Langflow vs n8n

Langflow

• Developers prototyping agent and RAG applications on a canvas
• Teams that want to self-host an MIT-licensed builder
• Turning flows into API endpoints or MCP tools for other applications

n8n

• Technical teams that want to host their automation on their own servers
• Developers who mix visual workflows with JavaScript or Python
• Building AI agents where every step can be inspected

Langflow

• The docs cover only self-managed installs: Desktop, Docker, the Python package or Kubernetes. The homepage mentions a free cloud account but links no sign-up.
• Langflow Desktop is for macOS 13 or later and Windows, and lacks some features such as the Shareable Playground and Voice Mode.
• On Intel Macs, the ML and AI components that depend on PyTorch are limited or unavailable.
• The team gives no individual support by email: help comes through GitHub and community channels unless you subscribe to IBM Elite Support.

n8n

• n8n Cloud has no free plan; the free option is self-hosting the Community Edition, which you run and maintain yourself.
• The Community Edition leaves out SSO, projects, environments, Git version control and workflow sharing.
• The Business plan is self-hosted only and starts at €667 a month, billed annually.
• The pricing page showed prices in euros when checked; no US dollar price list was found on n8n's site.

Langflow

Visual flow editor

A flow is built by dragging component nodes onto a canvas and connecting them. Each component is one step, with parameters you fix or override at run time.

Playground

Test a flow and see its logic and responses in real time without building the rest of the application, or run a single component on its own.

Agents and tools

Agent components can call other components and whole flows as tools, running as a single agent or as several working together.

MCP server and client

Flows can be exposed as tools through Langflow's MCP server, and Langflow can connect to external MCP servers as a client.

API and deployment

Flows run from your own code through the Langflow API or are exported as JSON. The docs cover Docker, Kubernetes, remote servers and cloud providers.

Custom Python components

Components are written in Python, so you can edit the ones provided, write your own or install components shared by other users.

n8n

Visual builder with code steps

Workflows are built on a canvas, and JavaScript or Python can be written anywhere in them. Single steps can be re-run and earlier data replayed while debugging.

AI agents

Agents are assembled from AI nodes on the same canvas, with each step of their reasoning open to inspection and the option to require human approval.

Self-hosting

n8n can run on your own infrastructure with Docker, including air-gapped setups. The Community Edition is free; Business and Enterprise add SSO, environments and Git version control.

Execution-based pricing

One run of a whole workflow counts as a single execution, however many steps it has. Going over the plan quota does not stop workflows, but overage charges may apply.

Integrations and custom APIs

The homepage cites 500+ integrations, including Google Sheets, Slack and OpenAI, and other services can be reached through custom API connections.

Shared projects

Shared projects group workflows for a team: 1 on Starter, 3 on Pro, 6 on Business and unlimited on Enterprise. Pro adds admin roles and workflow history.

Langflow

• Langflow OSSFree

  The full MIT-licensed application, run with Langflow Desktop on macOS or Windows, a Docker image or the Python package.

• IBM Elite Support for LangflowCustom

  Optional subscription to IBM technical support for open-source deployments you run yourself. It covers support only and includes no software license.

n8n

• Community Edition€0

  Self-hosted from GitHub. Almost the complete feature set, without SSO, projects, environments, Git version control or workflow sharing.

• Starter€20

  per month, billed annually, for 2,500 executions

  Hosted by n8n. Unlimited steps per workflow, 1 shared project, 5 concurrent executions, and agents, MCP and AI nodes.

• Pro€50

  per month, billed annually, for 10,000 executions

  Hosted by n8n. 3 shared projects, up to 50 concurrent executions, 7 days of insights, admin roles and workflow history.

• Business€667

  per month, billed annually, for 40,000 executions

  Self-hosted only. 6 shared projects, SSO with SAML and LDAP, multiple environments, Git version control, queue mode and 30 days of insights.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Hosted or self-hosted. Custom executions, unlimited shared projects, 200+ concurrent executions, external secret store, log streaming and SLA support.

Langflow

No public discounts listed.

n8n

• Annual discount

  Save 17% with annual billing

  n8n's pricing page shows a 17% saving when a plan is billed annually instead of monthly. The prices listed here are the annual rates.

• Startups

  Start-up Plan: 50% off Business

  Companies with fewer than 20 employees can check whether they qualify for the Start-up Plan, which takes 50% off the Business plan.