Automation & Integration · head to head
n8n vs Tines
The short version
- Each has a real cost: n8n starter tier limited to 1 project and 5 concurrent executions; Tines no-code, UI-driven approach is restrictive for complex logic and version control integration with SDLC
- They diverge on capability: n8n covers Workflow automation, Tines covers Story builder.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which n8n and Tines actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Automation & Integration).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in n8n
- Workflow automation
- Visual editor
- Conditional execution
- Looping
- Error handling
- Scheduling
- Webhooks
- REST API
Only in Tines
- Story builder
- Drag-and-drop workflows
- Event triggers
- Incident response automation
- Threat intelligence
- Case management
- Alert triage
- Jira
Both cover
- Slack
- Cloud deployment
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
n8n
- Building AI agents and workflow automation for technical teamsnot Tines
- Visual workflow design with capability to write custom JavaScript or Python codenot Tines
- Enterprise deployments with self-hosted or cloud optionsnot Tines
- Integrating 500+ pre-built applications with custom API connectionsnot Tines
Tines
- Workflow Automationnot n8n
- Data Integrationnot n8n
- Process Automationnot n8n
- App Integrationnot n8n
- API Connectivitynot n8n
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
n8n
- Starter tier limited to 1 project and 5 concurrent executions
- Starter and Pro tiers restricted to Cloud hosting only, not self-hosted
- Business tier requires 6 months minimum commitment at €667/month
- SSO/SAML/LDAP authentication requires Business or Enterprise tier
- Dedicated support with SLA available only on Enterprise plan
Tines
- No-code, UI-driven approach is restrictive for complex logic and version control integration with SDLC
- No native log intelligence layer to validate data completeness
- Limited scope to security workloads, cannot handle general business automation
- Governance features lag behind EU AI Act compliance requirements
Pricing, plan by plan
n8n
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the n8n review.
Tines
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Tines review.
Which should you pick?
Choose n8n if
- You need workflow automation.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Docker, Self-hosted.
- You also want visual editor.
Choose Tines if
- You need story builder.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want drag-and-drop workflows.
Questions people ask
- Is n8n or Tines better?
- Neither clearly leads. n8n starts at Free and Tines at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, n8n or Tines?
- n8n starts at Free and Tines at Free.
- Does n8n or Tines run on more platforms?
- n8n runs on Web, Docker, Self-hosted. Tines runs on Web.
- Can I use n8n for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is n8n best used for?
- n8n is most often used for building ai agents and workflow automation for technical teams, visual workflow design with capability to write custom javascript or python code, enterprise deployments with self-hosted or cloud options, integrating 500+ pre-built applications with custom api connections. Of those, building ai agents and workflow automation for technical teams and visual workflow design with capability to write custom javascript or python code are not what Tines is typically brought in for.
- What can n8n do that Tines cannot?
- n8n covers Workflow automation, Visual editor, Conditional execution, Looping. Tines covers Story builder, Drag-and-drop workflows, Event triggers, Incident response automation. Both handle Slack, Cloud deployment.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Tines: What are Tines' pricing tiers?
Tines offers a free Community Edition for evaluation, Starter Edition at $500/month with annual billing, and Business/Enterprise tiers starting around $50,000/year for small security teams and scaling to $200,000+ for large SOCs.
SourceTines: What is the Community Edition limited to?
As of July 2026, the free Community Edition is scoped to 1 builder and 3 flows as an evaluation tool to test Tines' capabilities.
SourceTines: Is Tines limited to security automation?
Yes, Tines is purpose-built for security automation. Teams needing non-security automation on the same orchestration layer would need to evaluate alternatives.
SourceTines: Does Tines have native log intelligence capabilities?
No, Tines lacks a native log intelligence layer, meaning it cannot determine whether the data feeding your detection tools is complete. Teams must build automation against whatever alerts their existing infrastructure provides.
Source