How To Connect Trello to N8N A Step-by-Step Guide (2025)

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the entire process, from generating your Trello API keys to building your first automated workflow. Let’s dive in!

What You’ll Need

1. A Trello account (a free account works perfectly).
2. An n8n instance. This can be:
   • n8n.cloud (the hosted version).
   • A self-hosted instance (e.g., on Google Cloud, Docker, etc.).

Step 1: Create a Trello “Power-Up” App

To allow n8n to communicate with Trello, you need to create a dedicated application in Trello’s developer portal. This gives you the API keys needed for the connection.

1. Go to https://trello.com/power-ups/admin and log in if necessary.
2. Click on “New” to create a new application.
3. Fill in the details:
   • Name: Give it a descriptive name, like “n8n Automation”.
   • Workspace: Select the Trello workspace you want to associate with this integration.
   • Email: Add your contact email.
   • Author Name: Your name or your company’s name.
4. Click “Create”.

You will now be on your new app’s management page.

Step 2: Generate Your Trello API Key and Token

n8n requires two pieces of information to authenticate: an API Key and an API Token.

1. On your app’s page, find the “API Key” section and click “Generate API Key”. Your key will be displayed. Copy this key.
2. Now, scroll down to the “OAuth & Token” section. To generate a token, you need to authorize the app.
3. Click on the link that says “Token” (it should be under a section labeled “Your Member Token”). A new Trello window will pop up asking for authorization.
4. Click “Allow”. You will then see your API Token. Copy this token immediately, as it will only be shown once.
5. (Important) Still on the app page, find the “Allowed Origins” field. This is a security measure that tells Trello which websites are allowed to use these keys.
   • If you are running n8n on localhost, add: http://localhost:5678
   • If you are using n8n.cloud, add: https://app.n8n.cloud
   • This step is crucial for the connection to work!

You now have your API Key and API Token. Keep them handy.

Step 3: Set Up Trello Credentials in n8n

Now, let’s switch over to n8n and input the keys you just generated.

1. In your n8n interface, go to the “Credentials” section from the left-hand menu.
2. Click on “Create Credential”.
3. Search for and select “Trello API”.
4. Click “Continue”.
5. You will see fields for App Key and Access Token.
   • App Key: Paste the API Key you copied from Trello.
   • Access Token: Paste the API Token you copied from Trello.
6. Click “Save” to store these credentials securely.

Congratulations! n8n and Trello are now officially connected.

Step 4: Build Your First Automation Workflow

Let’s create a simple but powerful automation: Whenever a new list is created on a Trello board, automatically create a card in a specific list.

Part A: The Trigger (“When Something Happens”)

We’ll start by setting up a trigger that watches our Trello board for any changes.

1. In n8n, create a new workflow.
2. Add a trigger node. Search for and select the “Trello Trigger” node.
3. Select the Trello credentials you created in Step 3.
4. Now, you need the Model ID of the Trello board you want to monitor. This is the unique identifier for your board.
   • How to find your Board’s Model ID:
     1. In Trello, open the board you want to automate.
     2. Click on the three dots (…) in the top-right corner, next to the board’s name.
     3. Go to “Share, Print, and Export” > “Export as JSON”.
     4. Open the downloaded JSON file in a text editor or browser. You will see a field called "id". Copy this long string of characters. This is your Board’s Model ID.
5. Paste this Model ID into the corresponding field in the n8n Trello Trigger node.
6. Click “Test Step” to see if the connection is working. n8n will now listen for events on that board.

Part B: The Action (“Then Do This”)

Now, we’ll tell n8n what to do when the trigger is activated.

1. Add an action node. Search for and select the “Trello” node (which is for creating/updating items).
2. Choose the operation “Create a Card”.
3. You need to tell it where to create the card. For this, you need the List ID.
   • How to find your List ID:
     1. The easiest way is to create a card in the desired list in Trello.
     2. Click on the card, then click “Share” and “Export as JSON”.
     3. In the JSON data, look for the idList field. Copy this value. This is the unique ID for that specific list.
4. Paste the List ID into the “List ID” field in the n8n Trello node.
5. Now, set the card details. For example:
   • Name: “My Task Card”
   • Description: “This card was created automatically by n8n!”

Your workflow is now complete! It should look like this: Trello Trigger → Trello (Create Card).

Step 5: Test Your Automation

The moment of truth! Let’s see if it works.

1. In n8n, click “Activate” to turn on your workflow.
2. Go to your Trello board.
3. Create a new list. Name it anything, like “Test List”.
4. Hit “Enter” to create the list.

Within seconds, go to the list where you set the action to create a card (e.g., “List One”). You should see a new card titled “My Task Card” with the description you set!

Conclusion and Next Steps

You’ve successfully built your first Trello-n8n automation! This is just the beginning. The real power lies in expanding this concept. You can:

• Create cards from new Gmail emails.
• Move cards to a “Done” list when a task is marked complete in another app.
• Send a Slack notification when a card is assigned to you.

The sky’s the limit with n8n. What will you automate first?

Pro Tip: If you’re concerned about costs, a self-hosted n8n instance on a cloud provider like Google Cloud can be incredibly cost-effective, often costing just pennies per month for personal use.