Activepieces vs n8n
Side-by-side comparison built from DeepYard's structured catalog. Content updated Aug 21, 2026.
Direct Answer
Activepieces suits teams needing freemium free tier, workflow builder focus, and 23,974 GitHub stars in current listing data. n8n suits teams needing freemium free tier, workflow engine focus, and 201,567 GitHub stars in current listing data. This summary reflects catalog metadata only for decision support, not independent testing.
What this comparison weighs
- Pricing and free-tier availability
- License model and deployment fit
- GitHub adoption and contributor depth
- Catalog tags, integrations, and supported workflows
| Metric | Activepieces | n8n |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub Stars | 24.0K | 201.6K |
| Contributors | 355 | 425 |
| Last Commit | Aug 21, 2026 | Aug 22, 2026 |
| Open Issues | 489 | 1062 |
| License | open-source | source-available |
| Pricing | freemium | freemium |
| Free Tier | Yes | Yes |
| Category | dev-tools | dev-tools |
| Trending | No | No |
Choose Activepieces if you need
- • Activepieces is the better fit when you need open-source licensing instead of source-available terms.
- • Activepieces stands out for Workflow Builder workflows that are not listed for n8n.
- • Activepieces is the stronger pick when Notion matters because that capability is listed only on its profile.
Choose n8n if you need
- • n8n stands out for Workflow Engine workflows that are not listed for Activepieces.
- • n8n is the stronger pick when Langchain matters because that capability is listed only on its profile.
- • n8n shows broader GitHub adoption with 201,567 stars versus 23,974 for Activepieces.
Meaningful differences
- • License: Activepieces uses open-source, while n8n uses source-available.
- • Workflow emphasis: Activepieces highlights Workflow Builder, while n8n highlights Workflow Engine.
- • GitHub adoption: Activepieces shows 23,974 stars versus 201,567 for n8n.
- • Contributor count: Activepieces lists 355 contributors and n8n lists 425.
Shared capabilities
- • Automation
- • No Code
- • Workflow
- • Mcp
- • Integrations
Shared Tags
Only in Activepieces
Only in n8n
Limitations and evidence
- • DeepYard compares structured public metadata; this is not an independent benchmark unless a test record is shown.
- • Signals such as stars, contributors, and last commit indicate public activity, not purchase fit or runtime quality.
- • Pricing and feature coverage reflect the stored listing snapshot and may lag vendor changes between refreshes.
About Activepieces
Activepieces is an open-source workflow automation platform and Zapier alternative with a no-code visual builder, 280+ integrations (60% community-contributed), and the largest open-source MCP collection. All 280+ pieces are usable as MCP tools with Claude Desktop, Cursor, and Windsurf. Features loops, branches, auto-retries, native AI pieces, custom agent creation, TypeScript piece framework with hot-reloading, enterprise features (branding, approval workflows, human input via chat/forms), version control, and network-gapped deployment.
View full listingAbout n8n
n8n is a fair-code workflow automation platform combining a visual node editor with custom JavaScript/Python code. Features native AI capabilities via LangChain-based agent workflows, 400+ integrations, 900+ ready-to-use templates, and MCP client/server support. Enterprise features include SSO, advanced permissions, and air-gapped deployment. The most popular open-source workflow automation engine, powering thousands of AI agent workflows. Self-host or use n8n cloud.
View full listing