Tool profile
Zoho Creator: cost, fit and limits
Zoho Creator is a low-code application platform made by Zoho Corporation that builds custom apps, staged approval workflows and portals, with Zia as its AI collaborator and AI model allowances that are counted for each plan.
What to know first
Zoho Creator has a free edition limited to one custom app, then Standard, Professional and Enterprise tiers and a custom Flex subscription. Allowances such as AI models, data sources, connectors and scheduled jobs rise by tier. The pricing page we read was in Dutch and showed no amounts, so the cost has to come from the live page or a quote. A 15-day trial needs no card and falls back to the free edition.
Zoho Creator at a glance
| Maker | Zoho Corporation, India |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Entry price | Quote only |
| API access | Yes |
| Category | Best AI Business Process Management Software in 2026, rank 8 of 13 |
| Website | zoho.com/creator |
Who Zoho Creator is best for
Small teams starting with one app
The free edition covers one custom app for individuals or small teams, so a first approval or tracking app can run before anyone requests a budget.
Companies already using Zoho apps
The pricing page lists integration with Zoho apps and over 1,000 prebuilt integrations, which shortens the path for firms with data in other Zoho products.
Teams that want AI models counted up front
Allowances of 20 to 100 custom and 50 to 250 ready-to-use AI models per tier let a buyer see where the AI limit sits before choosing a plan.
Zoho Creator plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free edition | Free | For individuals or small teams, with one custom app; the account returns to this edition after the 15-day trial. |
| Standard | Not published | First app, 20 custom AI models, 50 ready-to-use AI models, 5 data sources, 5 custom connectors and 90 custom schedules per user a month. |
| Professional | Not published | Marked most popular; 100 custom and 250 ready-to-use AI models, 15 data sources, 10 custom connectors and 300 schedules per user a month. |
| Enterprise | Not published | 100 custom and 250 ready-to-use AI models, 30 data sources, 20 custom connectors and 600 schedules per user a month. |
| Flex | Custom quote | A custom subscription tailored to the buyer, available only by contacting sales; no amount, allowance or term is published on the pricing page. |
Checked October 2026.
What Zoho Creator does
- Zia AI collaborator
- Zia is named as the AI collaborator for building apps. The pricing page counts AI models per tier but does not describe what Zia generates or how reviewers can inspect the result.
- Ready-to-use AI models
- Standard lists 50 ready-to-use models, while Professional and Enterprise list 250. Custom models are counted separately, at 20 on Standard and 100 on the two higher tiers.
- Cloud functions
- Cloud function calls are allowed at 50, 100 or 200 per user per day by tier, with daily ceilings of 5,000, 10,000 and 20,000, which limits how much integration logic one user can run in a day.
- Portal permission sets
- Portals offer 10, 50 or 250 permission sets per app by tier, which decides how finely outside users, such as customers or suppliers, can be separated from each other.
- Trial and downgrade path
- The 15-day trial needs no credit card, and the account then moves to the free plan instead of locking, so a team keeps its single app if it does not buy.
How Zoho Creator handles your data
The privacy policy says Zoho makes limited use of customer content: anonymized crops to improve algorithm accuracy, and organization-specific models built from that organization's own data. Active data is kept while the customer uses the service and is deleted from backups three months after deletion from the active database. Processing and storage happen in the United States, the EEA and other countries where Zoho operates, with data centers not named. SOC 2 and ISO 27001 were not stated by name; the policy points to a compliance page that was not opened.
Where Zoho Creator falls short in practice
- Prices were not readable. The Dutch pricing page showed no amounts in the text we read, and the table does not clearly show which feature belongs to which plan, so a buyer must verify both.
- Data location is broad. The policy names the United States, the EEA and other countries without naming data centers, so a firm with a data residency rule needs a written answer from Zoho before it builds.
- Aimed at apps rather than BPMN. Creator builds apps and Blueprint-style stages, so teams that already own BPMN or DMN models will have to redraw them in Zoho's own builder and test them again.
Works with
Alternatives to Zoho Creator
Zoho Creator: common questions
Is Zoho Creator free?
There is a free edition for individuals or small teams that includes one custom app. A 15-day trial needs no credit card, and afterward the account moves to the free plan. The paid tiers are Standard, Professional, Enterprise and a custom Flex subscription.
How many AI models does Zoho Creator include?
Standard lists 20 custom and 50 ready-to-use AI models, Professional lists 100 custom and 250 ready-to-use, and Enterprise lists 100 custom and 250 ready-to-use. The page does not explain what a model counts as, so ask before relying on the figure.
Does Zoho Creator train AI on my data?
The privacy policy describes limited use: anonymized crops to improve algorithm accuracy, and models built from an organization's own data for that organization. It does not give a flat no-training statement, so ask Zoho how the anonymization works and whether you can opt out.
How long does Zoho keep my data after I delete it?
Active data is kept while you use the service, and the policy says it is deleted from backups three months after deletion from the active database. Plan your export before closing an account, because the backup window is not shortened on request.
How many integrations does Zoho Creator have?
The page states over 1,000 prebuilt integrations and integration with Zoho apps, without naming third-party tools. Standard allows 5 custom connectors, Professional 10 and Enterprise 20, so confirm that your specific systems are covered before building a process around them.