Schedules and triggers

You can run workflows automatically by setting up schedules and triggers.

Overview

You’ve already seen how to run automations manually. You can also set up schedules and triggers so automations run in the background.

• Schedules — run at a specific time and frequency (for example, every day at 9am)
• Triggers — start when something happens (for example, a Slack reaction)

Together, they let you build systems that keep running around your day-to-day work.

Schedules

Schedules run workflows automatically at set intervals — ideal for reports, reminders, or maintenance tasks.

Set your timezone in Settings → Account so scheduled workflows match your local time. The Activity Scheduled Runs list still shows times in UTC.

You can choose how often the automation should run:

• Hourly
• Daily
• Weekly
• Monthly
• Custom interval

Setting up schedules

Open your automation’s run page and select Schedule in the top-right corner.

From there:

• Decide how often it should run — once at a specific time, or on a recurring schedule
• Finish adding any inputs
• Choose whether you want email confirmations when the workflow runs
• Click Save

While you’re building with Cody in chat, you can also ask Cody to set up the schedule for you.

Managing schedules

Find all your schedules on the Scheduled Runs page.

From there you can:

• See when a workflow last ran and when it’s next scheduled
• Search for schedules
• Toggle a schedule on or off
• Use the three-dot menu to edit, resume, delete, or disable email notifications

Triggers

Triggers start an automation when a specific action happens — for example, a message is sent, a form is submitted, or a new record is created.

Ask Cody to set up a trigger while you’re building, or later as an edit. Once it’s set up, you can test it with Cody using real or sample data.

Examples of triggers

• Slack — new messages, reactions, or when someone joins a channel
• WhatsApp — messages to the shared CodeWords DM bot, group messages where the shared group bot is a member, messages from your connected WhatsApp number, and reactions
• Gmail — new emails, label changes, or draft creation
• Google Calendar — event creation, updates, or deletions
• GitHub — code pushes, new issues, pull requests
• Notion — page or database updates
• Discord, HubSpot, Stripe, Airtable, and many more

You don’t need to check support beforehand. Ask Cody to set a trigger up, or ask for examples. If your app supports event-based actions, CodeWords can likely trigger from it.

Managing triggers

Find all your triggers on the Triggers page.

From there you can:

• Check whether a trigger is active and when it last ran
• Search for triggers
• See how often a trigger has fired
• Toggle a trigger on or off
• Use the three-dot menu to pause, delete, or disable email notifications

Custom webhooks

If your system isn’t natively supported, CodeWords can give you a custom webhook URL for external events. Any platform that can send HTTP POST requests with JSON data can call it.

Tell Cody which external system you want to connect — Cody generates and configures the webhook for you.

For more detail, see Webhooks.

When to use each

Use case	Best option
Reacting instantly to new data or messages	Event-driven trigger
Running recurring reports or reminders	Schedule
Connecting unsupported systems	Custom webhook

Event-driven triggers are best for responsive workflows. Schedules are ideal for predictable, time-based automation.

FAQs

What if my app isn’t supported?

Use a custom webhook. Cody creates a URL you can connect to any system that sends HTTP POST requests with JSON data.

What apps can I use as triggers?

CodeWords supports thousands of event sources, including Gmail, Notion, GitHub, Stripe, and HubSpot. You can set up triggers for most popular apps without extra configuration.

Can I see or edit my active triggers?

Yes. Open the Triggers page to manage, pause, or delete any active event-based automation.

Do triggers run even when I’m offline?

Yes. Once set up, triggers and schedules run in the background — no manual action needed.