Add rows to Excel worksheet using n8n action

PDF4me Add Rows to Excel inserts JSON payloads into any worksheet directly from your n8n workflow. Feed Excel binaries from previous nodes (SharePoint, S3, email, webhooks) or public URLs, then map JSON arrays into tables or exact coordinates with automatic header matching, data-typing, formatting, and localization. Automate database exports, sales reports, CRM syncs, or API-driven dashboards without touching Excel manually.

Setup

Add the PDF4me “Add Rows” node to your n8n workflow and configure the required parameters. For initial setup instructions, see our n8n Integration Guide.

Prerequisites

• PDF4me API credentials
• n8n workflow access

Get Your API Key

Configuration

1. Add the PDF4me node to the workflow
2. Select the "Add rows to Excel worksheet" action
3. Provide the Excel source, JSON payload, and insertion parameters

Parameters

Complete list of parameters for the Add Rows action.

Important: Parameters marked with an asterisk (***) are required. Switching between table mode (Table Name) and coordinate mode (Insert From Row/Column) changes which parameters are used.

Parameter	Type	Description	Example
Input Data Type***	String	Excel source selector. Options: Binary Data, Base64 String, URL. Determines which field below is required.	Binary Data
Input Binary Field***	Binary	Binary Excel input when Input Data Type = Binary Data. Reference previous node output ({{ $binary.data }}). Supports .xlsx/.xls.	{{ $binary.data }}
Base64 Document Content***	String	Base64 Excel payload when Input Data Type = Base64 String. Provide the encoded workbook string.	UEsDBBQAAAA...
Document URL***	String	Public HTTP(S) URL when Input Data Type = URL. PDF4me downloads the workbook before inserting rows.	https://files.example.com/data.xlsx
File Name***	String	Logical file name (with extension) used for processing and returned binary naming.	sales.xlsx
Json Input***	String	JSON array or single object to insert. Provide as stringified JSON; arrays create multiple rows.	[{"Name":"Ana","Amount":1200}]
Worksheet Name	String	Target worksheet. Empty uses the first sheet. Case-sensitive.	Sheet1
Table Name	String	Provide to enable table mode (header matching). Empty switches to coordinate mode.	Opportunities
Excel Row Number	Number	Table mode only. 1-based row index inside the table where insertion begins.	2
Insert From Row	Number	Coordinate mode only. 1-based row to start inserting JSON data.	10
Insert From Column	Number	Coordinate mode only. 1-based column to start inserting JSON data. A=1, B=2, etc.	3
Convert Numeric And Date	Boolean	Auto-detect numbers/dates and apply Excel value types + formatting. Default true.	true
Date Format	String	Excel date format when conversion is enabled.	MM/dd/yyyy
Numeric Format	String	Excel numeric format when conversion is enabled.	#,##0.00
Ignore Null Values	Boolean	Skip JSON properties with null when inserting. Default false.	true
Ignore Attribute Titles	Boolean	Case-insensitive header matching in table mode. Default false.	true
Culture Name	String	Culture for parsing numbers/dates (en-US, de-DE, etc.).	en-US
Binary Data Output Name***	String	Name of the binary property that will hold the updated workbook for downstream nodes.	document

Output

Output Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description	Example
fileName	String	Excel document filename with rows added - The name of the output Excel document file after row insertion	excel_with_rows.xlsx
fileSize	Number	File size in bytes - The size of the Excel document in bytes after row insertion	212814
success	Boolean	PDF4me operation status - Boolean flag indicating the success or failure of the row insertion process. PDF4me returns true for successful operations and false for any errors	true
originalFileName	String	Original Excel document filename - The name of the input Excel document file	myExcelFile.xlsx
worksheetName	String	Worksheet name - The name of the worksheet where rows were added	Sheet1
insertFromRow	Number	Starting row number - The 1-based row number where insertion began (coordinate mode)	1
insertFromColumn	Number	Starting column number - The 1-based column number where insertion began (coordinate mode)	1
rowsAdded	Number	Number of rows added - The total count of rows that were successfully inserted	1
tableName	String	Table name used - The name of the table used for insertion (table mode). null if coordinate mode was used	null
excelRowNumber	Number	Excel row number in table - The 1-based row index inside the table where insertion began (table mode)	1
convertNumericAndDate	Boolean	Numeric and date conversion status - Indicates whether automatic numeric and date conversion was enabled. true if enabled, false if disabled	true
dateFormat	String	Date format applied - The date format string that was applied during conversion	yyyy-MM-dd
numericFormat	String	Numeric format applied - The numeric format string that was applied during conversion	N2
ignoreAttributeTitles	Boolean	Case-insensitive header matching - Indicates whether case-insensitive header matching was used. true if enabled, false if case-sensitive	false
ignoreNullValues	Boolean	Null value handling - Indicates whether null values were ignored. true if nulls were ignored, false if nulls were inserted	false
cultureName	String	Culture/Locale code - Culture code used for parsing numbers and dates (e.g., "en-US", "de-DE", "fr-FR")	en-US
message	String	Operation message - Descriptive message indicating the result of the row insertion operation, including the number of rows added and worksheet name	Successfully added 1 row(s) to worksheet 'Sheet1'

N8N Action Response

The PDF4me Add rows to Excel worksheet API returns a response that can be viewed in multiple formats. Choose the view that best fits your needs:

JSON

JSON Response Format

The raw JSON response from the API:

[
  {
    "fileName": "excel_with_rows.xlsx",
    "fileSize": 212814,
    "success": true,
    "originalFileName": "myExcelFile.xlsx",
    "worksheetName": "Sheet1",
    "insertFromRow": 1,
    "insertFromColumn": 1,
    "rowsAdded": 1,
    "tableName": null,
    "excelRowNumber": 1,
    "convertNumericAndDate": true,
    "dateFormat": "yyyy-MM-dd",
    "numericFormat": "N2",
    "ignoreAttributeTitles": false,
    "ignoreNullValues": false,
    "cultureName": "en-US",
    "message": "Successfully added 1 row(s) to worksheet 'Sheet1'"
  }
]

Table

Table View

Response data in a structured table format:

Parameter	Value
fileName	excel_with_rows.xlsx
fileSize	212814
success	true
originalFileName	myExcelFile.xlsx
worksheetName	Sheet1
insertFromRow	1
insertFromColumn	1
rowsAdded	1
tableName	null
excelRowNumber	1
convertNumericAndDate	true
dateFormat	yyyy-MM-dd
numericFormat	N2
ignoreAttributeTitles	false
ignoreNullValues	false
cultureName	en-US
message	Successfully added 1 row(s) to worksheet 'Sheet1'

Schema

Schema View

The data structure and types of the response:

1 item
fileName: T excel_with_rows.xlsx
fileSize: # 212814
success: ☑ true
originalFileName: T myExcelFile.xlsx
worksheetName: T Sheet1
insertFromRow: # 1
insertFromColumn: # 1
rowsAdded: # 1
tableName: null
excelRowNumber: # 1
convertNumericAndDate: ☑ true
dateFormat: T yyyy-MM-dd
numericFormat: T N2
ignoreAttributeTitles: ☑ false
ignoreNullValues: ☑ false
cultureName: T en-US
message: T Successfully added 1 row(s) to worksheet 'Sheet1'

Type Indicators:

• T = String (Text)
• # = Number
• ☑ = Boolean
• [] = Array

Binary

Binary Data View

The actual Excel document file data and metadata:

data
─────────────────────────────
File Name: excel_with_rows.xlsx
File Extension: xlsx
Mime Type: application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet
File Size: 213 kB

Binary Data Access:

• n8n Binary Object: $binary.data.data
• Base64 Content: Available for direct use
• File Operations: Ready for download, email, or storage

Use Cases

• Sales & Finance Imports: Load daily CRM exports or ERP transactions straight into a shared Excel dashboard with automatic number/date formatting.
• Operations Logging: Append IoT readings, manufacturing KPIs, or logistics updates into predefined tables while preserving workbook formulas.
• Forms & API Capture: Take webform/webhook JSON payloads and drop them into tracking sheets without building custom scripts.

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