Automation & Integrations

Automation tools move data between the apps you already pay for: a form answer becomes a CRM contact, an invoice lands in a folder, a new client triggers a project. Zapier, Make and n8n are the three general platforms here; Airtable and Copy.ai appear in the category because they include automations of their own.

The three platforms share one thing that changes the budget: they are priced by usage. Zapier counts tasks, Make counts credits, n8n counts workflow executions, and each plan includes a monthly quota. The entry price is meaningful only if a busy month stays under the quota, so estimate how many times each automation runs, then add a margin.

All three are sold per account rather than per seat, and all three have a free plan or tier you can test on. n8n can also be self-hosted, which moves the cost from a subscription to running a server yourself.

How to choose in this category

Count the runs

One automation that runs on every email can use more of a quota than ten weekly ones. Estimate a normal month and a busy month.

Steps per run

A task, a credit and an execution are not the same unit: check what one run of your workflow consumes on each platform before comparing quotas.

Your apps are supported

Check that the exact apps you use have ready-made connectors before comparing prices.

Who maintains it

A visual builder anyone can edit, or a tool a technical person will own: pick the one the person maintaining it will actually open.