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n8n workflow automation

n8n - Secure Workflow Automation for Technical Teams

n8n is a workflow automation platform that gives technical teams the flexibility of code with the speed of no-code. With 400+ integrations, native AI capabilities, and a fair-code license, n8n lets you build powerful automations while maintaining full control over your data and deployments.

Quick Start

Get n8n running in under 5 minutes with npx or Docker

Installation

Learn about different installation methods and deployment options

Core Concepts

Understand nodes, workflows, triggers, and credentials

Example Workflows

Explore 900+ ready-to-use workflow templates

Key Capabilities

Code When You Need It

Switch seamlessly between visual workflow building and code. Write JavaScript or Python, add npm packages, or use the intuitive drag-and-drop interface.
// Execute custom JavaScript in Code nodes
const items = $input.all();

return items.map(item => ({
  json: {
    ...item.json,
    processed: true,
    timestamp: new Date().toISOString()
  }
}));

AI-Native Platform

Build AI agent workflows based on LangChain with your own data and models. n8n includes dedicated AI nodes and tools for creating intelligent automation.
n8n supports over 400+ integrations including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google AI, and local LLM deployments.

Full Control

Self-host n8n anywhere with our fair-code license. Your data stays in your infrastructure, and you have complete control over your automations.

Self-Hosted

Deploy on your own infrastructure with Docker, npm, or Kubernetes

Fair-Code License

Source available, self-hostable, and extensible

Enterprise Ready

Advanced permissions, SSO, and air-gapped deployments

Why Choose n8n?

For Developers

  • Version Control: Workflows are JSON, perfect for Git
  • Extensible: Create custom nodes with TypeScript
  • API-First: Full REST API for programmatic control
  • Local Development: Run n8n locally with hot reload

For Teams

  • Collaboration: Share workflows and credentials securely
  • Execution History: Full audit trail of all workflow runs
  • Error Handling: Comprehensive error tracking and retry logic
  • Scalable: Queue mode for high-volume workloads

For Organizations

  • Multi-Main Setup: High availability with multiple instances
  • SSO Integration: Enterprise authentication support
  • Role-Based Access: Granular permissions control
  • Compliance: Self-hosted means full data sovereignty

What’s Different About n8n?

Unlike traditional automation tools, n8n is fair-code - the source code is always visible, you can self-host it anywhere, and you can extend it with custom functionality.
  1. Technical-First Design: Built for developers who need the power of code with the speed of visual workflows
  2. True Flexibility: Run locally, on your servers, or in the cloud
  3. Active Community: 400+ integrations and 900+ workflow templates contributed by users
  4. Transparent Pricing: No hidden fees for self-hosted deployments

Getting Started

Ready to build your first workflow? Choose your path:
1

Try Instantly

Run npx n8n to start n8n without installation (requires Node.js 22.16+)
2

Learn the Basics

Understand core concepts like nodes, triggers, and connections
3

Build Your First Workflow

Follow our quickstart guide to create a working automation
4

Deploy to Production

Choose your deployment method and configure for production use

Use Cases

n8n powers automations across industries:
  • Data Synchronization: Keep systems in sync across SaaS platforms
  • Customer Communication: Automate email, SMS, and messaging workflows
  • AI Agents: Build intelligent assistants with LangChain integration
  • DevOps Automation: CI/CD pipelines, monitoring, and incident response
  • Business Process Automation: Invoice processing, lead routing, reporting
  • ETL Pipelines: Extract, transform, and load data between systems

Community & Support

Community Forum

Get support and connect with other n8n users

Documentation

Comprehensive guides and API references

GitHub Repository

Contribute, report issues, and view the source code

Community Tutorials

Learn from community-created tutorials and guides

What Does “n8n” Mean?

Short answer: It means “nodemation” (node + automation) and is pronounced as n-eight-n. Long answer: While looking for a good name for the project, founder Jan Oberhauser realized all the good domain names were taken. He chose “nodemation” - ‘node-’ representing the Node-View interface and Node.js technology, and ‘-mation’ for ‘automation’. To make it shorter and easier to type in the CLI, he shortened it to ‘n8n’.
This documentation is for n8n version 2.9.0. The platform requires Node.js 22.16+ and uses a monorepo structure managed with pnpm workspaces.