DirectRelay – n8n WordPress Plugin: Workflow Automation, REST API, Webhooks & AI Agents

Description

Project home page: https://directrelay.wikiofautomation.com

The n8n WordPress Integration That Works Both Ways

You built your content workflows in n8n. Now you need WordPress to listen.

DirectRelay is the free n8n plugin that turns any WordPress site into a first-class automation target: a complete REST API for your n8n workflows, real-time signed webhooks from WordPress to n8n, and native SEO integrations with Rank Math and Yoast. Publish, update, tag, optimize, and react to content changes — automatically, securely, and without writing a single line of PHP.

Whether you run an AI content pipeline, a headless WordPress setup, a multi-channel publishing stack, or a simple “post to social when I publish” workflow, DirectRelay is the WordPress automation plugin for n8n workflow automation — data flows from n8n to WordPress, and WordPress events stream to n8n in real time.

Why DirectRelay Is the Most Complete n8n Plugin for WordPress

• True two-way automation — n8n can read and write WordPress, and WordPress can trigger n8n workflows in real time.
• Everything core is free — no trial, no license key, no nag screens. One API key and one webhook per site; the Pro add-on lifts the limits. 100% GPL.
• Built for AI agents — scoped API keys with agent personas let you hand LLMs and AI tools controlled, auditable access to your site.
• OpenAPI 3.0 included — point any HTTP Request node at the self-describing schema and every endpoint, parameter, and auth scheme is documented for you.
• Security-first design — scoped keys, bcrypt hashing, rate limiting, brute-force protection, IP allowlists, and SSRF-validated media sideloads.
• Zero configuration headaches — install, generate a key, paste it into n8n. Your first workflow runs in minutes.

🔌 A Complete WordPress REST API for Your n8n Workflows

Every content operation your automation needs, exposed through a clean, versioned REST API under /wp-json/directrelay/v1:

• Create, read, update, publish, and delete posts and pages — with markdown support, scheduled publishing, and custom fields.
• Media library uploads via base64 or URL sideload, with per-route permissions.
• Categories and tags — resolve by name or ID, create on the fly.
• Custom meta read and write with core-protected keys blocked.
• Discovery endpoints — list post types and custom fields so workflows adapt to any site, including WooCommerce and custom post types.
• OpenAPI 3.0 spec at /openapi.json — import into Postman, Swagger UI, or generate n8n HTTP Request node setups instantly.
• 30+ documented endpoints, each gated by fine-grained scopes (posts:write, media:write, seo:read, …).

🔔 Real-Time Signed WordPress Webhooks → n8n

The moment something happens on your site, a signed WordPress webhook tells n8n. Point any n8n Webhook trigger node at it:

• 10 event types: created, updated, published, and deleted for posts and pages, plus media uploads.
• HMAC-SHA256 signatures with timestamp headers and replay protection — verify deliveries in one n8n Code node.
• Automatic retries with exponential backoff and a per-attempt delivery log you can inspect in the admin.
• Per-webhook filters — choose exactly which events and post types each workflow receives.
• Workflow presets — social distribution, AI repurposing, search indexing, Slack alerts, CDN purging, and more, each with copy-paste n8n workflow JSON.

🤖 Built for AI Agents

Handing an LLM the keys to your site should not mean handing it everything. Each AI agent gets a scoped, auditable key instead of full admin credentials — safe AI agents for WordPress, without the risk.

• Agent role personas — Full Access, AI Content Agent (drafts only), AI SEO Agent, and AI Publishing Agent.
• Drafts-only enforcement — a content agent physically cannot publish or delete, on any route, ever.
• Post ownership isolation — restrict each agent to content created by its own key.
• Scoped, expiring, IP-allowlisted keys with rotation and full usage analytics.

🔍 Read Rank Math & Yoast SEO from n8n

The only free automation bridge that reads SEO metadata natively:

• Unified read endpoint for Rank Math and Yoast SEO — focus keyphrase, title, description, canonical, Open Graph, Twitter cards, schema type.
• Auto-detects which SEO plugin is active. One call, one format, any site.

⚡ IndexNow Instant Indexing

Opt-in IndexNow auto-ping: the moment a post goes live, its URL is submitted to the IndexNow aggregator (Bing, Yandex, Seznam, Naver) for near-instant crawling. The verification key is published automatically at yoursite.com/indexnow-key.txt.

🛡️ Production-Grade Security

• Scoped API keys — bcrypt-hashed, prefix-identifiable, never stored in plain text.
• Sliding-window rate limiting and escalating brute-force IP blocks with a manual block/unblock console.
• Per-key IP allowlists, global bypass IPs, optional HTTPS enforcement, and key expiry.
• SSRF-validated media sideloading with redirect-hop re-verification and size caps.
• Protected meta — WordPress core internals and plugin stamps are never agent-writable.
• Single-site build: each free install manages exactly one site. Multi-site fleet management is available in the add-on.

Get Started in 3 Minutes

1. Install DirectRelay and open the DirectRelay dashboard.
2. Generate an API key — pick a scope preset or build your own.
3. Paste the key into your n8n HTTP Request node (or import the OpenAPI spec) and your first automation is live.

Who Is DirectRelay For?

• AI content teams running generation pipelines through n8n workflows.
• Agencies managing publishing automation across client content operations.
• Headless WordPress builders who need a reliable, documented REST API.
• Anyone who wants WordPress and n8n to talk to each other — reliably and securely.

DirectRelay is free software licensed under the GPL. Use it, study it, modify it, redistribute it.

DirectRelay Pro (separate add-on plugin)

SEO metadata writes (Rank Math / Yoast), bulk publishing, human approval workflows, AI guardrails, advanced analytics, and dark mode are provided by the separate DirectRelay Pro add-on plugin, distributed from https://directrelay.wikiofautomation.com/directrelay-pro. The Pro add-on is never distributed via WordPress.org and is not required to use any free feature — the free plugin is fully functional on its own.

External services

This plugin supports optional integrations with external services. The services and their data handling policies are outlined below. All transmissions are initiated by the plugin only when the administrator has explicitly enabled the relevant feature; no data is sent silently or by default.

The free plugin distributed on WordPress.org does NOT use the following services: Envato/CodeCanyon purchase-code validation, license-server activation, or any third-party license check. There is no purchase code, license key, or activation token collected, stored, transmitted, or required to use any feature of the free plugin. (License management is provided by the separate DirectRelay Pro add-on plugin distributed from directrelay.wikiofautomation.com/directrelay-pro.)

n8n Webhooks (outgoing)

• What it is and what it is used for: DirectRelay dispatches signed JSON payloads to user-configured webhook URLs when WordPress post events occur. The webhook receiver can be n8n, Make, an AI agent, or any other HTTP endpoint the administrator chooses.
• What data is sent and when: The configured webhook target URL receives the post ID, title, full post content, status, taxonomies, and read-only SEO fields. Transmission only happens when the administrator has created an active webhook rule and the corresponding post event fires.
• Service Terms & Privacy:
  • The webhook receiver is the user’s choice; DirectRelay itself does not transmit data to any third party by default.
  • n8n (optional) Terms: https://n8n.io/legal/self-serve-terms/
  • n8n (optional) Privacy: https://n8n.io/legal/

IndexNow

• What it is and what it is used for: Submits published post URLs to the IndexNow aggregator (api.indexnow.org), which routes them to participating search engines (Bing, Yandex, Seznam, Naver) for instant indexing. Pings fire when a post transitions to published; edits to already-published posts are not re-pinged.
• What data is sent and when: Sends the site hostname, the plugin-generated IndexNow key, the key-location URL (yoursite.com/indexnow-key.txt), and the published post URL. Transmitted only when the administrator enables IndexNow in plugin settings and a post transitions to published.
• Service Terms & Privacy:
  • IndexNow Terms: https://www.indexnow.org/
  • IndexNow Privacy: https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/privacystatement

Cloudflare API (optional)

• What it is and what it is used for: When a site administrator has configured a Cloudflare integration, the plugin can purge the Cloudflare edge cache for specific URLs after a WordPress post event.
• What data is sent and when: Sends the user-configured Cloudflare Zone ID, the user-provided API bearer token, and the specific post URLs to purge. Transmitted only when configured by the site administrator in outgoing webhook actions.
• Service Terms & Privacy:
  • Cloudflare Terms: https://www.cloudflare.com/website-terms/
  • Cloudflare Privacy: https://www.cloudflare.com/privacypolicy/

Third-Party AI APIs in n8n Workflow Templates (DeepSeek, Moonshot AI / Kimi, Alibaba Qwen)

• What it is and what it is used for: The Pro add-on plugin (separate download) ships copyable n8n workflow templates that demonstrate external AI models feeding WordPress via n8n. The free plugin itself does not call any third-party AI service directly; it only provides the REST endpoints that the n8n workflow calls.
• What data is sent and when: No data is transmitted directly by the WordPress plugin to these AI APIs. The workflow templates run entirely inside the user’s self-hosted or cloud n8n instance using the user’s own API credentials. The WordPress plugin only receives the AI-generated result via the n8n HTTP request back into the REST API.
• Service Terms & Privacy:
  • DeepSeek Terms: https://cdn.deepseek.com/policies/en-US/deepseek-privacy-policy.html
  • DeepSeek Privacy: https://cdn.deepseek.com/policies/en-US/deepseek-privacy-policy.html
  • Moonshot AI Terms: https://www.moonshot.cn/
  • Moonshot AI Privacy: https://www.moonshot.cn/privacy
  • Alibaba DashScope / Qwen: https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/model-studio/terms-of-use