How to Automate Release Notes with n8n

1 Trigger on a published GitHub release

In n8n, this trigger is the entry point of the whole release flow, so every later n8n node can read the release data with a single expression.

The GitHub Trigger node registers a webhook on your repository and starts the n8n workflow whenever a release is published. Draft releases do not fire this event, which is exactly what you want.

Add a GitHub Trigger node and configure:

Node: GitHub Trigger
Authentication: Access Token
Owner: acme-corp
Repository: billing-api
Events: release
Resource: Release (webhook event)

The webhook delivers an action field. Add an IF node right after the trigger or filter inside the Code node so that only the published action continues. Use this expression for the condition:

Expression: {{ $json.body.action === 'published' }}

{
  "action": "published",
  "release": {
    "tag_name": "v2.4.0",
    "name": "Spring release",
    "prerelease": false,
    "html_url": "https://github.com/acme-corp/billing-api/releases/tag/v2.4.0"
  },
  "repository": { "full_name": "acme-corp/billing-api" }
}

Pre-releases publish the same event. If you only want stable versions, add a second condition on release.prerelease being false.

2 Find the previous tag

You can build and test this lookup in the n8n editor by pinning the trigger output, which saves repeated real releases while you tune the n8n expression.

The compare API needs a base and a head. The head is the new tag from the trigger. For the base, add an HTTP Request node that lists the two most recent releases and pick the second one.

Node: HTTP Request
Method: GET
URL: https://api.github.com/repos/{{ $json.body.repository.full_name }}/releases?per_page=5
Authentication: Predefined Credential Type
Credential Type: GitHub API
Send Headers: on
  Accept: application/vnd.github+json

The response is an array. The next node can pick the right tag with an expression, so no extra Code node is needed. Use this expression to take the newest release that is not the current one:

Expression: {{ $json.filter(r => r.tag_name === $('GitHub Trigger').first().json.body.release.tag_name === false && r.draft === false)[0].tag_name }}

[
  { "tag_name": "v2.4.0", "draft": false },
  { "tag_name": "v2.3.2", "draft": false },
  { "tag_name": "v2.3.1", "draft": false }
]

For the very first release of a repository there is no previous tag. In that case fall back to the first commit by using the default branch history instead of a compare.

3 Compare commits between the two tags

The n8n HTTP Request node handles authentication for you once the GitHub credential is saved, so no token ever appears in the n8n workflow JSON.

The GitHub compare endpoint returns every commit reachable from the new tag but not from the old one. Add a second HTTP Request node.

Node: HTTP Request
Method: GET
URL: https://api.github.com/repos/acme-corp/billing-api/compare/v2.3.2...v2.4.0
Authentication: GitHub API credential
Options: Response Format: JSON
Pagination: off (compare returns up to 250 commits)

Build the URL from your earlier data with an expression so the node works for any repository:

Expression: https://api.github.com/repos/{{ $('GitHub Trigger').first().json.body.repository.full_name }}/compare/{{ $json.previousTag }}...{{ $('GitHub Trigger').first().json.body.release.tag_name }}

{
  "status": "ahead",
  "ahead_by": 3,
  "commits": [
    { "sha": "a1b2c3d4e5f6", "html_url": "https://github.com/acme-corp/billing-api/commit/a1b2c3d4e5f6",
      "commit": { "message": "feat(invoices): add PDF export" } },
    { "sha": "b2c3d4e5f6a7", "html_url": "https://github.com/acme-corp/billing-api/commit/b2c3d4e5f6a7",
      "commit": { "message": "fix(tax): round VAT per line" } },
    { "sha": "c3d4e5f6a7b8", "html_url": "https://github.com/acme-corp/billing-api/commit/c3d4e5f6a7b8",
      "commit": { "message": "feat(api): drop v1 endpoints\n\nBREAKING CHANGE: v1 removed" } }
  ]
}

Compare is limited to 250 commits per response. For larger releases, page through with the page query parameter.

4 Parse conventional commits

Because n8n Code nodes run plain JavaScript, the parsing logic stays easy to unit test outside n8n before you paste it in.

This is the core of the workflow. Add a Code node set to Run Once for All Items. It matches each message against the conventional commit pattern, detects breaking changes from either an exclamation marker after the type (matched as \x21 in the regex) or a BREAKING CHANGE footer, and groups everything by category.

Node: Code
Mode: Run Once for All Items
Language: JavaScript

const commits = $input.first().json.commits;
const re = /^(feat|fix|chore|docs|refactor|perf|test|build|ci)(\(([^)]+)\))?(\x21)?:\s*(.+)/;
const groups = { breaking: [], feat: [], fix: [], chore: [] };
for (const c of commits) {
  const msg = c.commit.message;
  const first = msg.split('\n')[0];
  const m = first.match(re);
  if (m === null) { groups.chore.push({ text: first, sha: c.sha, url: c.html_url }); continue; }
  const item = { text: m[5], scope: m[3] || '', sha: c.sha, url: c.html_url };
  const isBreaking = m[4] === '\x21' || msg.includes('BREAKING CHANGE');
  if (isBreaking) groups.breaking.push(item);
  else if (m[1] === 'feat') groups.feat.push(item);
  else if (m[1] === 'fix') groups.fix.push(item);
  else groups.chore.push(item);
}
return [{ json: groups }];

{
  "breaking": [{ "text": "drop v1 endpoints", "scope": "api", "sha": "c3d4e5f6a7b8" }],
  "feat": [{ "text": "add PDF export", "scope": "invoices", "sha": "a1b2c3d4e5f6" }],
  "fix": [{ "text": "round VAT per line", "scope": "tax", "sha": "b2c3d4e5f6a7" }],
  "chore": []
}

Messages that do not match the pattern fall into chore so nothing is silently dropped. Merge commits are a common source of these.

5 Generate the markdown

Keeping the markdown builder in its own n8n node means you can change the layout later without touching the n8n parsing step.

A second Code node turns the groups into a markdown document. Each line carries a short hash that links to the commit, so readers can click through to the diff.

Node: Code
Mode: Run Once for All Items

const g = $input.first().json;
const tag = $('GitHub Trigger').first().json.body.release.tag_name;
const line = (i) => `- ${i.scope ? '**' + i.scope + ':** ' : ''}${i.text} ([${i.sha.slice(0,7)}](${i.url}))`;
let md = `# ${tag}\n\n`;
if (g.breaking.length) md += `## Breaking changes\n${g.breaking.map(line).join('\n')}\n\n`;
if (g.feat.length) md += `## Features\n${g.feat.map(line).join('\n')}\n\n`;
if (g.fix.length) md += `## Fixes\n${g.fix.map(line).join('\n')}\n\n`;
return [{ json: { tag, markdown: md.trim() } }];

Chores are intentionally left out of customer-facing notes. Keep them in the data if you want an internal changelog later.

{
  "tag": "v2.4.0",
  "markdown": "# v2.4.0\n\n## Breaking changes\n- **api:** drop v1 endpoints ([c3d4e5f](https://github.com/...))\n\n## Features\n- **invoices:** add PDF export ([a1b2c3d](https://github.com/...))"
}

6 Post to Slack

The n8n Slack node reuses one saved credential, so adding a second channel for another team is a copy of this single n8n node.

Add a Slack node to announce the release. Slack uses its own mrkdwn dialect, so convert double asterisks to single ones with a replace call in the message expression.

Node: Slack
Resource: Message
Operation: Send
Send Message To: Channel
Channel: #releases
Message Type: Simple Text Message
Text: {{ $json.markdown.replace(/\*\*/g, '*').replace(/^#+ /gm, '') }}
Options: Include Link to Workflow: off

The expression strips markdown heading markers, which Slack does not render, and converts bold syntax.

7 Create the Confluence page

Since n8n has no built in Confluence node, the n8n HTTP Request node is the supported way to reach the REST API.

The last HTTP Request node calls the Confluence Cloud REST API to create a child page. Confluence storage format is XHTML, so convert the markdown headings and list items before sending, or pass the content as a simple paragraph block.

Node: HTTP Request
Method: POST
URL: https://your-site.atlassian.net/wiki/rest/api/content
Authentication: Generic Credential Type, Basic Auth
Send Body: JSON
Body:
{
  "type": "page",
  "title": "{{ $json.tag }} Release Notes",
  "ancestors": [{ "id": "123456789" }],
  "space": { "key": "REL" },
  "body": { "storage": { "value": "{{ $json.html }}", "representation": "storage" } }
}

The ancestors id is the page id of the parent page in the Release Notes space. A tiny conversion step before this node can map lines starting with two hashes to h2 tags and lines starting with a dash to li tags wrapped in ul.

{
  "id": "987654321",
  "type": "page",
  "title": "v2.4.0 Release Notes",
  "_links": { "webui": "/spaces/REL/pages/987654321" }
}