API in starter account

[itays]

hi
i upgrade my bill to starter account.

i wanted to use the n8n api key to the variables
but its give me error -
Error while saving variable Plan lacks license for this feature

is there other problem or there no n8n api key to starter subscription?

[Anshul_Namdev]

Hi @itays Welcome to the n8n community!
The n8n rest API is available on paid plans but not in free trials, so on a starter plan’s settings → n8n API, you should be able to create a new API key, and same with variables starter plan does not cover variables feature for that you need to come on the Pro or Enterprise plan.

n8n public REST API Documentation and Guides | n8n Docs

[A_A4]

Hi @itays

• Yes, n8n API keys are available on paid plans (including Starter), and you should use them via Settings → n8n API.
• No, the Variables feature is not included in Starter, which is exactly what the error message is telling you.

If you specifically need $vars / global variables, you’d need a plan that includes Custom Variables (Pro Cloud or Self‑hosted Enterprise).

[achamm]

hey, the error is specifically about Variables not the API key itself — Variables require Pro plan, that’s not included in Starter. If you just need the API key for external calls that should work fine from Settings → n8n API, but if you’re trying to use $vars in your workflows you’ll need to upgrade to Pro or work around it with static credentials or environment variables if you’re self-hosting.

[Orionpax]

This is a licensing limitation issue @itays the Problem is variables (Environment Variables) are not included in the Starter plan. They’re a feature that requires a higher-tier plan.

The n8n API key itself isn’t the issue, you can use API keys on the Starter plan. The problem is specifically with trying to store that API key (or any value) as a Variable in n8n.

For the Starter plan, I’d suggest using Credentials, they’re designed for storing sensitive data like API keys and are available on your plan.

GL