Activepieces vs Automatisch (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Activepieces if

• Fits if you want automation you can read the source of and host yourself
• Works for teams of up to five who want one flat bill instead of one per seat

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want agents on your own servers for free, as the Community edition leaves out agents, chat and MCP
• Pricey if you use AI steps on the dearer models, which cost 10 or 20 credits each without your own AI keys
• Not for you if you need a SOC 2 certificate today, because Activepieces says its program is still in progress
• Tight if you stay on the free cloud plan: 1,000 credits a month, and runs stop until they refresh
• Watch out: Plus to Team is a jump from $16 to $166 a month, SSO starts on Team, and SCIM and audit logs need Ultimate

Pick Automatisch if

• Fits if you are comfortable running Docker and want to own your data
• Works for flows that can wait 15 minutes

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you do not want to run servers, as no hosted price is published
• Not for you if you need instant triggers, as flows run every 15 minutes
• Too light for a long app list: about 70 apps are listed
• Watch out: the encryption and webhook keys must never change or saved connections break

Activepieces

• The Free cloud plan covers up to 5 users and 1,000 credits a month; runs beyond the quota do not go through until credits refresh.
• AI steps cost 2, 10 or 20 credits depending on the model. Connecting your own AI keys, on Plus and above, brings each AI step down to 1 credit.
• The self-hosted Community edition leaves out Agents and Chat and MCPs. SSO starts on Team, and SCIM and audit logs need Ultimate.
• Activepieces says its SOC 2 program is still in progress and that it does not yet hold the certification.

Automatisch

• Self-hosting needs Postgres and Redis, and the encryption and webhook keys must never change or saved connections break.
• The homepage mentions a cloud solution, but no cloud plans or prices are published on the pages we read.
• The docs list a bit over 70 apps, far fewer than the large hosted automation services.
• The docs say flows currently run at 15-minute intervals, with instant updates only planned.

Activepieces

Flow builder

A visual builder with branching, retries, waitpoints, subflows, error handling and human approvals. TypeScript can be written inline for a step that needs code.

AI agents and chat

An agent takes a task described in plain words and chooses tools from connected apps and MCP servers, with approval gates on the steps you pick. Chat drafts flows from a description.

Pieces

The integration directory lists 762 pieces, all open source under the MIT license. An HTTP piece reaches any REST or GraphQL API that does not have a piece yet.

Tables and knowledge base

Tables hold data that every flow and agent can read and write, and a knowledge base makes your documents searchable by agents.

MCP server

Tools built in Activepieces can be served over MCP, so assistants such as Claude and Cursor can run them. MCPs are part of the cloud plans, not the Community edition.

Cloud, self-hosted or air-gapped

Activepieces Cloud runs in Frankfurt. The same software can be installed on your own infrastructure with Docker or Kubernetes, including with no outbound network.

Automatisch

Multi-step flows

A flow is built from a trigger plus later steps, with built-in helper apps such as Filter, Formatter, Delay, Scheduler and HTTP Request.

Self-hosting

The installation guide covers Docker Compose and plain Docker, with a main service and a worker service that share one set of environment variables.

Own your data

The site says data stays on your own servers, which it pitches at healthcare, finance and European teams bound by GDPR.

App directory

The docs list the supported apps, including Slack, Google Sheets, GitHub, HubSpot, Notion, Stripe, Telegram and AI services such as OpenAI and Anthropic.

Webhooks and requests

Webhooks and a generic HTTP Request app are in the app list, so services without a dedicated integration can still be reached.

Activepieces

• Free$0

  Activepieces Cloud for up to 5 users: 1,000 credits a month, unlimited flows, and agents, chat, tables, MCP and API access. No card needed.

• Community$0

  Self-hosted open-source edition: credits are not metered and users are unlimited, but Agents and Chat and MCPs are not included.

• Plus$16

  flat per month, billed yearly ($20 billed monthly)

  10,000 credits a month, then $0.007 per credit. Up to 5 users, and you can connect your own AI provider keys.

• Team$166

  flat per month, billed yearly ($200 billed monthly)

  50,000 credits a month, 25 users, unlimited projects, SSO, standard roles, global connections and email support.

• UltimateCustom

  Yearly credit pool sized to the customer, dedicated workers, execution priority, SCIM, custom roles, Git Sync, audit logs and dedicated support.

• EmbedFrom $36k

  per year

  White-label flow builder, AI agents and the integration library placed inside your own product through one SDK. Sold through sales.

Automatisch

• Self-hosted$0

  Run Automatisch yourself with Docker Compose or Docker. You provide the servers, Postgres and Redis.

Activepieces

• Annual discount

  Save 2 months with annual billing

  The pricing page's Annual option is labeled as saving 2 months: Plus is $16 a month billed yearly instead of $20, and Team is $166 instead of $200.

Automatisch

No public discounts listed.