n8n Installer

⏰ Want Your Workflow to Run Automatically?

n8n makes it easy to schedule workflows so they run on autopilot — whether it’s every minute, every Monday, or only on the first day of the month.

In this guide, you’ll learn:

How to use the Schedule node in n8n
The difference between interval and cron
How to set your timezone correctly
Real examples for daily, weekly, and custom time triggers

📦 The Schedule Node

The Schedule node is a built-in trigger in n8n. It starts the workflow based on time — no need for webhooks or external events.

You can find it under:

Nodes → Trigger → Schedule

When added, the workflow runs automatically based on your configuration.

🕐 Option 1: Interval Mode (Easy Mode)

Use this when you want to run something every X minutes/hours/days.

Example: Every 15 minutes

Mode: Every
Value: 15 minutes

✅ Great for:

Checking a feed/API

Sending reminders

Polling status updates

🗓️ Option 2: Cron Mode (Advanced Scheduling)

Cron gives you precise control over when workflows run.

Cron Field	Meaning
Minute	0–59
Hour	0–23
Day of Month	1–31
Month	1–12
Day of Week	0–6 (Sun–Sat)

Common Examples

Every day at 9AM

Minute: 0
Hour: 9

Every Monday at 7PM

Minute: 0
Hour: 19
Day of Week: 1

1st of every month at midnight

Minute: 0
Hour: 0
Day of Month: 1

🧠 Tip: Leave a field empty (*) to match all values.

🌐 Setting the Correct Timezone

By default, n8n uses the server’s system timezone.

To set your preferred timezone globally:

Go to your .env file
Add or update:

TZ=Asia/Ho_Chi_Minh

To see available timezones:

Visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tz_database_time_zones
Or run: timedatectl list-timezones on Linux

Restart n8n after changes.

🔁 Use Cases

Use Case	Schedule Config
Daily backup at midnight	Cron: 0 0 * * *
Weekly Slack report on Friday 10AM	Cron: 0 10 * * 5
Run every 6 hours	Interval: Every 6 hours
Monthly invoice summary	Cron: 0 9 1 * *

⚠️ Troubleshooting

Nothing runs? → Check if the workflow is active
Wrong time? → Confirm the timezone of your VPS
Too frequent? → Consider rate limits of external APIs
Delayed execution? → Check n8n CPU/memory usage on server

✅ Bonus: Use with IF or Switch

Combine your Schedule node with logic to:

Only run on business days
Skip execution on holidays
Send different messages depending on the day

Use the Date & Time node + IF nodes for more control.

👋 Need Help Scheduling or Hosting Workflows?

I help freelancers and teams set up fully automated n8n systems — including:

VPS setup + SSL + domain
Workflow logic, alerts, and backups
Timezone fixes and cron design

👉 Contact me here! I usually reply within a few hours.