n8n Pricing (2026): Cloud vs Hosted
n8n is one of the few workflow automation tools where self-hosting is free. No catch. Unlimited workflows, unlimited executions, no license fees. The cloud version starts at $20/mo if you'd rather not manage infrastructure. As of April 2026, n8n Cloud raised its Starter tier to $24/mo and added a new Team plan at $60/mo with SSO and audit logging. Self-hosted remains free with no changes.
n8n pricing starts at Free (N/A) for the Community (Self-Hosted) plan.
Published Pricing
Community (Self-Hosted)
- Unlimited workflows
- Unlimited executions
- 400+ integrations
- Full source code access
- Community support only
Starter (Cloud)
- Cloud hosted by n8n
- 2,500 workflow executions/month
- Core integrations
- Basic support
- 5 active workflows
Pro (Cloud)
- 10,000 executions/month
- Unlimited active workflows
- Execution history (7 days)
- Debugging tools
- Priority support
Enterprise
- SSO/SAML
- Audit logging
- Custom execution limits
- Dedicated infrastructure
- SLA and dedicated support
What They Don't Tell You
The listed price is just the starting point. Here are the costs that show up after you sign:
You'll need a VPS or container. A basic instance handles light workloads. CPU-intensive workflows or high volume push server costs up.
Updates, monitoring, backups. Someone on your team needs to own this. It's not difficult, but it's not zero effort either.
Community forums and GitHub issues are your support channels. There's no SLA, no guaranteed response time.
Going over your monthly execution limit costs roughly a penny per extra execution. Monitor your usage to avoid surprises.
Some trigger types (webhooks with custom auth, polling at high frequency) may consume executions faster than expected.
If you need connectors that don't exist, you'll build them yourself. n8n's SDK makes this possible, but it takes engineering hours.
What It Actually Costs: A Real Example
DevOps team running 20 workflows with 8,000 monthly executions
| n8n Pro cloud plan | $600 |
| Occasional execution overages (estimated) | $120 |
| Total Annual Cost | $240-$720/year depending on deployment model |
How to Negotiate n8n Pricing
Published pricing is rarely the final price for B2B software. Here are tactics that work when negotiating with n8n sales teams.
Time Your Purchase
End of quarter (March, June, September, December) is when sales reps have the most pressure to close deals. Contact n8n in the last two weeks of a quarter and you will almost always get a better offer than the listed price. End of fiscal year is even better.
Get Competing Quotes
Before talking to n8n's sales team, get quotes from at least two competitors. Having a real alternative on the table gives you negotiating power. Mention the competitor and their pricing during your call. Sales reps have authority to match or beat competitor offers.
Negotiate on Terms, Not Just Price
If n8n won't budge on the per-user price, negotiate on other terms. Ask for additional seats at no cost, extended contract length at a lower annual rate, free onboarding or training, or inclusion of add-on features that would normally cost extra.
Start with a Shorter Contract
Annual contracts get better per-month pricing than monthly billing, but avoid multi-year commitments on your first purchase. Sign a one-year deal, prove the tool's value to your organization, and then negotiate a multi-year renewal at a discount once you have internal buy-in.
Ask About Startup or Growth Pricing
Many vendors including n8n offer discounted pricing for startups, non-profits, or companies under a certain revenue threshold. These programs are rarely advertised on the pricing page. Ask directly whether any special pricing programs apply to your company.
Total Cost of Ownership
The subscription price is just one piece of what n8n actually costs. Factor in these additional expenses when building your budget.
Implementation and Onboarding
Getting n8n set up properly takes time and often money. Some vendors charge for professional services, others include basic onboarding. Either way, your team will spend hours configuring the platform, migrating data, and building initial workflows. Budget for 2 to 8 weeks of reduced productivity during rollout.
Training and Adoption
A tool only delivers value if people actually use it. Plan for training sessions, documentation, and the learning curve that comes with any new platform. Under-investing in training is the most common reason B2B software purchases fail to deliver expected ROI.
Integration Costs
Connecting n8n to your CRM, data warehouse, and other tools may require middleware (Workato, Zapier) or custom development. Native integrations are free, but complex data flows between systems can add $200 to $2,000 per month in middleware costs.
Ongoing Administration
Someone on your team needs to own the n8n instance. That means managing users, updating configurations, troubleshooting issues, and staying current with new features. For complex platforms, this can be a part-time or full-time role. For simpler tools, budget a few hours per month.
Switching Costs
If n8n doesn't work out, migrating to another platform has real costs. Data export, re-implementation, retraining, and lost productivity during the transition. Factor in switching costs when deciding between a cheaper option that might not scale and a pricier one that covers your needs long-term.
The Bottom Line
n8n is the most cost-effective option for technical teams. Self-hosted is free forever with unlimited workflows. Cloud is competitively priced for teams that don't want to manage infrastructure. The trade-off is clear: pay with money (cloud) or pay with time (self-hosted). For most dev and ops teams, n8n costs 90% less than Zapier for equivalent workloads.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does n8n pricing compare to Zapier?
Dramatically cheaper. Zapier's Team plan costs $399/mo for multi-step workflows. n8n's Pro plan is $50/mo with 10,000 executions. Self-hosted n8n is free. For technical teams comfortable with a slightly steeper learning curve, the savings are massive.
What do I need to self-host n8n?
A Linux server with Docker. A $20/mo VPS from DigitalOcean, Hetzner, or AWS Lightsail works for most teams. You'll want at least 2GB RAM and reasonable disk space. n8n provides Docker images and docker-compose files to simplify setup.
Is the free self-hosted version limited in features?
No. The self-hosted Community edition includes all core features, all integrations, and unlimited workflows and executions. You miss out on cloud-only conveniences like managed hosting, automatic updates, and vendor support. But the feature set is the same.