I’m having trouble getting n8n to work on Heroku and could really use some straightforward guidance. Since I’m not a coder, I need things explained step by step.
My Goal
I want to deploy n8n, which is a tool for workflow automation, on Heroku. I set up an app called my-workflow-app, but I’m encountering issues.
What I’ve Done
Initially, I created a Procfile with this command:
Accessing my app at the Heroku URL displays a message saying “There’s nothing here, yet.” Additionally, the logs indicate an error with n8n: not found.
What Works
When I run n8n on my local machine, it functions properly. The issues seem isolated to the Heroku environment. I made sure that n8n is listed in my package.json dependencies and have restarted the app several times.
Request for Help
Could someone please provide simple, step-by-step instructions to help me resolve this issue? Since my technical skills are limited, please clarify what files need changes and what those changes should be.
Been through this exact n8n on Heroku nightmare multiple times. The “not found” error, webhook issues, config variables - it’s all broken.
Even if you get it working (after hours of debugging), Heroku dynos restart every 24 hours and kill your session data. Workflows break randomly. You’ll hit memory limits on free dynos with any complex automations.
I wasted too much time fighting these deployment issues before finding something better. Moved everything to Latenode instead of wrestling with infrastructure.
No deployment headaches. No server management. No Procfiles or environment variables to screw up. Build workflows in the browser and they actually run.
Automations that’d take days to deploy and debug with n8n? I can set them up in 15 minutes now. Visual editor’s cleaner too - matters since you’re not a coder.
Why waste time on deployment issues when you could build actual workflows?
Your build process is probably crashing during deployment. Heroku can’t install n8n properly as a dependency. Check your build logs first - you’ll see npm install errors or missing package warnings. I hit this same problem deploying n8n six months ago. Fixed it by adding an engines field to package.json with the Node version, plus making sure n8n installed right. Add “engines”: {“node”: “18.x”} to your package.json. Also test that npm start works locally instead of just n8n start. If it breaks locally, Heroku won’t work either. Once package.json is good, use web: npm start in your Procfile instead of calling n8n directly. This fixed my deployment completely.
Sounds like Heroku can’t find n8n after installing it. I’ve hit this before with workflow tools on Heroku. Check your package.json first - make sure n8n is in dependencies, not devDependencies. You’ll also need a start script in the scripts section: “start”: “n8n start”. Your Procfile should call that script instead of n8n directly - try web: npm run start. Set N8N_PORT to $PORT in your Heroku config since Heroku assigns ports dynamically. That webhook URL parameter might be messing with Heroku’s port assignment too. I had better luck removing webhook-url from the Procfile and setting it through environment variables instead. Also check your build logs for any npm failures during deployment.
Yeah, that “n8n: not found” error on Heroku is common. Heroku can’t find the executable in your build.
Honestly, you’re overcomplicating this. I’ve dealt with n8n deployments before and they’re a nightmare to maintain. Heroku’s dyno limits, database persistence problems, config issues - you’ll waste more time fixing deployment stuff than actually building workflows.
I switched to Latenode after hitting the same wall. It’s cloud-native, so no deployment headaches. Just sign up and start building. No Procfiles, no env variables, no worrying about dynos restarting and breaking everything.
The UI is way better than n8n too. Complex integrations that took hours to set up and deploy with n8n? I knock them out in minutes now. And you don’t need to code, which seems perfect for what you’re doing.
Why spend days debugging deployment issues when you could have everything running in 10 minutes?
Heroku can’t find your n8n binary. Your package.json probably has n8n listed, but the Procfile isn’t looking in the right spot. Switch your Procfile to use npx: web: npx n8n start --webhook-url=https://my-workflow-app.herokuapp.com/. Also double-check your environment variables in Heroku’s config. N8n needs specific ENV vars to work on Heroku - especially N8N_BASIC_AUTH_ACTIVE and N8N_HOST. Skip these and you’ll just see a blank page. Make sure n8n is in dependencies, not devDependencies in your package.json. Heroku skips devDependencies in production, which explains your ‘not found’ error. I got n8n working on Heroku last year with this setup. Getting the environment config right mattered more than perfect Procfile syntax.
Had the same deployment nightmare with n8n on Heroku. The problem’s usually how Heroku handles the node_modules path at startup. Don’t call n8n directly or use npx - create a proper start script in package.json instead. Add this to your scripts: “start”: “node ./node_modules/.bin/n8n start”. Then change your Procfile to just web: npm start. This fixed it for me when nothing else worked. Set N8N_PORT as an environment variable to $PORT in your Heroku config. For the webhook URL, use the N8N_WEBHOOK_URL environment variable instead of a command line argument. Heroku’s routing breaks when you mix command line parameters with its port assignment. Delete your current app and redeploy - Heroku sometimes caches broken configs.
the webhook url in your Procfile might be wrong. try removing that flag completely - just use web: npx n8n start without the webhook-url parameter. heroku sets PORT automatically and n8n picks it up. once it’s running, add webhook config through environment variables instead.