Research Question
The user sought a comparison of Zapier, Make, and n8n for lead follow-up and CRM tasks, such as integrating Typeform with HubSpot or Asana, involving 3 workflows with 5 steps each for a team of 1.
Key Findings
- Lead follow-up automation handles new leads from forms, scoring, routing to CRM, and sales notifications; manual annual cost is $12,000.
- All platforms require paid tiers; none fit free tier for specified volumes.
- Low volume (500 executions/month): Make at $10.59/month (Core 10K), n8n at $24/month (Starter), Zapier at $73.50/month (Professional 2K).
- High volume (5,000 executions/month): Make at $34.12/month (Core 40K), n8n at $60/month (Pro 10K), Zapier at $283.50/month (Professional 20K).
- Setup times: 0.5 hours for Make and Zapier (beginner), 1 hour for n8n (intermediate).
- Make best for cost-sensitive teams, breaks at very high volume; Zapier for non-technical teams, breaks on complex lead scoring; n8n for self-hosted/open source needs, breaks without DevOps.
- Pricing verified as of March 2026; Zapier: https://zapier.com/pricing; Make: https://www.make.com/en/pricing; n8n: https://n8n.io/pricing.
Recommendation
Make is recommended as the top platform for beginner-friendly, cost-effective lead follow-up workflows, significantly cheaper than Zapier at both low and high volumes while matching ease of use. Opt for n8n if self-hosting and open source are priorities with available DevOps skills; avoid Zapier unless non-technical simplicity outweighs 4-7x higher costs. Assumes cloud deployment and specified volumes/steps.
Details
Low Volume (500 Executions/Month)
| Platform | Difficulty | Monthly Cost | Annual Cost | Free Tier Fit | Key Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Make | Beginner | $10.59 (Core 10K) | $108 | No | Best for cost-sensitive; breaks at very high volume |
| n8n | Intermediate | $24 (Starter) | $240 | No | Self-hostable/open source; needs DevOps |
| Zapier | Beginner | $73.50 (Professional 2K) | $588 | No | Non-technical ease; breaks on complex scoring |
High Volume (5,000 Executions/Month)
| Platform | Difficulty | Monthly Cost | Annual Cost | Free Tier Fit | Key Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Make | Beginner | $34.12 (Core 40K) | $348 | No | Best for cost-sensitive; breaks at very high volume |
| n8n | Intermediate | $60 (Pro 10K) | $600 | No | Self-hostable/open source; needs DevOps |
| Zapier | Beginner | $283.50 (Professional 20K) | $2,268 | No | Non-technical ease; breaks on complex scoring |
Prices as of March 23, 2026. Automating saves approximately $12,000 annually versus manual processes.