Make vs Zapier: model workflow units before pricing a plan
Compare explicitly modeled standard tasks and one-credit module runs. Branches, bundles, advanced tariffs and plan eligibility need separate checks. Counts are not a price quote.
Describe the workflow before comparing a price. For a deliberately simple model with 200 events, 2 standard actions and 1 billable Make helper per event, instant-trigger arithmetic gives 400 standard Zapier tasks and 800 one-credit Make module or check units. Those counts are not equivalent allowances or a cheapest-vendor verdict. Review actual module tariffs, branches, retries and current plan constraints separately.
Who should pick which
Pick Make if you're comfortable with a visual canvas, your triggers can be instant (webhooks, or apps where Make shows an instant tag), and you want multi-step workflows on a free or cheap plan.
Pick Zapier if your workflow leans on filters, formatting, and branching (free there), you need an app Make doesn't support, or you'd rather pay a little more for a simpler editor.
Pick neither if the apps already have a native integration that does the job, like Kit's own Shopify app or HubSpot's built-in email logging. One less moving part.
Compare the criteria
| Criterion | Make | Zapier |
|---|---|---|
| Billing unit | Credits: most module actions are 1 credit | Tasks: each successful unit of work, standard, AI by Zapier and Code steps included; some actions use more than one (one MCP tool call is 2 tasks) |
| Trigger cost | 1 operation per check, even when the check finds nothing | Free: triggers and polling use no tasks |
| Filters, formatting, routing | Router and error handler modules (Rollback, Break, Resume, Commit, Ignore) use no credits; other modules count | Triggers, polling, Filter, Paths, Formatter, Delay, Looping, Digest, Zapier Manager, Storage, Tables and Forms use no tasks when available on your plan. Check Sub-Zap entry, return and action steps separately; Zapier's task-usage guide lists billable Sub-Zap steps. |
| Free plan cap | 1,000 credits a month | 100 tasks a month, two-step Zaps only, 15-minute polling |
| Entry paid plan | Core, priced by credit volume (price on make.com/pricing) | Professional: $19.99 a month billed yearly, or $29.99 billed monthly, for 750 tasks; 2-minute polling |
| Overage rule | Scenarios stop until credits are added; incoming webhooks queue up to the queue storage; polling scenarios resume from the last successful run; extra credits in bundles of 1,000 or 10,000 | On Professional and Team, pay-per-task billing continues beyond the allowance when enabled: annual self-serve overage is 1.25 times the base rate and monthly self-serve overage is 2.5 times. Usage pauses at three times the task subscription; with pay-per-task disabled, usage stops at the allowance. Enterprise rates and task limits are contract-specific. |
| Keep what you have | Pick neither if what you run today already does the job. No migration, no new bill, nothing to rebuild. | |
Each row adds its weight to the side you say it favours; even rows add to neither. Keeping what you have is a row like any other. The higher total leads, and equal totals are a tie.
Count one workflow both ways
Illustrative inputs from the Make vs Zapier comparison short answer; assumptions, not vendor facts.
One simple workflow
Open the one you picked
Confirm the price on the vendor’s checkout page before you pay.
Research-record clarifications
Sources
- make.com/en/pricing, read 8 Nov 2026 (billing unit; filters, formatting, routing; free plan cap; entry paid plan; overage rule)
- zapier.com/pricing, read 8 Nov 2026 (billing unit; trigger cost; free plan cap; entry paid plan; overage rule)
- help.make.com/operations, read 8 Nov 2026 (trigger cost)
- help.zapier.com/hc/en-us/articles/8496196837261-How-is-task-usage-measured-in-Zapier, read 8 Nov 2026 (filters, formatting, routing)
Published November 7, 2026. Sources last read November 8, 2026. Send a correction.