n8n
by [n8n]
Workflow automation and integration platform — open-source, developer-friendly, AI-native
See https://n8n.io
Features
- Visual drag-and-drop workflow builder with branching, loops, and conditional logic
- Code nodes (JavaScript/Python) for custom logic and transformations
- 800+ native integrations and unlimited custom HTTP/API connections
- Self-hosting (Docker/Kubernetes) and cloud options with data sovereignty
- Credentials manager with encrypted storage
- Git-based versioning (workflows as code) and environment support
- Built-in AI integrations (OpenAI, Google Gemini, LangChain patterns) for intelligent automation
- Debugging tools: step execution, retries, logs, and data replay
- Templates and pre-built workflows (600+ workflows, 1,700+ templates)
Superpowers
n8n combines low-code ease with pro-code flexibility. It’s aimed at teams who need:
- Full control over deployment (self-host) and data (no vendor lock-in)
- Deep customization via code nodes and custom nodes
- AI-native orchestration for content generation, decision-making, and agent-like automations
- Enterprise security and governance when scaled to production
What you gain by using n8n:
- Treat automations as first-class engineering artifacts (workflows as code)
- Cost control: free self-hosted option or pay-per-execution cloud model
- Ability to integrate internal systems via APIs without waiting for native connectors
Pricing
- Self-hosted: free (source-available) — you pay for infra and maintenance
- n8n Cloud: pay-per-execution tiers and team/enterprise plans (hosted plans vary; see https://n8n.io/pricing for current details)
- Enterprise: advanced SLAs, SSO, RBAC, dedicated support (contact sales for quotes)
Practical usage examples (focused on outcomes, not install steps)
- Sales automation: AI-qualify inbound leads, enrich with external data (Clearbit/CRM), route to reps, and trigger personalized outreach sequences.
- Marketing orchestration: listen to form/webhook triggers, run content-generation via LLM, A/B test variants, and sync results to analytics and ad platforms.
- Customer support: triage tickets with an LLM, append KB suggestions to tickets, auto-route or escalate based on intent and SLA.
- Finance ops: automate invoice ingestion, validation, posting to ERP, and alert humans only when exceptions occur.
- DevOps: monitor services and trigger incident workflows (post to Slack, create JIRA issues, run remediation scripts) with controlled permissions.
Limitations / Gotchas
- Requires ops/dev resources to run self-hosted securely at scale
- GUI-first workflows can become complex; versioning and code nodes are advisable for larger projects
- Some enterprise-grade features (fine-grained RBAC, audit, SLAs) are gated behind paid plans
n8n v2 update (2025) — Secure-by-default (appendix)
Summary
- n8n 2.0 (rolled out December 2025) shifts the platform to a “secure-by-default” posture, prioritizing isolation, credential safety, and safer deployment practices. This is a significant platform-level change intended for production-grade automation.
Key changes
- Task runners enabled by default: Code node execution is isolated from the main n8n process, reducing blast radius from memory leaks, infinite loops, or malicious code.
- Environment variable access blocked by default: Code nodes cannot read environment variables unless explicitly allowed (config: N8N_BLOCK_ENV_ACCESS_IN_NODE).
- Arbitrary system command nodes disabled by default: nodes that execute shell commands or unrestricted system calls are opt-in for administrators.
- Save vs Publish paradigm: saving edits no longer immediately updates live, activated workflows. Publish is an explicit action to push changes to production — reduces accidental production changes.
- OAuth callback auth tightened: OAuth callback endpoints require authentication unless consciously configured otherwise.
Why it matters
- Security and compliance: better protects secrets and production systems, aligns with GDPR/CCPA concerns and enterprise security standards.
- Stability: isolates faulty or malicious code from affecting the entire automation platform.
- Safer CI/CD for automations: the Save/Publish model enables safer iterative workflow development and lays groundwork for autosave and staged deployments.
Migration notes / practical guidance
- Audit code nodes: identify any workflows that read process env vars or execute shell commands. For required cases, plan to explicitly enable the needed flags and document the justification.
- Prepare runner capacity: task runners add resource considerations (separate processes/containers). Ensure your infra sizing and orchestration can host runners.
- Test OAuth flows: if your integrations depend on OAuth, validate callback behavior under the new authenticated callback defaults.
- Adopt credentials manager: migrate secrets into n8n’s encrypted credentials system instead of using raw env vars in code nodes.
When to upgrade
- Upgrade when you need production stability, better security posture, or are operating at scale — but plan a migration window and run tests in a staging environment.
Further reading
- Official site: https://n8n.io
- n8n docs & blog (see “n8n 2.0” / release notes) at https://n8n.io/blog
Notes
- This note emphasizes practical usage and migration guidance for teams evaluating or operating n8n in production. For deep technical migration steps, review n8n’s official release notes and run a staging migration first.