We get this question a lot as an automation agency:
“Should we use Zapier or Make?”
Our honest answer? It depends.
Here’s how we break it down for our clients. Especially the accounting firms, creative agencies, and service businesses that make up most of our roster.
Zapier: The Usable, Universal Choice
If your firm has no internal technical team or you’re hoping to empower your existing team (admins, ops, marketing) to build and maintain automations, Zapier is the way to go.
Why?
- More App Connections: Zapier currently integrates with more tools than Make. That means you’re more likely to find what you need out of the box.
- Easier to Use: Zapier’s visual builder and simple logic make it accessible even to non-technical users. You won’t need an engineer to tweak a step or update a rule.
- Maintainability Matters: Automations don’t just need to work—they need to be fixable. Zapier makes that realistic for the average team.
- More Expensive: It’s true—Zapier does tend to cost more. But for many firms, the usability and access are well worth the price.
We use Zapier for most client builds for this exact reason. If you want your team to feel comfortable poking around, Zapier is where you’ll want to be.
Make: The Power Tool with a Learning Curve
Now, if you’ve got high-volume use cases, like reporting flows, backend-heavy data processing, or multi-branch logic, Make might be a better fit.
Why?
- More Powerful: Make often has more robust triggers and actions. (Case in point: QuickBooks Online has ~30 actions in Zapier… and over 90 in Make.)
- More Affordable: Especially at scale, Make’s pricing can save you a lot.
- More Flexible: Make gives us granular control, and we can build seriously advanced systems in it.
But… that power comes at a cost:
- Steep Learning Curve: Make is not beginner-friendly. Most non-technical team members won’t be able to maintain or troubleshoot scenarios on their own.
- Harder to Maintain: A small tweak can be intimidating if you’re not familiar with the interface or logic flow.
That’s why we reserve Make for specific high-volume cases—like our internal automation reports, which process thousands of app events on a monthly basis.
So Which Should You Choose?
Here’s the breakdown we give clients:
| If your team is… | Choose… |
|---|---|
| Non-technical and needs to be able to maintain things | Zapier |
| Looking to empower ops/admin to build automations | Zapier |
| Working with lots of apps and moderate volume | Zapier |
| Handling complex, high-volume, data-heavy workflows | Make |
| Comfortable with technical tools and want more control | Make |
| Open to using both where it makes sense | Both (many of our clients do!) |
Final Thoughts
You don’t need to pick a side.
You just need to know what’s best for the job.
Here, we use both tools regularly—because each has its strengths. We’re happy to help clients build systems in either platform, or even mix and match them based on the specific use case.
If you’re not sure what fits best, we offer automation audits that help you see where and how tools like Zapier or Make can deliver the most value.
Let’s make your systems smarter—without making them harder.