Resources · Make integration

Filestage Make integrationAutomate Filestage with Make.

Tired of setting up every Filestage review by hand? The Filestage Make integration gives you 18 modules: 14 actions and 4 searches. This page is for teams that run approval loops, and it walks you from the connection to a first working scenario.

Try the Filestage integration on MakeSee the 18 modules

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What you can automate

What can the Filestage Make integration do for you?

The Filestage Make integration links your Filestage account to Make, a no-code tool where you chain apps into a scenario, the automation you build. Each brick of that chain is a module. Filestage brings 18 of them, so projects, folders, files and reviewers can be handled by Make instead of by you.

A review project that sets itself up. When a request arrives in your form tool or CRM, Create a Project opens the Filestage project, Create a Folder sorts it, and Upload a File drops the first draft inside. Nobody copies names from one tab to another.

The right people on every step. Pair Create a Step with Add Reviewers to a Step and each new review stage gets its approvers the moment it exists. Agencies that invite the same client contacts on every job save the most here.

Approved files that travel on. List Files and Get a File find what you need, then Download File Version pulls the original so a later module can store it or send it to the client.

Keep the limits in mind. Filestage has no trigger in Make, so a scenario starts from another app or from a schedule. Several modules are flagged deprecated, and the Make documentation for this app is marked as AI-generated, so check anything critical against Filestage itself. The same app often has a node in n8n too; the n8n vs Make comparison lays out both tools. To learn the editor step by step, see Make training, and Make pricing explains how operations are counted.

Connect

How do you connect Filestage to Make?

  1. 01

    Generate your API key in Filestage

    You need an active Filestage account. Open your Team settings, go to the API tab and click Generate API key. Copy the key displayed on screen: it is what lets Make act on your behalf.

  2. 02

    Add a Filestage module in Make

    In your Make scenario, add any Filestage module, for example List Projects, and click Create a connection. A connection is your Filestage account linked to Make once and reused by every Filestage module.

  3. 03

    Paste the key and save

    Give it a clear Connection name if you like, such as the team it belongs to. Paste the API key into the credentials field and save. Make now lists your projects, folders and steps inside each module.

First scenario

Your first scenario: open a Filestage review from a new request

GoalWhen a new request comes in through another app, Make creates a Filestage project and uploads the file for review.

  1. 01

    Create the scenario

    On the Scenarios page, create a new scenario and click the +. Pick the app where requests land, such as your form tool, and choose the module that watches for new entries.

  2. 02

    Add Create a Project

    Click the + on the right of that first module, search for Filestage and pick Create a Project. Connect your account, then map the request title into the project name.

  3. 03

    Add Upload a File

    Add Upload a File next. Point it at the project created one module earlier and map the file coming from the request. Every bundle, one item passing between modules, carries its own file.

  4. 04

    Test with Run once

    Send a test request, then click Run once. Open the bubbles above each module to read the bundles it received and check that the project and the file appear in Filestage.

  5. 05

    Schedule and switch it on

    Open the clock on the first module. A new scenario checks every 15 minutes by default, which is the shortest interval on the Free plan. Choose your schedule and switch the scenario on.

Modules

What each Filestage module does

Filestage gives you 18 modules. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

Filestage1

Add Reviewers to a Step

Action

In Make“Adds reviewers to a step.”

Puts the right approvers on a review step so nobody has to invite them one by one in Filestage.

When to use it
right after Create a Step, or when a new contact joins a client account and must see every draft from now on.
Watch out
the module works on one step per run, so a scenario that feeds it several steps spends one operation for each.
Filestage2

Create a Comment (deprecated)

Action

In Make“Creates a general comment for a version.”

Leaves a general comment on a file version, handy to post a note that came from outside Filestage, like feedback sent by email.

When to use it
only to keep an older scenario running while you plan its replacement.
Watch out
Make marks this module as deprecated, so avoid it in anything new and check whether Make an API Call covers the same need.
Filestage3

Create a Folder

Action

In Make“Creates a new folder.”

Adds a new folder so each campaign, client or product line keeps its files apart inside Filestage.

When to use it
when a scenario opens a project and you want the same folder layout every time, without clicking it together.
Watch out
run List Folders first if the scenario can fire twice for the same job, otherwise you may end up with duplicate folders.
Filestage4

Create a Project

Action

In Make“Creates a new project.”

Opens a fresh Filestage project from data that lives elsewhere, a signed quote, a form entry or a new deal in your CRM.

When to use it
as the first Filestage module of an onboarding scenario, before any folder, step or file exists.
Watch out
map the project name from a unique value such as the order or deal name, so reviewers can tell two projects apart.
Filestage5

Create a Step

Action

In Make“Creates a new step.”

Adds a review stage to a project, the kind of round where legal, the brand team or the client signs off.

When to use it
when some jobs need an extra approval round, for example regulated products, and you want the scenario to add it only for them.
Watch out
a new step has nobody on it yet; follow it with Add Reviewers to a Step.
Filestage6

Download File Version

Action

In Make“Downloads the contents of the original file.”

Pulls the original file behind a version, so the next module can archive it, attach it to an email or send it to cloud storage.

When to use it
once a file is approved and the final artwork has to leave Filestage for print or delivery.
Watch out
on the Free plan Make handles files up to 5 MB, so heavy videos or print PDFs may need a paid plan.
Filestage7

Get a File

Action

In Make“Retrieves a specific file.”

Fetches the details of one file you already know, so later modules can reuse what it returns.

When to use it
when an earlier module or another app already hands you the file identifier and you only need that one record.
Watch out
it reads a single file; to find files you do not know yet, start with List Files.
Filestage8

Get a Project

Action

In Make“Retrieves a specific project.”

Reads a single project and returns its details, useful to copy its details back into a sheet or a CRM record.

When to use it
when your scenario stores the Filestage project identifier on a deal and needs fresh data from it later.
Watch out
without a known identifier this module has nothing to look up; use List Projects to find one.
Filestage9

Get a Version (deprecated)

Action

In Make“Retrives a specific version.”

Returns one specific version of a file, which older scenarios used to check which draft a reviewer was looking at.

When to use it
only inside an existing scenario that still depends on it and cannot be rebuilt right away.
Watch out
Make flags this module as deprecated; for new builds, start from Get a File and see whether Make an API Call fills the gap.
Filestage10

Make an API Call

Action

In Make“Performs an arbitrary authorized API call.”

Calls any endpoint of the Filestage API through the connection you already created, which covers what the ready-made modules leave out.

When to use it
when you need an action that has no module of its own, or a replacement for one of the deprecated modules.
Watch out
you write the request yourself, so keep the Filestage API reference open while you set the method and path.
Filestage11

Move File to Step (deprecated)

Action

In Make“Moves a file to another review step.”

Pushes a file into another review step, which older scenarios used to advance work once a round was approved.

When to use it
only to keep a legacy scenario alive while you rebuild it.
Watch out
Make marks the module as deprecated, so do not build a new approval flow on it; look at whether Make an API Call can do the job instead.
Filestage12

Upload a File

Action

In Make“Uploads a new file.”

Sends a new file into Filestage so reviewers can open it and start commenting, without anyone dragging it in by hand.

When to use it
when a designer exports a draft to a shared drive, or a client sends an attachment, and it should land in review right away.
Watch out
Free plan scenarios cap files at 5 MB, which a single video draft can exceed.
Filestage13

List Files

Search

In Make“Retrieves a list of files.”

Returns the files of a project as separate bundles, one per file, so the next module can act on each of them.

When to use it
to build a report of what sits in review, or to download every approved file at the end of a job.
Watch out
a search can return zero, one or many items, and each item passing through later modules costs operations.
Filestage14

List Folders

Search

In Make“Retrieves a list of folders.”

Brings back the folders of a project, which lets the scenario find where a file belongs before uploading it.

When to use it
before Create a Folder, to check whether the folder already exists, or before Upload a File, to pick the right destination.
Watch out
when nothing matches, the search returns no bundle and the modules after it do not run.
Filestage15

List Projects

Search

In Make“Retrieves a list of projects.”

Gives you the projects of your team as a list, a good starting point for any scenario that syncs Filestage with another tool.

When to use it
to copy project names into a spreadsheet, or to find the project that matches a client before adding files.
Watch out
every project returned becomes its own bundle, so filter early to keep operations low.
Filestage16

List Steps

Search

In Make“Retrieves a list of steps.”

Returns the review steps of a project, so the scenario knows which rounds exist before it adds reviewers or files.

When to use it
ahead of Add Reviewers to a Step, when the step was created by hand in Filestage and you do not have its identifier.
Watch out
several steps can come back at once; add a filter if only one of them should receive reviewers.
Filestage17

Add reviewers to reviewer group

ActionIn the docs only

Adds people to a reviewer group in Filestage, so a whole set of approvers can be managed together rather than person by person.

When to use it
when your team organizes approvals by group, for instance a client team, and a new contact should join it.
Watch out
the Make documentation gives no description for this module, so test it with Run once before relying on it.
Filestage18

Move file to reviewer group (deprecated)

ActionIn the docs only

Moves a file to a reviewer group, a module that older scenarios relied on to route drafts to the right approvers.

When to use it
only in a legacy scenario you have not rebuilt yet.
Watch out
it is marked deprecated and has no official description, so keep it out of new work and test Make an API Call as a possible replacement.
Need help

Need help automating Filestage with Make?

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FAQ

Filestage and Make: common questions

01Is the Filestage Make integration free?
Yes, Filestage is a standard app in Make, so it works on the Free plan. That plan allows 2 active scenarios, a minimum of 15 minutes between scheduled runs, up to 5 minutes per execution, files up to 5 MB and 512 MB of data transfer. Paid plans (Core, Pro, Teams and Enterprise) go down to a 1 minute interval, remove the cap on active scenarios and count usage in operations per month. You still need your own Filestage subscription.
02What do you need to connect Filestage to Make?
An active Filestage account and an API key. In Filestage, open Team settings, go to the API tab, click Generate API key and copy it. In Make, add any Filestage module, click Create a connection, name it if you want and paste the key. The connection is then reused by all 18 Filestage modules, so you only do this once per account. Once it exists, each Filestage module shows the projects, folders and steps Make can read, so you pick them from a list instead of typing them.
03Does Filestage trigger Make scenarios in real time?
No, because Filestage has no trigger module in Make. A scenario that uses it starts elsewhere: from a trigger of another app, such as a form or a CRM, or from the schedule set on the first module, every 15 minutes by default. From there, the Filestage actions and searches run in order, each one on the bundles the previous module passed along. For a quick check while you build, the Run once button executes the scenario a single time on demand.
04What if a Filestage module is missing in Make?
Use Make an API Call. It reaches any endpoint of the Filestage API with the connection you already have, which makes it the first thing to try when a module you need is flagged as deprecated, such as Create a Comment or Move File to Step. Keep in mind that the Make documentation for Filestage is marked as AI-generated, so confirm important details with Filestage before you rely on them.
05Should you use Make or n8n for Filestage?
It depends on which tool your team already works in. In Make, Filestage comes with 14 actions and 4 searches, a connection built on an API key, and Make an API Call for the rest; there is no trigger, so scenarios start from another app or a schedule. The same app often has a node in n8n too. Compare what each side offers for the actions you need, then pick the editor your team will maintain.
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