Accessing n8n MCP server#

Connect supported MCP clients to your n8n workflows through n8n's built-in MCP server.

The server allows clients such as Lovable or Claude Desktop to connect securely to an n8n instance. Once connected, these clients can:

Search within workflows marked as available in MCP
Retrieve metadata and trigger information for workflows
Trigger and run exposed workflows

Difference between instance-level MCP access and MCP Server Trigger node#

Instance-level MCP access lets you create one connection per n8n instance, use centralized authentication, and choose which workflows to enable for access. Enabled workflows are easy to find and run without extra setup for each workflow.

In comparison, you configure an MCP Server Trigger node inside a single workflow. This node exposes tools only from that workflow, a useful approach when you want to craft a specific MCP server behavior within one workflow.

Key considerations when using instance-level MCP access#

It isn't a way to build or edit workflows from an AI client; authoring remains in n8n.
It doesn't provide blanket exposure to all workflows in your instance. You must enable MCP at the instance level and then enable each workflow individually.
It's not scoped to each MCP client. Any connected client sees all workflows you’ve enabled for MCP access.

Enabling MCP access#

For Cloud and self-hosted instances#

Navigate to Settings > MCP Access
Toggle Enable MCP access (requires instance owner or admin permissions).

Once enabled, you'll see:

Connection instructions
List of workflows exposed to MCP clients

To disable: Toggle the switch off.

For self-hosted: Complete disablement#

To remove the feature entirely, set the environment variable:

N8N_DISABLED_MODULES=mcp

This action removes MCP endpoints and hides all related UI elements.

Setting up MCP authentication#

The How to connect section on the MCP Access page provides two authentication methods for MCP clients:

OAuth2
Access Token

Using OAuth2#

Copy your instance server URL from the OAuth tab and use it to configure your MCP client. After connecting, the client will redirect you to n8n to authorize access.

Revoking client access#

To revoke access for connected MCP clients:

Navigate to Settings > MCP Access.
Switch to the OAuth tab in the How to connect section. You should see a table of connected clients in the Connected OAuth clients section.
Use the action menu in each client's row to revoke access for specific clients.

Using Access Token#

Use your instance server URL and your personal MCP Access Token from the Access Token tab on the settings page.

When you first visit the MCP Access page, n8n automatically generates a personal MCP Access Token tied to your user account.

Info

Copy your token right away. On future visits, you'll only see a redacted value and the copy button will be disabled.

Rotating your token#

If you lose your token or need to rotate it:

Navigate to Settings > MCP Access.
Make sure you are on the Access Token tab in the How to connect section.
Generate a new token.

n8n revokes the previous token when you generate a new one.
Update all connected MCP clients with the new value.

Exposing workflows to MCP clients#

Workflow eligibility#

In order for a workflow to be available to MCP clients, it must meet the following criteria:

Be active
Contain one of the following trigger nodes:
- Webhook
- Schedule
- Chat
- Form

By default, no workflows are visible to MCP clients. You must explicitly enable access.

Info

Once you deactivate a workflow, n8n removes its MCP access. You will have to re-enable access when you activate the workflow again.

Enabling access#

Option 1: From the workflow editor#

Open the workflow.
Go to Settings.
Toggle Available in MCP.

Option 2: From the workflows list#

Go to Workflows.
Open the menu on a workflow card.
Select Enable MCP access.

Managing access#

The MCP Access settings page shows all workflows available to MCP clients. From this list you can:

Open a workflow directly
Revoke access using the action menu (or use Disable MCP access from the workflow card menu)

Workflow descriptions#

To help MCP clients identify workflows, you can add free-text descriptions as follows:

Open the workflow.
Click the pencil icon next to the workflow name.
Enter your description in the Description field.

Executing workflows trough MCP clients#

MCP clients can execute eligible workflows on your request. When a client triggers a workflow, it runs as usual in n8n, and you can monitor its execution in the Executions list. Once the execution is complete, the MCP client will retrieve the results.

Providing input data#

If a workflow requires input data, the MCP client must provide that data when triggering the workflow. The workflow's trigger node determines the schema of the input data:

Webhook trigger: MCP client will look for hints in workflow contents and its description. It's up to workflow author to provide enough information for the client to generate valid input data.
Schedule trigger: No input data is required.
Chat trigger: Chat input format is determined by the chat node configuration.
Form trigger: Form fields are determined by the form node configuration.

Workflow timeouts#

n8n enforces a 5-minute timeout for workflow executions triggered by MCP clients. If a workflow doesn't finish in time, n8n stops the execution and sends an error to the MCP client, ignoring any timeout you set in the workflow settings for MCP-triggered executions.

Limitations#

If there are multiple supported triggers in a workflow, MCP clients may only be able to use one (first one) of them to trigger the workflow.
Executing workflows with multi-step forms or any kind of human-in-the-loop interactions isn't supported.
Binary input data isn't supported. MCP clients can only provide text-based inputs for your workflows.

Examples#

Connecting Lovable to n8n MCP server#

Configure MCP Server in Lovable (OAuth).
- Navigate to your workspace Settings > Integrations.
- On the MCP Servers section, find n8n and click Connect.
- Enter your n8n server URL (shown on the MCP Access page).
- Save the connection. If successful, n8n redirects you to authorize Lovable.
Verify connectivity.
- Once connected, Lovable can query for workflows with MCP access enabled.
- Example: Asking Lovable to build a workflow UI that lists users and allows deleting them.

Connecting Claude Desktop to n8n MCP server#

Using OAuth2#

Navigate to Settings > Connectors in Claude Desktop.
Click on Add custom connector.
Enter the following details:
- Name: n8n MCP
- Remote MCP Server URL: Your n8n base URL (shown on the MCP Access page)
Save the connector.
When prompted, authorize Claude Desktop to access your n8n instance.

Using Access Token#

Info

This requires latest version of Node.js.

Add the following entry to your claude_desktop_config.json file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "n8n-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "supergateway",
        "--streamableHttp",
        "https://<your-n8n-domain>/mcp-server/http",
        "--header",
        "authorization:Bearer <YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Here, replace:

<your-n8n-domain>: Your n8n base URL (shown on the MCP Access page)
<YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>: Your generated token

Connecting Claude Code to n8n MCP server#

Use the following CLI command:

claude mcp add --transport http n8n-mcp https://<your-n8n-domain>/mcp-server/http \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>"

Alternatively, add the following entry to your claude.json file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "n8n-local": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://<your-n8n-domain>/mcp-server/http",
            "headers": {
                "Authorization": "Bearer <YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>"
            }
        }
    }
}

Here, replace:

<your-n8n-domain>: Your n8n base URL (shown on the MCP Access page)
<YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>: Your generated token

Connecting Codex CLI to n8n MCP server#

Add the following entry to your ~/.codex/config.toml file:

[mcp_servers.n8n_mcp]
command = "npx"
args = [
    "-y",
    "supergateway",
    "--streamableHttp",
    "https://<your-n8n-domain>/mcp-server/http",
    "--header",
    "authorization:Bearer <YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>"
]

Here, replace:

<your-n8n-domain>: Your n8n base URL (shown on the MCP Access page)
<YOUR_N8N_MCP_TOKEN>: Your generated token

Troubleshooting#

If you encounter issues connecting MCP clients to your n8n instance, consider the following:

Ensure that your n8n instance is publicly accessible if you are using cloud-based MCP clients.
Verify that the MCP access is enabled in n8n settings.
Check that the workflows you want to access are marked as available in MCP.
Confirm that the authentication method (OAuth2 or Access Token) is correctly configured in your MCP client.
Review n8n server logs for any error messages related to MCP connections.
If you are using desktop MCP clients, make sure you have latest Node.js version installed.

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