Recipes / Email
Multi-agent inbox triage & auto-reply
Classifies unread mail into Sales, Support, Internal, Finance, Promotions; specialist agents auto-reply to support/internal and draft or alert for the rest.
Tool names link to each official site (opens in a new tab). Links marked “aff” are affiliate links. Disclosure
App vs bot, side by side
| Old app / habit | Bot | |
|---|---|---|
| Tool | Manually sorting Gmail | n8n + five OpenAI agents + Gmail (+ Telegram/Slack alerts) |
| Monthly cost | Not reported | OpenAI API usage + n8n; free template |
| Setup | None (already in use) | About 10-15 minutes (per template) · Intermediate |
| Your time | Baseline | Not reported |
| Maintenance | Handled by vendor/you as before | Review prompts against your business rules; check auto-replies. |
| Privacy | Data stays with the app vendor | Email content is sent to the LLM provider (e.g. OpenAI). Needs Gmail OAuth access to read, label and draft. |
Full comparison
| Replaces | Manually sorting Gmail |
|---|---|
| Bot / agent stack | n8n + five OpenAI agents + Gmail (+ Telegram/Slack alerts) |
| Monthly cost before | Not reported |
| Monthly cost after | OpenAI API usage + n8n; free template |
| Setup time | About 10-15 minutes (per template) |
| Time saved | Not reported |
| Skill level | Intermediate |
| Reliability | 3/5: published template; auto-replies need careful prompt tuning. |
| Maintenance | Review prompts against your business rules; check auto-replies. |
| Privacy & data | Email content is sent to the LLM provider (e.g. OpenAI). Needs Gmail OAuth access to read, label and draft. |
| Best for | Busy inboxes with clear categories |
| Not for | Sensitive/regulated email |
Pros and cons
Pros
- Free template
- Sorts into 5 categories
- Alerts for sales/finance
Cons
- Auto-sending risks wrong replies
- Five agents = more API calls
How it works
- Connect two Gmail credentials
- Add OpenAI key to 5 agent nodes
- Set Telegram/Slack alerts
- Customize prompts
- Activate
Source and evidence
Published template; auto-sending needs careful prompt tuning.
Read the original Template source ↗
“Not reported” means the source doesn't say. We never fill gaps with guesses. Numbers marked “per author” or “vendor claim” are the source's own and weren't independently tested. Source last checked 2026-10-15.
Our rating is an editorial opinion based on the public source above, not lab testing. Spot an error? Request a correction.
Plain-text summary (for search and AI assistants)
Multi-agent inbox triage & auto-reply. Replaces Manually sorting Gmail with n8n + five OpenAI agents + Gmail (+ Telegram/Slack alerts). Cost before: Not reported. Cost after: OpenAI API usage + n8n; free template. Setup: About 10-15 minutes (per template), Intermediate. Time saved: Not reported. Reliability 3/5: 3/5: published template; auto-replies need careful prompt tuning. Best for: Busy inboxes with clear categories. Not for: Sensitive/regulated email. Source: https://n8n.io/workflows/9157-ai-powered-email-triage-and-auto-response-system-with-openai-agents-and-gmail/
Related recipes
- Inbox labeler with Sheets log & dry-run mode (4/5)
- Email summaries posted to Slack (Make) (3/5)
- Inbox triage agent with Make AI Agents (3/5)
More: all Email recipes · Best AI agents to replace Zapier · n8n vs Make: AI agent recipes compared
Questions, corrections or ideas?
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Starting your own newsletter? Try beehiiv ↗
Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you sign up, at no cost to you. It doesn't affect ratings. Disclosure
What is beehiiv?
beehiiv is a newsletter platform: you write and send emails, host a newsletter website, and grow and monetize a list from one place. We've used it for our own newsletter.
beehiiv says (vendor claims, not tested by us):
- Free plan with up to 2,500 subscribers and unlimited sends
- Built-in website, recommendation network and analytics
- 0% cut of paid subscription revenue (Stripe fees apply)
Good for: starting or growing an email newsletter. Not ideal for: email automations or removing beehiiv branding on a $0 budget (those need Lite or Pro).
Free plan: $0, no card needed. Paid plans from $49/mo billed annually (Lite, up to 1,000 subscribers). People who sign up through our link get a 14-day trial plus 20% off their first 3 months, per beehiiv's partner page. Facts as of Oct 2026, from beehiiv's own website. More about beehiiv →