Dify vs n8n
The overlap is real but the centre of gravity is not the same. Dify is for building AI applications: 100+ models behind a consistent visual interface, with RAG built natively into the workflow builder. n8n is a general automation platform that happens to handle AI well, with unlimited steps per execution on every plan and code nodes wherever you need them. Start from what you are making, not from the feature lists.
Dify or n8n?
Pick Dify if Pick Dify if the thing you are building is the AI application itself. Native RAG in the workflow builder is the differentiator — you are not bolting document retrieval on afterwards — and it runs as managed cloud, self-hosted enterprise with SSO and RBAC, or an open-source community edition. Cloud starts at $59/mo.
Pick n8n if Pick n8n if AI is one step in a longer process that touches your other systems. Unlimited steps per execution on all plans matters more than it sounds, and code nodes let you drop JavaScript or Python anywhere so you never hit the ceiling of visual building. $24/mo cloud, and the self-hosted community edition is free with no workflow limits.
Pricing, plan by plan
Every plan each vendor publishes, monthly and yearly where both are offered.
Dify
n8n
Pros and cons
From each tool's full review, written from the same checked facts.
Dify
- Supports over 100 AI models including OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Mistral, and local Llama models through a consistent visual interface.
- RAG pipeline support is built natively into the workflow builder, eliminating the need to bolt on document retrieval separately.
- Flexible deployment options including cloud, VPC, and fully self-hosted via Docker or Kubernetes with official support for all three.
- Visual Workflow Studio uses drag-and-drop nodes covering agents, RAG steps, and decision branches for rapid development.
- Strong open-source traction with 151K+ GitHub stars indicating active community and ongoing development momentum.
- Ideal for development teams who want to ship production-ready AI applications without rebuilding infrastructure from scratch.
- Data residency and enterprise security requirements are accommodated through self-hosting options, a rarity at this price point.
- The platform is genuinely difficult to categorize, suggesting an unclear or overly broad product identity that may confuse buyers.
- User base claims of 500K+ cannot be independently verified, raising questions about the reliability of vendor-provided metrics.
- The review was not based on hands-on workflow building, meaning real-world usability limitations may not be fully captured.
- Moving faster than competitors in a fast-moving space increases the risk of instability, incomplete features, or shifting roadmaps.
- As a platform founded in 2023, long-term enterprise reliability and support track record remain unproven.
- Complexity of supporting 100+ models and multiple deployment methods may lead to inconsistent or under-documented edge cases.
n8n
- The self-hosted community edition is genuinely free with no workflow limits, which is rare among automation platforms.
- Code nodes allow JavaScript or Python to be inserted anywhere in a workflow, so developers never feel constrained by visual node limitations.
- Full infrastructure flexibility — runs on Docker, on-prem, or cloud depending on team preference.
- The visual canvas shows every step of a workflow with execution tracing, giving technical users clear visibility into what happened and why.
- A 200,000+ strong community actively solves real problems, often filling the gap when official support is slow.
- Cloud plans start at just €24/month, making the paid tier accessible compared to competitors that charge significantly more.
- Built without dumbing down the interface, making it a genuinely powerful tool for technical and DevOps teams.
- Non-technical users tend to bounce off the platform quickly due to its complexity and technical design philosophy.
- The interface is not designed to hide complexity, which creates a steep learning curve for teams without developer resources.
- Support tickets can be slow, pushing users to rely on the community forum rather than official channels.
- The tool is not competing with beginner-friendly platforms like Zapier, so teams expecting that experience will be disappointed.
- Self-hosting requires infrastructure management overhead that smaller or less technical teams may not be equipped to handle.
The free route is real on both
This is unusual and worth stating plainly: both have genuinely free self-hosted editions. n8n's community edition has no workflow limits, and Dify has an open-source community edition. If you have somewhere to run them, you can evaluate both properly at zero cost, which makes the paid comparison much less urgent than it first appears.
Who bounces off which
n8n is not designed to hide complexity, and non-technical users tend to give up quickly. That is a deliberate philosophy rather than an oversight, and it means the tool is excellent in the right hands and frustrating in the wrong ones.
Dify is hard to categorise, which our review flags as a genuine issue — a broad product identity makes it difficult for a buyer to work out whether it is for them. Its claimed 500K+ user base is also unverified, so treat that figure as marketing rather than evidence.
If you might need both
They coexist without friction: Dify for the AI application, n8n for the plumbing that feeds and follows it. Given both self-host for free, testing that combination costs infrastructure time rather than money.
Side by side
| Company | ||
| Founded | 2023 | 2019 |
| HQ | San Francisco, USA | Berlin, Germany |
| AI model | Multi-model (OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, Llama, and 100+ others) | Supports multiple — OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, and others via node integrations |
| User base | 151K+ GitHub stars | 200K+ community members, 197K+ GitHub stars |
| Platforms | Cloud, Docker, Kubernetes, VPC | Web, Self-hosted (Docker/on-prem), Cloud |
| Languages | 25+ | 25+ |
| Pricing | ||
| Pricing model | Freemium | Subscription |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes — self-hosted Community Edition only, no free cloud tier |
| Free trial | No | Yes |
| Starting price | $59/mo | €24/mo — Starter |
| Enterprise | Custom | Contact Sales |
| All plans | Sandbox — Free Community — Free Professional — $59/mo Team — $159/mo Enterprise — Custom | Community Edition — Free Starter — $24/mo Pro — $60/mo Business — $960/mo Enterprise — Custom |
| Positioning | ||
| Best for | Independent developers, small to medium teams, and enterprises building production AI apps | Solo builders, small teams, and companies needing workflow automation |
| Differentiator | Three deployment modes: managed cloud, self-hosted enterprise with SSO/RBAC/ISO27001, and open-source community edition | Unlimited steps per workflow execution across all plans |
| Competitors | Flowise, LangChain, n8n, Botpress, Relevance AI | Zapier |
| Features | ||
| AI Credits | — | ✓ |
| API Rate Limit Control | ✓ | — |
| Document Processing | ✓ | — |
| Full Agent Runtime + Workflow Editor | ✓ | — |
| Global Variables | — | ✓ |
| Helm Chart for K8s Deployments | ✓ | — |
| Knowledge Base | ✓ | — |
| Publish As Web App or API | ✓ | — |
| SOC 2 Type Ii + Iso 27001 | ✓ | — |
| SSO (Enterprise) | ✓ | — |
| SSO / Saml & Rbac | ✓ | — |
| SSO/Saml/Ldap | — | ✓ |
| Self Hosted Option | — | ✓ |
| Single Command Docker Deploy | ✓ | — |
| Trigger Events | ✓ | — |
| Version Control via Git | — | ✓ |
| Workflow Automation | ✓ | — |
| Workflow History | — | ✓ |
| AI Agents | ✓ | ✓ |
| API Webhooks | ✓ | ✓ |
| Conditional Logic | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom Code | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data Transform | ✓ | ✓ |
| Error Handling | ✓ | ✓ |
| Execution Logs | ✓ | ✓ |
| Human in Loop | ✓ | ✓ |
| Num Integrations | 100+ AI models plus plugin marketplace integrations | 2,174+ |
| Scheduled Runs | ✓ | ✓ |
| Team Features | ✓ | ✓ |
| Trigger Types | webhook / schedule / API / workflow trigger events / external app triggers | Webhook / Schedule / HTTP / Queue / Email / Manual / API / External event |
| Visual Builder | ✓ | ✓ |
| Integrations | ||
| API Access | ✓ | ✓ |
| Google Workspace | ✓ | ✓ |
| Key Integrations | OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Mistral, Llama (Meta), Azure OpenAI | Slack, OpenAI, Google Workspace, GitHub, Salesforce |
| Openai Integration | ✓ | ✓ |
| Slack | ✓ | ✓ |
| Webhook Support | ✓ | ✓ |
Dify vs n8n: common questions
Is n8n free?
The self-hosted community edition is genuinely free with no workflow limits, which is rare in this category. The managed cloud version starts at $24/mo.
Can n8n do RAG?
It can be built, but you assemble it. Dify has RAG built natively into its workflow builder, so retrieval is part of the tool rather than something you wire up.
Which needs less technical skill?
Neither is aimed at non-technical users, and n8n is explicitly not designed to hide complexity. Dify's visual interface over 100+ models is somewhat more approachable for AI-specific work, but both expect comfort with technical concepts.
