Head-to-head · workflow automation tools · facts checked 13 Sept 2026
n8n vs Workato
n8n scores 8.7 to Workato's 7.9 among the workflow automation tools we rate, and is the better pick for 2 of the 4 kinds of buyer below.
From
€24/mo — Starter
Free plan
Yes — self-hosted Community Edition only
From
Not publicly stated
Free plan
Yes
The verdict
n8n wins, 8.7 to 7.9
n8n uniquely has 6 features · Workato uniquely has 6 features.
Best for
Who each one suits, decided on the criteria that matter to that buyer and the checked facts where the two differ.
Solo builders and startups
n8n
n8n 9.4 · Workato 8.6 on building workflows and pricing
- Free plan: n8n yes, Workato does not say
Ops teams connecting many apps
Workato
n8n 9.0 · Workato 9.5 on apps it connects to and reliability and control
- Run history kept on the cheapest plan: 30 days against 7 days
AI agent projects
n8n
n8n 10.0 · Workato 6.5 on ai agents
- Test and evaluate agents: n8n yes, Workato no
- What agents can learn from: Files, website, notion, google_drive, database against Files, databases
Enterprise IT and compliance
Workato
n8n 4.5 · Workato 5.1 on hosting and security and support
- Choice of data region: Us, eu, uk, jp, au against Eu
- HIPAA: Workato yes, n8n no
- But n8n leads on self-hosted edition: n8n yes, Workato no
Section 01
How they score
Both are scored the same way, against the other workflow automation tools we rate, from facts on each vendor's own pages. n8n leads on 3 of 7 criteria.
AI agents20% of the score
n8n10.0
Workato6.5
Building workflows20% of the score
n8n10.0
Workato10.0
Pricing20% of the score
n8n8.8
Workato7.2
Apps it connects to15% of the score
n8n10.0
Workato10.0
Reliability and control10% of the score
n8n7.5
Workato8.8
Hosting and security10% of the score
n8n5.5
Workato5.2
Support5% of the score
n8n2.5
Workato5.0
Section 02
Where they differ
Every point where the two vendors' published facts disagree, with a link to where each fact was read. "Not published" means the vendor does not say either way.
What agents can learn from
n8n
Published by only one of them
Monthly price, cheapest paid plan
Workato
Not published
Cost of 1,000 five-step runs a month
Workato
Not published
Free plan
Workato
Not published
Free trial
n8n
Does not apply
Workato
Not published
Does not train AI on your data
Workato
Not published
Ways to reach support
Workato
Not published
Where they match (6)
Section 03
Pricing, plan by plan
Every plan each vendor publishes, monthly and yearly where both are offered.
n8n
Community Edition
Free
Self-hosted only, unlimited workflows, no execution limits enforced by n8n
Starter
$24/mo · $240/yr
2,500 workflow executions/mo, 1 shared project, 5 concurrent executions, 2,300 AI credits/month
Pro
$60/mo · $600/yr
10,000 workflow executions/mo, 3 shared projects, 20 concurrent executions, up to 13,700 AI credits/month
Business
$960/mo · $9,600/yr
40,000 workflow executions/mo, 6 shared projects, SSO/SAML/LDAP, Git version control, different environments
Enterprise
Custom
Custom executions, unlimited shared projects, 200+ concurrent executions, dedicated SLA support, log streaming, external secret store
Workato
Free
Free
50K one-time credits
Pro - 2.5k credits
$75/month
2.5k credits/month
Pro - 3.5k credits
$100/month
3.5k credits/month
Pro - 10k credits
$275/month
10k credits/month
Pro - 30k credits
$780/month
30k credits/month
Pro - 50k credits
$1250/month
50k credits/month
Enterprise
Custom
Custom pricing available
Section 04
Pros and cons
From each tool's full review, written from the same checked facts.
n8n
Pros
- 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.
Cons
- 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.
Workato
Pros
- Combines iPaaS, AI agent orchestration, API management, ETL pipelines, and composable MCP servers into a single governed platform, reducing tool sprawl.
- The recipe builder is low-code and visual, with conditional logic and error handling baked directly into the orchestration engine rather than added as an afterthought.
- Execution logs are retained for 30 to 90 days depending on plan, providing meaningful audit trails for enterprise compliance needs.
- The dual Control Plane and Execution Plane architecture addresses both AI governance and operational execution in one system.
- Positioning is sharper than most competitors, clearly targeting enterprise environments rather than trying to scale up a SMB tool.
- Claims 25,000 customers across 90 countries, suggesting proven scale and broad real-world deployment.
- Replaces three or four separate tools with one governed platform, which resonates with enterprise IT teams dealing with integration sprawl.
Cons
- Pricing is entirely opaque — the pricing page provides no actionable information, making cost evaluation difficult without engaging sales.
- The platform is not aimed at small or mid-market buyers, meaning those comparing it to Zapier are likely to find it over-engineered and overpriced.
- Flies under the radar outside enterprise IT circles, indicating limited community resources and third-party documentation.
- The breadth of features — workflows, AI agents, API management, ETL, MCP servers — creates significant complexity that may overwhelm teams without dedicated integration staff.
- No hands-on testing data is available in this review, meaning feature claims are based on vendor docs and community sources rather than direct validation.
- The platform's ambitious scope means whether it actually delivers on replacing multiple tools remains complicated and unproven for every use case.
Section 05
n8n vs Workato: common questions
Which is better, n8n or Workato?
n8n scores 8.7 and Workato 7.9 out of 10 among the workflow automation tools we rate. n8n is ahead on aI agents, pricing and hosting and security. Workato is ahead on reliability and control and support.
What can n8n do that Workato cannot?
On the facts both vendors publish: test and evaluate agents and self-hosted edition.
What can Workato do that n8n cannot?
On the facts both vendors publish: hIPAA.
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