Pro).
- A Community Edition can be self-hosted from GitHub.
Who it suits, and who should look elsewhere
Good fits
- A developer team that wants to run automation on its own servers (Business).
- A small team trying the cloud trial with 1,000 executions and no credit card.
Scenarios are illustrative, based on plan limits and documented features.
Consider alternatives if
- Anyone who wants prices in dollars: the page lists euro prices.
- Anyone who needs monthly-billed prices up front: only annual prices are shown.
Practical workflows
Illustrative: built from documented features, not from testing.
Route support emails into a tracker
Outcome: A workflow that records each support email and alerts the team
- Start a cloud trial (1,000 executions, no card) or a self-hosted instance.
- Build a workflow with a trigger on new support emails.
- Add steps that create a tracker item and send a team notification.
- Check the execution count against your plan's monthly quota.
Strengths and limitations
Strengths Vendor-documented
- Unlimited users and workflows on every plan
- A cloud free trial with no credit card
- A self-hosted plan with SSO and LDAP
Limitations and cautions Documented limits and editorial guidance
- Only annual-billing prices are shown, in euros
- The Business plan needs a licence key that contacts n8n's licence server daily
- Annual plans have no pro-rata refunds
Hands-on testing
Not tested by us yet, so this page describes what the vendor documents. How testing is recorded.
Pricing
Free
Not verifiedFree-plan availability has not been verified.
Free trial
YesCloud trial: 1,000 executions with no credit card. Business has a 14-day trial that requires a credit card.
Cheapest paid plan
Cloud StarterFrom €20/mo, billed annually
Show all 4 plans and limits
| Plan | Price and billing | Limits and inclusions |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud Starter |
| 2.5K executions a month; 5 concurrent executions; 1 shared project; 7-day log retention |
| Cloud Pro |
| 10K executions a month; 20 to 50 concurrent executions; 3 shared projects; 30-day log retention |
| Business (self-hosted) |
| 40K executions a month; 6 shared projects; SSO and LDAP; licence key required |
| Enterprise | Custom pricing (contact sales) | Cloud or self-hosted; unlimited shared projects; 200+ concurrent executions; dedicated support with SLA |
How usage is counted
- Starter: 2.5K executions a month, 5 concurrent executions, 1 shared project and 7-day log retention.
- Pro: 10K executions, 20 to 50 concurrent executions (the page gives both figures), 3 shared projects and 30-day log retention.
- Business: 40K executions, 6 shared projects, SSO and LDAP. Extra buckets cost €4,000 per 300,000 executions, and workflows keep running after the quota.
- Pricing model
- Usage-based
- Currency
- EUR (shown by the vendor for the region we checked)
- Commercial use
- Not verified
- API
- Not confirmed · Not covered on the pricing page.
- Pricing checked
- 21 Oct 2026 · Vendor pricing page (opens in a new tab)
- Prices are in euros. A monthly billing toggle exists, but monthly prices are not shown.
- A Community Edition is available on GitHub; the page states no price or licence terms for it.
Prices are shown as each vendor lists them. Where a vendor shows only a "$" sign, its page does not name the currency, and vendors may show a local currency or regional price. Confirm on the vendor's page before buying.
Alternatives
Zapier
Reason to consider it: Hosted-only task pricing in US dollars with a free plan, rather than execution-based pricing.
- Free access: Zapier is "free plan" (100 tasks a month; two-step Zaps; 15-minute polling; 2,500 Table records; 10 form pages); n8n is "free trial".
- API: Zapier documented; n8n not verified.
- Paid prices are in different, unnamed or not comparable currencies, so they are not compared here.
Make
Reason to consider it: Credit-based pricing with a free plan of 1,000 credits a month.
- Free access: Make is "free plan" (1,000 credits a month; 1 MB data storage; 1 data store); n8n is "free trial".
- API: Make documented; n8n not verified.
- Paid prices are in different, unnamed or not comparable currencies, so they are not compared here.
Frequently asked questions
Does n8n have a free plan?
The vendor's pricing page does not say whether a free plan exists, so we cannot tell. Check the vendor directly. A free trial is also offered. Cloud trial: 1,000 executions with no credit card. Business has a 14-day trial that requires a credit card.
How much does n8n cost?
The lowest-priced paid plan is Cloud Starter: from €20/mo, billed annually. Larger plans are quoted by the vendor. Annual-billing prices are shown per month but are paid yearly. Pricing was checked 21 Oct 2026.
Does n8n have an API?
We could not confirm this from an official page. Not covered on the pricing page.
Can I use n8n output commercially?
We have not verified the commercial-use terms. That is a gap in our research, not a statement about the product. Read the vendor's terms before publishing output commercially.
Keep comparing
Sources and update history
| Source | What it covered | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| n8n pricing page (opens in a new tab) | Plans, prices (EUR), executions, trials, self-hosting terms | 21 Oct 2026 |
Not yet verified
These are gaps in our research, not claims about the product.
- Monthly-billed prices
- Whether the Community Edition is free of charge and its licence terms
- Enterprise pricing
- API availability
Research note
- Vendor-documented: prices, plan limits, features and terms are taken from the sources above on the dates shown.
- Editorial interpretation: the verdict, good fits, tradeoffs and workflows are our reading of those facts. None of it comes from testing the tool.
- Unverified: anything listed under "Not yet verified" is a gap in our research, not a claim about the product.
Update history
- 20 Oct 2026 · Added a sourced product overview; paid prices and hands-on performance remain unverified.
- 21 Oct 2026 · Re-researched from the vendor's official pages: pricing, limits, platform and API details.
Spotted something out of date? Tell us.