Automate Image Labeling to Google Sheets with n8n

Why bother automating image labeling?

Imagine this: you need to search for a bunch of images online, figure out what’s in each one, then log all that info into a spreadsheet. Doing that manually gets old really fast, right?

That’s exactly where this n8n workflow template comes in. It automatically:

• Searches for images using Google Custom Search
• Analyzes what’s in those images with AWS Rekognition
• Logs the image title, URL, and detected labels into Google Sheets

You end up with a neat, searchable sheet full of labeled images, without all the copy-paste chaos.

What this n8n template actually does

This workflow connects three main services in one smooth automation:

• Google Custom Search – finds images based on your search query
• AWS Rekognition – detects labels like objects, scenes, or activities in each image
• Google Sheets – stores the results so you can review, filter, and share them

Once you set it up, you can run it whenever you want to pull in fresh images and label them automatically.

When should you use this workflow?

This template is perfect if you:

• Work with image datasets and need quick labeling for research or prototyping
• Are testing or training computer vision models and want a fast way to explore image content
• Need a simple, shareable log of images and their tags for your team or clients
• Just want to experiment with n8n, APIs, and image recognition without writing a lot of code

If you find yourself repeatedly searching images and manually tracking what’s in them, this workflow will save you a lot of time and mental energy.

What you need before you start

To get this n8n template up and running, you’ll need:

• Google Custom Search API access (API key and search engine context)
• AWS Rekognition credentials
• Google Sheets OAuth2 credentials

In the workflow, you’ll replace placeholder values like API keys, search queries, and sheet IDs with your own real credentials and settings.

Quick reminder: make sure you respect both Google API usage policies and AWS Rekognition limits while using this setup.

How the workflow is structured in n8n

Let’s walk through the main steps so you know exactly what’s happening under the hood.

Step 1 – Fetch images with the HTTP Request node

The workflow kicks off with an HTTP Request node that talks to the Google Custom Search API. Here’s what it typically sends:

• Your search query (for example, street)
• Parameters that specify you want image results
• Your API key
• Your search engine context (CX)

Google Custom Search responds with a JSON object that includes:

• A list of image URLs
• Titles or descriptions for each image

This gives the workflow everything it needs to start analyzing those images.

Step 2 – Analyze image content with AWS Rekognition

Next, the workflow passes each image into an AWS Rekognition node. This is where the magic of label detection happens.

AWS Rekognition looks at the binary image data and returns labels that describe what it sees, such as:

• Objects (for example, car, person, tree)
• Scenes (for example, city, street, beach)
• Activities or contexts, depending on the image

The result is a structured set of labels and confidence scores that tell you what’s likely in each image.

Step 3 – Prepare the data with the Set node

Once the labels are available, the workflow uses a Set node to tidy everything up. Think of this as the “organize before saving” step.

In this node, the workflow maps out:

• The image title from Google Custom Search
• The direct image URL
• The labels returned by AWS Rekognition

All of that is combined into a clean, structured format that fits nicely into rows and columns in Google Sheets.

Step 4 – Append everything to Google Sheets

Finally, the Google Sheets node takes the structured data and appends it as new rows in your chosen spreadsheet.

Each row might include fields like:

• Image title
• Image URL
• Detected labels

You end up with a growing, dynamic database of images and their analyzed labels, all stored in a place that’s easy to view, filter, share, or plug into other tools.

Why this n8n workflow makes life easier

So what do you actually gain from setting this up?

• Time-saving automation
  No more manual image searches, copy-pasting URLs, or typing labels into spreadsheets. The workflow handles fetching, analyzing, and logging for you.
• Scalability
  Need more images or different topics? Just tweak the search query or extend the workflow with extra nodes for more processing or filtering.
• Accessible, shareable data
  Because everything lands in Google Sheets, your results are easy to browse, share with teammates, or connect to dashboards and reports.

Getting started with the template

Once you have your API keys and credentials, you can plug them into the template and customize things like:

• Your search query (for example, street, nature, cars)
• The Google Sheet ID and target tab
• Any extra fields you want to store alongside the labels

After that, run the workflow and watch your spreadsheet fill up with labeled image data automatically.

Ready to streamline your image labeling process and free up your brain for more interesting work? Give this automation a try and see how quickly it boosts your productivity.

Try the n8n image labeling template

If you want to skip the setup from scratch and jump straight into using a ready-made workflow, you can start from this template:

Want more n8n automation ideas?

If this kind of workflow gets you excited about what else you can automate, you’re not alone. There are plenty of ways to connect n8n with your favorite tools and build automations that quietly handle the boring parts of your day.

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