n8n vs Zapier vs Make: Which Is Right for Your Australian Business?
There are three automation platforms that come up in virtually every conversation we have with Australian businesses: n8n, Zapier, and Make (formerly Integromat). Each is genuinely good. Each is wrong for certain situations. This guide gives you an honest, opinionated comparison - including pricing in AUD - so you can make the right call for your business.
We use all three in client work at Polaris Labs. Our platform recommendations are not affiliate-driven - we pick what's right for the job.
The Quick Answer
If you want one sentence: Zapier is easiest and most expensive. Make is the best balance of power and usability. n8n is the most powerful and cheapest - but requires more technical comfort or a team like ours to run it.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | n8n | Zapier | Make |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price (AUD/mo) | Free (self-hosted) ~$30 cloud | ~$35 (750 tasks) | ~$15 (10,000 ops) |
| Task/operation limits | Unlimited on self-hosted | 750–50,000 tasks | 10,000–150,000 ops |
| Visual workflow builder | Yes | Yes (simple) | Yes (most visual) |
| AI/LLM integration | Excellent (native) | Good | Good |
| Custom code support | Excellent | Limited | Good |
| Technical skill needed | Medium-High | Low | Low-Medium |
| Best for | Complex, AI-heavy, cost-sensitive | Simple, quick setups | Visual workflows, mid-complexity |
| Australian data residency | Yes (self-hosted) | US/EU only | EU (configurable) |
Deep Dive: Each Platform
Zapier
Zapier is the oldest and most recognised of the three. It has the largest app library (7,000+ integrations) and the simplest user experience. If you need to connect two apps that aren't built for integration - say, your booking system and your accounting software - Zapier probably already has a connector for both.
The catch is pricing. Zapier bills per "task" (each action your automation performs), and that pricing model gets expensive fast for high-volume workflows. A business sending 500 follow-up emails per month could easily hit $150–$300/month AUD on Zapier's paid tiers.
- Largest app library
- Easiest to learn
- Best documentation
- Fast to set up
- Expensive at volume
- Task-based pricing adds up
- Limited AI capabilities
- No self-hosting option
Make (formerly Integromat)
Make is our most-used platform for client builds at Polaris Labs. Its visual workflow canvas is genuinely excellent - you can see the full logic of your automation at a glance, including loops, branches, filters, and error handling. The "operations" pricing model is much more generous than Zapier's tasks, making it significantly cheaper at scale.
Make is also strong on data manipulation - you can transform, filter, and route data within the platform without needing to write code. For most Australian SMBs building their first serious automation stack, Make is the right starting point.
- Visual canvas is excellent
- Very cost-effective
- Strong data manipulation
- Good AI integrations
- Steeper learning than Zapier
- Fewer native integrations than Zapier
- EU data storage by default
n8n
n8n is the most powerful of the three and the most developer-friendly. It's open source, which means you can self-host it on your own server (in Australia, if data residency matters), and that makes it essentially free at any volume. The n8n cloud plan is also very affordable.
n8n's AI/LLM integration is the best of the three - it has native nodes for OpenAI, Anthropic, and all major AI providers, and it handles AI agent workflows better than either Zapier or Make. If your automation needs to think (not just connect), n8n is the right choice.
The trade-off is complexity. n8n is harder to learn and harder to debug. We typically recommend n8n when a client has a technical founder or developer, or when they're working with us and we'll be managing the infrastructure.
- Free when self-hosted
- Best AI/LLM integration
- Most flexible and powerful
- Australian data residency possible
- Steeper learning curve
- Self-hosting needs a server
- Less hand-holding than others
What We Actually Use at Polaris Labs
For most client builds, we use Make as the primary platform - it's the right balance of power, visual clarity, and cost for Australian SMBs. We switch to n8n when the workflow is AI-heavy, needs complex logic, or when the client wants full ownership on their own infrastructure. We use Zapier rarely - usually when a client is already paying for it and we're adding onto an existing system.
Our recommendation to any Australian business getting started: try Make's free plan first. Build one automation. See how it feels. If you outgrow it or need more AI capability, we can migrate to n8n.
A Note on Australian Data Compliance
If your business handles sensitive client data - particularly if you're in legal, accounting, healthcare, or financial services - data residency matters. Zapier stores data in the US. Make offers EU storage. n8n, when self-hosted on an Australian server (e.g. AWS Sydney or Digital Ocean Sydney), gives you full control over where data lives and never leaves Australian jurisdiction. This is increasingly relevant as the Australian Privacy Act reforms continue to tighten requirements for SMBs.