Overview
The Intercom node for n8n allows you to interact with the Intercom API. Specifically, when using the Contact resource and the Get operation, this node retrieves a single contact (lead or user) from your Intercom workspace based on either their Intercom-defined ID or their Contact ID.
Common scenarios:
- Fetching detailed information about a specific contact for use in automations.
- Looking up a contact by their unique identifier to enrich data or trigger follow-up actions.
- Integrating Intercom contact data into other systems or workflows.
Practical example:
You might use this node to retrieve a contact's details after receiving a webhook event containing their ID, then pass that data to another service like a CRM or email marketing tool.
Properties
| Name | Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Select By | options | Determines which property to use for selecting the contact: "ID" (Intercom ID) or "Contact ID" (unique identifier). |
| Value | string | The actual value of the selected property (either the Intercom ID or Contact ID) to look up the contact. |
Output
The output is a JSON object representing the contact retrieved from Intercom. The structure typically includes fields such as:
{
"type": "contact",
"id": "123456789",
"workspace_id": "abcde12345",
"external_id": null,
"role": "user",
"email": "example@domain.com",
"phone": null,
"name": "John Doe",
"avatar": { ... },
"created_at": 1234567890,
"updated_at": 1234567890,
"signed_up_at": 1234567890,
"last_seen_at": 1234567890,
"owner_id": null,
"custom_attributes": { ... },
...
}
Note: The exact fields depend on the contact's data in Intercom. No binary data is returned by this operation.
Dependencies
- External Service: Requires an active Intercom account.
- API Key: You must configure Intercom API credentials in n8n under
intercomCredentialsApi. - n8n Configuration: No additional environment variables are required beyond standard credential setup.
Troubleshooting
Common issues:
- Invalid or missing credentials: If the Intercom API key is not set up correctly, authentication will fail.
- Incorrect ID/Contact ID: Providing an invalid or non-existent ID will result in an error or empty response.
- API rate limits: Excessive requests may be throttled by Intercom.
Error messages:
"Intercom Error: ...": Indicates a problem with the request, such as invalid parameters or network issues. Double-check the provided IDs and credentials."Cannot read property '...' of undefined": May occur if the expected field is missing; ensure the correct property is used for lookup.
How to resolve:
- Verify that the "Select By" and "Value" properties match a real contact in your Intercom workspace.
- Ensure your Intercom credentials are valid and have sufficient permissions.
- Check Intercom's status page for any ongoing outages.