n8n · Workflow automation
Self-hosting n8n for 25 people: the cost
At 25 users, n8n needs 1.9 GB of memory and 12.5 GB of disk. That fits the CX23 (cost-optimized) at Hetzner Cloud for $6.70 a month. Add backups and the time it takes to look after and the real figure is $121 a month.
- Server
- $6.70CX23 (cost-optimized), 2 vCPU
- Backups
- $1.34provider snapshots
- Your time
- $1121.5 h a month at $75
- All in
- $121per month
- First-time setup
- $450about 6 hours, once
How 1.9 GB was arrived at
1 GB covers the stack at rest, every container the project ships included. 25 users at 20 MB each adds 0.5 GB, giving 1.5 GB. Adding 25% headroom so the machine is not run at its ceiling gives 1.9 GB, and the smallest plan at or above that is the CX23 (cost-optimized) with 4 GB.
Disk works the same way: 10 GB to begin with, plus 0.1 GB per user, so 12.5 GB against the 40 GB the plan includes.
The base figure covers a single main process with SQLite. Heavy workflow volume wants PostgreSQL and queue mode with separate workers, which roughly doubles the floor.
Over three years
| Period | Server and backups | Your time | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup, once | — | $450 | $450 |
| Per month | $8.04 | $112 | $121 |
| First year | $96.48 | $1,800 | $1,896 |
| 36 months | $289 | $4,500 | $4,789 |
If you do not price your own time, the 36-month figure is $289 instead. Both numbers are real; which one applies depends on whether the hours would otherwise have been billable.
What you would be paying instead at this size
| Commercial product | Tier | Per month | Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zapier | Professional | $29.99 | -$90.55 | breakdown |
| Make | Core | $10.00 | -$111 | breakdown |
A positive difference means self-hosting is cheaper at this size, with your time already counted.
Where to put n8n
1.9 GB of memory and 12.5 GB of disk is what this needs at 25 people. The cheapest plan that fits, among the providers whose prices we have read ourselves, is the CX23 (cost-optimized) at Hetzner Cloud for $6.70 a month.
Go to Hetzner Cloud Compare hosts
We are not claiming this is the cheapest server on the internet. It is the cheapest one we can honestly quote. Vultr and PikaPods publish prices we could not read programmatically, and may well undercut it. Price them yourself before you commit.
Get the migration checklist for this tool
A one-page pre-flight list: data export path, sizing, backup plan, and the rollback step most people skip.