Automatisch - Open Source Self-Hosted Zapier Alternative

TL;DR

TL;DR: Automatisch is a self-hosted, open source workflow automation platform that connects 100+ services like Zapier but keeps your data on your own servers.

Source and Accuracy Notes

• Project page: automatisch.io
• Source repository: github.com/automatisch/automatisch
• License: AGPL-3.0 (Community Edition) with Enterprise option (verified from LICENSE file)
• HN launch thread: news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34519639
• Latest version: v0.9.3 (verified via git ls-remote --tags)
• Source last checked: 2026-06-16

What Is Automatisch?

Automatisch is a business automation tool that lets you connect different services like Twitter, Slack, GitHub, Gmail, and more to automate your business processes. As the project describes it:

Automatisch is a business automation tool that lets you connect different services like Twitter, Slack, and more to automate your business processes.

The key differentiator from Zapier or Make (formerly Integromat) is self-hosting. You store all data on your own servers, which matters for:

• GDPR compliance - European companies that cannot risk sharing data with external cloud services
• Healthcare and finance - industries handling sensitive user information
• No vendor lock-in - all your data and flows stay under your control

The project has 13,800+ GitHub stars and offers both a Community Edition (AGPL-3.0) and an Enterprise Edition with additional features.

Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose installed
• A server or VPS with at least 1GB RAM
• Basic familiarity with command line

Step 1: Clone and Start with Docker Compose

The official installation method uses Docker Compose. This spins up Automatisch with PostgreSQL and Redis:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/automatisch/automatisch.git

# Go to the repository folder
cd automatisch

# Start all services
docker compose up

This starts three containers:

• main - the Automatisch web app on port 3000
• worker - background job processor
• postgres - PostgreSQL 14.5 database
• redis - Redis for job queues

Step 2: Set Required Environment Variables

Before running in production, you must configure three critical environment variables. The docker-compose.yml references these:

# Generate secure random keys
ENCRYPTION_KEY=$(openssl rand -hex 32)
WEBHOOK_SECRET_KEY=$(openssl rand -hex 32)
APP_SECRET_KEY=$(openssl rand -hex 32)

Create a .env file in the automatisch directory:

ENCRYPTION_KEY=your-generated-encryption-key
WEBHOOK_SECRET_KEY=your-generated-webhook-key
APP_SECRET_KEY=your-generated-app-key

Important: The docs warn that if you change ENCRYPTION_KEY or WEBHOOK_SECRET_KEY after initial setup, your existing connections and flows will stop working. Generate them once and keep them safe.

Step 3: Log In and Create Your First Flow

Once docker compose up completes, open http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

Default credentials:

• Email: [email protected]
• Password: sample

Change these immediately from the settings page after first login.

To create your first automation:

1. Click Create Flow in the dashboard
2. Choose a trigger app (e.g., RSS, Scheduler, Webhook)
3. Choose an action app (e.g., Slack, Twitter, Gmail)
4. Connect your accounts using OAuth or API keys
5. Activate the flow

Available Integrations

Automatisch ships with 100+ integrations out of the box. Some notable ones:

Communication: Slack, Discord, Telegram, SMTP, Mattermost

Productivity: Google Sheets, Google Docs, Google Calendar, Notion, Trello, Asana, Todoist, Google Tasks

Development: GitHub, GitLab, Gitea, HTTP Request, Webhooks

Marketing: Mailchimp, MailerLite, HubSpot, WordPress, Ghost

AI: OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral AI, OpenRouter, Perplexity, Together AI

Finance: Stripe, Xero, Invoice Ninja, Firefly III, You Need A Budget

If you need an integration that does not exist yet, you can request one or build it yourself using their integration SDK.

Deeper Analysis: Automatisch vs Zapier

| Feature | Automatisch | Zapier | |---------|-------------|--------| | Hosting | Self-hosted | Cloud only | | Data ownership | Full control | Zapier’s servers | | Pricing | Free (AGPL-3.0) | From $19.99/mo | | Integrations | 100+ | 6,000+ | | AI integrations | OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, etc. | Yes | | Custom integrations | Build with SDK | Limited | | GDPR compliance | By design | Shared responsibility |

The integration count gap (100+ vs 6,000+) is the main trade-off. If you need a niche SaaS connector, Zapier likely has it. But for the most common workflows (Slack notifications, email automation, GitHub triggers, Google Sheets sync), Automatisch covers the essentials.

Practical Evaluation Checklist

Use this before committing to Automatisch for your workflows:

• [ ] Check if your required apps are in the available apps list
• [ ] Verify you can run Docker on your infrastructure
• [ ] Test the default Docker Compose setup locally first
• [ ] Generate and securely store your encryption keys
• [ ] Plan backup strategy for PostgreSQL data volume
• [ ] Check if the AGPL-3.0 license works for your use case (enterprise needs may require the Enterprise Edition)

Security Notes

• Change default credentials immediately - the [email protected] / sample login is public knowledge
• Protect your encryption keys - losing ENCRYPTION_KEY means losing access to all stored third-party credentials
• Use HTTPS in production - set PROTOCOL=https and configure a reverse proxy (Caddy, nginx) with TLS
• Keep Docker images updated - pull the latest Automatisch version regularly for security patches
• Firewall port 3000 - only expose the app through your reverse proxy, not directly

FAQ

Q: Is Automatisch completely free? A: The Community Edition is free under AGPL-3.0. There is also an Enterprise Edition with additional features for commercial use. Files with .ee. in their name fall under the Enterprise license.

Q: Can I migrate my workflows from Zapier to Automatisch? A: There is no automatic migration tool. You need to recreate your workflows (called “flows” in Automatisch) manually. The concepts are similar: triggers, actions, and connections.

Q: What happens if I lose my ENCRYPTION_KEY? A: All stored third-party credentials become unreadable. You would need to re-authenticate all connections. There is no recovery mechanism by design.

Q: Does Automatisch support AI/LLM integrations? A: Yes. It includes actions for OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral AI, OpenRouter, Perplexity, and Together AI. You can build LLM-powered workflows alongside your other automations.

Q: How do I update Automatisch? A: Pull the latest code with git pull, then run docker compose up --build to rebuild the containers with the new version.

Conclusion

Automatisch fills a real gap for teams that need workflow automation but cannot send their data to third-party clouds. The Docker-based setup is straightforward, the 100+ integrations cover most common use cases, and the AGPL-3.0 license means you can self-host for free.

If you need Zapier-like automation with full data ownership and GDPR compliance, Automatisch is worth evaluating. Start with the Docker Compose setup locally, verify your required integrations exist, and plan your production deployment with proper encryption key management.