Bottom line: Flowise is genuinely free in two different ways. Flowise Cloud has a permanent $0 plan with 2 flows and assistants, 100 predictions a month, and 5MB of storage. The self-hosted edition is open source and free to run on your own machine or server with no flow or prediction caps from Flowise itself. If you want to build a chatbot or agent visually without writing LangChain code, this is one of the most honest free starting points available — as long as you understand that your model API bills are separate.
Free-tier details checked November 15, 2026 on Flowise’s own pricing page. Research-based review — no hands-on testing claims, no affiliate links.
What is Flowise?
Flowise is an open-source, visual builder for AI agents and chatbots. Instead of writing code to wire a model to a document store, a memory, and a set of tools, you drag blocks onto a canvas and connect them. It offers two main building styles: Chatflow for single-agent chatbots with tool calling and knowledge retrieval (RAG), and Agentflow for multi-agent systems where several coordinated agents share a workflow. It also includes human-in-the-loop steps, execution traces for observability, and APIs, SDKs, and an embeddable chat widget for putting a finished flow into your own app.
Flowise sits in the same family as Dify, which gives you 200 free message credits on its cloud Sandbox plan, and Langflow, another visual builder you can self-host for free. Flowise’s difference is the combination: a small but real cloud free plan if you do not want to run anything, plus a full self-hosted edition if you do.
What is actually free?
On Flowise Cloud’s Free plan, verified on the vendor’s pricing page, you get:
- 2 Flows & Assistants
- 100 predictions per month
- 5MB storage
- Evaluations & Metrics
- Custom embedded chatbot branding
- Community support
Paid cloud plans start at Starter, $35/month, with unlimited flows and 10,000 predictions a month and 1GB storage, then Pro at $65/month with 50,000 predictions, 10GB storage, unlimited workspaces, and 5 users.
The self-hosted edition is the bigger free offer. You install and run Flowise yourself, and Flowise does not cap your flows or predictions. Your real costs there are your own hosting and whatever the model provider charges you for the calls your flows make.
What the pricing page doesn’t make obvious
A “prediction” is one run of a flow, not one token — and the model bill is not included. Flowise charges cloud plans by predictions, but the underlying model usage (for example OpenAI or Anthropic API calls) is billed separately by that provider, on both cloud and self-hosted use. So “free” means the builder is free; a busy chatbot still generates a model bill. On the cloud Free plan, 100 predictions a month is enough to learn the canvas and demo a proof of concept, not to run a public chatbot. The 5MB storage cap reinforces that: this tier is for evaluation, and the self-hosted edition is where free use becomes unlimited.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Two real free routes: a $0 cloud plan and a free self-hosted edition with no Flowise caps
- Visual canvas covers chatbots, RAG, and multi-agent workflows in one tool
- Evaluations, metrics, and custom chatbot branding are included even on cloud Free
- API, SDK, and embedded widget options for shipping what you build
- 100+ models, embeddings, and vector databases supported
Cons
- Cloud Free is small: 2 flows, 100 predictions a month, 5MB storage
- Model API costs are always separate — free does not mean zero running cost
- Self-hosting means you own setup, updates, and scaling
- Support on free tiers is community-only
Who is Flowise best for?
Flowise’s free tiers are best for developers, technical founders, and curious builders who want to prototype a support bot, a document Q&A app, or a small multi-agent workflow visually before spending anything. If you prefer a hosted automation tool instead of an agent builder, compare it with n8n, which is also free when self-hosted. If you have no server and no interest in running one, treat cloud Free as a test drive and budget for Starter if the prototype works.
Frequently asked questions
Is Flowise really free?
Yes. Flowise Cloud has a $0 plan with 2 flows, 100 predictions a month, and 5MB storage, and the self-hosted edition is open source and free to run. Model provider charges are separate in both cases.
What is a prediction in Flowise pricing?
A prediction is one completed run of a flow — roughly, one time your chatbot or agent produces an output. Cloud plans are metered in predictions per month, not in tokens.
What does Flowise cost after the free plan?
Cloud Starter is $35/month with unlimited flows and 10,000 predictions a month. Pro is $65/month with 50,000 predictions and team features. Self-hosting stays free of Flowise fees; you pay for your own infrastructure and model usage.
Can I use Flowise without coding?
Yes for the basics — the canvas is drag-and-drop and templates cover common chatbot patterns. Going further with custom tools, APIs, and self-hosting gets technical quickly.
Verdict
Flowise earns its place on a free-tools list because both free routes are real: cloud Free is a legitimate sandbox, and self-hosted Flowise is a full product at $0 in license fees. Just go in clear-eyed about the two limits that matter — 100 predictions a month on cloud Free, and a separate model bill everywhere.