Build an Upwork Lead Machine with n8n (Step‑by‑Step)

The Simple Approach

Upwork does not offer a public API. Forget complex integrations. The practical solution is straightforward: pull your Upwork email alerts from Gmail using n8n, parse the job data into a table, and hire a VA to bid on your behalf.

Outcome: a constantly updated lead database that a VA can work from
Audience: freelancers and agencies who want to scale without building complex automations
Stack: n8n, Gmail, Google Sheets or Airtable, and a VA added to your Upwork organization

flowchart TD
    A[Upwork Email Alerts] --> B[Gmail]
    B --> C[n8n Gmail Node]
    C --> D[Parse Job Data]
    D --> E[Store in Table]
    E --> F[VA Reviews Leads]
    F --> G[VA Submits Proposals]

    classDef trigger fill:#e1f5fe,stroke:#01579b
    classDef process fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#ef6c00
    classDef action fill:#e8f5e8,stroke:#2e7d32

    class A,B trigger
    class C,D,E process
    class F,G action

Step 1: Set Up Upwork Saved Searches

Create focused saved searches in Upwork that match your niche.

Use filters for category, keywords, budget range, and client history
Enable email alerts for each saved search
Use distinct subject lines or search names so you can identify which search triggered each alert

Upwork will send you an email every time a new job matches your criteria.

Step 2: Configure the n8n Gmail Node

Set up n8n to pull emails from your Gmail account every minute.

Create the workflow

Add a Schedule Trigger node set to run every 1 minute
Add a Gmail node configured to read emails
Filter for emails from Upwork with your saved search subjects
Mark emails as read after processing to avoid duplicates

flowchart TD
    S[Schedule Every 1 Min] --> G[Gmail Node]
    G --> F[Filter Upwork Emails]
    F --> P[Parse Content]

    classDef trigger fill:#e1f5fe,stroke:#01579b
    classDef process fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#ef6c00
    class S trigger
    class G,F,P process

Gmail node settings

Operation: Get Many
Filter by sender: [email protected] or similar
Filter by label or subject to match your saved searches
Limit to unread emails to avoid reprocessing

Step 3: Parse the Email Data

Extract the job details from each email and structure them for your database.

Fields to extract

Job title
Job URL
Budget (fixed or hourly range)
Skills required
Client info (spend history, rating, location if available)
Posted date

Use n8n’s Code node or Set node to parse the email body. Upwork emails follow a consistent format, so regex or string splitting works well.

Example parsed record

{
  "title": "Build a React dashboard",
  "url": "https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~01234567890",
  "budget": "$500-$1000",
  "skills": ["React", "TypeScript", "Tailwind"],
  "client_spend": "$10k+",
  "posted_at": "2025-12-16T10:30:00Z"
}

Step 4: Store Leads in a Table

Send the parsed data to Google Sheets, Airtable, or any database.

Recommended columns

Column	Description
Job Title	The job posting title
URL	Link to the Upwork job
Budget	Fixed price or hourly range
Skills	Comma-separated list
Client Spend	Total client spend on platform
Posted	When the job was posted
Status	New, Reviewed, Applied, Won, Lost
VA Notes	Space for VA to add notes

n8n nodes to use

Google Sheets node to append rows
Or Airtable node if you prefer that interface
Add a duplicate check by job URL before inserting

flowchart TD
    P[Parsed Data] --> C[Check Duplicate]
    C -->|New| I[Insert Row]
    C -->|Exists| S[Skip]

    classDef process fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#ef6c00
    class P,C,I,S process

Step 5: Hire a VA and Add Them to Your Organization

Once your lead table is populating, hire a VA to handle the bidding.

Add the VA to your Upwork agency

Go to your Upwork agency settings
Invite the VA as a team member
They can now submit proposals on behalf of your organization

VA workflow

VA reviews new leads in the table daily or multiple times per day
For qualified leads, VA drafts a proposal using your templates
VA submits the proposal through Upwork under your agency
VA updates the status column in the table
You handle interviews and closing

What to give your VA

Access to the lead table (Sheets or Airtable)
Two to three proposal templates for different job types
Guidelines on which leads to prioritize (budget, client spend, skills match)
A voice guide with your tone and key phrases

Callout: The VA bids through your official Upwork organization, so everything stays compliant with platform rules

Optional: Add AI Draft Assistance

If you want to speed up proposal writing, add an LLM step before the VA review.

Workflow addition

After parsing, send job details to OpenAI or another LLM
Generate a draft proposal based on your templates and the job description
Store the draft in a new column in your table
VA reviews and edits the draft before submitting

This reduces VA time per proposal while keeping human review in the loop.

flowchart TD
    J[Job Data] --> L[LLM Draft]
    L --> T[Store Draft in Table]
    T --> V[VA Reviews]
    V --> S[Submit on Upwork]

    classDef process fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#ef6c00
    classDef action fill:#e8f5e8,stroke:#2e7d32
    class J,L,T,V process
    class S action

Keeping It Running

Monitor the workflow

Check n8n execution logs weekly
Watch for parsing failures if Upwork changes email format
Keep Gmail storage clean to avoid sync issues

Track results

Add columns to your table for:

Proposal sent date
Interview scheduled
Contract won
Contract value

This lets you measure VA performance and ROI over time.

Summary

Set up Upwork saved searches with email alerts
Use n8n Gmail node to pull emails every minute
Parse job data and store in Google Sheets or Airtable
Hire a VA and add them to your Upwork organization
VA reviews leads and submits proposals on your behalf

No API needed. No complex webhooks. Just email parsing, a simple table, and a VA who can scale your bidding while you focus on delivery.

Callout: Automate the data capture, delegate the bidding, and spend your time on interviews and client work