Learn Looping over Items in n8n for Beginners

# N8N for Beginners: Looping Over Items ## Description This workflow is designed for n8n beginners to understand how n8n handles looping (iteration) over multiple items. It highlights two key behaviors: - Built-In Looping: By default, most n8n nodes iterate over each item in an input array. - Explicit Looping: The Loop Over Items node allows controlled iteration, enabling custom batch processing and multi-step workflows. This workflow demonstrates the difference between processing an unsplit array of strings (single item) vs. a split array (multiple items). --- ## Setup ### 1. Input Data To begin, paste the following JSON into the Manual Trigger node: json { "urls": [ "https://www.reddit.com", "https://www.n8n.io/", "https://n8n.io/", "https://supabase.com/", "https://duckduckgo.com/" ] } 📌 Steps to Paste Data: - Double-click the "Manual Trigger" node. - Click "Edit Output" (top-right corner). - Paste the JSON and Save. - The node turns purple, indicating that test data is pinned. --- ## Explanation of the n8n Nodes in the Workflow ### Manual Trigger This node starts the workflow manually and sends test data. Documentation: Manual Trigger Node ### Split Out (Split Array of Strings into Array of Objects) Extracts the urls array and splits it so that each URL becomes a separate JSON object. Documentation: Split Out Node ### Loop Over Items (Loop Over Items 1) Demonstrates how an unsplit array is treated as one item, processing it as a single unit. Documentation: Loop Over Items Node ### Loop Over Items (Loop Over Items 2) Processes the split array one item at a time. This demonstrates individual iteration and controlled looping. Documentation: Loop Over Items Node ### Wait Node Introduces a 1-second delay per iteration to demonstrate sequential execution. This can be removed for faster performance. Documentation: Wait Node ### Code Nodes (Add param1 to outputX) Each Code node adds a constant field (param1) to the data, ensuring that every item gets enriched with the same parameter. Documentation: Code Node ### NoOp Nodes (Result1, Result2, Result3, Result4, Result5) These nodes display the output at different stages of the workflow for inspection. Documentation: NoOp Node --- ## Execution Details ### 1. How the Workflow Runs - Manual Trigger starts execution with the pasted JSON data. - The workflow