How to Use Make? Automation Tutorial 2026

Automation has become an essential tool for improving efficiency and reducing repetitive tasks across many fields. If you're looking for a simple and accessible solution to automate your online tasks, Make might be the answer. In this article, we introduce Make and explain why and how to use it for task automation. If you're ready to discover how Make can help you save time and boost efficiency, read on!

Introduction to Automation and the Make Tool

Definition of Automation

Automation is the process of using digital tools to execute tasks repetitively and/or on a scheduled basis, saving time and improving efficiency. Make is an online platform that allows users to create custom automation workflows by connecting different applications and online services.

Overview of Make and Its Features

Make is particularly useful for automating repetitive and tedious tasks, such as syncing data between different applications, sending notifications or reminders, or processing data. The platform offers a wide variety of "triggers" (events that start a workflow) and "actions" (tasks performed when a trigger is activated), enabling users to create custom automation scenarios tailored to their needs.

The Benefits of Using Make for Automation

Time and Efficiency Savings

By automating repetitive tasks, you can focus on more important, high-value activities. This saves a significant amount of time.

Reduction of Human Errors

Automating tasks reduces the risk of human errors that can occur during manual execution. This is especially useful for tedious or complex tasks that are difficult to perform accurately every time.

Ability to Create Complex Processes

Thanks to the use of variables and advanced functions, Make allows you to set up complex automation workflows that adapt to specific situations. For example, you can use conditions to execute an action only if certain criteria are met, or use loops to perform an action multiple times in a row.

Those complex processes have a direct cost, and it is better understood before you build. According to Make’s pricing, the free plan gives 1,000 credits a month, two active scenarios and a minimum 15-minute interval between runs; the Core plan is $9 for 10,000 credits, Pro $16 and Teams $29 for the same volume, the difference being features, not quota. But a credit is consumed by every module executed, not per scenario: an eight-module scenario processing a hundred rows uses eight hundred. Adding a router and an iterator can therefore multiply the bill without changing anything visible in the result.

By using Make for automation, you can not only save time and improve efficiency but also implement more complex processes to tailor your automation to your precise needs.

How to Use Make?

Signing Up and Creating an Account

To use Make, you need to sign up and create an account on the platform's website (https://www.make.com/). Registration is free and allows you to test the platform before deciding to upgrade to a paid subscription.

Creating a Scenario and Adding "Triggers" and "Actions"

Once you’ve created your account, you can start building your first automation scenarios. To do this, you need to add a "trigger" (an event that starts the scenario) and one or more "actions" (tasks performed when the trigger is activated). For example, you could set a "trigger" to monitor a folder in Google Drive, and an "action" to send an email when a new file is added to that folder.

A production scenario needs one thing tutorials leave out: a plan for when it fails. Make documents five error handlers, Resume, Ignore, Break, Rollback and Commit, plus a retry mechanism using exponential backoff. Without a handler, an error stops the run and files it as an “incomplete execution”: the scenario keeps running, but records are missing and nobody is told. The minimum reflex is to wire an error route that notifies a human, by email or in a Slack channel, from the very first production deployment.

Common scenario examples

Here are a few common scenarios you can set up with Make:

- Send an email when a new file is added to a Google Drive folder

- Sync data between different apps (e.g., syncing contacts between Gmail and Salesforce)

- Send notifications or reminders at specific times

- Process data (e.g., extract data from an Excel file and send a summary via email)

There are countless automation possibilities with Make, and the platform offers many "templates" (predefined models) to help you get started quickly. You can also use these templates as a foundation to build your own custom scenarios.

Choosing between platforms depends less on features than on the unit being billed, and the three main players count differently. Zapier counts tasks, meaning successful actions: 100 per month on the free plan, 750 on the first paid plan at $19.99 annually. Make counts credits, one per module executed. n8n counts executions: one per workflow run, whatever the number of steps, from €20 a month for 2,500 executions. For a job looping over many rows, the gap between those three models is measured in orders of magnitude.

Tutorial: Create your first Make scenario in 2026

A hands-on example to get started with Make: automate the logging of new Gmail emails into an Airtable base. A simple, typical use case we often implement for our clients.

Step 1: Create the scenario

In your Make dashboard, click on Create a new scenario. The visual editor opens with a flowchart interface. This is where you’ll connect your apps.

Step 2: Set up the Gmail trigger

Click the + button to add a module. Select Gmail, then Watch emails. Make will prompt you to connect your Gmail account (OAuth authentication) and define which emails trigger the scenario (label, folder, filter).

Step 3: Add the Airtable action

Add a second module connected to the first. Select Airtable, then Create a record. Connect your Airtable base, select the target table, then map the Gmail fields (sender, subject, content) to the Airtable columns.

Step 4: Test and activate

Click on Run once to test the scenario with a real email. If everything works, enable scheduling (every 15 minutes by default) and the scenario runs continuously. Monitor executions and errors from the History tab.

Go further: Connect Claude to analyze emails

Since 2024, Make has integrated modules for Claude, GPT, and Gemini. Between Gmail and Airtable, add a Claude module to summarize the email or categorize it (lead, invoice, customer support). The structured response feeds Airtable and triggers the right workflow based on the category. This is the pattern we deploy most often for no-code + AI projects in 2026.

Tips and advice to maximize your use of Make

Using variables and advanced functions

Make offers a wide variety of variables and advanced functions that allow you to customize your scenarios and adapt them to specific situations. For example, you can use variables to temporarily store information and reuse it later in your scenario, or use functions to process data in specific ways (e.g., extracting part of a string).

Using filters to target specific actions

You can use filters to target specific actions and only execute an action if certain conditions are met. For example, you can use a filter to send an email only if the message subject contains a specific word.

Creating "templates" to reuse common scenarios

If you’ve set up an automation scenario that works well and you want to reuse it in the future, you can save it as a "template." This allows you to quickly create new scenarios using the predefined model, saving you time when setting up new automations.

By using these tips and taking the time to fully understand Make’s advanced features, you can maximize your use of the platform for automating your online tasks.

With Scroll, easily automate tasks and processes on Make

Do you have repetitive or tedious tasks to perform online? Discover our Make agency! Our automation experts master the tool to offer you tailored solutions. Do you have a specific need? Would you like a demo? Unsure which task to automate? We’re here to meet your expectations! If you have a project, don’t hesitate!

Launch a Make project with Scroll

You’ve identified a workflow to automate, but want to save time on setup, avoid pitfalls (silent failures, skyrocketing operational costs, poorly connected AI agents), and have a maintainable scenario? The Scroll team designs and deploys your Make automations in production, with or without AI. Discover our agency approach for Make and let’s discuss your project.