Zapier

What is Zapier?

Zapier is the most popular no-code automation tool in the world. It connects 6,000+ apps — Gmail, Slack, Google Sheets, Notion, HubSpot, Stripe, and thousands more — and lets you set up automated workflows called "Zaps." When something happens in one app (a trigger), Zapier does something in another (an action). No code, no server, no setup beyond connecting your accounts.

It's the fastest path from "I wish this happened automatically" to "it now happens automatically."

Plans

One "task" = one action executed. A Zap that sends an email when a form is submitted uses 1 task per submission. The free tier (100 tasks/month) is enough for light personal automation; upgrade when you hit the limit.

The magic moment

Connect Google Forms to Google Sheets: whenever someone fills out your form, their response automatically appears as a new row in your spreadsheet. Set it up in 15 minutes. Never manually copy-paste form responses again. That's the moment automation hooks you — not because it's complex, but because it removes a task you didn't even realise was annoying you until it disappears.

Step-by-step: your first Zap

1. Go to zapier.com and create a free account
2. Click Create Zap
3. In the Trigger section, search for and select your first app (e.g. Google Forms)
4. Choose a trigger event: "New Form Response"
5. Connect your Google account and select your form
6. Click Continue and run a test to confirm Zapier can see your data
7. In the Action section, search for your second app (e.g. Slack)
8. Choose an action: "Send Channel Message"
9. Map fields from the trigger — e.g. "Respondent Name" in the message body
10. Click Publish — your Zap is live

Total time: about 20 minutes.

Popular Zap templates to try first

• Google Form → Google Sheet — log every form response to a spreadsheet
• Gmail → Slack — forward specific emails (filtered by subject or sender) to a Slack channel
• Typeform → HubSpot — add every form lead to your CRM automatically
• Stripe → Google Sheets — log every new payment with customer details
• RSS feed → Slack — post new blog articles from any site to a channel
• Calendly → Google Sheets — log every new booking as a row

Multi-step Zaps

Once you're past the basics, multi-step Zaps let you chain more than two apps:

Example:

1. Trigger: new Typeform submission
2. Action 1: look up if the email already exists in HubSpot
3. Filter: only continue if it's a new contact
4. Action 2: add the contact to HubSpot
5. Action 3: send a welcome email via Mailchimp
6. Action 4: add a row to a Google Sheet for tracking

This kind of conditional, multi-destination logic is where Zapier earns its paid tier.

Zapier AI features

Zapier now includes AI-powered actions that let you add steps like:

• "Summarise this email with AI" — runs the email content through an LLM and returns a summary you can use in the next step
• "Classify this text" — categorise incoming data (e.g. support ticket type) using AI
• "Extract information" — pull specific fields from unstructured text (e.g. an order from an email body)

These don't require a separate AI subscription — they're billed as regular Zapier tasks.

When to use Zapier vs alternatives

Choose Zapier if:

• You want the fastest setup with the most integrations
• You don't need to write code or manage a server
• You're a small business owner or individual who wants immediate results

Choose Make if:

• You need more complex branching logic at a lower price point
• You want a visual diagram of your entire workflow

Choose n8n if:

• You run high volumes of tasks and don't want to pay per execution
• You need sensitive data to stay on your own server
• You're comfortable managing a self-hosted service