External secrets

File-based configuration

You can add _FILE to individual variables to provide their configuration in a separate file. Refer to Keeping sensitive data in separate files for more details.

You can use an external secrets store to manage credentials for n8n. Refer to External secrets for details.

Variable	Type	Default	Description
N8N_EXTERNAL_SECRETS_UPDATE_INTERVAL	Number	300 (5 minutes)	How often (in seconds) to check for secret updates.