n8n vs Activepieces

n8n wins for deep technical self-hosted internal pipelines; Activepieces wins on true MIT core licensing and $200/mo flat 25-user Team SSO.

n8n

Sustainable Use License 1.0 + node-based engine

Winner: Solo devs & complex logic

Self-host $0 CommunityBusiness €667/moCloud €20 / €50

Choose n8n if...

Internal engineering ops run workflows on your own 4 GB RAM VPS with custom code/JS.

An agency builds and hosts automations on its own instance while editing flows alone.

Teams replacing expiring AI no-code builders (like Flowise Cloud EOL) want mature AI Agent + webhook nodes.

Watch out for...

Community omits workflow/credential sharing, SSO & Git (€667/mo annual Business); SUL forbids letting external clients edit workflows.

View n8n Official Pricing BuilderStack n8n Audit

Reference link · Pricing & SUL checked Nov 2026.

Activepieces

MIT Expat core + commercial packages/ee/

Winner: MIT core & Team SSO value

MIT core $0Plus $20 ($16 ann, 5u)Team $200 ($166 ann, 25u)

Choose Activepieces if...

You require true OSI-approved MIT core licensing outside enterprise directories.

A 5–25 person team wants shared projects, SSO & standard roles at $200/mo flat.

You want clean AI Agents, Tables & MCPs bundled inside flat Plus ($20/mo) or Team plans.

Watch out for...

packages/ee/ & SCIM/Git Sync require paid Enterprise; white-label Embed starts at $36k/year.

View Activepieces Pricing GitHub Repository

Standard reference link · Checked against activepieces.com/pricing (2026-11-15).

Critical Cost & License Cliff: Shared workflows + SSO (€667/mo vs $200/mo)

n8n Community vs Activepieces

Most teams start self-hosting n8n Community for $0, then discover two walls: Community omits Projects, workflow/credential sharing, Git & SSO (jumping to €667/month annual Business), AND Sustainable Use License 1.0 forbids external clients editing workflows. Activepieces separates MIT core cleanly and bundles 25 users + SSO on its $200/mo flat Team tier.

Team Automation & SSO Cost Estimator

Notice what happens to n8n vs Activepieces monthly spend the moment your team needs shared projects & SSO.

Team builders & automation users8 users

1 Solo51525 Team30

Require team workflow sharing & SSO

n8n requires Business (€667 ≈ $720/mo); Activepieces Team ($200/mo)

Self-host on $24/mo Linux VPS (4 GB)

Turn off to compare managed Cloud plans instead of a $24/mo 4 GB VPS

n8nCommunity ($24 VPS)

$24/mo

Community limits edits to creator & owner; unlimited runs for internal SUL flows.

ActivepiecesMIT Self-Host ($24 VPS)

$24/mo

OSI MIT core outside packages/ee; unlimited internal workflows on your 4 GB host.

On a self-hosted 4 GB VPS without team SSO, both cost only ~$24/mo infra

6-Dimension Audit Matrix

Hover any source pill to inspect exact primary quotes & verification URLs.

Dimension	n8n	Activepieces
License & External Use Rules Activepieces MIT	Sustainable Use License 1.0 (fair-code) Internal use allowed. External users cannot configure workflows/AI agents via UI or API without a commercial license.	MIT Expat core + packages/ee/ OSI-approved MIT for all non-ee packages; enterprise features reside separately under packages/ee/LICENSE.
Workflow & Credential Sharing n8n Community Limits	Paid-only on self-hosted n8n (€667/mo) Community restricts a workflow and credential to its creator and instance owner unless you license Business.	Included in $200/mo 25-user Team Unlimited projects, global connections and standard roles bundle into the flat $200/mo Team plan.
Cloud Entry & Team Pricing Activepieces Pricing	€20 Starter (2.5k exec) / €50 Pro Billed per workflow execution count annually; queue workers require higher plans or self-hosting.	$0 Free / $20 Plus / $200 Team (25u) Flat monthly plan prices ($16 / $166 billed annually) with BYO AI keys on Plus+ and 25 seats + SSO bundled at $200/mo.
Self-Hosted Hardware Baseline n8n Docker Docs	2 vCPU / 4 GB RAM (SQLite or Postgres) Single Docker command boots locally on SQLite; production Compose template uses Postgres + Redis workers.	Node + Postgres + Redis Docker Compose Runs smoothly on a 2 vCPU / 4 GB Linux VPS via official Docker Compose template.
SSO, Git Sync & Embedded OEM n8n Pricing	€667/mo Business (SSO/Git); Embed quote Enterprise SAML/LDAP, Git version control and external secrets unlock at €667/month annually.	$200/mo SSO · SCIM/Git Custom · Embed $36k/yr Standard SSO unlocks early at $200/mo Team; SCIM and Git Sync move to Ultimate; Embed starts at $36k/year.
AI Agents & Ecosystem Maturity n8n Repo	Richest node library & debugging UI Unmatched long-tail SaaS nodes, inline JS/Python scripting and LangChain agent tooling.	770+ integrations, Tables & MCP native Modern TypeScript piece SDK makes writing custom TypeScript connectors fast alongside built-in Tables & MCP.

Frequently Asked Questions

Verified against primary license texts, docs, and current pricing tables.

Is n8n truly open source compared to Activepieces?

Activepieces releases its core (everything outside packages/ee/) under the OSI-approved MIT Expat license. n8n uses the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (fair-code), which allows internal business use and agency-operated flows but restricts letting external paying customers build workflows.

Which is cheaper for a 10-person team needing shared workflows and SSO?

Activepieces is far cheaper: its flat Team plan is $200/month including 25 users, unlimited shared projects, global connections and SSO. n8n Community omits project sharing and SSO, requiring Business at €667/month billed annually.

Should teams migrating from hosted AI agent builders pick n8n or Activepieces?

Pick self-hosted n8n Community when one or two engineers run complex webhook + AI agent pipelines internally and want $0 execution caps. Pick Activepieces if non-technical teammates need shared workspaces or you require an MIT codebase.

What hardware does self-hosted n8n need vs Activepieces?

Both fit comfortably on a 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM Linux VPS running Docker Compose and PostgreSQL + Redis once deployed for production.