Staxly

n8n vs Helicone

Source-available workflow automation — fair-code, self-host or cloud
vs. Open-source LLM observability — 1-line integration via proxy

n8n websiteHelicone website

Pricing tiers

n8n

Community (self-host)
Source-available (fair-code). Free forever. Full feature set self-hosted.
$0 base (usage-based)
Cloud Starter
€20/mo annual (~$22). 2,500 workflow executions. 5 concurrent. 1 shared project. Unlimited users.
$22/mo
Cloud Pro
€50/mo annual (~$55). Custom execution volume. 20 concurrent. 3 shared projects. 7-day insights.
$55/mo
Cloud Business
€667/mo annual (~$735). 40,000 executions. 30 concurrent. 6 projects. Self-host option. SSO, SAML, LDAP. Git version control.
$735/mo
Enterprise
Custom. 200+ concurrent. Unlimited projects. SLA. 365-day retention.
Custom
n8n website

Helicone

Hobby (Free)
10,000 requests/month. 7-day retention. 1 seat. Basic monitoring.
Free
Startup Discount
<2 years, <$5M funding: 50% off first year.
$0 base (usage-based)
Self-Hosted (OSS)
MIT-licensed. Run Helicone yourself for free.
$0 base (usage-based)
Pro
$79/month. 10k free + usage-based. Unlimited seats. Alerts, reports, HQL query language. 1-month retention.
$79/mo
Team
$799/month. 5 orgs, SOC-2 + HIPAA compliance, dedicated Slack, 3-month retention.
$799/mo
Enterprise
Custom MSA, SAML SSO, on-prem deploy, bulk discounts, forever retention.
Custom
Helicone website

Free-tier quotas head-to-head

Comparing starter on n8n vs hobby on Helicone.

Metricn8nHelicone
No overlapping quota metrics for these tiers.

Features

n8n · 19 features

  • 500+ Integration NodesApps, SaaS, DBs, cloud services, AI models.
  • AI / LangChain NodesAI Agent, Chain, Memory, Vector Store nodes out of box.
  • Audit LogsEnterprise compliance logging.
  • Code Nodes (JS + Python)Drop-in custom code nodes with full data access.
  • Credentials VaultEncrypted credentials per service.
  • Environmentsdev/staging/prod environments.
  • Error WorkflowsGlobal + per-workflow error handlers.
  • Execution HistoryFull run log with inputs/outputs per node.
  • Expression EditorJavaScript expressions for data mapping.
  • External SecretsHashiCorp Vault + AWS Secrets + Azure Key Vault integrations.
  • Git Version ControlVersion workflows in Git (Business+).
  • HTTP Request NodeFull-featured HTTP client node (any REST API).
  • Queue ModeRedis-backed execution queue for scaling.
  • Schedule TriggersCron-based triggers down to the minute.
  • SSO + SAML + LDAPBusiness+ authentication.
  • Sub-WorkflowsReusable child workflows.
  • VariablesGlobal variables + per-workflow variables.
  • Visual EditorDrag-and-drop flow builder. Node-based canvas.
  • WebhooksWebhook triggers + responses.

Helicone · 16 features

  • AlertsThresholds on error rate, latency, cost, usage. Pro+.
  • Async LoggingLog AFTER the LLM call via SDK — zero added latency.
  • Cost TrackingAutomatic cost calculation per call by provider/model.
  • DashboardRequest tables, aggregate metrics, cost breakdowns.
  • EvaluatorsLLM-as-judge + custom evaluators on runs.
  • ExperimentsA/B test different models/prompts.
  • HQL (SQL over traces)Query your logged data with SQL. Pro+.
  • PII RedactionAutomatically scrub emails, credit cards, etc. from logs.
  • Prompt CachingCache identical requests → save money.
  • Prompts & VersionsStore + version + A/B test prompts.
  • Proxy Mode1-line integration via base URL swap. Captures all requests.
  • Rate LimitingPer-user + per-key rate limit policies.
  • ReportsScheduled email reports with KPIs.
  • Self-HostingDocker + k8s deployment.
  • SessionsGroup related calls (chat sessions, agent runs).
  • User MetricsPer-user cost + usage segmentation.

Developer interfaces

Kindn8nHelicone
CLIn8n CLIHelicone CLI
SDKhelicone (npm), helicone-python
RESTn8n REST APIAsync Logging API, Helicone Proxy, Query API (HQL)
MCPn8n MCP
OTHERn8n Editor UI, Webhook TriggersHelicone Dashboard, Webhooks
Staxly is an independent catalog of developer platforms. Outbound links to n8n and Helicone are plain references to their official websites. Pricing is verified against vendor pages at publication time — reconfirm before buying.

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