GitLab
Large (~2,500)
n8n
Mid (~300)
Best For
GitLab
Best for: Engineers who want a fully remote, async-first culture with radical transparency
n8n
Best for: Generalist engineers who love open-source tooling, want genuine async remote flexibility, and are excited by workflow automation and the developer tools space
Ratings
GitLabn8n
3.9
4.5
Overall
3.9
4.0
Work-Life Balance
4.0
4.6
Culture & Values
3.8
4.5
Comp & Benefits
3.5
4.3
Senior Mgmt
3.7
4.3
Career Opps
👍 75% Recommend
👤 70% CEO Approval (Sid Sijbrandij)
👍 90% Recommend
👤 95% CEO Approval (Jan Oberhauser)
Culture Values
GitLab only
⚖️ Work-Life Balance
n8n only
🤝 Flat Hierarchy🧩 Wears Many Hats
Shared
🌐 Remote-Friendly📡 Async-First🪟 Transparent🔓 Open Source
Pros & Cons
GitLab
- Best-in-class all-remote culture — truly async-first with genuine flexibility
- Radically transparent company with a public handbook and open processes
- Revenue organization has seen quota chaos and low morale
- Some leadership instability at the C-suite level
n8n
- Exceptional remote-first culture with high trust, autonomy, and smart collaborative teammates
- Fast-growing open-source product with real impact — lots of ownership in a low-ego environment
- Hypergrowth means priorities shift frequently and processes are still being defined
- Startup intensity can be stressful; some concerns about product leadership direction
Bottom Line
GitLab
Choose GitLab if you want the gold standard of all-remote work with public handbook and async processes — but expect bureaucracy at scale and comp below top-tier.
n8n
One of the highest-rated companies on the list (4.5 Glassdoor, 90% recommend) — genuinely remote-first, async, transparent, and OSS-driven. Small headcount means limited specialization but broad ownership and real impact.
Open Roles
GitLab — 195 jobs
💻 Engineering
79
💼 Sales / GTM
67
📋 Product
10
⚖️ Legal
5
📊 Data
4
🎨 Design
4
📣 Marketing
4
👤 HR / People
2
⚙️ Operations
2
n8n — 42 jobs
💼 Sales / GTM
17
💻 Engineering
11
📣 Marketing
3
🎨 Design
2
💰 Finance
2
👤 HR / People
1
⚖️ Legal
1
🧠 ML / AI
1
Summary
GitLab scores 3.9/5.0 on Glassdoor with a 3.9 work-life balance rating. n8n scores 4.5/5.0 overall with a 4.0 WLB. That’s a 0.6-point gap on overall satisfaction.
Both companies share these culture values: Remote-Friendly, Async-First, Transparent, Open Source. GitLab also emphasizes Work-Life Balance. n8n also emphasizes Flat Hierarchy, Wears Many Hats.
On the hiring front, GitLab has 195 open roles and n8n has 42 open roles.