# What is polling in automation? > Polling is when an automation checks an app on a timer for anything new. How the n8n Gmail Trigger uses it and how it compares with webhooks. Source: https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/polling · Updated 2026-10-01 · Free from Stepthrough (https://learn.ynteractive.com) [n8n and automation](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary#topic-n8n-and-automation) · [AI glossary](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) Updated October 1, 2026 · By [Robert Breen](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/about) Polling is when an automation checks another app on a timer, such as every minute, to ask whether anything new has happened. If something new turned up, the workflow runs; if not, it waits for the next check. ## Why it matters for a small business Many apps you want to automate from, like a Gmail inbox, don't call your workflow the moment something changes. Polling is how n8n watches them anyway. It is simple and dependable, which is why so many ready-made triggers work this way. The cost is delay and repeated checking. A trigger that polls every minute can take up to a minute to notice an email, and one that polls hourly might leave a lead waiting an hour. Checking more often is faster but means more requests to the other service, which can run into its [rate limits](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/rate-limit). Picking the interval is a business call: how long can this item wait? ## In a real lesson: AI Email Responder: Draft Gmail Replies Automatically with n8n The **Gmail Trigger** in the [AI Email Responder lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/ai-email-responder-gmail-drafts-n8n) is a polling trigger. After you add **On message received** and connect office@greenlinepest.com, the node shows two settings you leave alone: **Every Minute** and **Message Received**. In other words, it asks Gmail for new mail once a minute and fires for each message that has arrived. That explains the lesson's last step. Until you click **Publish**, nothing checks the inbox. Once published, n8n checks every minute, and each new email starts a run that writes a draft reply for Greenline Pest Control. Compare [Daily Job Alerts](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/n8n-daily-job-alerts-google-sheets-gmail). Its Schedule Trigger also runs on a clock, but it isn't looking for changes: at 7 a.m. it simply reads the whole jobs sheet and emails every assigned row. [Try this lesson free](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/email-responder) or [read the step-by-step guide](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/ai-email-responder-gmail-drafts-n8n). ## Common confusions ### Polling vs webhook Polling pulls: your workflow asks "anything new?" on a timer. A [webhook](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/webhook) pushes: the other app calls your workflow the instant something happens. Use a webhook when the app offers one and speed matters, and polling when it doesn't. ### Polling trigger vs Schedule Trigger A polling trigger checks for new items and only carries on when it finds some. A [Schedule Trigger](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/schedule-trigger) runs the workflow at set times no matter what, and the workflow itself decides what to do. ## Tips - Match the interval to the job. A customer inbox might deserve every minute; a weekly report doesn't. - Expect a short delay when testing live. A polled email can take up to one interval to show up as a run. - Use **Fetch Test Event** to pull a real example into the editor instead of waiting for the next check. ## Related terms [Webhook](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/webhook) · [Trigger](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/trigger) · [Gmail Trigger](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/gmail-trigger) · [Schedule Trigger](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/schedule-trigger) · [Rate limit](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/rate-limit) ## Where you use it: free lessons - [AI Email Responder: Draft Gmail Replies Automatically with n8n](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/ai-email-responder-gmail-drafts-n8n) (n8n, 12 min) - [Daily Job Alerts: Email Each Tech Their Jobs from Google Sheets with n8n](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/n8n-daily-job-alerts-google-sheets-gmail) (n8n, 10 min) ## Frequently asked questions **Why does my Gmail automation take a minute to react?** The Gmail Trigger polls on an interval, every minute in the lesson, so a new email waits until the next check. That small delay is normal. **Is polling a bad way to automate?** No. It's a standard way to watch apps that can't send webhooks. It only becomes a problem when you need instant reactions or the interval is so short that you hit the other service's limits. **Can I change how often n8n polls?** Yes. Polling triggers like the Gmail Trigger have a poll time setting, such as every minute, every hour or a custom interval. [All AI glossary terms, A to Z](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) · [Free prompt templates](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/prompts)