n8n-workflow-builder-mcp
Advanced tools
This project provides a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for building and manipulating n8n workflows JSON in Cursor IDE. It's a way to build n8n workflows just by prompting with AI in chat.
rules/n8n-mcp-server-rules.mdcBasically, it's working - MCP server creates JSON file with n8n workflow that you can copy and paste to workflow editor in n8n UI. Current problems:
The recommended way to install this MCP server is using npx directly in your .cursor/mcp.json file:
{
"mcpServers": {
"n8n-workflow-builder": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"n8n-workflow-builder-mcp"
],
"env": {
"N8N_API_URL": "http://localhost:5678",
"N8N_API_KEY": "your-n8n-api-key-here",
// "N8N_VERSION": "1.72.1" // optional, if not set, the server will try to detect the version automatically
}
}
}
}
This approach:
Setup Steps:
Create the .cursor directory in your project root (if it doesn't exist):
mkdir -p .cursor
Create or update .cursor/mcp.json with the configuration above, replacing:
N8N_API_URL: Your n8n instance URL (default: http://localhost:5678)N8N_API_KEY: Your n8n API key from the n8n settingsN8N_VERSION: (Optional) Override N8N version - if not set, auto-detects from APIRestart Cursor IDE for changes to take effect
For development or local testing, you can clone and build from source:
Clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/ifmelate/n8n-workflow-builder-mcp.git
cd n8n-workflow-builder-mcp
Install dependencies:
npm install
Build the TypeScript project:
npm run build
Configure in .cursor/mcp.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"n8n-workflow-builder": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/absolute/path/to/n8n-workflow-builder-mcp/dist/index.js"],
"env": {
"N8N_API_URL": "http://localhost:5678",
"N8N_API_KEY": "your-n8n-api-key-here",
//"N8N_VERSION": "1.72.1" - optional
}
}
}
}
For development with auto-rebuild:
npm run dev
Alternatively, you can set up the MCP server through Cursor's interface:
npx with args ["-y", "n8n-workflow-builder-mcp"]N8N_API_URL: http://localhost:5678N8N_API_KEY: your-n8n-api-key-hereN8N_VERSION: 1.72.1 (optional - auto-detects if not set)The server provides the following tools for working with n8n workflows:
| Tool Name | Description | Key Parameters |
|---|---|---|
| create_workflow | Create a new n8n workflow | workflow_name, workspace_dir |
| list_workflows | List workflows in the workspace | limit (optional), cursor (optional) |
| get_workflow_details | Get detailed information about a specific workflow | workflow_name, workflow_path (optional) |
| add_node | Add a new node to a workflow | workflow_name, node_type, position (optional), parameters (optional), node_name (optional), typeVersion (optional), webhookId (optional), workflow_path (optional), connect_from (optional), connect_to (optional) |
| edit_node | Edit an existing node in a workflow | workflow_name, node_id, node_type (optional), node_name (optional), position (optional), parameters (optional), typeVersion (optional), webhookId (optional), workflow_path (optional), connect_from (optional), connect_to (optional) |
| delete_node | Delete a node from a workflow | workflow_name, node_id, workflow_path (optional) |
| add_connection | Create a connection between two nodes | workflow_name, source_node_id, source_node_output_name, target_node_id, target_node_input_name, target_node_input_index (optional), workflow_path (optional) |
| add_ai_connections | Wire AI model, tools, and memory to an agent | workflow_name, agent_node_id, model_node_id (optional), tool_node_ids (optional), memory_node_id (optional), embeddings_node_id (optional), vector_store_node_id (optional), vector_insert_node_id (optional), vector_tool_node_id (optional), workflow_path (optional) |
| compose_ai_workflow | Compose a complex AI workflow (agent + model + memory + embeddings + vector + tools + trigger) in one call, including wiring and basic validation | workflow_name, plan, n8n_version (optional) |
| list_available_nodes | List available node types with optional filtering. Supports tag-style synonyms and multi-token OR/AND logic | search_term (optional), n8n_version (optional), limit (optional), cursor (optional), tags (optional, default: true), token_logic (optional: 'or' default, or 'and') |
| get_n8n_version_info | Get current N8N version and capabilities | random_string |
| validate_workflow | Validate a workflow file against node schemas and connectivity | workflow_name, workflow_path (optional) |
validate_workflow promotes warnings to errors and additionally fails when any enabled node is not connected (directly or via AI ports) to the main chain starting at the inferred startNode. Use connect_from/connect_to or add_ai_connections to fix connectivity.
If you're having trouble getting the MCP server to work with Cursor, try these steps:
Make sure your .cursor/mcp.json file is properly formatted:
{
"mcpServers": {
"n8n-workflow-builder": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "n8n-workflow-builder-mcp"]
}
}
}
Check Cursor MCP settings:
Check server logs: Look for errors in the Cursor Output panel. Select "Cursor MCP" from the dropdown in the Output panel to see MCP-specific logs.
Try manual installation: If npx fails, try the global installation method as an alternative:
npm install -g n8n-workflow-builder-mcp
This usually happens when:
Try:
This can happen if:
.cursor/mcp.json file is not properly formatted.cursor directoryTry:
.cursor/mcp.json filechmod 755 .cursorThis can happen if:
Try:
npm cache clean --force/src: Main source code/src/tools: MCP tools implementation/src/models: Data models/src/utils: Utility functions/src/middleware: Authentication and middleware/config: Configuration files/tests: Test files/workflow_nodes: n8n node definitions/docs: Additional documentationContributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.
git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')git push origin feature/amazing-feature)MIT License
FAQs
MCP server for building n8n workflows
The npm package n8n-workflow-builder-mcp receives a total of 67 weekly downloads. As such, n8n-workflow-builder-mcp popularity was classified as not popular.
We found that n8n-workflow-builder-mcp demonstrated a healthy version release cadence and project activity because the last version was released less than a year ago. It has 1 open source maintainer collaborating on the project.
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