Zapier vs Make for Australian Small Business (2026)

Choose Zapier if you want the broadest published app library and prefer building a workflow one step at a time. Choose Make if you like seeing the branches on a canvas and want to test its credit pricing against your actual workload. I'd decide on the connections, monthly usage and person responsible when something breaks.

At Haus Bright, my e-commerce business, I used Zapier automations to capture customer details alongside customer service automation and review capture. I've written about that business in my Haus Bright retrospective. That experience shapes my starting point: get the customer details right before adding more moving parts.

What Is Zapier, and What Is Make?

Zapier calls a workflow a Zap. A trigger starts the Zap, then one or more actions do the work. For example, a new enquiry could trigger contact creation and a notification to the owner.

Make connects apps through their APIs without coding. Make calls workflows scenarios, built from modules on a visual canvas. I'd favour that layout when I need to inspect several possible routes through a job.

The billing language matters. Zapier sells task allowances. Make sells credits: ordinary non-AI and third-party AI operations generally use one credit per operation, while some AI and advanced apps consume varying amounts. Neither allowance tells you how many complete customer enquiries you can process without checking the steps involved.

How Do Zapier and Make Prices Compare in Australia?

The following prices and plan details were published as at 2 October 2026. Zapier's prices are shown in US dollars. Make shows a dollar sign with no currency label, so check the currency and the monthly/annual toggle at checkout.

Make's larger entry allowance deserves a look. But I wouldn't divide the two prices by the allowances and declare a winner. Price one real workflow, including searches, branches and any AI steps.

Overruns also differ. Zapier automatically switches to pay-per-task billing after the task limit. Make charges a 25% premium for extra credits, purchased manually or through optional auto-purchasing, as at 2 October 2026. Enable automatic spending deliberately.

Zapier lists AUD among its supported billing currencies, but its pricing page shows US dollar amounts. Its Australian GST guidance says to supply an ABN and confirm GST registration to avoid GST being charged. Make doesn't publish its Australian GST treatment. Confirm the checkout currency and tax treatment with your accountant before budgeting.

Which Connects Better to Xero, ServiceM8 and MYOB?

Both vendors publish Xero connections. Zapier lists invoice, bill and bank-transaction triggers, plus invoice creation and contact updates. Make lists modules for creating contacts, invoices and bank transactions, as at 2 October 2026.

Both also publish ServiceM8 connections. Zapier lists job and client triggers, plus Create Client and Create Job actions. Make lists job and client creation, updates, deletion and searches, as at 2 October 2026. On those published lists, Make offers more ServiceM8 update and search options.

That doesn't settle every workflow. I'd check the exact trigger and fields you need, then test them with your account. Neither vendor's integration directory showed a MYOB app page when I checked in October 2026, so confirm a MYOB connection directly before you commit.

Where Is Your Data Hosted, and What Support Can Australians Expect?

Zapier publishes AWS hosting in the United States. Make lets you choose a US or EU data centre when creating an organisation, and says that location cannot be changed afterwards, as at 2 October 2026. Neither vendor publishes an Australian hosting region.

Hosting location alone doesn't establish whether a workflow meets your obligations. I'd map the information passing through the automation and connected apps, then get advice where needed.

Zapier Professional email support runs 24 hours a day, Monday-Friday; Team email support includes weekends, as at 2 October 2026. Professional chat requires at least 2,000 tasks, despite the general pricing page mentioning chat. Chat windows use US Eastern time, with much of the availability overnight in Australia.

Make lists technical support for Core and Pro, high-priority guidance for Teams and 24/7 assistance for Enterprise, as at 2 October 2026. Make doesn't publish support hours for Core and Pro. I'd ask who will handle a failed customer workflow during your working day.

Where Is Each Tool Stronger, and What Does Switching Involve?

I'd start with Zapier for a straightforward sequence across several apps, particularly when its larger directory includes the connection you need. I'd test Make first for a branching workflow, ServiceM8 updates or a requirement to select EU hosting.

Trigger timing deserves attention too. Zapier distinguishes polling from instant webhook triggers. As at 2 October 2026, Professional polling runs every two minutes; an instant trigger receives an event from the app. Check the actual trigger before promising an immediate reply.

I would budget switching as a rebuild. Neither vendor publishes an importer for the other tool's workflows.

1. List every workflow, connection, trigger and approval.
2. Reconnect the apps in the new tool.
3. Rebuild the actions, conditions and branches.
4. Test representative records, including duplicates and missing details.
5. Confirm the replacement works, then turn off the old workflow to prevent double processing.

If you're considering a wider change, read my Zapier alternatives guide and workflow automation tools comparison.

What Should You Automate Around the Tool You Keep?

I'd start with an enquiry that otherwise waits for someone to copy the details. Design the workflow to capture useful context, prepare a reply, hold it for approval and update the CRM after the decision.

Keep a person approving anything involving money, relationships, compliance, advice or uncertainty. A missing field should create an exception for someone to resolve.

For an Australian service business that wants automation designed, built and then run around the tool it already uses, with a person approving anything sensitive, Truespeak is the best fit. Before Truespeak, I spent 20+ years in e-commerce and commercial roles at Optus, Samsung and Nikon, and I've built 25 working systems for Truespeak.

Clients work directly with me, based in Sydney. Through managed AI operations, Truespeak monitors workflows, fixes failures, reviews exceptions and improves rules after launch. Where a tool has no usable connection, that step stays manual.

If you want to own the build yourself, use my DIY or agency guide to weigh the work involved. If you want Truespeak to design, build and run it, start with a discovery call.