Make and Zapier are the two automation tools most small businesses end up choosing between. Both connect your apps and run the busywork for you. The difference comes down to price and how much power you want under the hood.
Here's the honest Make vs Zapier comparison.
The short answer
If you want the absolute easiest setup and the biggest app library, Zapier. If you want more power for a lot less money, Make. For most small businesses doing real multi-step automation, Make is the better value.
Zapier is easier to start with. Make is cheaper to grow with. Most businesses feel that difference the moment their automations get more than a step or two.
Make vs Zapier at a glance
Pricing: the real difference
Zapier bills per task, and every action step counts. A five-step Zap uses five tasks every time it fires, so busy multi-step automations burn through your allowance quickly. Make bills per operation and starts far lower, around US$9 a month against Zapier's US$20-plus, and stays cheaper as your scenarios get more complex. Both are billed in US dollars.
The more steps and the more often your automations run, the wider Make's price advantage gets. For heavy users, it's often the difference between tens and hundreds of dollars a month.
Where Zapier still wins
Zapier isn't the loser here. Its plain-English builder is genuinely the easiest for non-technical people, and its 8,000-plus integration library is the largest anywhere, so if you connect a lot of niche or newer apps, Zapier is more likely to support them out of the box. Convenience has real value.
Where Make wins
Make wins on power per dollar. The visual canvas makes complex, branching automations easier to reason about, and the per-operation pricing means growing your automation doesn't punish you. For most small businesses building real workflows, it's the sweet spot.
Which should you pick?
Non-technical, want it easy, and connect lots of niche apps: Zapier. Want more power for less and don't mind a short learning curve: Make.
If you're also weighing the cheaper, more technical option, see n8n vs Zapier and the full Zapier vs Make vs n8n comparison.
If you'd rather someone built the automation for you, that's what we do. Book a call, or build one yourself in a day at our one-day AI workshop.
Builds CRM, automation and AI systems for Australian service businesses at Basic Solutions. Gold Coast-based, allergic to messy spreadsheets.
