cli-n8n ⚡️

A powerful, interactive CLI to manage and test n8n workflows directly from your terminal.

✨ Features

• ✅ Interactive UI: Manage workflows using a fast, menu-driven interface.
• 🪝 Webhook Invocation: Test webhooks with a powerful Tree View Editor, auto-detection, and history.
• 💾 Local Versioning: Save timestamped checkpoints of your workflows locally.
• ⭐ Favorites: Pin your most-used workflows for quick access.
• 🔐 Profiles: Manage multiple instances (Prod/Staging/Local) with isolated credentials.
• 📦 Import/Export: Robust handling of files, URLs, and bundle.zip backups.

📦 Install

Global Installation (Recommended)

npm i -g cli-n8n

Or use with npx (No installation required)

npx cli-n8n

🚀 Quick Start

1. Run the CLI:

   With global install:

   cli-n8n

   Or with npx:

   npx cli-n8n

2. Configure: Go to Settings → Configure credentials to connect your n8n instance.

📖 Usage Guide

🪝 Webhook Testing

Invoke webhooks interactively without leaving the terminal.

• Tree Editor: Edit complex JSON payloads in a visual tree structure (nesting supported!).
• Auto-Detect: The CLI inspects your workflow to guess required fields.
• History: It remembers your last payload for every workflow.
• Retry: Rapidly tweak and resend requests from the result screen.

💾 Local Versioning

Never lose work again. Save snapshots to your machine.

• Save: Select "Save local version" in the menu.
• List: View all saved versions in ./versions/{WorkflowName}/.

⚡️ Workflow Management

• List: Browse workflows with status icons.
• Filter: Search by name or ID.
• Favorites: Highlight important workflows (displayed with ⭐).

📤 Workflow Sharing

Share workflows instantly via HTTP server with optional public access through Cloudflare tunnel.

Local Sharing

Share a workflow on your local network:

cli-n8n share <workflow-id>

This starts a local HTTP server (default port: 3333) and provides:

• Local URL: Access from your machine (http://127.0.0.1:3333/workflow.json)
• Network URL: Access from devices on the same network
• Auto-copy: URL automatically copied to clipboard

Options:

• --port <number>: Custom port (default: 3333)
• --public: Bind to 0.0.0.0 for network access
• --clean=false: Include credentials (default: cleaned)

Public Sharing with Cloudflare

Share workflows publicly using Cloudflare tunnel (requires cloudflared):

cli-n8n share <workflow-id> --tunnel cloudflare

This creates a temporary public URL via trycloudflare.com:

• ✅ No Cloudflare account required
• ✅ Instant public HTTPS link
• ✅ Perfect for sharing with teammates
• ⚠️ Link expires when you stop the server (CTRL+C)

Install cloudflared:

# macOS
brew install cloudflare/cloudflare/cloudflared

# Linux
wget https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/releases/latest/download/cloudflared-linux-amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i cloudflared-linux-amd64.deb

📥 Workflow Import

Import workflows from multiple sources:

From Local File

cli-n8n import ./workflow.json

From URL

Import directly from a shared link (perfect with share command!):

cli-n8n import https://example.trycloudflare.com/123.json

The CLI automatically:

• Downloads the JSON with retry logic
• Handles DNS resolution delays
• Validates the workflow structure

From Bundle (ZIP)

Import multiple workflows from a backup bundle:

cli-n8n import ./bundle.zip

Import Options

• --name "Custom Name": Override workflow name
• --upsert: Update existing workflow with same name (auto-backup before overwrite)
• --clean=false: Keep credentials (default: cleaned)
• --dry-run: Preview what would be imported without making changes

🛠 Commands

Command	Description
cli-n8n	Launch interactive mode (Recommended)
cli-n8n list	List workflows
cli-n8n list --search "foo"	Search workflows
cli-n8n share <id>	Share workflow locally
cli-n8n share <id> --tunnel cloudflare	Share workflow publicly (Cloudflare)
cli-n8n import ./file.json	Import from local file
cli-n8n import <url>	Import from URL
cli-n8n import ./bundle.zip	Import from bundle
cli-n8n import <url> --upsert	Import and update if exists
cli-n8n export --all --bundle	Backup all workflows to a zip
cli-n8n delete <id>	Delete workflow (auto-backed up)

⚙️ Configuration

Profiles

Switch between environments easily:

cli-n8n --profile staging

Or manage them in Settings.

Environment Variables

Optionally configure via ENV (overrides saved config):

export N8N_URL="http://localhost:5678/api/v1"
export N8N_API_KEY="YOUR_KEY"

License

MIT