An n8n alternative you can see inside
Bring your n8n workflow JSON. Paste it onto a board, or load the file, and it opens as a board of parts and wires you can read, change and run in your browser.
How the import works
Export from n8n
In n8n, download the workflow as JSON, or select its nodes and copy them.
Paste it or load the file
Open a board in the builder and paste. Or go to Settings, then Your data, then Import a workflow, and choose the file. A file can hold one workflow or several.
Check the note, then trust it
Nodes become parts in the same places, with their wires. A pink note lists what to check. The board stays switched off until you choose to trust it.
What comes across, and what doesn’t
Comes across
- Triggers: manual, schedule and cron, webhook, form, chat, error and called by another workflow.
- Core nodes like HTTP Request, Code, If, Switch, Filter, Merge, Set, Wait, Split Out, Aggregate, Sort and Remove Duplicates.
- AI nodes: AI Agent, OpenAI and Anthropic, Basic LLM Chain, Text Classifier, Information Extractor, Sentiment Analysis and Summarization. A chat model from OpenRouter, Groq, Mistral, DeepSeek, Ollama, Gemini or xAI that isn’t wired to an AI part becomes a Custom API part.
- An agent’s chat model, window memory, calculator, HTTP tool and MCP Client Tool become that agent’s own settings.
- App nodes such as Slack, Discord, Telegram, GitHub, Airtable, Google Sheets, Notion, Gmail, HubSpot, Stripe and Postgres.
- The HTTP method and URL, Code node JavaScript, AI prompts, webhook path and method, and Limit’s max items.
- Node names, positions, disabled nodes, and sticky notes as notes.
- Expressions written the n8n way, like
$json,$('Name').item.jsonand$node["Name"].json.
Doesn’t come across
- Credentials. The import never reads them. Add your keys in Connections and pick them in each part.
- Nodes Breadboard doesn’t have. Each one becomes a Do nothing part with the same name, and the note lists it.
- Most other node settings. Parts start from their defaults and the note names the ones to check.
- Unusual schedule timing, like every two months. Every few minutes or hours, daily, weekly on one day and cron expressions come across; anything else is named in the note.
- Long waits. A Wait here pauses for up to 60 seconds, so a longer n8n wait is shortened and named in the note.
- A wire that loops back to an earlier part. It is left out.
- More than one MCP server on an agent. Only the first comes over, and the note says so.
Breadboard Studio and n8n, side by side
Compared in October 2026, from Breadboard Studio’s code and n8n’s public product pages. Both change often, so check n8n’s own site for its current features.
| Feature | Breadboard Studio | n8n |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | In your browser. Your boards, runs and keys are saved on your device. | On a server: n8n’s cloud, or one you host yourself. |
| Source | A web app. Nothing to install. | Fair-code source you can read and self-host. |
| Schedules | Run only while the builder tab is open. A server that runs boards with the tab closed is not built yet. | Run on the server around the clock. |
| Webhooks and public form links | Not yet. They need server runs, which are not built yet. Until then a Webhook uses its test request and you fill in a Form yourself. | Yes. |
| App integrations | Some app parts call the service from your browser with your key. Others, like Notion, Gmail, HubSpot, Stripe and Postgres, need the server and show the request they would send until server runs launch. | A large library of nodes. |
| AI models | Your own Claude or OpenAI key in any AI part, or any provider or a local model through the Custom API part. AI on Breadboard’s own keys is built but switched off. | AI nodes with your own provider keys. |
| Runs | Every run is kept, so you can see what went in and out of each step and replay it. | An execution history on the server. |
| Opening someone else’s workflow | A board from a link, a file or a paste stays switched off until you choose to trust it. | Runs once you activate it. |
| Price | Checkout isn’t open, so nothing is charged. Personal plan previews need no subscription. | Free to self-host, with paid cloud plans. |
Who should stay on n8n
Stay on n8n if you need runs on a server today. That means schedules that fire with every browser closed, webhooks other apps can call, or public form links. Breadboard can’t do those yet. Stay too if you rely on n8n nodes Breadboard doesn’t have. Import a copy first and read the note to see what is missing.
Try Breadboard if you want to read, test and change a workflow step by step, compare AI models on the same input, or run boards in your browser with your own keys.
Questions
Do my n8n credentials come across?
No. The import never reads credentials from the file. Add your keys in Connections in the builder, then pick them in each part. Keys stay in your browser.
What happens to an n8n node Breadboard doesn’t have?
It becomes a Do nothing part with the same name and place on the board, so the wires around it still make sense. A note on the board lists it, so you can swap in a part that does the job.
Will my scheduled n8n workflows keep running?
Only while the builder tab is open. A server that runs boards with the tab closed is not built yet. Common schedule timing comes across; the note names any it couldn’t carry over.
Can I import several workflows at once?
Yes. A file can hold one workflow or a list of them, and each one becomes its own board, up to your plan’s board limit.
What does it cost?
Nothing for now. Checkout isn’t open, so nothing is charged. You can preview personal builder plans without a subscription; business access is separate, and your AI provider may charge for calls on your own keys.
Import it, read the note, and change what you need. Or start from one of the workflow templates.
n8n is a trademark of n8n GmbH. Breadboard Studio is not affiliated with or endorsed by n8n.