n8n

Open-source workflow automation with native AI agents and self-hosted control

n8n is a Berlin-based workflow automation and AI orchestration platform operating under a fair-code license that combines a visual no-code builder with full-code flexibility — so non-technical users can build automations quickly while developers can inject custom logic, build nodes, and deploy on infrastructure they own. Its core differentiator against Zapier and Make is the combination of self-hosted deployment (keeping data within the customer’s own environment), full-code escape hatches (JavaScript/Python nodes for anything the visual builder can’t handle), and native AI agent construction with support for multi-agent architectures, RAG, memory, and tool use across 500+ integrations. n8n raised $180 million in Series C funding in October 2025, with NVIDIA NVentures participating specifically to expand AI orchestration capabilities, and reached a $2.5B valuation, 194K+ GitHub stars, and 200K+ community members as of mid-2026.

Compliance

GDPR SOC 2

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Key Features

Visual + code-optional workflow builder: A canvas-based editor for building multi-step automations visually, with the ability to write custom JavaScript or Python at any node — supporting both citizen developers and engineers on the same platform without limiting either.
Native AI agent builder: Connects to any LLM or vector store, with pre-built tools for agents or the ability to create new ones with the HTTP Request node, and MCP Server support for calling n8n workflows from other AI systems — covering multi-agent orchestration, RAG, memory, and tool use out of the box.
Self-hosted deployment: Runs on the customer’s own servers, VMs, or private cloud, meaning workflow data, credentials, and AI payloads never leave the customer’s environment — the primary reason compliance-sensitive teams (HIPAA, GDPR) choose n8n over SaaS-only alternatives.
500+ integrations: A library of pre-built nodes covering common enterprise apps (Slack, Salesforce, PostgreSQL, OpenAI, AWS, Google Workspace, GitHub, and hundreds more), plus an HTTP Request node for any API without a native integration.
AI Workflow Evaluations: Allows catching regressions, monitoring drift, and making data-driven decisions on prompt iterations or model changes — an evaluation layer for production AI workflows that treats agent quality as an ongoing concern rather than a one-time test.
Enterprise governance: SSO (SAML, LDAP), RBAC permissions, audit logs, log streaming to SIEM, git-based version control, isolated environments, encrypted secret stores, and workflow history for compliance-grade deployments.

Use Cases

For security and IT teams automating complex workflows: A security team builds multi-step automation for phishing triage, alert enrichment, and user provisioning — connecting CrowdStrike, Okta, Slack, and ticketing systems — with full data control via self-hosted deployment.
For developers building production AI agents: An engineering team uses n8n’s AI agent builder and MCP support to orchestrate multi-agent workflows across OpenAI, Anthropic, and internal APIs, with inline logging and evaluation tooling for production monitoring.
For teams replacing expensive per-task SaaS: A company running high-volume automations on Zapier switches to self-hosted n8n, converting a $500+/month per-task billing model to a fixed infrastructure cost for unlimited workflow executions.

Pricing MODELS

Freemium

Pricing Summary

Free for self-hosted (Community Edition). Cloud-hosted starts at $20/month (Starter) with usage-based scaling. Enterprise (cloud or self-hosted) is custom-quoted, adding SSO, RBAC, audit logs, and dedicated support. Fair-code license means the source is visible and freely self-hostable, but cannot be used to offer a competing n8n-as-a-service product without a commercial license.