n8n Cloud Pricing vs Self-Hosted
n8n Cloud charges €20/month for 2,500 workflow executions and €50/month for 10,000. Self-hosting charges for the instance, not the runs — on Flux, $5.32/month with nothing metered. Both run the identical automation engine, so the real decision is about cost shape, execution limits and who holds your data. Here is the full comparison, with a calculator.
The short version
n8n Cloud is the official hosted SaaS. It is the fastest way to try n8n with zero setup, but its plans meter how many workflow executions you run each month, cap active workflows on lower tiers, and keep your data inside a shared multi-tenant environment. Costs climb as your automation volume grows.
Self-hosted n8n removes those limits: unlimited executions, unlimited workflows, full access to community and custom nodes, and complete ownership of your credentials and data. The traditional downside — you have to run and maintain the server yourself — disappears when you deploy on Flux, which provisions and manages a dedicated instance plus a high-availability database for you.
Feature-by-feature comparison
| n8n on Flux | n8n Cloud | |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting model | Dedicated self-hosted instance on Flux | Shared, multi-tenant SaaS |
| Workflow execution limits | None — bounded only by plan resources | 2,500 / 10,000 / 40,000 per month by tier |
| Active workflows | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Data ownership | Your data on your instance | Stored in n8n Cloud |
| High-availability database | 3-node HA PostgreSQL, auto-failover | Managed, not user-configurable |
| Server maintenance | Fully managed for you | Fully managed for you |
| Custom nodes | Full access | Self-hosted only — not on any Cloud tier |
| Starting price | $5.32/month, first week free | €20/month (Starter, billed annually) |
| Vendor lock-in | None — portable, decentralized | Tied to n8n Cloud |
n8n Cloud pricing vs self-hosted pricing
The two models are not just different in price, they are different in shape. n8n Cloud bills by how many times your workflows run each month, so your cost is decided by volume. A self-hosted instance bills for the resources it occupies, so the same automation costs the same whether it fires a hundred times or a hundred thousand.
| Plan | Price | Executions included |
|---|---|---|
| n8n Cloud Starter | €20/mo | 2,500/month |
| n8n Cloud Pro | €50/mo | 10,000/month |
| n8n Cloud Business | €667/mo | 40,000/month |
| n8n on Flux Starter | $5.32/mo | Unlimited · 1 GB n8n + 1 GB HA PostgreSQL |
| n8n on Flux Standard | $6.24/mo | Unlimited · 2 GB n8n + 1 GB HA PostgreSQL |
| n8n on Flux Pro | $9.87/mo | Unlimited · 4 GB n8n + 2 GB HA PostgreSQL |
n8n Cloud figures are the annual-billing rates published on n8n.io/pricing, checked August 2026; monthly billing costs more. Flux plans come from the Flux Marketplace and include the first week free.
What will you actually pay?
Pick your monthly workflow execution volume. n8n Cloud’s tier is decided by that number; a self-hosted instance is not.
n8n Cloud
€50/mo
Pro tier — the cheapest one that covers 5,000 executions (10,000 included). Billed annually.
n8n on Flux
$5.32/mo
Unchanged at 5,000 executions — and at any other number. Executions are not metered, so your plan is chosen by workflow size, not volume.
n8n Cloud prices are the annual-billing rates published on n8n.io/pricing (checked August 2026); monthly billing costs more. The two figures are in different currencies and are shown as published — we do not apply an exchange rate, because the point is the pricing model, not a headline saving.
The crossover comes early. n8n Cloud’s entry tier covers 2,500 executions a month — a single workflow polling an API every ten minutes uses about 4,300 on its own, before you have automated anything else. Past that you are on the next tier up, and the tier after that, while a self-hosted instance stays on the same bill.
Data ownership & no lock-in
With n8n Cloud your workflows and credentials live in n8n’s infrastructure. Self-hosting keeps everything on your own dedicated instance, which matters for privacy, compliance, and control. Because n8n workflows are portable JSON, you are never locked in — export and move them whenever you like. On Flux your instance runs on independent decentralized nodes rather than a single vendor’s data center.
When should you pick each?
- Choose n8n Cloud for a quick, zero-commitment trial with very low execution volume.
- Choose self-hosted n8n on Flux when you want unlimited executions, predictable cost, data ownership, a high-availability database, and no server maintenance.
New to self-hosting? Read our step-by-step guide to self-hosting n8n, or see the full n8n hosting comparison vs Zapier & Make.
Get unlimited n8n without the setup
Deploy a dedicated, self-hosted n8n instance with an HA PostgreSQL cluster on the Flux decentralized cloud — live in 30 seconds, from $5.32/month, first week free.
Frequently asked questions
How much does n8n Cloud cost?
n8n Cloud publishes three self-serve tiers, billed annually: Starter at €20/month for 2,500 workflow executions, Pro at €50/month for 10,000, and Business at €667/month for 40,000. Monthly billing costs more — n8n advertises annual billing as saving 17%. Above 40,000 executions, pricing is quote-only. Figures checked August 2026.
Is self-hosted n8n cheaper than n8n Cloud?
For anything beyond very light use, usually yes. Self-hosting charges a flat rate for resources rather than metering executions, so high-volume automations don’t trigger overage charges. Flux plans start at $5.32/month with the first week free.
How many executions do I actually need?
Count how often each workflow fires, not how many workflows you have. One workflow polling an API every ten minutes is about 4,300 executions a month on its own — already past n8n Cloud’s 2,500-execution Starter tier. Event-driven workflows triggered by a webhook are far cheaper in execution terms than anything on a short schedule.
Does self-hosted n8n have execution limits?
No. A self-hosted instance meters nothing — you are limited only by the CPU, RAM, and storage of your plan. n8n Cloud caps monthly executions by tier, though it does allow unlimited active workflows on every tier, so the limit that bites is how often your workflows run, not how many you have.
Is n8n on Flux a good n8n Cloud alternative?
Yes. It gives you the same n8n platform as a managed, dedicated instance with a high-availability database, no execution limits, full data ownership, and no vendor lock-in — typically at a lower cost.
Can I move from n8n Cloud to self-hosted?
Yes. Export your workflows as JSON from n8n Cloud and import them into your self-hosted instance, then re-enter your credentials. Your automations run exactly as before.