# vs Zapier

Source: https://routineos.org/compare/zapier

> A Zapier alternative for Zaps that need judgment: a Claude routine reads, decides and is built to ask before it acts. Free (MIT). Needs a paid Claude plan.

Compare / Zapier

# Move a Zap that needs a judgment call to a Claude routine

A Zapier alternative for one kind of job: the one where a person reads something and decides. A RoutineOS routine reads, decides, shows why and is built to ask before it acts. RoutineOS is free (MIT). Needs a paid Claude plan.

[Get started](https://routineos.org/#start)[Describe your Zap](https://docs.routineos.org/guides/migrate/zapier)[Browse templates](https://routineos.org/templates)[All comparisons](https://routineos.org/compare)

Guided pathNo export parserFree (MIT). Needs a paid Claude plan.

Side by side

## A Zapier alternative, side by side

The docs describe Zapier with an AI step as a fixed flow you build and maintain. A routine is a Claude agent on a schedule.

| Topic | Zapier, as the docs describe it | RoutineOS |
|---|---|---|
| Shape | A fixed flow you build and maintain. | A routine. Claude reads and judges, and code applies the rules you can edit. |
| Changing itself | You edit the Zap. | It proposes setting changes from your keep, drop and reject decisions, with the decisions it came from. Nothing applies until you say yes. |

The docs do not compare approvals, workspace, triggers or cost, so this page does not either. For those, read Zapier's own pages. For RoutineOS: a schedule in UTC at most hourly, MIT licence, and a paid Claude plan to run it.

Source: docs.routineos.org, [How it compares](https://docs.routineos.org/introduction/comparison).

The guided path

## Move a Zap by describing it

There is no Zapier converter. RoutineOS has no Zapier export parser and will not guess at a file format. So Claude interviews you instead, using the `routineos-migrate` skill, and builds the routine from your answers.

1. **The trigger**Which app and event starts it, and how often it fires.
2. **The steps, in order**App, action and the key fields each step uses. Never connection details or keys.
3. **The awkward parts**Filters, paths and their conditions, delays, and any code or formatter steps. Then a name for the Zap.
4. **A plan, then a pack**Claude writes a migration plan from what you said and turns it into a routine pack plus a MIGRATION.md.

Open Claude Code with RoutineOS installed, paste this and answer the questions.

`Help me turn a Zap into a RoutineOS routine. I will describe it step by step. Show me the plan before you write anything, and do not connect or run anything.`

**Everything from you is marked unverified**App and action names come from your description and are not checked against Zapier. Claude lists each one in the report as unverified, and says a Zap's timing and app behaviour are unverified too.

**The same safety rules as any conversion**Steps that write move behind an approval gate. The first run is report-only. You reconnect credentials yourself, and Claude never asks for a key. If you paste a secret by mistake, rotate it.

Zapier MCP

## Use Zapier MCP inside a routine

You do not have to give up the apps you reach through Zapier. A routine can reach other services through Claude connectors, and the docs list gateways such as Zapier MCP among the ways to do it.

The same rule applies as for any connector. If it can write, the routine treats it as a send and puts a gate in front of it. When the converter meets an app that is not on the verified connector list, it offers a Zapier MCP server as the fallback and marks that unverified.

Check that your own Zapier MCP server works from a scheduled run before you rely on it. See [Connectors and MCP](https://docs.routineos.org/infrastructure/connectors-and-mcp) in the docs.

When to keep Zapier

## When to keep Zapier

- **The Zap is a plain rule.** If nothing in it needs a judgment call, leave it alone.
- **It has to fire on an event, right away.** A routine runs on a schedule of an hour or more, so an app trigger becomes an hourly poll.
- **You do not use Claude.** A routine runs on a Claude plan.
- **You need a settled platform.** Claude scheduled tasks are a research preview.

You can keep the Zap that moves the data and add a routine for the step that reads and decides. Try the [inbox triage](https://routineos.org/templates/inbox-triage) template, or see [all comparisons](https://routineos.org/compare) and [n8n](https://routineos.org/compare/n8n).

## Describe your Zap to Claude

Answer a few questions, read the plan, and get a pack you can check before anything runs.

[Get started](https://routineos.org/#start)[Read the Zapier guide](https://docs.routineos.org/guides/migrate/zapier)