WordPress Automation

WordPress core doesn't send webhooks, which surprises most people setting this up. WooCommerce does: it has built-in webhooks for orders, customers, and products. For everything else there are three routes. Zapier's and Make's WordPress triggers check the site's REST API on a schedule, so new posts or users show up after the polling interval rather than instantly. Form plugins such as Gravity Forms or WPForms offer webhook add-ons that post each entry straight to a webhook URL, which suits n8n's Webhook node well. A general webhook plugin can send core events like new users or published posts. Pick per event: forms and orders by webhook, low-urgency content events by polling.

n8n is the default because WordPress sites that need automation are often already on a server someone manages, and n8n there has no per-run cost, which matters once WooCommerce orders pass through several workflow steps each. Its Webhook node also receives form-plugin and WooCommerce webhooks directly. Zapier is the easiest start for a site owner without a developer, with ready-made WordPress, WooCommerce, and form-plugin apps, but it bills per action step. Make sits in between on cost and flexibility. The Pricing section has the plan figures.

With an application password on a dedicated WordPress user. Application passwords are built into WordPress and are meant for exactly this: API access that can be revoked on its own without touching anyone's login. Give that user the lowest role the workflows need (Author for creating posts, Shop Manager for WooCommerce, not Administrator). If requests suddenly fail with authorization errors, check security plugins first: many disable the REST API for anonymous users or block application passwords, which is the most common cause of the plugin conflicts listed under Cons.

Yes. n8n's WordPress node, Zapier's WordPress app, and Make's WordPress modules can all create and update posts through the REST API, for example turning an approved Airtable row or an RSS item into a draft. Two details to plan for: set new posts to draft so an editor reviews them before publishing, and upload images to the media library first, then attach the returned media ID as the featured image, because a post body with an external image URL doesn't give WordPress a featured image.

This is the broader stack: it automates a whole WordPress site (posts, forms, user sign-ups, and WooCommerce orders) and lets you choose n8n, Zapier, or Make as the engine. The n8n + WooCommerce stack narrows in on running a store with n8n, where the details that matter are order statuses, WooCommerce's webhook delivery, and syncing fulfillment back to the store. Pick this one when content and leads matter as much as orders, or when you'd rather use a hosted engine; pick n8n + WooCommerce when the store is the reason you're automating.