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Ask for live web data from an n8n workflow and start workflows when records arrive. Every value comes with the page it was read from and when. The SpecStream node can also serve as a tool for an AI agent.

SpecStream for n8nAutomation

What you need

  • Self-hosted n8n that lets you install community nodes. SpecStream's node is in n8n's review for Cloud.
  • For the trigger, a public HTTPS address for that n8n, because SpecStream delivers to it.
  • A SpecStream account to create the key in.

  1. 1. Install the community node

    In n8n, open Settings, then Community nodes, and install n8n-nodes-specstream. The SpecStream node and the SpecStream Trigger arrive together.

  2. 2. Create an API key

    Create the key in the workspace: Agents & API, API keys, Create API key. Name it something you will recognize in n8n.

    Find a List reads, prices, and starts a run, so it takes Read saved requests, Create and edit requests, Read results and their sources, Prepare work and follow-ups, and Authorize paid work. Get List Results and the trigger need Read results and their sources. n8n tests the credential against your account, so every key also needs Read account and balance.

    Set Project to All your projects for a key that runs the trigger. Under Authorize paid work you can give the key a Total spending limit. Without a spending limit on your account, set in Settings under Usage and billing, the key can't start paid work.

    The key is displayed a single time, so copy it before you close the dialog.

  3. 3. Add the credential

    Open a SpecStream node and create a SpecStream API credential. Paste the key into API Key. Leave API Base URL at https://api.specstream.ai; the node refuses any other address, so the key goes nowhere else.

  4. 4. Find data with the SpecStream node

    In the SpecStream node, set Operation to Find a List. Write What to Find in plain words, for example "Roofing companies in Columbus, Ohio with their website and phone". Set Number of Results, which starts at 25, and Maximum Price (USD), which must be above 0.

    SpecStream quotes the most the run can cost. The node starts the run only when that figure is at or below your maximum, and above it the node stops and shows the figure. It returns list_id, status, request, number_of_results, maximum_price_usd, and list_link.

    Run the node again with the same request, count, and maximum in the same UTC hour and it returns the run already started. A Run Key of 8 to 128 characters overrides that. Map the execution ID into it to start a fresh run on every execution.

  5. 5. Read the records with Get List Results

    Set Operation to Get List Results and put the list's ID, which starts with fnd_, in List ID. The node returns one item per record, each with a list_status field, and costs nothing. One call reads up to 100 records.

  6. 6. Start a workflow with SpecStream Trigger

    Add SpecStream Trigger and pick an Event: Run Completed, Monitor Found New or Changed Records, or Records Added to Collection. Activating the workflow registers a webhook with SpecStream, and deactivating it removes the webhook.

    Run Completed fires for every run on your account that finishes. The monitor event comes from a list with a monitor on it: Keep it current on the list in SpecStream, then Start monitor.

    The trigger emits one item per delivery, holding the find_id and the records. To get one item per record, follow it with a SpecStream node set to Get List Results and enter this in List ID:

    List ID
    {{ $json.find_id }}

What arrives

Each item from Get List Results is one record as flat fields:

  • id, list_id, list_link, and position identify the record and its list.
  • One field per column, named the way the list names it.
  • source_url is the page the record's first value was read from, and checked_at is when that page was read.
  • A column named like a built-in field gets " (column)" added to its name.

Approve the price yourself

Find a List approves a run within the maximum you set. When a person should look at the price first, chain Read Request, Review Quote, and Approve Quoted Work.

Read Request returns how SpecStream read the request, with a request hash. Review Quote takes that hash and a Requested Amount, and returns a quote ID, a signed hash, and the most the work can cost. Its Work Operation can also be More Results, Add Details, or Recheck on an Earlier Run ID.

Approve Quoted Work asks for the Reviewed Quote ID, the Signed Quote Hash, a Stable Execution Key (8 to 128 characters, reused on a retry), and Confirm Max USD. You type the maximum yourself, and zero is refused.

Start from a template

Build local business lead lists with SpecStream and Google Sheets (opens in a new tab) takes a business type, a city, and a budget from a form, asks SpecStream for the data, waits for the run to finish, and appends the rows to a Google Sheet.

Use it from an AI agent

The SpecStream node is marked as usable as a tool, so an AI Agent node in n8n can call it. Give Maximum Price (USD) a fixed value yourself so the agent can't raise it.

Anything that takes a remote MCP server can use SpecStream at https://api.specstream.ai/mcp instead. Connect an agent with MCP has the details.

Limits and cost

The node is free to install. Runs come out of your SpecStream balance, only for the results that match, and the maximum on the node caps each one. For what a result costs, read balance, quotes, and billing.

Disconnect

Deactivate a workflow and n8n removes its webhook from SpecStream. To end access, delete the credential in n8n and revoke the key in Agents & API. Whatever your workflows already wrote to other systems stays there. If something misbehaves, write to [email protected].

More

SpecStream for n8n covers what it does in n8n on one page. Every other tool has its guide in Connect your tools. You see the most a request can cost before it starts, and only the matches come out of your balance. Billing has the details. For help, email [email protected].