I've spent $2,400 on Zapier over 2 years. Then I switched to Make and cut that to $348/year while building more complex workflows. Same results, 85% less cost, but there's a catch.
This isn't another generic comparison. I'll show you the exact workflows running SimpleDirect operations, real cost breakdowns, and when each tool makes sense for bootstrap founders.
By the end, you'll know which one fits your business and budget.
The Numbers That Matter
My 2-Year Automation Journey:
Zapier Era (2022-2024):
- Monthly spend: $99/month (Professional plan)
- Total cost: $2,376 over 24 months
- Tasks executed: ~45,000/month
- Workflows: 15 active automations
- Team members: 3 with access
Make Era (2024-Present):
- Monthly spend: $29/month (Core plan)
- Annual cost: $348/year
- Tasks executed: ~50,000/month (more complex workflows)
- Workflows: 22 active automations
- Team members: 5 with access
The Reality Check: I didn't switch because Zapier was bad. I switched because Make handles complexity better for less money. But if you're non-technical or need something that "just works" immediately, Zapier might still be your answer.
What Each Tool Actually Does
Zapier: The Easy Button
Zapier connects apps with simple "if this, then that" logic. Perfect for straightforward automations.
Strengths:
- Incredibly easy setup (literally drag and drop)
- Massive app library (6,000+ integrations)
- Reliable execution
- Great for non-technical users
- Excellent documentation
Real Limitations I Hit:
- Complex logic requires multiple Zaps (expensive)
- No visual workflow building
- Limited data transformation
- Path/branch logic costs extra
- Gets expensive fast with high volume
Make: The Power Tool
Make (formerly Integromat) focuses on visual workflow automation with advanced logic capabilities.
Strengths:
- Visual workflow builder
- Complex branching logic included
- Advanced data manipulation
- Better value at scale
- Powerful filtering and routing
Real Challenges:
- Steeper learning curve
- Fewer app integrations (1,800+)
- UI can feel overwhelming initially
- More technical setup required
- Documentation isn't as polished
Real SimpleDirect Workflows (Side by Side)
Let me show you three actual workflows from SimpleDirect operations and how they work in each platform.
Workflow 1: New Contractor Onboarding
What It Does: When a new contractor signs up, automatically create accounts, send welcome emails, assign to account manager, and set up payment processing.
Zapier Implementation (4 separate Zaps):
Zap 1: SimpleDirect Form → Create Airtable Record
- Trigger: New form submission
- Action: Create contractor record in Airtable
- Cost: 1 task per submission
Zap 2: Airtable → ConvertKit Welcome Sequence
- Trigger: New Airtable record
- Action: Add to email sequence
- Cost: 1 task per submission
Zap 3: Airtable → Slack Notification
- Trigger: New Airtable record
- Action: Send notification to #operations
- Cost: 1 task per submission
Zap 4: Airtable → Create Stripe Customer
- Trigger: New Airtable record
- Action: Create customer in Stripe
- Cost: 1 task per submission
Total: 4 tasks per contractor = $0.60/contractor (at $0.15/task)
Make Implementation (1 scenario):
Single workflow with branches:
- Trigger: SimpleDirect Form submission
- Create Airtable record
- Branch A: Add to ConvertKit sequence
- Branch B: Send Slack notification
- Branch C: Create Stripe customer
- Branch D: Assign to account manager based on location
Total: 1 operation per contractor = $0.10/contractor
Why Make Wins Here: Complex logic in one workflow vs four separate automations in Zapier. 6x cost savings.
Workflow 2: Payment Processing & Reconciliation
What It Does: When payment comes in via SimpleDirect Pay, update contractor records, send receipts, flag discrepancies, and sync to accounting.
Zapier Approach: Would need 6+ Zaps
- Stripe webhook → Airtable update
- Airtable update → ConvertKit receipt email
- Check payment amount → Flag if incorrect
- Update contractor status
- Sync to QuickBooks
- Send summary to finance team
Estimated cost: 6 tasks × $0.15 = $0.90 per payment
Make Approach: Single scenario with conditional logic
- Stripe webhook triggers workflow
- Query Airtable for contractor details
- Conditional: If payment matches expected amount
- Path A: Standard processing (update records, send receipt)
- Path B: Discrepancy handling (flag, notify team)
- Update QuickBooks
- Send summary email
Actual cost: 1 operation = $0.10 per payment
Why Make Wins: Conditional logic is built-in, not a premium add-on.
Workflow 3: Customer Support Automation
What It Does: Route support tickets based on type, notify relevant team members, create follow-up tasks, and track resolution times.
Zapier Challenge: Path logic requires Professional plan ($99/month)
- Basic trigger/action pairs work fine
- But routing logic gets expensive quickly
- Each path counts as separate tasks
Make Advantage: Visual router included
- One scenario handles all routing
- No extra cost for complexity
- Easy to modify logic paths
- Better error handling
The Real Cost Breakdown
Zapier Pricing (What I Actually Paid)
Free Plan: 100 tasks/month
- Good for: Testing, very light usage
- Limitation: 5 single-step Zaps only
Professional Plan: $99/month
- What I needed for: Path logic, webhooks, 50,000 tasks
- Pain point: Hit task limits with complex workflows
- Hidden cost: Each step in multi-step Zaps counts as a task
Company Plan: $399/month
- Features: Unlimited tasks, advanced apps
- Reality: Overkill for most bootstrap companies
My Average Monthly Spend: $99-129/month (overages)
Make Pricing (What I Pay Now)
Free Plan: 1,000 operations/month
- Good for: Testing, personal use
- Limitation: 2 active scenarios
Core Plan: $29/month
- What I use: 40,000 operations, unlimited scenarios
- Sweet spot: Perfect for most automations
- Value: Complex scenarios count as single operations
Pro Plan: $99/month
- When you need: 400,000+ operations
- Features: Priority support, advanced modules
My Current Spend: Exactly $29/month
Cost Per Automation Comparison
Based on my actual usage:
| Workflow Type | Zapier Cost/Month | Make Cost/Month | Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple (1-3 steps) | $15-30 | $5-8 | 50-60% |
| Complex (5+ steps) | $45-75 | $8-12 | 80-85% |
| High volume | $99+ | $29 | 70%+ |
The Pattern: Make's advantage grows with workflow complexity.
When to Choose Which Tool
Choose Zapier If:
✅ You're non-technical
- Setup takes minutes, not hours
- Extensive help documentation
- Large community for support
✅ You need specific app integrations
- Zapier likely has it (6,000+ apps)
- Official partnerships mean better reliability
- New apps integrated quickly
✅ You have simple, linear workflows
- "When X happens, do Y" automations
- No complex branching logic needed
- Low volume (under 10,000 tasks/month)
✅ Time is more valuable than money
- Faster initial setup
- Less learning curve
- Works reliably out of the box
Choose Make If:
✅ You're comfortable with visual interfaces
- You like flowcharts and diagrams
- Don't mind spending time learning
- Enjoy optimizing and tweaking
✅ You need complex automation logic
- Multi-step workflows with branches
- Data transformation and filtering
- Conditional logic and error handling
✅ You want better value at scale
- High volume automations (20K+ tasks/month)
- Complex scenarios that would need multiple Zaps
- Cost optimization is important
✅ You have technical team members
- Someone can handle initial setup
- Team can maintain and modify workflows
- You're building automation as competitive advantage
Red Flags for Each Platform
Don't Use Zapier If:
- You're doing 20K+ tasks/month (cost explodes)
- You need complex conditional logic frequently
- You're technical and want more control
- Budget is tight and you have time to learn
Don't Use Make If:
- You need an integration that only Zapier has
- You want something working in under an hour
- Your team is entirely non-technical
- You prefer simple, linear thinking over visual workflows
My Migration Experience (The Honest Truth)
Week 1: The Learning Curve
- Time invested: 15 hours learning Make's interface
- Frustration level: High (everything felt different)
- Temptation to quit: Strong (Zapier was working fine)
Week 2-3: Rebuilding Workflows
- Time per workflow: 2-3 hours (vs 30 minutes in Zapier)
- Success rate: 60% (lots of trial and error)
- Team complaints: "Why are we changing what works?"
Month 2: The Breakthrough
- Workflow complexity: Started exceeding Zapier capabilities
- Team adoption: Finally got comfortable with visual interface
- Cost realization: Saved $70 in first month
Month 6: The Vindication
- Time savings: Automations I couldn't build in Zapier
- Cost savings: $420 saved vs Zapier
- Team feedback: "This is actually better"
The Reality: If you're happy with Zapier and don't need complex workflows, switching isn't worth it. But if you're hitting cost or complexity limits, Make is worth the learning curve.
Specific Use Cases for Bootstrap Founders
E-commerce Operations
Zapier wins for:
- Simple order → fulfillment workflows
- Shopify → email marketing automations
- Basic inventory updates
Make wins for:
- Complex pricing logic
- Multi-channel inventory management
- Customer lifecycle automation with branches
SaaS Operations
Zapier wins for:
- User signup → onboarding sequences
- Payment failed → dunning emails
- Basic usage tracking
Make wins for:
- Feature usage → pricing tier recommendations
- Complex user segmentation
- Multi-touch attribution modeling
Service Business
Zapier wins for:
- Lead → CRM → follow-up sequence
- Appointment scheduling automations
- Simple customer communications
Make wins for:
- Complex service routing logic
- Multi-step project workflows
- Resource allocation based on multiple factors
The Real ROI Analysis
My SimpleDirect Numbers (12 months):
Time Saved by Automation:
- Manual data entry: 15 hours/week → 2 hours/week
- Follow-up tasks: 8 hours/week → 1 hour/week
- Report generation: 5 hours/week → 30 minutes/week
- Total: 27.5 hours/week saved
Value of Time Saved:
- 27.5 hours × $200/hour × 52 weeks = $286,000/year
- Automation cost (Make): $348/year
- ROI: 82,100%
Revenue Impact:
- Faster response times: +15% conversion rate
- Better follow-up: +22% customer lifetime value
- Reduced errors: -90% refunds due to mistakes
The Point: Either tool pays for itself quickly. The question is which fits your workflow and budget better.
Tools Integration Reality Check
Apps Both Handle Well:
- Gmail, Slack, Airtable
- Stripe, PayPal, QuickBooks
- Shopify, WooCommerce
- ConvertKit, Mailchimp
- Google Workspace, Microsoft 365
Where Zapier Has Edge:
- Newer SaaS tools (faster integration)
- Enterprise software (Salesforce, HubSpot)
- Social media platforms
- Niche industry tools
Where Make Has Edge:
- Custom APIs and webhooks
- Data transformation
- File processing
- Mathematical calculations
- Date/time manipulations
Advanced Workflows You Can Only Build in Make
1. Dynamic Pricing Based on Multiple Factors
- Monitor competitor pricing
- Check inventory levels
- Calculate profit margins
- Adjust prices automatically
- Notify team of changes
Why Zapier can't: Would require 10+ separate Zaps with no way to coordinate logic.
2. Smart Lead Scoring and Routing
- Aggregate data from multiple sources
- Score based on custom algorithm
- Route to different team members
- Create different follow-up sequences
- Track and optimize conversion rates
Why Zapier can't: Complex scoring logic and conditional routing gets expensive fast.
3. Automated Content Creation and Distribution
- Monitor industry news
- Generate content briefs
- Create social media posts
- Schedule across platforms
- Track performance metrics
Why Zapier can't: Multi-step content workflows with approval processes are too complex.
The Decision Framework
Step 1: Audit Your Current Workflows
List your automations and categorize:
- Simple (trigger → single action)
- Medium (trigger → 2-4 sequential actions)
- Complex (conditional logic, branching, loops)
Step 2: Calculate True Costs
For Zapier:
- Count total tasks across all workflows
- Factor in multi-step Zap costs
- Add premium features (paths, webhooks)
- Estimate growth (task volume increases)
For Make:
- Count scenarios (not individual operations)
- Consider complexity doesn't increase cost
- Factor in learning curve (time investment)
Step 3: Technical Assessment
- Do you enjoy visual workflow builders?
- Is anyone on your team comfortable with APIs?
- How important is "just works" vs customization?
- Do you have time to invest in learning?
Step 4: Future-Proofing
- Will your automation needs grow more complex?
- Are you planning to scale operations significantly?
- Do you want automation as competitive advantage?
- Is cost optimization important long-term?
My Recommendation Matrix
| Business Profile | Recommended Tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Non-technical solo founder | Zapier | Ease of use trumps cost |
| Technical solo founder | Make | Cost savings + more power |
| Small team (2-5 people) | Zapier initially | Get running fast, switch later if needed |
| Growing team (5-15 people) | Make | Cost savings justify learning curve |
| Service business | Zapier | Simpler workflows, established integrations |
| SaaS/E-commerce | Make | Complex user journeys need advanced logic |
| High volume operations | Make | Cost savings are significant |
| Tight budget | Make | 70%+ cost savings matter |
The Verdict
Keep or Kill Zapier: Keep for simple workflows, switch for complex ones
My Current Setup:
- Make for all new complex automations
- Zapier for a few legacy simple workflows
- Total monthly cost: $58 (down from $127)
The Reality:
- If you're happy with Zapier and it works, don't switch just to save money
- If you're hitting complexity or cost limits, Make is worth the learning curve
- Most bootstrap founders start with Zapier and graduate to Make
Winner: Depends on your situation, but Make wins for most technical founders once you get over the learning curve.
Key Takeaways
- Cost difference is real: 70-85% savings with Make for complex workflows
- Learning curve is real: Budget 2-3 weeks to get comfortable with Make
- Integration coverage: Zapier wins on breadth, Make wins on depth
- Complexity handling: Make's visual approach scales better than Zapier's linear model
- Team adoption: Non-technical teams prefer Zapier's simplicity
The automation tool landscape is evolving fast. What matters isn't picking the "best" tool—it's picking the tool that fits your team, budget, and complexity needs right now.