2 Best Open-Source Alternatives to Relay.app in 2026
By Noahlast updated
Compared: open-source alternatives to Relay.app
| Alternative | Best for | Standout | Biggest weakness | Learning curve | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Relay.appreference | teams that already used Relay.app and need to export their workflows and data before the September 14, 2026 shutdown; not a fit for anyone starting new automation work | Human-in-the-loop AI steps that let a person review or edit an AI-generated action before it executed, rather than running AI actions fully autonomously. | Relay.app is shutting down entirely: free-user access ended August 15, 2026, and paying-customer access ends September 14, 2026. It is not accepting new customers and offers no ongoing product to evaluate or switch to. | Low | Pricing not verified |
| n8n | technical teams that want to mix visual workflow building with custom code, either self-hosted for full control or on cloud paying per execution instead of per step | Billing by full workflow execution rather than by individual step or task, so complex multi-node automations don't multiply cost the way per-task pricing does on competitors. | Cloud pricing is listed in euros, not dollars, and jumps sharply from Pro (€50/month) to Business (€667/month), leaving a wide gap for teams that outgrow Pro's execution limits but don't need Business's SSO and compliance features. | Moderate | Free |
| Activepieces | engineering-adjacent teams that want Zapier-style automation but need self-hosting, SOC 2/GDPR compliance, or freedom from per-task pricing | MIT-licensed Community Edition can be self-hosted for free with unlimited flows and runs, with no artificial cap on automation volume the way per-task pricing on closed competitors imposes. | The free self-hosted Community Edition excludes AI agents, chat-to-automation, API access, and admin controls like SSO and audit logs, so teams that want those features are pushed to a paid Cloud plan or commercial license despite the open-source branding. | Moderate | Free tier · paid from $16/mo |
Relay.app
n8n
Activepieces1.n8n — best Relay.app alternative for technical teams that want to mix visual workflow building with custom code, either self-hosted for full control or on cloud paying per execution instead of per step
n8n is the best Relay.app alternative for technical teams that want to mix visual workflow building with custom code, either self-hosted for full control or on cloud, and who need an actively maintained platform now that Relay.app has stopped accepting customers ahead of its September 14, 2026 shutdown. n8n's Self-hosted Community edition is free via Docker under the Sustainable Use License with the complete automation engine, and it holds a 4.6/5 rating from 48 Capterra reviews, a verified sample Relay.app's own 5.0/5 from 43 pre-shutdown Product Hunt reviews is close to in size but not in ongoing reliability. Like Relay.app, n8n supports building multi-agent AI workflows with human-in-the-loop approval, the closest structural match to Relay.app's own AI-step review model among these alternatives, so teams that valued that workflow specifically can find a similar pattern here. n8n's cloud Starter tier publishes a clear €20/month price for 2,500 executions, a transparent number Relay.app's own historical pricing tiers weren't available to confirm after its shutdown notice replaced normal marketing pages. Relay.app, while it was operating, was simpler to onboard onto for non-technical teams: n8n's cloud pricing jumps sharply from Pro (€50/month) to Business (€667/month) with nothing in between, and self-hosting requires managing your own Docker infrastructure and updates, a technical commitment beyond what Relay.app's no-code builder required.
Compared to Relay.app: free, fully-featured self-hosted Community edition vs Relay.app's cloud-only, now-shutting-down service, supports multi-agent AI workflows with human-in-the-loop approval matching Relay.app's own review model, published €20/month Starter cloud pricing
Wins:Free, fully self-hostable Community edition via Docker with the complete automation engine, versus Relay.app's cloud-only service now shutting down · Supports multi-agent AI workflows with human-in-the-loop approval, the closest match to Relay.app's own AI-step review model among these alternatives · Published cloud pricing starting at €20/month for 2,500 executions, a transparent number Relay.app's shutdown notice replaced with no confirmable pricing
Loses:Cloud pricing jumps sharply from Pro (€50/month) to Business (€667/month), a wide gap · Self-hosting requires managing your own Docker infrastructure and updates, a technical commitment beyond Relay.app's no-code builder · Only 500+ pre-built app integrations, a narrower connector library than some no-code-first competitors
Pros
- Bills per full workflow execution, not per step, which can be cheaper than per-task pricing for complex automations.
- Free, fully-featured self-hosted Community edition via Docker with the complete automation engine.
- Every node can be extended or replaced with custom JavaScript or Python code.
- 500+ pre-built app integrations plus native support for building multi-agent AI workflows with human-in-the-loop steps.
Cons
- Large price jump between Pro (€50/month) and Business (€667/month) cloud tiers, with nothing in between.
- Sustainable Use License is not OSI-approved open source; enterprise features require a separate commercial license even for self-hosted use.
- Self-hosting requires managing your own Docker infrastructure, updates, and scaling, unlike a fully managed cloud automation tool.
- Visual canvas can get cluttered on large workflows with many branches and custom code nodes.
Pricing: Free — €20/month Starter cloud (2,500 executions) vs Relay.app's unpublished historical pricing (verified undefined NaN, NaN)
2.Activepieces — best Relay.app alternative for engineering-adjacent teams that want Zapier-style automation but need self-hosting, SOC 2/GDPR compliance, or freedom from per-task pricing
Activepieces is the best Relay.app alternative for engineering-adjacent teams that want Zapier-style automation but need self-hosting, SOC 2/GDPR compliance, or freedom from per-task pricing, all while migrating off a platform that is permanently discontinuing service. Activepieces' MIT-licensed Community Edition is free to self-host via Docker or Helm with unlimited flows, runs, and users, a stronger and more durable free option than anything Relay.app offered before its shutdown. Like Relay.app, Activepieces positions itself as "AI-first" with an AI agent builder and chat-to-automation feature that turns a natural-language request into a working flow, the closest conceptual match to Relay.app's own AI-assisted workflow building among these alternatives. Activepieces' GitHub repo has 23.9k stars with 60% of its integration "pieces" community-contributed, and it holds a 5.0/5 rating from 7 Product Hunt reviews, comparable in score to Relay.app's own pre-shutdown 5.0/5 from 43 reviews. Relay.app, while it was operating, offered a more mature, business-critical-automation-focused product with dedicated human-in-the-loop AI-step approval: Activepieces' free self-hosted Community Edition excludes AI agents, chat-to-automation, and API access, so teams that want those features must move to a paid Cloud plan, and it's a younger project than more established competitors, with a smaller integration library still growing.
Compared to Relay.app: MIT-licensed Community Edition free to self-host with unlimited flows, runs, and users, AI agent builder and chat-to-automation echoing Relay.app's own AI-assisted approach, 23.9k GitHub stars with 60% community-contributed integrations
Wins:MIT-licensed Community Edition is genuinely free to self-host with unlimited flows, runs, and users, a more durable option than Relay.app's now-discontinued cloud service · AI agent builder and chat-to-automation echo Relay.app's own AI-assisted workflow building, the closest conceptual match among these alternatives · SOC 2 Type II and GDPR-compliant cloud hosting available for teams that need it without self-hosting
Loses:AI agents, chat automation, and API access are withheld from the free self-hosted edition, pushing teams that want those features to a paid Cloud plan or commercial license · No dedicated human-in-the-loop review step for AI-generated actions the way Relay.app's approval model offered before shutdown · Younger project than more established competitors, so its integration library, while growing fast, is smaller
Pros
- MIT-licensed Community Edition is genuinely free to self-host with unlimited flows, runs, and users.
- 700+ integrations including Gmail, Slack, HubSpot, and OpenAI, with 60% of pieces community-contributed.
- SOC 2 Type II and GDPR-compliant cloud hosting for teams that need it without self-hosting.
- AI agent builder and chat-to-automation for turning natural-language requests into flows.
Cons
- AI agents, chat automation, and API access are withheld from the free self-hosted edition.
- Team plan jumps to $166/month for 25 users, a steep step up from the $16/month Plus tier's 5-user cap.
- Enterprise features (SCIM, custom roles, audit logs) require contacting sales for custom Ultimate pricing.
- Younger project than Zapier or Make, so its integration library, while growing fast, is smaller than established competitors.
Pricing: Free tier · paid from $16/mo — $16/month Plus (Cloud) vs Relay.app's unpublished historical pricing (verified undefined NaN, NaN)