Node-RED vs n8n

Node-RED and n8n are both visual, self-hostable flow tools, but they automate different worlds. Node-RED, an Apache 2.0 project of the OpenJS Foundation that began at IBM in 2013, is built for event-driven flows on hardware as small as a Raspberry Pi. n8n, from Berlin-based n8n GmbH, connects business applications and AI agents, with an optional hosted cloud.

Editor Sebastiaan Smits

Published Last reviewed How we review

Choose Node-RED if

you are automating physical things, sensors, MQTT brokers or Modbus devices, on a Raspberry Pi or gateway, and want software under the permissive Apache 2.0 licence.

Read the Node-RED review

Choose n8n if

you are moving records between business applications, want more than 500 ready-made integrations, AI agent steps and error workflows, and like the option of a cloud hosted in Frankfurt.

Read the n8n review

Node-RED and n8n side by side

 Node-REDn8n
Company OpenJS Foundation (originated at IBM UK) n8n GmbH
Headquarters Hursley, United Kingdom Berlin, Germany
Founded 2013 2019
Jurisdiction Wherever you run it EU (Germany)
Where the data sits Wherever you run it Your own servers, or EU cloud
Pricing Free and open source Free self-hosted / Cloud from €20/month billed annually
Entry-level list price (vendor site, checked 30 September 2026) Free (open source, Apache 2.0) Starter (n8n Cloud): EUR 20/month billed annually, 2,500 workflow executions; self-hosted Community Edition free
Free tier or trial Free Free Community Edition
Certifications and checks Open source (Apache 2.0) Not stated in our data
Source code Open source Source-available (Sustainable Use Licence)
Usually replaces Zapier, IFTTT, industrial SCADA glue Zapier, Make, Workato, Tray.io
Position in our Automation & Integration guide #4 of 13 #1 of 13

Both are listed in our European Automation & Integration guide. The table is built from the same directory data as those entries, except the list price, which is quoted from each vendor's own pricing page (see Sources below); how we check it is described in the editorial process.

Where Node-RED and n8n differ

Across the five points below, Node-RED has the edge on 2 points, n8n on 2 points and one is a tie. A count like that is a summary, not a verdict: the point that matters to you may be the one the other product wins.

Hardware and protocols

Node-RED is built on Node.js and presents itself as suited to the edge of the network on low-cost hardware such as the Raspberry Pi, with an install script for Debian-based devices. MQTT input and output nodes are built in, and Modbus TCP, UDP and serial come from a long-maintained community package. n8n's own material centres on business apps and AI agents rather than devices.

Edge: Node-RED

Business application integration

n8n's home page cites more than 500 integrations, with pre-built nodes for common apps and custom HTTP and GraphQL requests for the rest, and its plans list error workflows and webhook triggers. Node-RED's community has built over 5,000 nodes and flows, but they come from many contributors rather than one vendor. For CRM, accounting and mailbox automation, n8n is the more direct tool.

Edge: n8n

Licence and who stands behind it

Node-RED is Apache 2.0 licensed and part of the OpenJS Foundation; FlowFuse, founded in 2021 by co-creator Nick O'Leary, sells an enterprise platform around it. n8n uses its Sustainable Use License, which allows internal business and non-commercial use but restricts distribution, and n8n GmbH sells cloud and licensed editions. Builders of products will prefer Node-RED's terms.

No clear winner on this point.

Code and AI steps

Both drop into code when nodes run out: Node-RED's Function node runs JavaScript against each message, and n8n offers JavaScript and Python code steps on every plan. n8n adds agent, MCP and AI nodes as standard building blocks, plus human approval for tool calls, so an agent is a first-class step. For workflows mixing code and AI, n8n offers more out of the box.

Edge: n8n

Version control and teamwork

Node-RED's Projects feature keeps flows in a Git repository, so changes are version controlled and shared with familiar workflows; it is switched on with an environment variable. n8n allows unlimited users on every plan, but Git-based version control and multiple environments sit in its Business plan, which is self-hosted, and Enterprise. For free versioned flows, Node-RED goes further.

Edge: Node-RED

When neither Node-RED nor n8n fits

If the job is scheduled data pipelines, neither is the natural fit: Kestra writes workflows in declarative YAML that can be versioned and reviewed. A team wanting hosted automation without any server could look at Make, which runs every plan on AWS in the EU or North America.

Node-RED vs n8n: questions

Partly. Node-RED can call HTTP APIs and draws on thousands of community nodes, but n8n packages more than 500 business integrations, error workflows and AI agent nodes from one vendor. Node-RED is strongest at event-driven flows, MQTT and hardware. For app-to-app workflows, n8n is the closer match.

Yes. Node-RED is open source under Apache 2.0 and runs locally, in Docker or on devices. n8n's Community Edition is free to self-host, with paid Business and Enterprise licence keys adding features, and n8n Cloud starts at EUR 20 a month billed annually. Either way you run, update and monitor the installation yourself.

Node-RED began in early 2013 as a side project of Nick O'Leary and Dave Conway-Jones in IBM's Emerging Technology Services group, was open-sourced that September and is now part of the OpenJS Foundation. n8n is a product of n8n GmbH, registered in Berlin, whose hosted plans store data in Frankfurt.

Sources

Facts, prices and plan details on this page were checked on the vendors' own websites on . Prices and plans change; the vendor's current page is authoritative.

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