n8n - Autype

Variable syntax: n8n uses {{...}} for its own expressions, which conflicts with Autype’s default variable syntax. When building n8n workflows, use the alternative ${varName} syntax for Autype variable placeholders instead. The API automatically converts ${...} to {{...}} internally. This applies to all API input — document JSON, Markdown content, and bulk render items.

Overview

The n8n-nodes-autype community node lets you generate documents, render PDFs, and manage content directly from n8n workflows. Self-host your entire document automation pipeline with n8n’s visual editor and Autype’s rendering engine.

Prerequisites

An Autype account with an API key (Dashboard → Settings → API Keys)
An n8n instance (self-hosted or n8n Cloud)

What you can do

With the Autype community node for n8n, you can:

Render documents from JSON or Extended Markdown to PDF, DOCX, or ODT
Bulk render documents with variable data from spreadsheets, CRMs, or databases
Manage projects and documents — create, list, and retrieve documents
Upload images for use in documents
PDF tools — merge, split, rotate, watermark, compress, and more
Use as AI tool — the node has usableAsTool enabled, so AI agents in n8n can call it directly

Installation

n8n Cloud or self-hosted (GUI)

Go to Settings → Community Nodes
Enter n8n-nodes-autype
Click Install

Self-hosted (CLI)

cd ~/.n8n
npm install n8n-nodes-autype

Restart n8n after installing.

Using variables in n8n

Since n8n reserves the {{...}} syntax for its own expressions, Autype accepts ${...} as an alternative on all API inputs.

Example: Document JSON in n8n

Instead of:

{
  "sections": [{
    "type": "flow",
    "content": [
      { "type": "h1", "text": "Invoice for {{companyName}}" },
      { "type": "text", "text": "Date: {{invoiceDate}}" }
    ]
  }]
}

Use this in n8n:

{
  "sections": [{
    "type": "flow",
    "content": [
      { "type": "h1", "text": "Invoice for ${companyName}" },
      { "type": "text", "text": "Date: ${invoiceDate}" }
    ]
  }]
}

Both forms are equivalent. The API normalizes ${...} to {{...}} before processing.

Mixing n8n expressions and Autype variables

You can freely combine n8n’s expression syntax with Autype’s ${...} variable placeholders. In the node’s JSON fields, n8n expressions are evaluated first, then Autype substitutes its own variables during rendering:

Invoice for ${companyName} — generated on {{ $now.format('yyyy-MM-dd') }}

In this example:

{{ $now.format('yyyy-MM-dd') }} is an n8n expression evaluated at execution time
${companyName} is an Autype variable placeholder substituted during rendering

The ${...} syntax is only for input. If you retrieve document content from the API (e.g., via the Get Document operation), variable placeholders will always be returned as {{...}}.

Built-in variables

The following Autype variables are always available and work with both syntaxes:

`${...}` syntax	`{{...}}` equivalent	Description
`${pageNumber}`	`{{pageNumber}}`	Current page number
`${totalPages}`	`{{totalPages}}`	Total number of pages
`${date}`	`{{date}}`	Current date (DD.MM.YYYY)
`${date/YYYY-MM-DD}`	`{{date/YYYY-MM-DD}}`	Current date with custom format

Getting started

Install the community node

In your n8n instance, go to Settings → Community Nodes and install n8n-nodes-autype.

Create an API key

Go to the Autype Dashboard and navigate to Settings → API Keys. Create a new key — it will start with ak_....

Add credentials in n8n

In n8n, go to Credentials → Add Credential and search for Autype. Paste your API key and save.

Build your workflow

Add the Autype node to your workflow, choose a resource and operation (e.g. Render → Render from JSON), and configure it. Execute the workflow to generate your first document.

API keys are scoped to your organization. Keep them secret — never commit them to version control or store them in plain text.

Available operations

The Autype community node provides 40+ operations across 8 resources. Each operation maps directly to an endpoint of the Developer API.

Rendering

Operation	Description
Render from JSON	Submit a complete document as structured JSON and render it to PDF, DOCX, or ODT. Optionally waits for completion and returns binary output.
Render from Markdown	Submit content as Extended Markdown and render it to PDF, DOCX, or ODT. Supports page size, orientation, margins, variables, defaults, abbreviations, citations, and style options.
Render Persistent Document	Render an existing document from your Autype workspace by its ID. Optionally override variables and output format.
Validate JSON	Validate a document JSON configuration without rendering. Returns validation errors if any.
Validate Markdown	Validate Markdown content without rendering.
List Render Jobs	List all render jobs for your organization with pagination.

Bulk Rendering

Operation	Description
Bulk Render from JSON	Create up to 100 documents at once by providing a document ID and an array of variable sets.
Bulk Render from File	Upload a CSV, Excel, or JSON file with variable data to generate documents in bulk.

Documents

Operation	Description
List Documents	List all documents, optionally filtered by project.
Get a Document	Retrieve a document by ID including its latest content.
Create a Document	Create a new document in a project with optional initial content.
Get Document Variables	Get variable definitions for a document.

Projects

Operation	Description
List Projects	List all projects in your organization.
Create a Project	Create a new project.

Files (Tool Files)

Operation	Description
Upload a File	Upload a file (PDF, DOCX, ODT, PNG, JPEG) for use with tool operations. Files expire after 60 minutes.
Get File Details	Get metadata for a specific tool file.
Download a File	Download a tool file by ID as binary data.
List Tool Files	List all non-expired tool files.
Delete a File	Delete a tool file from storage.
Upload a Temporary Image	Upload an image for use in ad-hoc renders (expires after 24 hours). Returns a `refPath` for use in document JSON.
List Temporary Images	List all non-expired temporary images.
Delete a Temporary Image	Delete a temporary image.

PDF Tools

Operation	Description
Merge PDFs	Merge 2–20 PDF files into a single document.
Split PDF	Split a PDF into multiple parts by page ranges. Output is a ZIP file.
Rotate PDF Pages	Rotate specific pages by 90°, 180°, or 270°.
Keep or Remove Pages	Keep or remove specific pages using page specs like `1`, `2-5`, `3-`.
Add Watermark	Add a text watermark with configurable font size, opacity, rotation, and color.
Get Metadata	Extract page count, title, author, and creation date.
Protect PDF	Encrypt a PDF with user and/or owner passwords.
Unlock PDF	Remove password protection from a PDF.
Compress PDF	Reduce file size (low, medium, or high compression).
PDF to Image	Convert pages to PNG or JPEG (configurable DPI).
Get Form Fields	Extract form field names, types, and values.
Fill Form	Fill form fields with text, checkboxes, dropdowns, and radio values.

Document Tools

Operation	Description
Convert DOCX to PDF	Convert a DOCX file to PDF.
Convert ODT to PDF	Convert an ODT file to PDF.
Replace Placeholders	Replace placeholder tags in a DOCX or ODT document with text values.
List Tool Jobs	List tool jobs with pagination.

How tool operations work

Most PDF and document tool operations follow the same pattern:

Submit — The node sends a request to the API and receives a job ID
Poll — When “Wait for Completion” is enabled, the node polls automatically (every 2 seconds, up to 5 minutes)
Return — Once completed, the node returns the job ID, status, output file ID, metadata, and optionally the binary output

Enable Download Output to receive the result as binary data directly attached to the node output. This lets you chain results into subsequent nodes (e.g., send the PDF via email or upload to cloud storage).

Input files are not deleted after a tool job completes. They remain available until they expire (default: 60 minutes). You can reuse the same file ID across multiple tool operations in your workflow.

Common workflow patterns

Generate a PDF from dynamic data

Use a trigger node (e.g., Webhook, Google Sheets, Airtable) to get your data
Add the Autype node with Render → Render from JSON and build your document JSON
Enable Download Output to get the PDF as binary data
Send the PDF via email, upload to S3, or save to disk

Bulk generate personalized documents

Add the Autype node with Bulk Render → Bulk Render from JSON
Provide a document ID and an array of variable sets
Enable Download Output to get a ZIP file with all documents

Process an existing PDF

Use an HTTP Request node to download a PDF from any source
Add the Autype node with File → Upload to upload it as a tool file
Chain another Autype node with any PDF tool operation (e.g., PDF Tools → Watermark, PDF Tools → Compress)
Enable Download Output to get the processed result

AI agent document generation

The Autype node has usableAsTool enabled, which means n8n AI agents can use it as a tool. Add the Autype node as a tool to your AI agent workflow, and the agent can generate documents, render PDFs, and perform tool operations autonomously.

Overview

Integrations

​Overview

​Prerequisites

​What you can do

​Installation

​n8n Cloud or self-hosted (GUI)

​Self-hosted (CLI)

​Using variables in n8n

​Example: Document JSON in n8n

​Mixing n8n expressions and Autype variables

​Built-in variables

​Getting started

​Available operations

​Rendering

​Bulk Rendering

​Documents

​Projects

​Files (Tool Files)

​PDF Tools

​Document Tools

​How tool operations work

​Common workflow patterns

​Generate a PDF from dynamic data

​Bulk generate personalized documents

​Process an existing PDF

​AI agent document generation

Overview

Prerequisites

What you can do

Installation

n8n Cloud or self-hosted (GUI)

Self-hosted (CLI)

Using variables in n8n

Example: Document JSON in n8n

Mixing n8n expressions and Autype variables

Built-in variables

Getting started

Available operations

Rendering

Bulk Rendering

Documents

Projects

Files (Tool Files)

PDF Tools

Document Tools

How tool operations work

Common workflow patterns

Generate a PDF from dynamic data

Bulk generate personalized documents

Process an existing PDF

AI agent document generation