n8n

n8n is a fair-code, source-available workflow automation platform that connects APIs, databases, and services to automate business processes with little or no code. Its public REST API exposes workflows, executions, credentials, users, variables, data tables, projects, and tags for programmatic management.

Power end-to-end data operations for your n8n API with Nexla. Our bi-directional n8n connector is purpose-built for n8n, making it simple to ingest data, sync it across systems, and deliver it anywhere — all with no coding required. Nexla turns API-sourced data into ready-to-use, reusable data products and makes it easy to send data to n8n or any other destination. With comprehensive monitoring, lineage tracking, and access controls, Nexla keeps your n8n workflows fast, secure, and fully governed.

Features

Type: API

SourceDestination

• Seamless API Integration: Connect to any endpoint as source or destination without coding, with automatic data product creation
• Visual Composition & Chaining: Build complex integrations using visual templates, chain API calls, and compose workflows with data validation and filtering
• API Proxy: Expose curated slices of your data securely with a secure and customizable API proxy that validates and transforms data on the fly
• Request optimization with intelligent batching, retry, and caching to minimize API calls and costs

Prerequisites

Before creating an n8n credential in Nexla, you need the base URL of your n8n instance and an n8n API key. The n8n public API is versioned at the /api/v1 path on your instance (for example, https://n8n.example.com/api/v1 for a self-hosted instance or your workspace URL on n8n Cloud). All API requests authenticate with an API key sent in the X-N8N-API-KEY request header.

To obtain your n8n API key, follow these steps:

1. Sign in to your n8n instance using an account that has access to the API settings.

2. Open Settings from the left-hand navigation, then select n8n API.

3. Click Create an API key.

4. Enter a descriptive Label for the key (for example, "Nexla Integration") and set an Expiration time according to your organization's security policy.

5. On n8n Enterprise plans, optionally select the Scopes to grant the key. On non-enterprise plans, API keys have full access to all of the account's resources.

6. Copy the generated API key immediately and store it securely, as it may not be retrievable again after you leave the page.

7. Note your instance base URL. This is the address you use to reach n8n in your browser, without a trailing path (for example, https://n8n.example.com or your n8n Cloud workspace URL).

The n8n public API must be enabled on your instance. It is available on self-hosted instances and on paid n8n Cloud plans. If the n8n API option does not appear under Settings, confirm that your plan and instance configuration allow public API access.

For complete details about API authentication, key scopes, and available endpoints, see the n8n API documentation and the n8n API authentication guide.

Authenticate

Credentials required

Field	Required	Secret	Description
Base URL	Yes	No	n8n instance base URL (e.g., https://n8n.example.com or https://app.n8n.cloud)
API Key	Yes	Yes	Your n8n API key for authentication. Generate keys under Settings > n8n API in your n8n instance.

Create a credential in Nexla

1. After selecting the data source/destination type, click the Add Credential tile to open the Add New Credential overlay.

2. Enter a name for the credential in the Credential Name field and a short, meaningful description in the Credential Description field.

3. Enter your n8n instance base URL in the Base URL field. This is the address you use to reach n8n, without a trailing API path (for example, https://n8n.example.com). Nexla appends the /api/v1 path when making requests.

4. Enter your n8n API key in the API Key field. This key is sent in the X-N8N-API-KEY header to authenticate every request and must be kept confidential.

   If your API key is compromised, revoke it under Settings > n8n API in your instance and generate a new one. API keys can also be set to expire, so you may need to rotate the key in Nexla when the previous one lapses.

   For more information about authentication and available endpoints, see the n8n API documentation.

5. Click the Save button at the bottom of the overlay. The newly added credential will now appear in a tile on the Authenticate screen during data source/destination creation.

Use as a data source

To create a new data flow, navigate to the Integrate section, and click the New Data Flow button. Select the n8n connector tile, then select the credential that will be used to connect to the n8n instance, and click Next; or, create a new n8n credential for use in this flow.

Endpoint templates

Nexla provides pre-built templates that can be used to rapidly configure data sources to ingest data from common n8n endpoints. Select the endpoint from which this source will fetch data from the Endpoint pulldown menu. Available endpoint templates are listed in the expandable boxes below.

[Rest API] Retrieve all workflows

Retrieves a paginated list of all workflows with optional filtering by active status, tags, name, or project ID.

• This endpoint returns workflows page by page using cursor-based pagination. Nexla automatically follows the pagination cursor to fetch subsequent pages. Optional filters let you narrow results by active status, tags, workflow name, or project.

[Rest API] Retrieve a workflow

Retrieves a specific workflow by its ID with optional inclusion of pinned data.

• Provide the workflow ID to fetch a single workflow. Use the exclude-pinned-data option to control whether pinned node data is included in the response.

[Rest API] List Executions

Returns a list of workflow executions in the n8n instance.

• This endpoint returns executions using offset-based pagination, retrieving records page by page until no further data is available.

[Rest API] Retrieve all executions

Retrieves a paginated list of workflow executions with optional filtering and data redaction.

• Optional filters let you narrow results by execution status, workflow ID, or project ID. You can also choose whether to include execution data and whether to redact sensitive values from the response.

[Rest API] Retrieve an execution

Returns details of a specific execution by ID, with options to include data and redact sensitive information.

• Provide the execution ID to fetch a single execution record. Use the include-data and redact-execution-data options to control the level of detail returned.

[Rest API] List credentials

Retrieves a paginated list of all credentials in the account.

• This endpoint returns credentials page by page using cursor-based pagination. Nexla automatically follows the pagination cursor to fetch all available pages.

[Rest API] Get credential by ID

Retrieves a single credential by its unique identifier.

• Provide the credential ID to fetch a single credential record.

[Rest API] Retrieve all users

Retrieves a paginated list of all users with optional filtering by project and role information.

• This endpoint returns users page by page using cursor-based pagination. Optional parameters let you filter by project ID and choose whether to include role information for each user.

[Rest API] Get a single user by ID

Get a single user by ID.

• Provide the user ID to fetch a single user record.

[Rest API] List variables

Retrieves a paginated list of variables, optionally filtered by project or state.

• This endpoint returns variables page by page using cursor-based pagination. Nexla automatically follows the pagination cursor to fetch all available pages.

[Rest API] List data tables

Retrieves a paginated list of all data tables, optionally filtered and sorted.

• This endpoint returns data tables page by page using cursor-based pagination. Nexla automatically follows the pagination cursor to fetch all available pages.

Once the selected endpoint template has been configured, click the Test button to the right of the endpoint selection menu to retrieve a sample of the data that will be fetched. Sample data will be displayed in the Endpoint Test Result panel on the right, allowing you to verify that the source is configured correctly before saving.

Manual configuration

n8n data sources can also be manually configured to ingest data from any valid n8n public API endpoint, including endpoints not covered by the pre-built templates, chained API calls, or custom request parameters. Select the Advanced tab at the top of the configuration screen, and follow the instructions in Connect to Any API to configure the API method, endpoint URL, date/time and lookup macros, path to data, metadata, and request headers.

Once all of the relevant settings have been configured, click the Create button in the upper right corner of the screen to save and create the new n8n data source. Nexla will now begin ingesting data from the configured endpoint and will organize any data that it finds into one or more Nexsets.

Use as a destination

Click the + icon on the Nexset that will be sent to the n8n destination, and select the Send to Destination option from the menu. Select the n8n connector from the list of available destination connectors, then select the credential that will be used to connect to the n8n instance, and click Next; or, create a new n8n credential for use in this flow.

Endpoint templates

Nexla provides pre-built templates that can be used to rapidly configure destinations to send data to common n8n endpoints. Select the endpoint to which data will be sent from the Endpoint pulldown menu. Then, click on the template in the list below to expand it, and follow the instructions to configure additional endpoint settings.

[Rest API] Create a workflow

Creates a new workflow with the specified configuration, nodes, and connections.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent as a separate request to create a workflow. The request body must include the workflow name, nodes, connections, and settings in the format expected by the n8n API.

[Rest API] Update a workflow

Updates an existing workflow with new configuration, nodes, connections, and metadata.

• Provide the workflow ID for the record to be updated along with the new workflow definition. Each record is sent as a separate update request.

[Rest API] Delete a workflow by ID

Delete a workflow by ID.

• Provide the workflow ID for each record to permanently remove the corresponding workflow from your n8n instance.

[Rest API] Activate (publish) a workflow so it responds to triggers

Activate (publish) a workflow so it responds to triggers.

• Provide the workflow ID for each record to activate the corresponding workflow so it begins responding to its configured triggers.

[Rest API] Deactivate a workflow so it stops running on triggers

Deactivate a workflow so it stops running on triggers.

• Provide the workflow ID for each record to deactivate the corresponding workflow so it stops running on its triggers.

[Rest API] Create a credential

Creates a new credential with the specified configuration and metadata.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent as a separate request to create a credential. The request body must include the credential configuration and metadata in the format expected by the n8n API.

[Rest API] Update credential by ID

Updates an existing credential with new configuration or metadata.

• Provide the credential ID for the record to be updated along with the new configuration or metadata.

[Rest API] Delete a credential by ID

Delete a credential by ID.

• Provide the credential ID for each record to permanently remove the corresponding credential from your n8n instance.

[Rest API] Retry a failed or stopped execution

Retry a failed or stopped execution.

• Provide the execution ID for each record to retry the corresponding failed or stopped execution.

[Rest API] Delete an execution record by ID

Delete an execution record by ID.

• Provide the execution ID for each record to permanently remove the corresponding execution record from your n8n instance.

[Rest API] Create multiple users

Creates multiple new users in the system in a single request.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent to create one or more users. The request body must contain the user details in the format expected by the n8n API.

[Rest API] Change a user's global role

Updates a user's global role to a new role name.

• Provide the user ID for each record along with the new global role name to apply to that user.

[Rest API] Create variable

Creates a new variable with the specified key, value, and type.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent as a separate request to create a variable. The request body must include the variable key, value, and type.

[Rest API] Update variable

Updates an existing variable by ID with new key, value, type, or project assignment.

• Provide the variable ID for the record to be updated along with the new key, value, type, or project assignment.

[Rest API] Delete a variable by ID

Delete a variable by ID.

• Provide the variable ID for each record to permanently remove the corresponding variable from your n8n instance.

[Rest API] Create data table

Creates a new data table with the specified name, columns, and optional project assignment.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent as a separate request to create a data table. The request body must include the table name and column definitions, with an optional project assignment.

[Rest API] Update data table

Updates a data table's name or other properties.

• Provide the data table ID for the record to be updated along with the new name or other properties.

[Rest API] Create a project

Creates a new project with the specified name and type.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent as a separate request to create a project. The request body must include the project name and type.

[Rest API] Create a new tag

Create a new tag.

• Each record from your Nexset is sent as a separate request to create a tag. The request body must include the tag details expected by the n8n API.

Manual configuration

n8n destinations can also be manually configured to send data to any valid n8n public API endpoint. Select the Advanced tab at the top of the configuration screen, and follow the instructions in Connect to Any API to configure the API method, data format, endpoint URL, request headers, attribute exclusions, record batching, and response webhooks.

n8n public API endpoints expect JSON request bodies. For update, activate/deactivate, and delete operations, include the ID of the target object at the end of the endpoint URL.

Save & activate

Once all endpoint settings have been configured, click the Done button in the upper right corner of the screen to save and create the destination. To send the data to the configured n8n endpoint, open the destination resource menu, and select Activate.

The Nexset data will not be sent to the n8n endpoint until the destination is activated. Destinations can be activated immediately or at a later time, providing full control over data movement.