How do you migrate workflows from Make to n8n?

Why Migrate from Make to n8n

Common reasons for migrating from Make to n8n:

• Cost reduction: Make Teams plan at $348/month vs n8n self-hosted at approximately $10-15/month for infrastructure
• Data sovereignty: Self-hosted n8n keeps all data on the infrastructure
• Execution limits: Make charges per operation; n8n self-hosted has no execution limits
• Code flexibility: n8n supports custom JavaScript and Python in every node
• Community extensions: n8n's open-source ecosystem allows custom node development

Step 1: Export Make Blueprints

Before building anything in n8n, document existing Make setup:

1. Navigate to each scenario in Make
2. Click the three-dot menu → "Export Blueprint"
3. Save the JSON blueprint file for reference
4. Screenshot each scenario's visual layout for reference during rebuilding

Blueprints are not directly importable into n8n, but they serve as a detailed reference for the modules, data mappings, and logic used in each scenario.

Step 2: Analyze Your Scenario Inventory

Create a migration inventory spreadsheet:

Prioritize by business impact and complexity. Migrate critical, simple scenarios first to build confidence.

Step 3: Map Make Modules to n8n Nodes

Most Make modules have direct n8n equivalents:

For Make modules without n8n equivalents, use the HTTP Request node with the service's API directly, or check n8n's community nodes.

Step 4: Recreate Credentials

Credentials cannot be transferred between platforms. For each connected service:

1. Create new OAuth tokens or API keys in the external service
2. Configure credentials in n8n's credential manager
3. Test each credential before building workflows

For OAuth services (Google, Microsoft, Salesforce), you may need to create new OAuth applications in each provider's developer console.

Step 5: Rebuild Workflows

For each scenario in your migration inventory:

1. Create a new workflow in n8n
2. Add the trigger node (matching the Make scenario trigger)
3. Build the node chain, following the Make blueprint as reference
4. Map data fields using n8n expressions (syntax differs from Make)
5. Add error handling branches where the Make scenario had error routes

Key Syntax Differences

Step 6: Update Webhook URLs

If any Make scenarios used incoming webhooks, external systems are sending data to Make-specific URLs. After rebuilding in n8n:

1. Note the new n8n webhook URLs for each workflow
2. Update webhook URLs in all external systems (form builders, payment providers, CRM webhook settings)
3. Verify each external system sends test data to the new n8n URL

This is often the most time-consuming step, especially when webhook URLs are configured in multiple external systems.

Step 7: Run in Parallel

Before cutting over completely:

1. Keep Make scenarios active
2. Activate n8n workflows in parallel
3. Compare outputs for 1-2 weeks
4. Verify data consistency between both platforms
5. Monitor n8n execution logs for errors

For scenarios with side effects (creating records, sending emails), route n8n workflows to a test environment or add a "dry run" flag during the parallel period.

Step 8: Cut Over

Once parallel testing confirms parity:

1. Disable Make scenarios one by one (do not delete them yet)
2. Monitor n8n for 48 hours
3. After 2 weeks of stable n8n operation, export Make blueprints as a final backup
4. Cancel the Make subscription
5. Keep exported blueprints archived for reference

Migration Timeline

Editor's Note: We migrated 23 Make scenarios for a client over 3 weeks with one consultant. The breakdown: credential recreation and webhook URL updates across 8 external systems consumed approximately 40% of the total time. The actual workflow rebuilding was straightforward — most Make modules mapped cleanly to n8n nodes. The most complex scenario (a 15-module data transformation pipeline with iterators and aggregators) took a full day to rebuild and test. Monthly cost dropped from $348 (Make Teams plan) to approximately $12 (Hetzner VPS running n8n). The client's operations team needed 2 hours of training on n8n's interface and a 1-page reference guide for monitoring executions. Six months post-migration, they have not needed external help for day-to-day workflow management.