Run your node locally

You can test your node as you build it by running it in a local n8n instance.

1. Install n8n using npm:

npm install n8n -g

1. When you are ready to test your node, publish it locally:

# In your node directory
npm run build
npm link

1. Install the node into your local n8n instance:

   # In the nodes directory within your n8n installation
   # node-package-name is the name from the package.json
   npm link <node-package-name>

Check your directory

Make sure you run `npm link <node-name>` in the nodes directory within your n8n installation.

The default location depends on your operating system:
- For Windows: `C:\Users\<username>\.n8n\custom`
- For Linux: `/home/<username>/.n8n/custom`
- For MacOS: `/Users/<username>/.n8n/custom`

If your n8n installation set a different name using `N8N_CUSTOM_EXTENSIONS`, use that custom directory instead.

Note: The `.n8n` folder is a hidden folder so it may not appear in your file browser.

1. Start n8n:

n8n start

1. Open n8n in your browser. You should see your nodes when you search for them in the nodes panel.

Node names

Make sure you search using the node name, not the package name. For example, if your npm package name is `n8n-nodes-weather-nodes`, and the package contains nodes named `rain`, `sun`, `snow`, you should search for `rain`, not `weather-nodes`.

Troubleshooting

If there's no custom directory in your .n8n local installation, you have to create the custom directory manually and run npm init.

The .n8n directory location depends on your operating system:

• For Windows: C:\Users\<username>\.n8n\custom

• For Linux: /home/<username>/.n8n/custom

• For MacOS: /Users/<username>/.n8n/custom

Note: The .n8n folder is a hidden folder so it may not appear in your file browser.

# Navigate to your .n8n directory and run:
mkdir custom
cd custom
npm init