Using the n8n-mcp Skills

When to Use

Use this router at the start of any n8n MCP workflow design, inspection, edit, validation, test, deployment, credential, execution, or troubleshooting task so the relevant specialist guidance is loaded first.

Begin with read-only discovery and live schema inspection. Never copy secrets into prompts or workflow fields, never infer the target instance, and obtain approval before tests with side effects, activation, deletion, credential mutation, or other externally visible changes.

This is a router, not a reference. It tells you which skill owns the rules for what you're about to do. The skill bodies hold the actual guidance — invoke them with the Skill tool. When in doubt, load more skills rather than fewer.

The community n8n-mcp server and n8n itself move faster than any model's training cutoff. Tool names, parameters, node typeVersions, and default behaviors drift between releases. When you spot drift — a tool a skill names doesn't exist, a parameter shape doesn't match what get_node returns, behavior differs from what a skill describes — trust the live tool, tell the user, and suggest updating the pack and the instance.

Non-negotiables

Three rules with no exceptions. Each one prevents a class of workflow that looks correct but breaks in production.

1. Invoke the relevant skill before any n8n action — not just before MCP calls. Before writing an expression, configuring a node, designing a workflow, wiring a connection, or writing Code, invoke the matching skill. The PreToolUse hooks remind you on the highest-impact tool calls only when the plugin bundle is installed; on Claude.ai (plain skill uploads, no hooks) the responsibility is entirely yours.
2. Validate AND verify before activating. Run validate_workflow (or n8n_validate_workflow by id) before you activate, and call n8n_get_workflow after every create or update to inspect the connections object. Validation alone misses silently dropped wires, Merge index off-by-one, and error outputs that were never wired. Validation passing means the JSON is well-formed — not that the workflow is correct.
3. Secrets never go in text fields. Tokens, API keys, and passwords always go through the n8n credential system. If no native node exists, use the HTTP Request node with the official credential type. A Set node holding a token referenced via {{ $json.token }} is a leak with extra steps. See n8n-mcp-tools-expert.

Lean on skills, not training data

n8n changes constantly. "Remembered" parameter names are often silently wrong — they validate as plain strings and then do nothing at runtime. Trust the skills and the live tools (get_node, search_nodes, tools_documentation) over recollection. If a skill contradicts your memory, trust the skill. If get_node contradicts a skill, trust the tool and flag the drift.

Strong defaults

Each skill owns its own exceptions; these are the defaults.

• The Code node is a last resort. Expression first, then an arrow function inside Edit Fields, then a Code node only when neither can do the job. See n8n-code-javascript.
• A Set node feeding 0–1 consumers is almost always wrong. Inline the expression at the consumer instead. See n8n-expression-syntax.
• Per-item iteration is automatic. Don't add a Loop Over Items node to "make it loop" when default per-item execution already handles the case.
• Configure from the live schema, never from memory. get_node before you set parameters. See n8n-node-configuration.

Red flags: "about to ___" → invoke ___

If you catch yourself thinking any of these, stop and invoke the named skill first.

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