UiPath Alternatives 2026: 5 Options, 4 Free
UiPath alternatives: n8n, Activepieces, Node-RED, Zapier and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 23, 2026.
•3 min read•Automation & No-Code
Verdict:UiPath's value is its desktop robots: they click through Windows applications that have no API, including old internal tools. Leave it when most of your automations are API-to-API or web flows, because you then pay for a capability you do not use. Start with n8n or Activepieces if you want a self-hosted workflow engine; both are cheaper to run and fit developers who think in APIs. Node-RED is a better match for device or integration work than for business process automation. Zapier is the fastest route for a non-technical team connecting cloud apps, with 100 free tasks a month, but it has no answer for a locked Windows application. Power Automate is the closest rival to UiPath in scope, because its desktop flows run on Windows; it is most sensible when your company already pays for Microsoft 365. Be aware that UiPath's own pricing page says its Basic plan offering is being updated, so a quote may differ from the $25 starting price shown. The honest trade-off is this: moving off UiPath means every legacy screen automation has to be rebuilt in a different tool, and none of these alternatives reproduce that fully.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n8n | Free (Self-hosted Community Edition from GitHub under the Sustainable Use License; Cloud has a free trial); paid from EUR 20 per month, Cloud Starter billed annually, 2.5K executions | Web, Self-hosted | API-first automation you can self-host | Docs only |
| Activepieces | Free (Free forever, no card: 1,000 credits a month, unlimited flows, up to 5 users); paid from $20 per month (Plus, flat) | Web browser | Open-source SaaS integrations | Docs only |
| Node-RED | Free | Self-hosted (Node.js) | Integration and IoT flows | Docs only |
| Zapier | Free (Free plan: 100 tasks per month); paid from $19.99 per month, billed annually (Professional, 750 tasks; $29.99 billed monthly) | Web browser | Business users connecting cloud apps | Docs only |
| Microsoft Power Automate | Paid from $15 per user/month, billed yearly (Premium) | Web | Microsoft 365 shops with Windows desktop tasks | Docs only |
| Make | Free (Free plan: 1,000 credits per month) | Web browser | Automation | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
Good fit if
- Most automations are APIs and web flows (n8n is the pick)
- Open-source glue between SaaS apps (Activepieces is the pick)
- Device or integration flows on Node.js (Node-RED is the pick)
- Non-technical team connecting cloud apps (Zapier is the pick)
- Microsoft 365 company with Windows desktop tasks (Microsoft Power Automate is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on UiPath features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
UiPath today: Free (Community plan, described as free forever; no numeric limits on the pricing page); paid from $25 per month (Basic, starting at) (UiPath pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Why people look for UiPath alternatives
UiPath's Community plan is free but its pricing page states no limits. Basic starts at $25 per month with up to 5 Basic, 5 Plus and 1 Pro user and 2 robots, and the page says an updated Basic offering is coming. Standard and Enterprise are Contact Sales, and users and robots are sold as separate licenses that may require additional purchases. Self-healing UI automation, bring-your-own-model and credential vaults are Enterprise features.
n8n
Compared with UiPath: Self-hostable workflow builder with a free Community Edition under the Sustainable Use License. Strong for API and web flows; it does not drive desktop apps the way UiPath robots do.
Price: Free (Self-hosted Community Edition from GitHub under the Sustainable Use License; Cloud has a free trial); paid from EUR 20 per month, Cloud Starter billed annually, 2.5K executions (n8n pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. Sustainable Use License (source-available).
Best for: API-first automation you can self-host.
Worth knowing: Not open source in the OSI sense; .ee. files need a paid license. Annual billing saves 17% versus monthly.
Activepieces
Compared with UiPath: MIT-licensed workflow builder for most of its code, with enterprise folders under a separate license. Good for SaaS-to-SaaS glue; it has no desktop automation.
Price: Free (Free forever, no card: 1,000 credits a month, unlimited flows, up to 5 users); paid from $20 per month (Plus, flat) (Activepieces pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Web browser. MIT (Community Edition); enterprise features under a commercial license (open source).
Project activity: 25.3k GitHub stars · latest release 0.92.3-hotfix.1 (Oct 23, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Open-source SaaS integrations.
Worth knowing: Currency shown only as a dollar sign; read as USD.
Node-RED
Compared with UiPath: Apache-2.0 flow editor on Node.js, popular for device and integration flows. Not a robot framework, so legacy Windows screens are out of scope.
Price: Free (Node-RED pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Self-hosted (Node.js). Apache-2.0 (open source).
Project activity: 23.8k GitHub stars · latest release 5.0.9 (Oct 21, 2026) · last commit Oct 26, 2026
Best for: Integration and IoT flows.
Worth knowing: Browser-based flow editor on Node.js. Free under Apache-2.0 and self-hosted only, with no managed plan in the repo.
Zapier
Compared with UiPath: Hosted SaaS automation with 100 tasks per month free and Professional from $19.99 a month billed annually. Easiest to start with, but it cannot run on-premise desktop tasks.
Price: Free (Free plan: 100 tasks per month); paid from $19.99 per month, billed annually (Professional, 750 tasks; $29.99 billed monthly) (Zapier pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Business users connecting cloud apps.
Microsoft Power Automate
Compared with UiPath: Microsoft's flow tool with desktop flows on Windows and a 30-day trial; Premium is $15 per user a month paid yearly. Best if your apps are already Microsoft 365 or Dynamics.
Price: Paid from $15 per user/month, billed yearly (Premium) (Microsoft Power Automate pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.
Best for: Microsoft 365 shops with Windows desktop tasks.
Other popular options (paid)
Make
Compared with UiPath: Visual workflow builder priced in credits; the free plan includes 1,000 credits a month. Its paid prices are not stated on the pricing page, so compare it directly with UiPath Basic at $25 per month.
Price: Free (Free plan: 1,000 credits per month) (Make pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Which one to pick
- Most automations are APIs and web flows: n8n
- Open-source glue between SaaS apps: Activepieces
- Device or integration flows on Node.js: Node-RED
- Non-technical team connecting cloud apps: Zapier
- Microsoft 365 company with Windows desktop tasks: Microsoft Power Automate
Limits of this review
Docs-only for n8n, Activepieces, Node-RED, Zapier, Microsoft Power Automate: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from UiPath. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
Related guides
More in Automation & No-Code
- Zapier alternatives
- Microsoft Power Automate alternatives
- n8n Alternatives 2026: 9 Free Options (Tested)
- Apache Airflow alternatives
Sources
Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-23: UiPath, n8n, Activepieces, Node-RED, Zapier, Microsoft Power Automate, Make. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.