n8n — Workflow Automation Platform

Deploy n8n — the fair-code workflow automation platform — on Railway in minutes.

n8n is a powerful automation tool with 400+ native integrations and a visual editor for building workflows. Self-host it to keep full control over your data.

Features

• 400+ integrations — Slack, Gmail, GitHub, PostgreSQL, OpenAI, Shopify, and more
• Visual workflow builder — drag-and-drop node-based editor with 200+ components
• Node.js/TypeScript support — run custom code inline in any workflow step
• Self-hosted fairness-first — source-available license, deploy on your own infrastructure
• Community template marketplace — reuse workflows built by the community
• Webhooks & REST API — trigger and control workflows programmatically

Architecture

                    ┌──────────────┐
                    │   Browser    │
                    └──────┬───────┘
                           │ HTTPS
                    ┌──────▼───────┐
                    │   Railway    │
                    │  Edge Proxy  │
                    └──────┬───────┘
                           │ HTTP :5678
                    ┌──────▼───────┐
                    │     n8n      │
                    │    (node)    │
                    │ :5678        │
                    ├──────────────┤
                    │ /home/node/  │
                    │ .local/share │
                    │   /n8n       │
                    └──────────────┘

Quick Start

1. Click the Deploy button above on Railway
2. Set N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY (required — generated automatically if omitted, but set it explicitly to avoid losing credentials on redeploy)
3. n8n starts at http://your-project.railway.app:5678
4. Create your first admin account through the setup wizard

Environment Variables

Required

Optional

Database (Optional)

By default n8n uses SQLite. For PostgreSQL:

See n8n docs for the full environment variable reference.

Local Development

# Clone and configure
git clone git@github.com:YOUR_ORG/railway-n8n.git
cd railway-n8n
cp .env.example .env

# Build
podman build -t railway-n8n .

# Run (mount bind for persistent storage)
mkdir -p ~/n8n-data
podman run -d --name n8n \
  -p 5678:5678 \
  -v ~/n8n-data:/home/node/.local/share/n8n \
  --env-file .env \
  railway-n8n

# Open http://localhost:5678

Deploy and Host

Click the "Deploy on Railway" button above to spin up your own n8n instance in minutes. No configuration required — n8n will start automatically with a managed SQLite database and auto-generated encryption key.

Hosting Options

• Railway (recommended): One-click deploy, automatic HTTPS, scaling, and managed infrastructure. Follow the Quick Start for step-by-step instructions.
• Docker/Podman: Self-host on your own server or VPS with Docker Compose or podman. See Local Development for setup instructions.
• Kubernetes: Deploy n8n as a container in any Kubernetes cluster using the official Docker image (n8nio/n8n:1.56.0).

Deployment Details

About Hosting

The n8n Docker image runs a Node.js application that listens on port 5678. The persistent storage path is /home/node/.local/share/n8n, which stores workflows, credentials, and the SQLite database. On Railway, volumes persist across deployments unless explicitly removed — your data stays safe through redeployments and environment changes.

Key considerations:

• Encryption key: N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY encrypts all stored credentials in your workflows. Set this once on first deploy and never change it — losing it means every encrypted credential becomes unreadable.
• Port configuration: Railway may inject a different PORT variable; always explicitly configure n8n to listen on port 5678 via the N8N_PORT environment variable or Docker build config.
• Scaling: For production workloads beyond single-instance capacity, connect a PostgreSQL database via DB_TYPE=postgresdb and use service bindings for secure database access.

Why Deploy

n8n is the most popular self-hosted workflow automation platform with over 61K GitHub stars. Self-hosting gives you:

• Full privacy and data control: All workflows, credentials, and data stay on your infrastructure.
• Unlimited integrations: Use all 400+ native nodes without vendor restrictions or pricing tiers.
• Cost efficiency: No per-workflow fees — unlimited workflows for the cost of hosting alone.
• Customizability: Extend with custom Node.js/TypeScript code, self-hosted marketplaces, and custom integrations.
• Compliance: Meet GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC requirements by controlling where your automation data lives.

Common Use Cases

n8n supports automation across many domains:

Dependencies for

Database (Optional)

By default n8n uses SQLite. For PostgreSQL:

|| Variable | Default | Description | ||---|---|---| || DB_TYPE | "" (sqlite) | Set to db:type=postgresdb or use the full connection URIs below | || DB_POSTGRESDB_HOST | — | Postgres hostname via Railway service binding | || DB_POSTGRESDB_PORT | 5432 | Postgres port | || DB_POSTGRESDB_DATABASE | — | Database name | || DB_POSTGRESDB_USER | — | Postgres user | || DB_POSTGRESDB_PASSWORD | — | Postgres password |

Deployment Dependencies

This template requires:

• Railway account with billing enabled for Docker container hosting
• One environment variable: N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY (recommended but not required — auto-generated if omitted)
• Optional: PostgreSQL service binding for production-scale data storage and backup

• Missing env var after deploy: n8n requires N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY on first run. If not set, an auto-generated key is used — but losing it means every encrypted credential becomes unreadable. Always set it explicitly.
• Port mismatch: n8n listens on port 5678 by default. Railway injects its own PORT variable but n8n ignores it; ensure the service binds to 5678 or match your PORT env var accordingly.
• Health check failing during startup: n8n can take up to 30 seconds for the first workflow load. The dockerfile includes a 45s start-period to handle this.