.png)
Trello Integration Guide
Connect Trello boards, lists, cards, members, actions, and attachments with enterprise systems through REST APIs, model-based webhooks, and Martini workflows.
Trello integration options at a glance
Trello's primary integration mechanism is its versioned REST API, which supports boards, lists, cards, members, actions, checklists, labels, attachments, and related resources. Trello also provides webhooks associated with selected models, such as boards, cards, lists, or members, allowing callbacks when relevant changes occur. API key and user-token authentication is available, alongside OAuth 1.0a for authorization flows. The batch endpoint can group selected requests, primarily for reads, while attachment APIs support metadata and content-oriented workflows. Martini can consume these APIs, receive webhook callbacks through an exposed API, map data, orchestrate synchronization, and apply retries and business rules.
| Integration point | Supported by Trello? | Common use cases | How Martini supports it |
|---|---|---|---|
| REST APIs | Yes | Trello's primary interface for reading and modifying Boards, Lists, Cards, Members, Actions, Checklists, Labels, Attachments, and related resources. | Martini can consume the Trello REST API from workflows, map responses, apply business rules, and expose reusable Martini APIs around the integration. |
| Webhooks / outbound callbacks | Limited | Trello webhooks notify an external callback URL about changes associated with a configured model such as a Board, Card, List, or Member. | Martini can expose an authenticated callback API, validate notifications, filter Action payloads, retrieve authoritative resources, and start workflows. |
| Actions and change retrieval | Yes | Action history supports activity synchronization and polling-based change detection when webhook delivery is insufficient or recovery is required. | Martini can retrieve Actions incrementally, store checkpoints or Action IDs, deduplicate processing, and reconcile downstream systems. |
| Batch APIs | Limited | Trello's batch endpoint groups multiple requests, primarily for retrieving several resources; it is not a general transactional bulk-write facility. | Martini can use grouped reads where appropriate, control write concurrency separately, and handle each response with workflow error logic. |
| File / attachment APIs | Yes | Cards support attachment operations, including attachment metadata and workflows using an external URL or uploaded content. | Martini can retrieve or create attachment metadata, transfer permitted content, map it to target systems, and apply access and retention rules. |
| Authentication | Yes | Trello documents API key and user-token authentication and OAuth 1.0a for application authorization flows, subject to user and resource permissions. | Martini can keep keys, tokens, and OAuth credentials in secure environment configuration and use them when calling Trello APIs. |
| GraphQL APIs | Not confirmed | No generally available Trello GraphQL API was confirmed in the reviewed official documentation. | Martini should use the confirmed Trello REST API rather than assuming GraphQL availability. |
| SOAP APIs | No | Trello's documented integration interface is REST rather than SOAP. | Martini can consume REST APIs or other confirmed endpoints, but a Trello SOAP integration should not be assumed. |
How Trello exposes data and business events
Trello REST APIs
Trello's versioned REST API is the primary integration interface for Boards, Lists, Cards, Members, Actions, Checklists, Labels, Attachments, and related resources. It supports both retrieval and modification subject to the authenticated user's permissions.
Martini implementation pattern
Martini implementation pattern: a workflow calls the required Trello endpoints using securely configured API key and token or OAuth credentials, handles pagination and response validation, maps the result to a canonical model, and writes to the target system. For writes, the workflow stores Trello IDs and classifies validation, permission, rate-limit, and transient failures.
Implementation sequence
Trello Webhooks
Trello webhooks are associated with selected models, such as Boards, Cards, Lists, or Members, and notify a configured callback URL about related changes. They should not be treated as an unrestricted event stream for every Trello operation.
Martini implementation pattern
Martini implementation pattern: Martini exposes an authenticated API for the callback, validates and filters the Action payload, then retrieves the current Trello resource when the notification lacks authoritative detail. The workflow uses Action IDs or another deduplication key and can route relevant changes to downstream applications.
Implementation sequence
Trello Actions
Trello Action history provides activity records that can support activity synchronization, polling-based change detection, and recovery after missed or failed webhook processing.
Martini implementation pattern
Martini implementation pattern: a scheduled workflow retrieves Actions using a stored checkpoint, filters supported activity types, fetches current Cards or other resources when needed, and persists the new checkpoint only after downstream processing succeeds.
Implementation sequence
Trello Batch and Attachments
Trello provides a batch endpoint for grouping multiple requests, primarily for reads, and Card attachment operations for metadata and external URL or content-oriented workflows. Batch requests are not a general transactional bulk-write mechanism.
Martini implementation pattern
Martini implementation pattern: a workflow uses grouped reads when they reduce request overhead, processes each response independently, and handles attachment metadata separately from file content. Access, retention, and private URL handling are applied before content is copied to another system.
Implementation sequence
Common Trello integration patterns
Pattern 1: Synchronize Trello Cards with a business application
When to use this pattern
Use scheduled or incremental synchronization when Trello Cards represent work that must be reflected in Salesforce, ServiceNow, Jira, Zendesk, or another enterprise application. The flow should reconcile new, changed, and completed Cards without creating duplicates.
Integration direction
Example Mapping
| Trello Field | Canonical Field | Target Field |
|---|---|---|
| Card.id | workItem.sourceId | external_reference |
| Card.name | workItem.title | short_description |
| Card.desc | workItem.description | description |
| List.name | workItem.status | state |
Martini implementation pattern
A scheduler or Action-based workflow retrieves Boards, Lists, and Cards, expands required Members, Labels, Checklists, or due dates, and maps them to the target model. Martini checks stored Trello IDs before creating target records, applies List-to-status rules, and retries transient failures while recording validation and permission errors for review.
Martini capabilities used
- workflows
- scheduled execution
- API consumption
- data mapping
- business rules
- error handling
Pattern 2: Route external requests into Trello Cards
When to use this pattern
Use this pattern when approved Salesforce opportunities, ServiceNow requests, Zendesk escalations, or internal submissions should become actionable work on a specific Trello Board and List.
Integration direction
Example Mapping
| Trello Field | Canonical Field | Target Field |
|---|---|---|
| request.number | workItem.sourceId | Card custom field or description |
| request.short_description | workItem.title | Card.name |
| request.description | workItem.details | Card.desc |
| request.due_date | workItem.dueDate | Card.due |
Martini implementation pattern
A Martini API or inbound workflow validates the request, resolves the target Board and List IDs, and creates a Card through Trello's REST API. It can assign Members, apply Labels, set a due date, and add a Checklist. The workflow returns the Card ID, prevents repeat creation using the source identifier, and classifies rate-limit or permission failures for retry or correction.
Martini capabilities used
- APIs
- workflows
- data mapping
- validation
- business rules
- secure configuration
- error handling
Pattern 3: React to Trello Card and Board changes
When to use this pattern
Use model-based webhooks for near-real-time notifications when Card movement, assignment, creation, or other supported changes should trigger downstream notifications or updates.
Integration direction
Example Mapping
| Trello Field | Canonical Field | Target Field |
|---|---|---|
| action.id | event.id | deduplication_key |
| action.type | event.type | notification_type |
| card.name | workItem.title | message.title |
| list.name | workItem.status | message.status |
Martini implementation pattern
Trello calls an authenticated Martini API when a configured model changes. Martini validates the callback, filters the Action type, retrieves the current Card or List when the payload is incomplete, and sends a formatted notification or updates the target application. Action IDs are retained so duplicate deliveries and retries do not produce repeated side effects.
Martini capabilities used
- API exposure
- webhook consumption
- workflows
- data enrichment
- idempotency
- error handling
Pattern 4: Export Trello activity and attachments
When to use this pattern
Use scheduled export when Boards, Cards, Actions, Checklists, and Attachments must be delivered to a reporting store, archive, or document-management platform in JSON, CSV, or another enterprise format.
Integration direction
Example Mapping
| Trello Field | Canonical Field | Target Field |
|---|---|---|
| Board.id | board.sourceId | trello_board_id |
| Card.id | workItem.sourceId | trello_card_id |
| Action.date | activity.occurredAt | occurred_at |
| Attachment.url | file.sourceUrl | source_url |
Martini implementation pattern
A scheduled Martini workflow retrieves paginated resources and Actions, transforms them into the target schema, and writes structured data to a database or file destination. Attachment metadata is separated from content, private URLs are protected, checkpoints support restartability, and partial failures are recorded without losing successfully processed pages.
Martini capabilities used
- scheduled workflows
- API consumption
- pagination handling
- mapping and transformation
- file and attachment handling
- database integration
- monitoring
Applications commonly integrated with Trello
Trello can be connected with collaboration, engineering, customer, and enterprise workflow applications to coordinate work and share status. The exact direction, objects, and event coverage should be designed for the selected implementation rather than assumed from the product relationship.
| Application | Scenario | Direction | Martini Pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jira | Synchronize selected engineering work, defects, or delivery tasks between Jira issues and Trello Cards. | Jira → Martini → Trello | A Martini workflow consumes Jira changes or receives an upstream request, maps issue fields to Trello Cards and Lists, and stores cross-system identifiers. It can also retrieve Trello status changes and update selected Jira issues with controlled retries and duplicate prevention. |
| Confluence | Publish selected Trello board or project status information into project documentation and operational pages. | Trello → Martini → Confluence | A scheduled Martini workflow retrieves Boards, Lists, Cards, and relevant Actions, transforms the result into a documentation model, and updates designated Confluence pages while preserving source identifiers and handling pagination. |
| Slack | Notify channels about Card creation, movement, assignment, or completion, with optional request-to-Card flows. | Trello → Martini → Slack | Martini receives selected Trello webhook notifications, retrieves authoritative Card state when needed, formats a Slack message, and optionally exposes an API for approved Slack-originated requests to create or update Cards. |
| Microsoft Teams | Send board activity and task notifications to Teams channels and route approved messages into Trello Cards. | Trello → Martini → Microsoft Teams | A Martini workflow processes Trello callbacks or scheduled changes, applies event filters and field mappings, and calls the relevant Microsoft endpoint. A reverse flow can validate incoming requests before creating Cards in a specified List. |
| Salesforce | Convert customer requests, opportunities, or service follow-ups into Trello Cards and return completion status to Salesforce. | Salesforce → Martini → Trello | Martini receives or retrieves Salesforce business events, maps approved objects into Card fields, assigns a List, Members, Labels, due dates, or Checklists, and writes the Trello Card ID back to Salesforce for reconciliation. |
| ServiceNow | Create Trello Cards from approved requests or incidents and report task progress back to ServiceNow. | ServiceNow → Martini → Trello | A Martini workflow consumes ServiceNow requests or incidents, validates routing rules, creates or updates Trello Cards, and synchronizes selected List or completion status back to ServiceNow using stored identifiers and retry handling. |
| GitHub | Represent issues, pull requests, or release tasks as Trello Cards for planning and cross-team visibility. | GitHub → Martini → Trello | Martini receives selected GitHub webhook events, maps issue or pull-request data to Cards, and uses Trello REST operations to create or update the target List. Trello changes can be reconciled back to GitHub where the mapping requires it. |
| Zendesk | Create Trello Cards for escalated customer cases and synchronize assignment or resolution status. | Zendesk → Martini → Trello | A Martini workflow filters escalated Zendesk tickets, creates a Card with the relevant summary and due date, and later processes Trello status changes to update the originating ticket without exposing private attachment URLs or credentials. |
How to build a Trello integration in Martini
Objective
Establish Trello access using the authentication model appropriate to the integration and keep all environment-specific credentials and resource identifiers outside workflow source.
Instructions in Martini
- Configure the Trello API key and user token or OAuth credentials as secure environment values.
- Set Board, List, Member, Label, Workspace, and webhook identifiers per environment.
- Apply the least privilege available for the integration user and token.
Objective
Select a real-time or scheduled initiation model based on the required freshness, recovery, and event coverage.
Instructions in Martini
- Use a Trello webhook callback for supported model changes.
- Use a scheduler for reconciliation, exports, and periodic synchronization.
- Use Action history and stored checkpoints to recover from missed callbacks.
Objective
Call the Trello REST API for the authoritative resource and retrieve related objects required by the business process.
Instructions in Martini
- Retrieve Boards, Lists, Cards, Members, Actions, Checklists, Labels, or Attachments as required.
- Follow endpoint-supported pagination for collections.
- Retrieve current resource state after webhook notifications when the Action payload is incomplete.
Objective
Coordinate validation, enrichment, routing, target writes, and recovery in a maintainable Martini workflow.
Instructions in Martini
- Validate callback or inbound request data.
- Apply model, event, and routing filters before side effects.
- Separate transient failures from permission, validation, and authentication failures.
Objective
Convert Trello's object model into a canonical and target-specific model while preserving stable identifiers and optional fields.
Instructions in Martini
- Map Card names, descriptions, due dates, Labels, Members, Lists, Checklists, and Attachments as needed.
- Use Trello IDs for relationships instead of relying only on display names.
- Handle absent, null, renamed, or user-configurable fields explicitly.
Objective
Enforce routing, duplicate prevention, ordering, and ownership rules before creating or updating downstream resources.
Instructions in Martini
- Check source identifiers before creating Cards or target records.
- Resolve Board and List mappings through configured IDs or controlled lookup rules.
- Account for concurrent user, Butler, or integration changes by retrieving current state before consequential writes.
Common Trello data objects used in integrations
| Object | Typical Use | Common target systems | Martini handling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boards | Represent Trello workspaces containing Lists, Cards, Members, Labels, Checklists, and configuration. | Jira, Confluence, ServiceNow, reporting stores | Martini retrieves Board details and relationships, maps stable Board IDs, and uses them to scope synchronization and webhook registration. |
| Lists | Represent ordered stages or columns such as To Do, In Progress, and Done. | Jira, ServiceNow, Salesforce, Microsoft Teams | Martini maps List IDs or controlled names to target statuses and retrieves current List state before consequential updates. |
| Cards | Represent work items with descriptions, due dates, Members, Labels, Checklists, comments, Custom Fields, and Attachments. | Salesforce, ServiceNow, Jira, Zendesk, reporting stores | Martini maps Card fields to canonical models, stores Card IDs for idempotency, and creates or updates Cards through REST workflows. |
| Members | Represent Trello users assigned to Cards or granted access to Boards and Workspaces. | Identity-aware work management and collaboration applications | Martini resolves Member IDs and permissions where required, avoiding assumptions based only on display names. |
| Actions | Represent activity such as Card creation, movement, comments, and Member assignments. | Audit stores, reporting platforms, notifications, enterprise workflow systems | Martini retrieves Actions incrementally, filters relevant action types, stores Action IDs, and uses them for reconciliation and deduplication. |
| Checklists | Represent lists of checklist items associated with Cards. | ServiceNow, Jira, Salesforce, reporting and delivery systems | Martini expands Checklist data when required, maps completion state, and preserves the relationship to the parent Card. |
Authentication and security considerations
Authentication and access control
Trello REST requests commonly use an API key and user token. Trello also documents OAuth 1.0a for application authorization flows. Access depends on the authenticated user's memberships, permissions, token scope, and the requested resource.
- Store API keys, tokens, and OAuth credentials in Martini secrets or secure environment configuration.
- Use least-privilege Trello access and separate credentials by environment.
- Protect webhook callback endpoints with appropriate Martini authentication and validation controls.
- Do not expose credentials or private attachment URLs in client applications or logs.
Operational considerations for Trello integrations
Reliability and lifecycle considerations
- Handle HTTP 429 responses with bounded retries, backoff, and Retry-After guidance when provided.
- Use pagination for Cards, Members, Actions, and other collection responses.
- Store Trello Board, List, Card, Action, and source-system IDs for idempotency and reconciliation.
- Treat webhook delivery as repeatable and monitor inactive, deleted, or recreated webhooks.
- Allow for optional fields, renamed Lists, Custom Fields, Checklists, Members, and Attachments.
- Retrieve current Card state before consequential updates when users or other automation may change it concurrently.
- Test attachment permissions, rate limits, schema variations, and recovery after partial workflow failure.
Why use Martini instead of scripts or point-to-point integrations?
Maintainable integration orchestration
Scripts and point-to-point integrations often duplicate authentication, mapping, retry, and monitoring logic for each Trello use case. Martini provides a centralized workflow and API layer for consuming Trello REST endpoints, receiving webhook callbacks, transforming data, applying business rules, and coordinating multiple target systems.
- Reuse API consumption, validation, mapping, and error-handling patterns across workflows.
- Separate environment-specific credentials, IDs, callback URLs, and retry settings from implementation logic.
- Combine real-time callbacks with scheduled reconciliation and Action-based recovery.
- Expose controlled Martini APIs for external work requests or Trello callback delivery.
- Monitor workflow execution and retain operational context for troubleshooting and support.
Frequently asked questions
Trello can be integrated through its versioned REST API, which supports Boards, Lists, Cards, Members, Actions, Checklists, Labels, Attachments, and related resources. Trello also supports webhooks for changes associated with selected models. API key and user-token authentication and OAuth 1.0a are documented options.
Yes. Martini can consume the Trello REST API, receive Trello webhook callbacks through a Martini API, orchestrate workflows, map Trello objects to enterprise systems, and apply validation, retry, and deduplication logic.
No. A dedicated Trello connector is not required. Martini can integrate with Trello using its confirmed REST APIs, model-based webhook callbacks, authentication methods, Actions, batch reads, and attachment endpoints.
Lonti does not charge an additional per-connector or per-vendor fee to integrate Trello with Martini. The integration is subject to the provisioned capacity of the Martini environment. Separate costs may apply from Trello, infrastructure, or other third-party systems depending on subscriptions, usage, and deployment model.
The Trello REST API is the primary method for reading and modifying Trello data. Use webhooks for supported model changes, Actions for incremental retrieval or reconciliation, and the attachment API for Card files and metadata. The batch endpoint can optimize selected reads but is not a general bulk-write facility.
Yes, Trello webhooks can notify a Martini callback API about changes associated with configured models such as Boards, Cards, Lists, or Members. Coverage is not an unrestricted universal event stream, so the required model and action behavior should be verified. Martini can retrieve current resource state after receiving a notification.
Synchronization can use webhooks for supported near-real-time changes, Action history for incremental or recovery processing, and scheduled REST API retrieval for reconciliation. Martini stores Trello Board, List, Card, and Action IDs, follows pagination, maps fields, and uses checkpoints and idempotency controls to avoid duplicate updates.
Martini can classify authentication, permission, validation, rate-limit, and transient server failures. Transient failures can use bounded retries and backoff, including Trello's retry guidance where provided. Webhook Action IDs and source identifiers support deduplication, while validation and permission failures are routed for correction rather than repeatedly retried.
Related Martini documentation
APIs
Workflows
Connect Trello to your enterprise systems
Use Martini to build maintainable Trello integrations around REST APIs, model-based webhooks, scheduled workflows, mappings, and secure enterprise operations.