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Email & Inbox

Business Email Inbox Triage

Inbox triage for custom-domain mail (Zoho, cPanel, ProtonMail) using n8n + IMAP.

Saves about ~4 hrs per week

What it does

  • Brings the Gmail-style triage to any IMAP mailbox — Zoho Mail, cPanel hosts, ProtonMail Business
  • Moves mail into AI-Urgent, AI-Action, AI-Newsletter, and AI-FYI folders
  • Sends a daily digest of what actually needs attention
  • Works on the free tier of n8n cloud, so there's no extra subscription

How it works

  1. Email Trigger (IMAP) node watches the mailbox
  2. Subject, sender, and preview are sent to an AI classifier
  3. A switch routes each message to the right IMAP folder
  4. Daily digest flow summarizes the urgent and action folders

What's included

  • n8n workflow setup
  • IMAP credential wiring
  • Custom digest flow

Set it up yourself

Follow these 5 steps in order. You will need accounts for: n8n.

Step 1: Get an AI API key

  1. Go to the API console of your chosen AI provider (e.g. https://console.anthropic.com for Claude) and sign in.
  2. Open the API Keys section and click "Create key".
  3. Give it a name like n8n-triage and click Create, then copy the key immediately — most providers only show it once.
  4. Store it in a password manager.

Watch out: Treat this key like a bank password: anyone with it can spend your API budget.

Step 2: Create a free n8n account

  1. Go to https://n8n.io and click "Sign up" → choose the free cloud plan.
  2. Verify your email and create a workspace (a project name is enough).
  3. Once inside, click Workflows → "New workflow" and name it Inbox Triage.
  4. Note your instance URL — you will come back to it in each node step.

Watch out: The free cloud tier throttles to a few minutes of execution per day — more than enough for a personal inbox, but keep tasks to 10-minute schedules at most.

Step 3: Generate an app password

  1. Log in to your email provider's dashboard (Zoho Mail: Settings → Mail Accounts → App passwords).
  2. Create a new app password named n8n — write it down; like the API key it is shown once.
  3. Also open the IMAP/SMTP settings page and note the host and port. Typical values: Zoho host imap.zoho.com port 993; cPanel (Dovecot) mail.yourdomain.com port 993; ProtonMail Business imap.protonmail.ch port 993.
  4. Confirm your provider requires the app password, not your normal login password, for IMAP.

Watch out: If you cannot find an app passwords option, check your provider's docs under "IMAP authentication" — some cPanel hosts label it "email client password".

Step 4: Create the four folders

  1. Log in to webmail for the mailbox being triaged (Zoho, cPanel webmail, or Proton).
  2. Create four folders: AI-Urgent, AI-Action, AI-Newsletter, and AI-FYI.
  3. Write the names down exactly — the n8n switch must reference them by exact name.
  4. If your provider only supports labels (Zoho Mail labels, not just folders), note that you will use a label action instead of a move action in the workflow.

Watch out: Folder names are case-sensitive and some providers truncate spaces — keep names simple with hyphens.

Step 5: Build the two flows

  1. In n8n, add the node "Email Trigger (IMAP)". Configure host, port, username (full address) and the app password from step 3.
  2. Add an "HTTP Request" node calling your AI provider with the classification prompt from this guide; map the From, Subject, and Body preview into the request.
  3. Add a "Switch" node: on the returned category (URGENT/NEWSLETTER/ACTION/FYI) route to an "Email (IMAP)" move action targeting the matching folder created in step 4.
  4. Activate the workflow (toggle at the top).
  5. Build the second workflow "Inbox Digest": trigger "Schedule" (e.g. weekdays 8:00), node "Email (IMAP)" searching AI-Urgent and AI-Action folders for messages from the last 24h, a Function node to concatenate From/Subject/preview, an HTTP Request node with the digest prompt, and a "Send Email" (SMTP) node delivering the digest.
  6. Activate and send yourself test emails in each category.

Watch out: If the IMAP trigger shows a connection error, double-check port 993 + SSL enabled, and that the username is the full email address.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Business Email Inbox Triage automation do?

Inbox triage for custom-domain mail (Zoho, cPanel, ProtonMail) using n8n + IMAP. Brings the Gmail-style triage to any IMAP mailbox — Zoho Mail, cPanel hosts, ProtonMail Business

How much time does Business Email Inbox Triage save?

It is estimated to save ~4 hrs per week. Actual savings depend on your volume.

Which tools does Business Email Inbox Triage use?

It works with n8n.

What does Business Email Inbox Triage include?

n8n workflow setup, IMAP credential wiring, Custom digest flow.

Can I set up Business Email Inbox Triage myself?

Yes. The do-it-yourself guide on this page walks through 5 steps, from getting access to testing the finished automation.