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Run automated SEO audits with Screaming Frog CLI, PageSpeed, PDF and Excel fixes

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Run automated SEO audits with Screaming Frog CLI, PageSpeed, PDF and Excel fixes preview
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1. Workflow Overview

What this workflow does Type in Slack. Walk away. Get a professional PDF report and a structured Excel fix sheet delivered to Google Drive and posted back in your Slack thread — fully automated,...

Best for

  • Market Research automation workflows
  • AI Summarization automation workflows
  • advanced n8n builders looking for reusable templates

Tools used

n8n-nodes-base.wait, n8n-nodes-base.compression, n8n-nodes-base.code, n8n-nodes-base.httprequest, n8n-nodes-base.set, n8n-nodes-base.switch, n8n-nodes-base.googledrive, n8n-nodes-base.slacktrigger

Source and attribution

This workflow is cataloged by N8N Workflows and links back to its original n8n.io source page by Salman Mehboob.

Original n8n.io source

1.1 Workflow description

Title
Run automated SEO audits with Screaming Frog CLI, PageSpeed, PDF and Excel fixes
Workflow name
Run automated SEO audits with Screaming Frog CLI, PageSpeed, PDF and Excel fixes

šŸ’” What this workflow does

Type #Audit https://clientsite.com in Slack. Walk away. Get a professional PDF report and a structured Excel fix sheet delivered to Google Drive and posted back in your Slack thread — fully automated, zero manual work.

Built for SEO agencies and freelancers who deliver technical audits at scale.

šŸ‘‡ Check out the deliverables: šŸ“„ View Sample PDF Report šŸ“Š View Sample Excel Fix Sheet


šŸ“¦ What You Get

  • 20–50 page PDF report: Includes a health score, Core Web Vitals, broken links, On-Page SEO, issue cards with fix explanations, a priority action plan, and an SEO glossary.
  • Excel fix sheet: 18 tabs (one per issue type), containing every URL and exact fix instructions — ready to hand off to a developer.
  • Cloud Storage: Both files are saved to your Google Drive /SEO Audits folder automatically.
  • Slack Delivery: Links to the generated files are posted directly back into your original Slack thread.

āš™ļø How It Works

  1. A Slack message containing #Audit and a URL triggers the workflow.
  2. A POST request starts the crawl via your self-hosted Screaming Frog CLI API (built with Python + FastAPI, exposed publicly through a Cloudflare Tunnel — no static IP needed).
  3. The workflow polls the API every 2 minutes until the status is done, timeout, or failed.
  4. The crawl ZIP is downloaded and decompressed, triggering two simultaneous branches:
  • Branch A (Executive Report): SEO Audit Parser → PageSpeed Insights → PSI Parser → Report Builder → HTML to PDF → Google Drive.
  • Branch B (Developer Sheet): Full Data Parser → Tab Builder → Excel File Builder → Google Drive.
  1. Both Google Drive links are merged, logged to a Google Sheet, and posted back into the Slack thread.

šŸ› ļø Key Technical Features

  • Streaming CSV Parser: Easily handles large crawl files up to 500MB without causing timeouts or memory crashes.
  • Smart File Optimization: Auto-skips massive all_inlinks.csv and all_anchor_text.csv files (reduces the unzipped payload from ~450MB to ~15MB).
  • Advanced 403 Error Logic: Splits 403 errors into three actionable categories:
  • Your own site blocking the crawler (WAF/Cloudflare)
  • Known bot-blocked platforms (Twitter, Wikipedia)
  • Unknown external links requiring a manual check
  • Archive Page Filtering: Removes tags, pagination, feeds, and search pages from all issue counts so your data isn't skewed.
  • Dynamic Health Score (0–100): Algorithmically weighted by critical vs. warning issues.
  • Universal CMS Support: Works flawlessly with WordPress, Blogger, Shopify, and any other crawlable CMS.

šŸ“‹ What You Need

Requirement Notes
Screaming Frog SEO Spider Licensed version (Ā£199/year) required
SF CLI API (Python/FastAPI) Not included in this template — Contact creator below
Cloudflare Tunnel Free — exposes your local API publicly
Google PageSpeed API Key Free from Google Cloud Console
PDF Conversion Service Workflow is pre-configured for pdfendpoint.com
Google Drive & Sheets OAuth2 credentials for file storage and audit logging
Slack OAuth2 credentials for the trigger and delivery
n8n (Self-Hosted) Recommended for long execution times

āš ļø Required n8n Environment Variables

To ensure the workflow can process large sites without timing out, add these to your n8n .env file:

N8N_DEFAULT_BINARY_DATA_MODE=filesystem
EXECUTIONS_TIMEOUT=7200
N8N_RUNNERS_TASK_TIMEOUT=7200
NODE_OPTIONS=--max-old-space-size=8192

šŸš€ Quick Setup

  1. API Setup: Deploy the SF CLI API on your Windows machine/server and expose it via Cloudflare Tunnel.
  2. Link the Crawler: Update the Start Crawl node URL and Bearer token with your tunnel URL and API secret.
  3. PageSpeed Insights: Replace the PSI API key in the Page Speed Insights HTTP node with your own.
  4. Cloud Storage: Set your Google Drive Folder ID in both upload nodes, and your Google Sheets Spreadsheet ID in the Append row node.
  5. Branding:
  • In the Report Builder code node, update the AGENCY config object (around line 125) with your name, email, and tagline.
  • In the Input Cleaner node, set the watermark value to your agency's name.

šŸ“ž Support & Custom API Access

Note: The custom Python/FastAPI backend required to orchestrate Screaming Frog is not included in this JSON template. If you want to set up the complete system, please reach out:

šŸ“§ Email:[email protected] šŸ”— LinkedIn: Salman Mehboob

1.2 Logical Blocks

This catalog entry is organized from the workflow JSON. The node-level section below shows the executable blocks available for review before importing the template.

2. Block-by-Block Analysis

Block 1 - Wait

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.wait - wait
Config choices
Version 1.1

Block 2 - Wait1

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.wait - wait
Config choices
Version 1.1

Block 3 - Compression

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.compression - compression
Config choices
Version 1.1

Block 4 - PSI Parser

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.code - code
Config choices
Version 2

Block 5 - Page Speed Insights

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest - httpRequest
Config choices
Version 4.4

Block 6 - Input Cleaner

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.set - set
Config choices
Version 3.4

Block 7 - Switch

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.switch - switch
Config choices
Version 3.4

Block 8 - Start Crawl

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest - httpRequest
Config choices
Version 4.2

Block 9 - Check Crawl

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest - httpRequest
Config choices
Version 4.2

Block 10 - Fetch

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest - httpRequest
Config choices
Version 4.2

Block 11 - SEO Audit Parser

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.code - code
Config choices
Version 2

Block 12 - Full Data Parser

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.code - code
Config choices
Version 2

Block 13 - Tab Builder

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.code - code
Config choices
Version 2

Block 14 - Upload file

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.googleDrive - googleDrive
Config choices
Version 3

Block 15 - Data

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.set - set
Config choices
Version 3.4

Block 16 - Excel File Builder

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.code - code
Config choices
Version 2

Block 17 - HTML TO PDF

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest - httpRequest
Config choices
Version 4.4

Block 18 - Upload to Drive

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.googleDrive - googleDrive
Config choices
Version 3

Block 19 - Downlaod PDF

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest - httpRequest
Config choices
Version 4.4

Block 20 - Slack Trigger

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.slackTrigger - slackTrigger
Config choices
Version 1

Block 21 - If

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.if - if
Config choices
Version 2.3

Block 22 - Append row in sheet

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.googleSheets - googleSheets
Config choices
Version 4.7

Block 23 - Aggregate

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.aggregate - aggregate
Config choices
Version 1

Block 24 - Merge

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.merge - merge
Config choices
Version 3.2

Showing the first 24 of 36 workflow blocks. Download the JSON for the full node graph.

3. Summary Table

Workflow Run automated SEO audits with Screaming Frog CLI, PageSpeed, PDF and Excel fixes
Complexity advanced
Nodes 36
Categories Market Research, AI Summarization
Author Salman Mehboob
Published 23 Apr 2026

4. Reproducing the Workflow from Scratch

  1. 1. Download the workflow JSON

    Use the JSON export at /data/workflows/15252/15252.json as the source template for this automation.

  2. 2. Import the template into n8n

    Open n8n, import the downloaded JSON, and review each node before activating the workflow.

  3. 3. Configure credentials and variables

    Replace placeholder credentials, API keys, webhook URLs, account IDs, and environment-specific values with your own settings.

  4. 4. Test with sample data

    Run the workflow manually or in a staging workspace, inspect node output, and confirm downstream systems receive the expected data.

  5. 5. Activate and monitor

    Enable the workflow only after testing, then monitor executions, errors, and rate limits during the first production runs.

5. General Notes & Resources

Review imported nodes carefully before activation. This catalog entry is intended to help you inspect the workflow structure, understand required services, and find related templates faster.

Node names, credentials, schedules, webhook paths, and external service limits may need adjustment for your workspace.

Frequently asked questions

What does Run automated SEO audits with Screaming Frog CLI, PageSpeed, PDF and Excel fixes do?

What this workflow does Type in Slack. Walk away. Get a professional PDF report and a structured Excel fix sheet delivered to Google Drive and posted back in your Slack thread — fully automated,...

What do I need before importing this workflow?

Review the workflow JSON, configure any required credentials in n8n, and test the automation in a safe workspace before using it in production.

Can I customize this workflow?

Yes. Use the block-by-block analysis and the downloadable JSON to inspect each node, then adjust credentials, prompts, schedules, filters, or destinations for your Market Research, AI Summarization use case.