Automatic Trello Board Card Removal based on Label - n8n Workflow

• Project Managers seeking to maintain tidy Trello boards without manual card archiving.


• Automation specialists looking for practical n8n templates for SaaS cleanup.


• Teams using Trello for task management who need scheduled deletion processes.


• Users wanting an example of how to combine core logic n8n nodes (Split Out, Filter) with service-specific n8n nodes (Trello).

Keeping project boards tidy is crucial for efficiency, but manually reviewing and deleting cards is time-consuming. This specialized n8n workflow solves this problem by automating the cleanup process entirely. It systematically scans a designated Trello board for cards carrying the specified label—in this case, 'Mark for Deletion'—and removes them automatically.

This robust n8n workflow ensures that outdated or completed tasks marked for disposal are deleted without human intervention. By deploying this n8n automation, you save significant administrative time and maintain clear, manageable boards. While currently set up with a manual n8n trigger, this n8n workflow is ideal for deployment on a recurring schedule (e.g., weekly or monthly) using an n8n Cron node.

This n8n workflow is designed to execute a thorough scan-and-delete operation:

1. Trigger: The process starts with the manual n8n trigger, 'When clicking Execute workflow.' This allows for immediate testing or manual execution, though it is easily replaced by a Cron n8n trigger for scheduled operation.


2. Retrieve Board Information: The 'Get Board' Trello n8n node resolves the provided Trello board URL into its unique internal ID, which is necessary for subsequent operations.


3. Get Lists and Cards: The n8n workflow proceeds to use the 'Get Lists' Trello n8n node to identify all lists on the board, and then uses 'Get Cards' (running once for each list) to retrieve all existing cards.


4. Prepare for Filtering: The crucial 'Split Labels' n8n node takes the card data and creates a separate item in the n8n workflow for every label attached to that card. This is essential for accurately targeting cards based on label name.


5. Identify Targets: The 'Filter Marked for Delete' n8n node checks the split items. It only allows items where the label name matches the exact string 'Mark for Deletion' to proceed to the next step.


6. Delete Cards: The 'Delete a card' Trello n8n node receives the filtered items (which correspond to cards needing deletion) and executes the delete operation on the Trello API, automatically removing the targeted cards from the board. This powerful n8n node completes the cleanup task.

To utilize this n8n workflow, follow these steps:

1. Import the n8n Templates: Copy the provided JSON data and paste it into your n8n instance to import the full n8n workflow structure.


2. Set Up Trello Credentials:

1. Configure 'Get Board':

1. Run the n8n Workflow: Execute the 'When clicking Execute workflow' n8n trigger to test the automation. For scheduled cleanup, replace the manual n8n trigger with a time-based n8n trigger (like the Cron node).

This n8n workflow relies on several key n8n nodes to achieve the filtering and deletion logic:

When clicking ‘Execute workflow’ (Manual Trigger n8n Trigger):
Function: Starts the n8n workflow manually for testing or immediate execution.
Key Configuration: No specific configuration required.
Get Board4 (Trello n8n Node):
Function: Retrieves the necessary ID for the target Trello board using its public URL.
Key Configuration: Resource: Board, Operation: Get. ID is set to URL mode, requiring your specific board URL.
Get Lists4 & Get Cards4 (Trello n8n Node):
Function: Iteratively collects all lists and subsequently all cards from the specified board ID.
Key Configuration: Uses an expression (={{ $json.id }}) to dynamically pass the Board ID to the List retrieval and then the List IDs to the Card retrieval.
Split Labels (Split Out n8n Node):
Function: Converts the array of labels attached to each card into individual items, allowing the subsequent Filter n8n node to check each label independently.
Key Configuration: Splits the labels field.
Filter Marked for Delete (Filter n8n Node):
Function: Filters the processed items, allowing only those where the label's name property is exactly 'Mark for Deletion' to pass.
Key Configuration: Condition checks if ={{ $json.name }} (the name of the label) equals 'Mark for Deletion'.
Delete a card (Trello n8n Node):
Function: Executes the final Trello operation, deleting the cards that successfully passed the filtering stage.
Key Configuration: Operation: Delete. The card ID is pulled dynamically using ={{ $('Get Cards4').item.json.id }}.