This is not a comparison of n8n and OpenClaw — we have a separate article for that. This guide is about using them together. n8n handles deterministic, multi-step workflows. OpenClaw handles tasks that require intelligence. Connected via webhooks and HTTP requests, they form an automation stack that is both reliable and smart.
Why Combine Them?
n8n is excellent at connecting services and executing predictable sequences: when X happens, do Y, then Z.[1] But it struggles when a step requires judgment — reading an email and deciding its urgency, generating contextual responses, or analyzing unstructured data.
OpenClaw handles the intelligent parts but does not have n8n's ecosystem of 400+ native integrations, visual workflow builder, or built-in error handling with retries.
Together:
- n8n triggers workflows, connects to services, handles retries, and manages the mechanical pipeline
- OpenClaw provides the AI reasoning layer where judgment, language understanding, or generation is needed
Architecture
External Event → n8n Workflow → [needs intelligence?]
├── No → n8n completes the action
└── Yes → n8n calls OpenClaw API
→ OpenClaw processes + responds
→ n8n continues with the result
Or in the other direction:
User → OpenClaw (via Telegram) → OpenClaw triggers n8n webhook
→ n8n executes workflow
→ n8n returns result to OpenClaw
→ OpenClaw reports to user
Setting Up the Connection
Prerequisites
- A running n8n instance (self-hosted or n8n Cloud)
- A running OpenClaw instance (self-hosted or on ClawTank)
- Both instances accessible via HTTP (on the same server or via public URLs)
n8n Calling OpenClaw
n8n sends requests to OpenClaw's HTTP API to ask it to process something.
In n8n, use an HTTP Request node:
Method: POST
URL: https://your-openclaw-instance.com/api/chat
Headers:
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_OPENCLAW_API_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json
Body:
{
"message": "Analyze this customer email and classify as urgent/normal/spam: {{$json.emailBody}}"
}
OpenClaw processes the message using its AI model and returns the response, which n8n can use in subsequent workflow steps.
OpenClaw Calling n8n
OpenClaw can trigger n8n workflows via webhook. In n8n, create a Webhook trigger node and note the URL.
Then tell OpenClaw about it:
openclaw memory add "When I need to trigger the invoice workflow,
POST to https://your-n8n.com/webhook/invoice-trigger with the
client name, amount, and due date as JSON."
Now when you message OpenClaw:
"Create an invoice for Acme Corp, $2,500, due March 15"
OpenClaw extracts the data and sends it to the n8n webhook, which handles the actual invoice generation, PDF creation, and email delivery.
Example Recipes
Recipe 1: Intelligent Email Triage
Flow: Gmail → n8n → OpenClaw → n8n → Slack/Label
- n8n Trigger: Gmail node watches for new emails
- n8n Step: Sends email subject + body to OpenClaw
- OpenClaw: Classifies as urgent/action-needed/informational/spam and drafts a suggested response for action-needed emails
- n8n Step: Based on classification:
- Urgent → Slack alert with summary + suggested response
- Action-needed → Apply "needs-reply" label, queue the draft
- Informational → Apply "FYI" label
- Spam → Archive
n8n Workflow Nodes:
Gmail Trigger → HTTP Request (OpenClaw) → Switch (classification) → Slack / Gmail Label / Archive
This gives you AI-powered email triage without building the Gmail/Slack integrations from scratch — n8n already has those nodes.
Recipe 2: Content Pipeline
Flow: RSS Feed → n8n → OpenClaw → n8n → WordPress + Twitter
- n8n Trigger: RSS Feed node detects a new industry article
- n8n Step: Sends the article URL and title to OpenClaw
- OpenClaw: Reads the article, writes a 200-word commentary, generates 3 social media posts, and picks relevant tags
- n8n Step: Creates a WordPress draft with the commentary and publishes the social posts
Recipe 3: Customer Support Router
Flow: Form Submission → n8n → OpenClaw → n8n → Zendesk/Slack/Email
- n8n Trigger: Webhook receives a support form submission
- n8n Step: Sends the support request text to OpenClaw
- OpenClaw: Analyzes the request, determines the product area, severity, and whether an existing FAQ answers it
- n8n Step: Based on the analysis:
- Has FAQ answer → auto-reply with the answer
- Needs human help → create Zendesk ticket with OpenClaw's suggested resolution
- Critical issue → Slack alert to the on-call engineer
Recipe 4: Daily Competitive Intelligence
Flow: Schedule → n8n → Web Scrape → OpenClaw → n8n → Email
- n8n Trigger: Cron schedule (daily at 8 AM)
- n8n Step: HTTP Request nodes scrape competitor changelog pages, pricing pages, and blog feeds
- n8n Step: Sends all scraped content to OpenClaw
- OpenClaw: Compares against yesterday's data (stored in memory), identifies what changed, and writes a brief summary
- n8n Step: Formats the summary as an HTML email and sends it
Recipe 5: Invoice to Accounting
Flow: Telegram → OpenClaw → n8n → Google Sheets + QuickBooks
- User on Telegram: "Invoice Client X for 10 hours of consulting at $150/hr, project: Website Redesign"
- OpenClaw: Extracts structured data (client, hours, rate, project, total) and sends to n8n webhook
- n8n Step: Adds a row to the Google Sheets invoice log, creates a draft invoice in QuickBooks, and sends a confirmation back to OpenClaw
- OpenClaw: Reports "Invoice #1042 created for Client X — $1,500. Want me to send it?"
Bidirectional Communication Pattern
The most powerful pattern is a loop where n8n and OpenClaw pass data back and forth:
n8n receives event
→ calls OpenClaw for analysis
→ OpenClaw returns structured decision
→ n8n executes based on decision
→ n8n sends execution result back to OpenClaw
→ OpenClaw stores the outcome in memory
This means OpenClaw builds up context over time. When analyzing the next email or support ticket, it can reference patterns from previous ones — something n8n alone cannot do.
Error Handling
n8n Side
- Set a timeout on the HTTP Request node calling OpenClaw (30-60 seconds). AI processing takes time.
- Add an Error Trigger workflow that alerts you if the OpenClaw node fails.
- Use n8n's retry mechanism for transient failures.
OpenClaw Side
- If n8n's webhook is unreachable, OpenClaw should report the failure to you on Telegram rather than silently dropping it.
- Tell OpenClaw: "If a webhook call fails, retry once after 30 seconds. If it fails again, message me with the details."
Setup on ClawTank
If your OpenClaw is on ClawTank and n8n is self-hosted, n8n calls the ClawTank instance URL directly. No special network configuration is needed — the ClawTank instance is accessible over HTTPS with a stable URL.
For the reverse direction (OpenClaw calling n8n), either:
- Host n8n with a public URL (n8n Cloud, or self-hosted with a domain)
- Use a Cloudflare Tunnel to expose your self-hosted n8n securely
Performance Tips
- Batch requests — instead of calling OpenClaw once per email, batch 5-10 emails into a single request: "Classify these 10 emails." Fewer API calls, lower latency.
- Cache common patterns — if OpenClaw keeps classifying similar emails the same way, add an n8n IF node to handle obvious cases before calling OpenClaw.
- Use async webhooks — for non-time-critical tasks, have n8n fire-and-forget to OpenClaw, and OpenClaw posts results back to a separate n8n webhook when done.
Getting Started
- Get n8n running (Docker, npm, or n8n Cloud)[2]
- Get OpenClaw running (Docker or ClawTank)
- Create your first n8n workflow with a Webhook trigger
- Tell OpenClaw about the webhook URL
- Message OpenClaw on Telegram with a command that triggers the workflow
Start with a simple recipe — the invoice example or email triage — and build from there. The combination of n8n's workflow reliability and OpenClaw's intelligence creates automations that neither tool can achieve alone.