Zapier vs Make

Which Automation Tool Is Right for Your Small Business?

Last week we mentioned Zapier as one of the top 5 AI tools for Canadian small business owners. But a lot of people ask — what about Make? Is it better? Cheaper? More powerful?

We tested both so you don’t have to. Here’s the honest breakdown.

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What Are These Tools?

Both Zapier and Make are automation platforms — they connect your apps together and automate repetitive tasks without any coding. Think things like:

• Automatically adding new leads to your CRM
• Sending a Slack message when someone fills out a form
• Creating invoices automatically when a sale is made
• Posting to social media on a schedule

Zapier: The Safe Choice

Zapier is the most popular automation tool in the world for a reason — it’s incredibly easy to use. Even if you’ve never automated anything before, you can set up your first “Zap” in under 10 minutes.

Pros:

• Beginner friendly — no learning curve
• Connects to 6,000+ apps
• Reliable and well supported
• Great documentation and tutorials

Cons:

• Gets expensive fast on higher plans
• Less flexible for complex automations
• Free plan is very limited (100 tasks/month)

Pricing: Free plan available, paid from $29/month

Make: The Powerful Choice

Make (formerly Integromat) is more powerful than Zapier but has a steeper learning curve. It uses a visual drag and drop builder that looks like a flowchart — once you get used to it, you can build incredibly complex automations.

Pros:

• Much cheaper than Zapier for the same volume
• More flexible and powerful
• Free plan includes 1,000 tasks/month
• Visual builder makes complex flows easier to manage

Cons:

• Steeper learning curve
• Less intuitive for beginners
• Smaller app library than Zapier

Pricing: Free plan available, paid from $9/month

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Zapier if: You’re a complete beginner, you just need simple automations, and you value ease of use over cost.

Choose Make if: You’re comfortable with a small learning curve, you need complex multi-step automations, and you want to save money long term.

For most Canadian small business owners just getting started with automation — start with Zapier. You can always switch to Make later once you know what you need.

Verdict

	Zapier	Make
Ease of use	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐	⭐⭐⭐
Power	⭐⭐⭐	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Value	⭐⭐⭐	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
App library	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐	⭐⭐⭐⭐