---
title: "n8n alternative for AI agents: actionlake vs n8n"
description: "actionlake vs n8n for AI agents: self-hosted workflows exposed over MCP, or an MCP gateway agents call directly, with caps and approvals. Checked 22 Oct 2026."
canonical: https://actionlake.com/compare/n8n
updated: 2026-10-22
---

Comparison

# actionlake vs n8n

n8n alternative for AI agents

n8n is a workflow automation platform with 2,000+ integrations that you can self-host; its instance-level MCP server lets an AI client run the workflows you have built and exposed. actionlake is an MCP gateway an agent calls directly: 995 vendor connectors and 289,000+ actions with no workflow to build, billed per upstream call, with per-key caps, approvals and one-call answers across two systems.

Checked 22 October 2026 · every fact links its source

[Start free](https://actionlake.com/console?start=sandbox) [See pricing](https://actionlake.com/pricing)

At 1,000,000 calls a month

actionlake US$219 US$0.22 per 1,000 · Pro

n8n €4,667 €4.67 per 1,000

Monthly list prices, annual billing where offered. [Basis, units and caveats](https://actionlake.com/compare/n8n#cmp-pricing)

Which to choose

## It depends on the job.

n8n builds workflows from nodes, with AI agent nodes, human review of AI tool calls, and an instance-level MCP server that exposes the workflows you mark as available. It runs on n8n Cloud or on your own servers under the Sustainable Use License.

### Choose n8n if

- You want to self-host on your own servers, free under the Sustainable Use License.
- You want event-driven workflows that start on triggers and webhooks.
- You prefer to design each process as a visual workflow and expose it to agents as a tool.
- You need an integration from n8n's 2,000+ that actionlake does not have.

### Choose actionlake if

- You want the agent to reach the systems directly, without building a workflow for each task.
- You want a spending cap per agent key, refused before the request is sent.
- You want a hash-chained record of each call on every plan; n8n lists audit logging on Enterprise.
- You ask a question across two systems and want the join done for you in one call.

Credit where due

## Where n8n is stronger

- Self-hosting: the Community edition runs on your own servers; Business is self-hosted.
- Triggers and webhooks start workflows on events; actionlake has none, by design.
- Human review of AI tool calls, with approvals in Slack, email, Teams, chat and more.
- Breadth and control: 2,000+ integrations, a Merge node with inner, outer, left and right joins, and code steps.

The difference

## Where actionlake differs

- Unit: n8n bills a whole workflow run as one execution; actionlake bills each upstream call. For a workflow with many steps n8n can cost less per action.
- Shape: with n8n you build the workflow first and the agent runs it; with actionlake the agent finds and calls the action itself, and a repeated task can be saved as a plan.
- Scope: n8n's MCP access is not scoped per client; actionlake scopes each key by action, service or verb.

Feature by feature

## 15 things we compared.

Each n8n cell links the page we read it on. Checked 22 October 2026.

| Feature | actionlake | n8n |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Hosted MCP server | Yes One endpoint, https://connect.actionlake.com/mcp, over Streamable HTTP; a REST API with the same behavior. | Yes Instance-level MCP server, URL ending /mcp-server/http; exposes workflows marked available in MCP. Cloud clients need a publicly reachable instance. [Source: docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server](https://docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server/) |
| How a client signs in | Yes OAuth 2.1 with dynamic client registration and PKCE, or an actionlake key. The agent holds an actionlake key, never a vendor token. | Yes OAuth (recommended) or a personal access token tied to a user. [Source: docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server](https://docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server/) |
| Apps and actions | Yes 995 vendor connectors and 289,000+ actions behind eight tools. An agent can draft, test and sign a connector for an API that is missing. | Yes 2,000+ integrations (2,367 listed) and an HTTP Request node. Agents run workflows, not raw app actions. [Source: n8n.io/integrations](https://n8n.io/integrations/) |
| What is billed | Yes One upstream call: a request actionlake sent to a vendor that returned a definitive response. Searching, checking, planning, cached answers and failures you did not cause (a vendor's 401, 403, 429, 5xx or a timeout) are free. | Yes Workflow execution: one run of a whole workflow, however many steps. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| Free allowance | Yes 100,000 upstream calls a month, no card. | Yes Community edition, self-hosted, from GitHub. Cloud plans are paid. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| Limit which actions an agent can use | Yes Per key: by action, by service, by verb, or read-only. A key can mint narrower keys, never wider ones. | Partly Each workflow is enabled for MCP one by one, but access is not scoped per MCP client. [Source: docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server](https://docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server/) |
| Spending cap per agent key | Yes A cap in upstream calls per key. A child key's calls count against each parent. Refused before the request is sent. | Not stated Plans set execution and concurrency limits; no per-client spending cap was described. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| A person approves a write before it runs | Yes Destructive actions need an explicit confirmation, and under the key's `human` policy the agent cannot give it, so a person approves. Approval rules make chosen actions, or every write, wait for a named person, who decides in the console or from an emailed signed link. | Yes Human review before an AI agent runs a chosen tool, through chat, Slack, email, Teams and other channels. [Source: docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/human-in-the-loop-tools](https://docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/human-in-the-loop-tools/) |
| Record of each call | Yes One ledger row per run, hash-chained and sealed daily, with the agent's stated reason (kept 90 days). Request and response traces are kept for the plan's window. | Partly Audit logging and log streaming are Enterprise features. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| Scan call data for sensitive content | No Secrets are removed from traces. Call data is not scanned or redacted for personal data. | Partly Execution data redaction on Enterprise. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| One question across two systems | Yes The ask tool fetches from two or more systems, joins on a shared entity such as the customer, and returns the answer, not the rows. | Yes The Merge node joins two inputs by matching fields or SQL, inside a workflow you build. [Source: docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.merge](https://docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.merge/) |
| Event triggers and webhooks | No By design. Agents and schedules start the work; a scheduled plan can ask what changed since the last run. | Yes Trigger nodes such as the Webhook node start a workflow when an event occurs. [Source: docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.webhook](https://docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.webhook/) |
| Self-host | No Hosted service only: actionlake runs in one region in Sydney, Australia, and no self-hosted edition is offered. | Yes Community edition under the Sustainable Use License; Business is self-hosted with a licence key. [Source: github.com/n8n-io/n8n](https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n) |
| Security certifications | No None held yet. SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and a third-party penetration test are in progress. | Not stated Not checked for this page. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| Where data is processed | Yes One region: Sydney, Australia (DigitalOcean syd1). Stored in Australia at rest; TLS terminates at Cloudflare's edge. | Partly Self-hosted: wherever you run it. Cloud region not checked. [Source: n8n.io/pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |

"Not stated" means the vendor pages we read did not describe the feature. It is not a claim that the feature is missing. Checked 22 October 2026.

Pricing

## What 100,000 and 1,000,000 calls a month cost.

n8n's unit: Workflow execution = one run of a whole workflow; counted here as 5 actions. Plan used: Cloud Pro at 100,000 actions; self-hosted Business at 1,000,000. actionlake's figure is the cheapest plan that fits the volume, from the published price book; one upstream call counts as one action.

| Calls a month | actionlake | n8n |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 100,000 | US$0 a month US$0.00 per 1,000 calls Free: US$0 a month, 100,000 calls included. | €120 a month €1.20 per 1,000 calls estimate third-party figure 20,000 executions on Pro 50,000, about EUR 120 a month billed annually. The Pro 50,000 price comes from a third-party listing; n8n's page shows Pro 10,000 at EUR 50. [Source: n8n.io/pricing, read 21 October 2026](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |
| 1,000,000 | US$219 a month US$0.22 per 1,000 calls Pro: US$149 a month for 750,000 calls, plus 250,000 calls at US$0.28 per 1,000. | €4,667 a month €4.67 per 1,000 calls 200,000 executions on self-hosted Business: EUR 667 for 40,000, plus one EUR 4,000 bucket of 300,000. No public cloud price covers this volume. [Source: n8n.io/pricing, read 22 October 2026](https://n8n.io/pricing/) |

### Caveats

- n8n counts a whole workflow run as one execution. At five steps a run, each step a vendor call, one execution is five actions; with fewer vendor calls per run, n8n costs more per action than shown.
- If an agent calls one n8n workflow per tool call, each tool call is one execution: 100,000 tool calls would be 100,000 executions.
- Self-hosted Community edition has no licence fee; you pay for the servers and their upkeep.
- n8n prices in euros; figures are shown in euros.

### How we priced it

- List prices on the vendor's own pricing page on the date shown, annual billing where the vendor offers it.
- The smallest plan or ladder step that covers the volume, plus published overage where that is cheaper.
- Each vendor bills a different unit. The unit is named on every row, and the conversion to one action or one tool call is stated.
- Where no public price covers the volume, the cell says so. Nothing is estimated from a sales quote.

actionlake's figures are the USD list. Searching the catalogue, checking a call, planning, cached answers and failed calls are not billed. [See every plan on the pricing page](https://actionlake.com/pricing).

Moving over

## Migration notes

1. Keep n8n workflows that start on triggers or webhooks; actionlake has none.
2. For tasks an agent runs on request, connect the systems to actionlake and let the agent call the actions directly.
3. Turn a workflow an agent repeats into an actionlake plan: saved, versioned and resumable, with approval steps.
4. Move scheduled workflows that only read and report to actionlake schedules, run under a named key with a cap.

Questions

## Asked about n8n and actionlake

**Does n8n have an MCP server?**

Yes. n8n's instance-level MCP server lets an AI client search, run and edit workflows you mark as available in MCP; it signs in with OAuth or a personal access token. Access is not scoped per MCP client (docs.n8n.io, checked 22 October 2026).

**Is n8n cheaper than actionlake?**

It can be. n8n bills a whole workflow run as one execution, so long workflows cost little per step, and the self-hosted Community edition has no licence fee. actionlake bills each upstream call and needs no workflow to be built.

**Can actionlake run on my own servers like n8n?**

No. actionlake is hosted in Sydney, Australia, and no self-hosted edition is offered.

**Does actionlake have human approvals like n8n?**

Yes. A key can require a person to approve writes or every action, and approval rules can name the approver. The run waits until the person decides in the console or from an emailed link.

## Sources

- [n8n pricing](https://n8n.io/pricing/) n8n.io/pricing · read 22 October 2026
- [n8n instance-level MCP server](https://docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server/) docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/accessing-n8n-mcp-server · read 22 October 2026
- [n8n human review of AI tool calls](https://docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/human-in-the-loop-tools/) docs.n8n.io/advanced-ai/human-in-the-loop-tools · read 22 October 2026
- [n8n Merge node](https://docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.merge/) docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.merge · read 22 October 2026
- [n8n integrations](https://n8n.io/integrations/) n8n.io/integrations · read 22 October 2026
- [n8n Webhook node](https://docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.webhook/) docs.n8n.io/integrations/builtin/core-nodes/n8n-nodes-base.webhook · read 22 October 2026
- [n8n on GitHub](https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n) github.com/n8n-io/n8n · read 22 October 2026

We wrote these pages, so read them with that in mind. Each competitor is stronger somewhere, and each page says where. If a fact here is out of date, tell us at hello@actionlake.com and we will correct it.

[All comparisons](https://actionlake.com/compare)

## Give your agent every system, with limits.

[Start free - 100,000 calls a month, no card](https://actionlake.com/console?start=sandbox) [See pricing](https://actionlake.com/pricing)

Start free - 100,000 calls/month, no card. No signup. Hard caps on every key. Cached answers are free.

---

Source: https://actionlake.com/compare/n8n
More: https://actionlake.com/llms.txt