Automation

Make review

A visual automation platform for building app-to-app workflows, including AI steps and operational routing.

Editorial review · Updated 2026-09-11 · Hands-on result not yet published

Overview

A visual automation platform for building app-to-app workflows, including AI steps and operational routing.

Key features

  • Visual scenario builder with branching logic
  • Operations are far cheaper than Zapier tasks
  • Iterators/aggregators handle arrays natively
  • AI modules from OpenAI, Anthropic, and more
  • Error handlers with retries and fallbacks

Trial checklist

Use a real task involving operations automation—not a demo prompt. Verify whether visual scenario builder with branching logic materially reduces editing or setup time. Record output quality, time to a publishable result, and total plan usage. Pay particular attention to more complex than simple zaps so factor that into your monthly budget. Repeat the same task in at least one alternative before deciding.

Pricing

Official sources checked 2026-08-25

Current official summary: At the displayed 10,000-credit tier: Free is $0 with up to 1,000 credits/month; Core is $12/month; Pro is $21/month; Teams is $38/month; Enterprise is sales-led. Most module actions use 1 credit, while AI features using Make's AI Provider can consume an operation credit plus token-based credits. Make's AI Provider is available on all plans; custom AI-provider connections are available on paid plans. Credits normally expire at the end of the subscription term, and extra-credit bundles are available on eligible paid plans.

Open verification questions
  • No current official Make AI-specific provision assigning ownership of generated output to the customer was verified; the general Master Services Agreement is therefore not presented as an output-rights guarantee.
  • The no-training statements were verified for Make AI Toolkit and Maia, but a single universal statement covering every Make AI feature, every connected third-party provider, and every customer configuration was not found.
  • The AI Toolkit statement that Make does not store data must be read alongside its explicit statement that interaction logs are retained in scenario logs for 30 days.
  • AI Agent functionality and pricing remain subject to beta-era changes where the applicable documentation labels the feature beta.

Official documentation says Make AI Toolkit can analyze sentiment, categorize, identify language, extract, standardize, summarize, translate, and chunk text. Its documentation states that Make does not store submitted AI data or use it to train AI, while separately noting that interaction data remains in standard scenario logs for 30 days. Make's Maia system card says prompts, scenario structures, and outputs are not used to train or fine-tune the underlying LLM; calls sent to an AI provider remain subject to Make's data-processing agreement with that provider. For Make AI Agent, use with Make's provider generally costs 1 credit per operation plus token/tool/embedding usage; custom-provider use generally costs operation credits while the external provider bills model tokens.

Pricing changes often — verify current plans on the official site before buying. Dated snapshots: Pricing Watch.

Use cases

  • Operations automation
  • Data syncing
  • AI workflow steps
  • Notifications
  • Syncing form responses into a CRM automatically
  • Routing support tickets by topic and urgency

Pros

  • Flexible visual builder
  • Good multi-step control
  • Large integration set

Cons

  • More complex than simple zaps
  • Requires testing and monitoring

Who Make is for

Make is aimed at teams and individuals who need visual automation scenarios and multi-step operational workflows. It is designed for automation workflows where output quality, adoption effort, and operating cost all matter. Compare alternatives first if you require self-hosting, unusually deep customization, or tighter policy controls than the official plan provides.

Buying decision

Choose Make when

Visual automation scenarios and multi-step operational workflows is the repeated job you need to improve.

Compare first when

More complex than simple zaps.

Before paying

Run the trial checklist above and verify the current plan limit on the official pricing page.

Verdict

Bottom line: Make has an AIToolsEssentials editorial score of 4.3/5. Flexible visual builder. The main trade-off to weigh: more complex than simple zaps.

Test it against one real task from your workflow this week — that tells you more than any review.

How Make compares

Within automation, Make goes up against Zapier AI, n8n, Whop CLI and 1 others. Its edge is flexible visual builder. Weigh that against the cons above — especially: more complex than simple zaps — then check our side-by-side comparisons for task-level results before you commit.

How we evaluated

The AIToolsEssentials rating is an editorial score—not an external benchmark. It summarizes job fit, likely output quality, ease of adoption, and operational cost using published product information, benchmark context where the exact model is identifiable, and the repeatable trial checklist above. Benchmarks never determine the final product rating by themselves. See our editorial methodology, evidence ledger, and benchmark evidence policy.

Frequently asked questions

Make vs Zapier?

Make is cheaper and more powerful for complex logic; Zapier is easier with a bigger app catalog. Our Zapier vs Make vs n8n comparison has task-by-task costs.

What's an operation?

Each module execution. One scenario run can be many operations.

Is Make hard to learn?

Moderately — expect a few days to feel fluent vs hours for Zapier.

Choose with evidence, not hype.

Use the free scorecard for your own trial, then check the benchmark hub for versioned external evidence.

Automation billing decoder

Translate this workflow into billing units.

Estimate Zapier tasks, Make credits, and n8n executions for the same monthly run volume before comparing plan prices.

Open the free decoder

Automation billing decoder

Translate this workflow into billing units.

Estimate Zapier tasks, Make credits, and n8n executions for the same monthly run volume before comparing plan prices.

Open the free decoder

Build around Make

AI stack for small-business automation

Use Make as one part of a complete AI workflow, then compare cost and overlap before paying for the whole stack.

Run the free Stack AuditGenerate related stackCompare shortlist

Help keep this review accurate

Pricing, features, or policy changed?

Tell us what changed for Make. We verify corrections against official sources before updating reviews.

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Compare this tool against its top rivals — get a decision brief →

Optional Premium · $12/mo via Whop

Want someone to decide with you before a renewal?

The free Stack Audit finds the waste. Premium is optional: a dated keep/cut pack, alerts, and a 48-hour written reply in Whop — $12/month, cheaper than one overlapping seat, not another AI subscription. The directory, Keep/Cut Weekly, and the instant Stack Audit stay free.

7-day free trial · then $12/month · code LAUNCH50 for 50% off first paid month · delivered in Whop · research and strategy only · affiliate status never changes recommendations.

Migration guide

Migrating from Zapier?

What imports, what you rebuild, and a one-Zap-first test plan in our switch guide.

Read the switch guide →

Repeatable evaluation · before you pay

Run the same job, not a demo.

Use one representative visual automation scenarios and multi-step operational workflows task and run it through every finalist. The point is not to produce a fake benchmark; it is to expose the time, quality, retries, review work, and cost your workflow actually creates.

01 · Same input

Use the same source material, prompt, files, constraints, and success criteria for each tool.

02 · Measure time

Record setup time, time to first usable result, and time spent fixing or editing the output.

03 · Score the result

Rate quality, consistency, control, and reviewer effort from 1–5. Keep the notes, not just the average.

04 · Price the run

Record credits, seats, limits, retries, and any human review cost required to finish the task.

Tool-specific trial checklist for Make

Use a real task involving operations automation—not a demo prompt. Verify whether visual scenario builder with branching logic materially reduces editing or setup time. Record output quality, time to a publishable result, and total plan usage. Pay particular attention to more complex than simple zaps so factor that into your monthly budget. Repeat the same task in at least one alternative before deciding.

Portability · before you subscribe

Make sure you can leave.

Good fit today does not mean low lock-in tomorrow. Before paying for Make, test the exit path against your real workflow. We do not infer portability from marketing copy; verify the vendor's current export, retention, and cancellation rules.

Export one real result

Can you download the files, text, assets, transcripts, automations, or settings your workflow creates?

Separate reusable work

Which prompts, templates, source files, contacts, or data remain usable outside the product?

Find the trapped layer

What history, credits, integrations, team knowledge, or proprietary format might not transfer?

Test cancellation

Confirm the retention period, downgrade behavior, renewal date, and whether cancellation deletes anything.