BuildShip vs Zapier

BuildShip

• Front-end and no-code app builders who need a backend API quickly
• Teams wiring AI models into workflows without managing API keys
• Developers who want visual flows but still edit the underlying code

Zapier

• Connecting a wide range of cloud apps, including less common ones
• Solo users with light needs who can stay within 100 tasks a month
• Teams that want shared workflows with single sign-on and admin controls

BuildShip

• There is no free plan: sign-up starts a 7-day trial, and the subscription begins automatically when it ends unless canceled.
• Nodes use 1 credit for their first 3 seconds and 1 per second after that. Executions stop when credits run out unless you top up at $10 per 100,000.
• Pricing is per workspace, and each additional workspace is billed separately.
• A custom domain ($80 a year) and No Cold Start ($29 a month) are paid add-ons, and self-hosting is listed under Enterprise.

Zapier

• The Free plan is limited to 100 tasks a month and two-step Zaps, and checks for new data only every 15 minutes.
• Free and Professional include a single user; sharing workflows with colleagues needs the Team plan.
• Cost rises with volume: Professional runs from $19.99 a month for 750 tasks to $3,389 a month for 2 million, billed annually.
• Tasks beyond the plan limit are billed at 2.5x the base rate on monthly plans and 1.25x on annual plans.

BuildShip

Prompt-to-flow builder

Describe a flow in plain language and the AI builder generates its logic and nodes. It can also create a new node, modify an existing one or work from an uploaded API spec.

Visual editor with code access

Flows are edited and tested on a canvas of ready-made nodes with connected inputs and outputs. The code of every node and flow is open to edit, and custom scripts can be added.

Triggers for APIs, schedules and events

A flow can start from a REST API call, a cron schedule, a database event, a payment event from Stripe, an email, or a Telegram or WhatsApp bot message.

AI agents and Keyless Nodes

Each plan includes a set number of AI agents, 10 on Starter. Keyless Nodes run AI models from the credit balance without separate API keys, or you can bring your own keys.

Built-in database and storage

Each workspace has a built-in database with a set number of tables and file storage from 50 GB on Starter, alongside nodes for Firebase, Airtable and other data sources.

Hosted or exported

Flows deploy to BuildShip's cloud with logs, a status page and failure alerts, or export as JavaScript to run on your own infrastructure such as Vercel, GCP, AWS or Azure.

Zapier

Zaps

Workflows that start from a trigger and run one or more actions. Free accounts are limited to two-step Zaps; Professional adds multi-step Zaps, filters, paths and webhooks.

App directory

Zapier connects more than 9,000 apps, including Google Sheets, Gmail, Slack and HubSpot. Premium apps are unlimited from the Professional plan.

Task-based billing

A task is counted when a Zap completes a unit of work; triggers, polling and built-in data tools are not counted. Extra tasks are billed at 1.25x the base rate on annual plans and 2.5x on monthly plans.

Tables, Forms and Canvas

Tables store the data that workflows read and write, Forms collect it, and Canvas maps out a process. Tables and Forms are unlimited on every plan, including Free.

Agents, Chatbots and MCP

AI agents take actions across connected apps, and Zapier MCP gives assistants such as Claude and ChatGPT access to them. Agents and Chatbots are optional add-ons with free tiers.

Team and admin controls

Team covers 25 users with shared Zaps, folders and app connections plus SAML SSO. Enterprise adds SCIM provisioning, app controls and custom data retention.

BuildShip

• Starter$19

  per workspace / month, billed yearly ($225); $25 monthly

  20,000 credits a month, 20 active flows, 10 agents, 3 team members, 10 database tables, 50 GB of storage and 7 days of logs.

• Pro$59

  per workspace / month, billed yearly ($711); $79 monthly

  100,000 credits a month, 150 flows, 50 agents, 10 team members, 50 database tables, 500 GB of storage, 14 days of logs and priority support.

• Business$449

  per workspace / month, billed yearly ($5,391); $599 monthly

  300,000 credits a month, 300 flows, 100 agents, 25 team members, 5 TB of storage, 30 days of logs, webhook alerts and a dedicated support channel.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Custom credits, self-hosting or your own cloud, Git-based version control, support SLAs, engineering consultation and compliance reports.

Zapier

• Free$0

  100 tasks a month for 1 user, limited to two-step Zaps, with unlimited Zaps, Tables and Forms and 15-minute polling.

• Professional$19.99

  per month, billed annually, for 750 tasks ($29.99 monthly)

  1 user. Multi-step Zaps, unlimited premium apps, webhooks, filters and paths, AI by Zapier and 2-minute polling. Task tiers run up to 2 million a month.

• Team$69

  per month, billed annually, for 2,000 tasks ($103.50 monthly)

  25 users, shared Zaps, folders and app connections, SAML single sign-on, priority support and 1-minute polling.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Unlimited users, advanced admin and app controls, SCIM provisioning, custom data retention and annual task limits.

BuildShip

• Annual discount

  25% off with yearly billing

  The pricing toggle marks yearly billing as 25% off: Starter is $19 a month billed yearly ($225) against $25 billed monthly, and Pro is $59 against $79.

Zapier

• Annual discount

  33% off with annual billing

  Zapier's pricing page says annual subscriptions are billed yearly at 33% off the monthly rate: Professional is $19.99 a month instead of $29.99, and Team $69 instead of $103.50.

• Nonprofit

  Extra 15% off for nonprofits

  The pricing page lists an additional 15% discount for non-profit organizations. It does not apply to pay-per-task charges.