Comparison
Zapier vs Make vs n8n for a sole trader
Updated 24 October 2026
Task: Automate invoice chasing
Direct answer
For a sole trader, start with Make if you want a free hosted plan and more than a two-step workflow. Pick Zapier if you want the most familiar app directory and will pay for multi-step Zaps. Pick n8n if you are happy to host it or pay in euros for Cloud. No bake-off was run.
Zapier
Best for. A two-step job, such as a form writing a row to a sheet, with the widest familiar app list.
Cost. Free for two-step Zaps and a small task cap. Professional from $19.99 a month for multi-step.
Setup. The most guided of the three. Easy to outgrow the free shape.
Limit. Multi-step work, including a draft email after a sheet update, needs a paid plan. Tasks are counted per action.
Make
Best for. A short daily or weekly scenario, such as invoice drafts, on a hosted free tier that allows more than two steps.
Cost. Free with 1,000 credits a month. Core has been listed from $9 a month billed annually.
Setup. A visual canvas. More to learn than a two-step Zap, less than running a server.
Limit. Credits, not runs. AI modules can cost extra credits. The free plan spaces out scheduled scenarios.
n8n
Best for. A workflow you may later want on your own server, if the canvas does not put you off in the trial.
Cost. Community Edition has no licence fee. Cloud Starter was listed at €20 a month billed annually.
Setup. Cloud is a signup. Self-hosting is a server, updates, and backups.
Limit. You pay per execution on Cloud, or you pay with time if you host it. Execution caps change. Read them on the day.
The invoice playbook uses Make because the free plan can draft without a third-step tax. The lead playbook uses Zapier because form-to-sheet is exactly two steps. The Monday digest uses n8n because that is the tool you can later take with you. Those are fits, not a ranking of the companies.
Read the invoice chase, the lead sheet, and the Monday digest before you create three accounts. One tool that you reopen is worth more than a stack you forget.
Which to pick
Choose Make
You want invoice-chasing drafts or a weekly email, hosted, and you would like to start at £0.
Choose Zapier
The job is exactly two steps, or you already know Zapier and the paid plan is an acceptable cost.
Choose n8n
You are comfortable in a workflow tool and you either accept the Cloud price or you already know how to host software.
Choose none of them
The accounting package or the form already does the job. A reminder inside Xero or FreeAgent beats a new subscription.
Playbooks for this task
Questions
Did you time them against each other?
No. This page compares published pricing and the shape of the setup. There is no speed score and no reliability percentage, because those were not measured.
Which one is safest with customer data?
The one whose scenario cannot send email or edit the ledger until you say so. Hosting your own n8n does not remove UK GDPR. It moves the server. Read the data-flow note on the playbook you actually build.
Sources
AgentShed is independent and this comparison is not sponsored. There is no affiliate link. Prices are vendor list prices as published around 24 October 2026 and will move.