RecipeAgents / n8n nodes / Merge
Node reference · data pulled Oct 26, 2026n8n Merge node: what the data shows
Joins two or more branches of a workflow back into one stream of items.
What it does
It has four modes: Append (stack inputs one after another), Combine (by matching field, by position, or every combination), SQL Query (write SQL over the inputs as tables) and Choose Branch (wait for both, pass one on). Matching-field combine works like a database join, with left, right, inner and outer options.
Templates that use Merge lean on Aggregate and Split Out, which fits the fan-out, process, fan-in pattern.
How often public templates use it
2,616 of the 13,574 public templates on n8n.io (19.3%) contain this node, in the snapshot we took on 2026-10-20. The table splits that by the year each template was published. 2026 runs to October 20.
| Year published | Templates with the node | Share of that year |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 94 of 462 | 20.3% |
| 2025 | 1,291 of 6,564 | 19.7% |
| 2026 | 1,158 of 5,845 | 19.8% |
The median template using this node has 269 views on n8n.io, against 284 for all templates. Template counts show what people publish, not what runs in production.
What it is used with
The most frequent partners are the nodes that appear most often in the same templates. "Lift" compares that with the whole library: 2× means the partner turns up twice as often next to this node as in an average template.
| Most frequent partner | Share of its templates | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Code | 73.7% | 1.24× |
| Edit Fields (Set) | 68.8% | 1.24× |
| HTTP Request | 61.0% | 1.18× |
| If | 57.3% | 1.13× |
| Schedule Trigger | 41.4% | 1.30× |
| Google Sheets | 37.8% | 1.06× |
Strong pairings (in at least 5% of its templates, lift 1.5× or more): 6. The top ones:
| Strong partner | Share of its templates | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Aggregate | 20.0% | 2.14× |
| Split Out | 19.6% | 1.69× |
| Anthropic Chat Model | 5.2% | 1.57× |
| Extract from File | 9.3% | 1.55× |
| Convert to File | 5.8% | 1.52× |
| Limit | 5.3% | 1.52× |
Most viewed public templates that use it: Automate multi platform social media content creation with ai (442,651 views); Fully automated ai video generation and multi platform publishing (402,403 views); Scrape and summarize webpages with ai (391,360 views).
Versions and changes
Node versions from the npm packages n8n-nodes-base and @n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain, version 2.44.4. New workflows get the default version; workflows built earlier keep the version they were built with until you replace the node.
| Node | Versions | Default | Credential types | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merge | 1, 2, 2.1, 3, 3.1, 3.2 | 3.2 | none needed | – |
Source on GitHub: packages/nodes-base/nodes/Merge: 80 commits since the repository was reorganised on 2021-11-17, last on 2026-08-06.
Recent fixes and features
- 2026-08-06: feat(Merge Node): Add "Append" and "Combine" search aliases (PR #35709)
- 2026-07-10: feat(Merge Node): Add queryParameters option (PR #33385)
- 2026-07-08: feat(Merge Node): Add `NODES_MERGE_SQL_SANDBOX_MEMORY_LIMIT_MB` variable (PR #33652)
- 2026-04-30: fix(Merge Node): Improve SQL Query mode memory efficiency and error reporting (PR #28993)
- 2025-10-21: fix(Merge Node): Block file access for alasql (PR #20858)
- 2025-09-03: fix(Merge Node): Fix possible stack overflow (PR #19101)
Merged dates from GitHub. A fix only helps once your n8n instance runs a release that includes it, so check your version.
Known problems
- Extra items dropped. When combining by position, input 1 sets the count: send 5 items to input 1 and 10 to input 2 and only 5 are processed. Source: n8n docs
- Both If branches run. With the legacy v0 execution order, a Merge after If can trigger the branch If didn't send data to. Source: n8n docs
- SQL mode memory. SQL Query mode memory use and error messages were improved in April 2026, and a memory-limit variable was added in July 2026. Source: n8n PR #28993
- Stack overflow on large inputs. A possible stack overflow was fixed in September 2025. Source: n8n PR #19101
Forum trouble signal: not measured. The n8n community forum's terms forbid automated access, so we don't count forum threads.
Our recipes that use it
None of our 25 recipes uses this node yet. Browse all of them on the free n8n templates page.
Official docs and sources
Usage, pairings, AI share and views: our count of 13,574 public n8n.io templates (snapshot 2026-10-20). Versions: npm packages, version 2.44.4. Changes: n8n's GitHub repository. Docs read and data pulled Oct 26, 2026. We describe each node in our own words; the docs are the authority on settings.
Related nodes
- Switch2,069 templates · score 59.3
- Loop Over Items2,319 templates · score 54.0
- Wait2,398 templates · score 51.2
- If6,849 templates · score 49.6
- All 22 nodesSortable table with the scoring method
Questions
- How many n8n templates use the Merge node?
- 2,616 of the 13,574 public templates on n8n.io (19.3%), in our snapshot of 2026-10-20.
- What is the Merge node most often used with?
- Code, which appears in 73.7% of its templates. The most distinctive partner is Aggregate (lift 2.1×).
- Does the n8n Merge node wait for both inputs?
- In Append, Combine and Choose Branch modes it waits for the connected inputs before running.
- How do I join two lists by ID?
- Use Combine by Matching Fields and pick the field from each input, like a SQL join.