diff --git a/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/index.ts b/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/index.ts
index 154b7dd1469..08d0bb5beba 100644
--- a/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/index.ts
+++ b/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/index.ts
@@ -296,6 +296,6 @@ export { CreateWorkflowReviewRequestDto } from './workflow-reviews/create-workfl
 export { ListWorkflowReviewRequestsQueryDto } from './workflow-reviews/list-workflow-review-requests-query.dto';
 
 export { UpdateOtelSettingsDto } from './otel/update-otel-settings.dto';
-export { TestOtelConnectionDto } from './otel/test-otel-connection.dto';
+export { TestOtelTraceDto } from './otel/test-otel-trace.dto';
 
 export { InstanceAiExamplesQueryDto } from './instance-ai-examples/instance-ai-examples-query.dto';
diff --git a/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/__tests__/update-otel-settings.dto.test.ts b/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/__tests__/update-otel-settings.dto.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..fe3f9c28c36
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/__tests__/update-otel-settings.dto.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,103 @@
+import { TestOtelTraceDto } from '../test-otel-trace.dto';
+import { UpdateOtelSettingsDto } from '../update-otel-settings.dto';
+
+const validSettings = {
+	enabled: true,
+	exporterEndpoint: 'http://localhost:4318',
+	exporterTracingPath: '/v1/traces',
+	exporterServiceName: 'n8n',
+	exporterHeaders: '',
+	tracesSampleRate: 1,
+	startupConnectivityTimeoutMs: 2_000,
+	includeNodeSpans: true,
+	injectOutbound: true,
+	productionExecutionsOnly: true,
+};
+
+describe('UpdateOtelSettingsDto', () => {
+	it('requires every field (stays strict, so a partial body is rejected)', () => {
+		const result = UpdateOtelSettingsDto.safeParse({});
+
+		assert(!result.success, 'Expected validation to fail for an empty body');
+
+		// An empty body must report every field as missing. A field that carries a
+		// default would parse successfully instead of erroring — this guards the
+		// public API PUT against silently resetting omitted fields.
+		const missing = [...new Set(result.error.issues.map((issue) => String(issue.path[0])))].sort();
+		expect(missing).toEqual(Object.keys(validSettings).sort());
+	});
+
+	it('accepts a full body', () => {
+		const result = UpdateOtelSettingsDto.safeParse(validSettings);
+		expect(result.success).toBe(true);
+	});
+
+	it('rejects an invalid exporter endpoint', () => {
+		const result = UpdateOtelSettingsDto.safeParse({
+			...validSettings,
+			exporterEndpoint: 'not-a-url',
+		});
+
+		assert(!result.success, 'Expected validation to fail for an invalid exporter endpoint');
+		expect(result.error.issues).toContainEqual(
+			expect.objectContaining({
+				code: 'invalid_string',
+				validation: 'url',
+				path: ['exporterEndpoint'],
+			}),
+		);
+	});
+
+	it('rejects a sample rate outside the 0..1 range', () => {
+		const result = UpdateOtelSettingsDto.safeParse({ ...validSettings, tracesSampleRate: 2 });
+
+		assert(!result.success, 'Expected validation to fail for an out-of-range sample rate');
+		expect(result.error.issues).toContainEqual(
+			expect.objectContaining({
+				code: 'too_big',
+				maximum: 1,
+				path: ['tracesSampleRate'],
+			}),
+		);
+	});
+});
+
+describe('TestOtelTraceDto', () => {
+	const validConnection = {
+		exporterEndpoint: 'http://localhost:4318',
+		exporterTracingPath: '/v1/traces',
+		exporterServiceName: 'n8n',
+		exporterHeaders: '',
+		startupConnectivityTimeoutMs: 2_000,
+	};
+
+	it('requires every connection field (stays strict)', () => {
+		const result = TestOtelTraceDto.safeParse({});
+
+		assert(!result.success, 'Expected validation to fail for an empty body');
+
+		const missing = [...new Set(result.error.issues.map((issue) => String(issue.path[0])))].sort();
+		expect(missing).toEqual(Object.keys(validConnection).sort());
+	});
+
+	it('accepts a full connection body', () => {
+		const result = TestOtelTraceDto.safeParse(validConnection);
+		expect(result.success).toBe(true);
+	});
+
+	it('rejects an invalid exporter endpoint', () => {
+		const result = TestOtelTraceDto.safeParse({
+			...validConnection,
+			exporterEndpoint: 'not-a-url',
+		});
+
+		assert(!result.success, 'Expected validation to fail for an invalid exporter endpoint');
+		expect(result.error.issues).toContainEqual(
+			expect.objectContaining({
+				code: 'invalid_string',
+				validation: 'url',
+				path: ['exporterEndpoint'],
+			}),
+		);
+	});
+});
diff --git a/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/test-otel-connection.dto.ts b/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/test-otel-trace.dto.ts
similarity index 85%
rename from packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/test-otel-connection.dto.ts
rename to packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/test-otel-trace.dto.ts
index f670ad00f66..1aade410d4d 100644
--- a/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/test-otel-connection.dto.ts
+++ b/packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/otel/test-otel-trace.dto.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import { UpdateOtelSettingsDto } from './update-otel-settings.dto';
 import { Z } from '../../zod-class';
 
-export class TestOtelConnectionDto extends Z.class(
+export class TestOtelTraceDto extends Z.class(
 	UpdateOtelSettingsDto.schema.pick({
 		exporterEndpoint: true,
 		exporterTracingPath: true,
diff --git a/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/constants.ee.ts b/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/constants.ee.ts
index 85496a61214..7950cb337af 100644
--- a/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/constants.ee.ts
+++ b/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/constants.ee.ts
@@ -92,6 +92,7 @@ export const API_KEY_RESOURCES = {
 	securityAudit: ['generate'] as const,
 	securitySettings: ['manage'] as const,
 	saml: ['manage'] as const,
+	otel: ['manage'] as const,
 	project: ['create', 'update', 'delete', 'list', 'export'] as const,
 	user: ['read', 'list', 'create', 'changeRole', 'delete'] as const,
 	execution: ['delete', 'read', 'retry', 'list', 'stop'] as const,
diff --git a/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/public-api-permissions.ee.ts b/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/public-api-permissions.ee.ts
index fded3f65747..9951e9fd80c 100644
--- a/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/public-api-permissions.ee.ts
+++ b/packages/@n8n/permissions/src/public-api-permissions.ee.ts
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ export const OWNER_API_KEY_SCOPES: ApiKeyScope[] = [
 	'securityAudit:generate',
 	'securitySettings:manage',
 	'saml:manage',
+	'otel:manage',
 	'eventBusDestination:list',
 	'eventBusDestination:read',
 	'eventBusDestination:create',
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/modules/otel/otel-settings.controller.ts b/packages/cli/src/modules/otel/otel-settings.controller.ts
index e309f7ac105..9dd5acdc7f2 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/modules/otel/otel-settings.controller.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/modules/otel/otel-settings.controller.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { TestOtelConnectionDto, UpdateOtelSettingsDto } from '@n8n/api-types';
+import { TestOtelTraceDto, UpdateOtelSettingsDto } from '@n8n/api-types';
 import { ModuleRegistry } from '@n8n/backend-common';
 import { AuthenticatedRequest } from '@n8n/db';
 import { Body, Get, GlobalScope, Post, Put, RestController } from '@n8n/decorators';
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ export class OtelSettingsController {
 
 	@Post('/test-trace')
 	@GlobalScope('otel:manage')
-	async testTrace(_req: AuthenticatedRequest, _res: Response, @Body dto: TestOtelConnectionDto) {
+	async testTrace(_req: AuthenticatedRequest, _res: Response, @Body dto: TestOtelTraceDto) {
 		const connection = this.otelSettingsService.resolveTestConnection(dto);
 		return await this.otelService.sendTestTrace(connection);
 	}
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/types.ts b/packages/cli/src/public-api/types.ts
index 05e11a377d2..875aae1ecf4 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/public-api/types.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/types.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,8 @@ import type {
 	UpsertDataTableRowDto,
 	UpdateSecurityPolicyDto,
 	PublicCreateDestination,
+	UpdateOtelSettingsDto,
+	TestOtelTraceDto,
 	UpdateSamlConfigurationDto,
 } from '@n8n/api-types';
 import type { AuthenticatedRequest, TagEntity, WorkflowEntity } from '@n8n/db';
@@ -421,3 +423,13 @@ export declare namespace SsoSamlRequest {
 	type Get = AuthenticatedRequest;
 	type Update = AuthenticatedRequest<{}, {}, UpdateSamlConfigurationDto>;
 }
+
+// ----------------------------------
+//        /settings/otel
+// ----------------------------------
+
+export declare namespace OtelSettingsRequest {
+	type Get = AuthenticatedRequest;
+	type Update = AuthenticatedRequest<{}, {}, UpdateOtelSettingsDto>;
+	type Test = AuthenticatedRequest<{}, {}, TestOtelTraceDto>;
+}
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/otel.handler.ts b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/otel.handler.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..3b46652b44e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/otel.handler.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+import { TestOtelTraceDto, UpdateOtelSettingsDto } from '@n8n/api-types';
+import { ModuleRegistry } from '@n8n/backend-common';
+import { Container } from '@n8n/di';
+
+import { BadRequestError } from '@/errors/response-errors/bad-request.error';
+import { ConflictError } from '@/errors/response-errors/conflict.error';
+import { OtelLifecycleHandler } from '@/modules/otel/otel-lifecycle-handler';
+import { OtelSettingsService } from '@/modules/otel/otel-settings.service';
+import { OtelService } from '@/modules/otel/otel.service';
+import { Publisher } from '@/scaling/pubsub/publisher.service';
+
+import { toOtelSettingsResponse } from './otel.mapper';
+import type { OtelSettingsRequest } from '../../../types';
+import type { PublicAPIEndpoint } from '../../shared/handler.types';
+import { apiKeyHasScopeWithGlobalScopeFallback } from '../../shared/middlewares/global.middleware';
+
+type OtelHandlers = {
+	getOtelSettings: PublicAPIEndpoint<OtelSettingsRequest.Get>;
+	updateOtelSettings: PublicAPIEndpoint<OtelSettingsRequest.Update>;
+	testOtelTrace: PublicAPIEndpoint<OtelSettingsRequest.Test>;
+};
+
+const otelHandlers: OtelHandlers = {
+	getOtelSettings: [
+		apiKeyHasScopeWithGlobalScopeFallback({ scope: 'otel:manage' }),
+		async (_req, res) => {
+			const settings = await Container.get(OtelSettingsService).loadSettings();
+
+			return res.json(toOtelSettingsResponse(settings));
+		},
+	],
+
+	updateOtelSettings: [
+		apiKeyHasScopeWithGlobalScopeFallback({ scope: 'otel:manage' }),
+		async (req, res) => {
+			const payload = UpdateOtelSettingsDto.safeParse(req.body);
+			if (!payload.success) {
+				throw new BadRequestError(payload.error.errors[0]?.message ?? 'Invalid request body');
+			}
+
+			const settingsService = Container.get(OtelSettingsService);
+
+			// Fields managed via environment variables are read-only: the UI greys them
+			// out, so reject any attempt to change one here instead of silently ignoring
+			// it. Re-submitting a field's current (env-enforced) value is not a change,
+			// so a GET -> edit -> PUT round-trip still succeeds.
+			await settingsService.loadSettings();
+			const current = settingsService.getSettings();
+			const conflicts = current.envManagedFields.filter(
+				(key) => payload.data[key] !== current[key],
+			);
+			if (conflicts.length > 0) {
+				throw new ConflictError(
+					`The following field(s) are managed by environment variables and cannot be changed through the API: ${conflicts.join(', ')}`,
+				);
+			}
+
+			await settingsService.saveSettings(payload.data);
+
+			await Container.get(OtelLifecycleHandler).onReloadOtelConfig();
+			await Container.get(ModuleRegistry).refreshModuleSettings('otel');
+			void Container.get(Publisher).publishCommand({ command: 'reload-otel-config' });
+
+			return res.json(toOtelSettingsResponse(settingsService.getSettings()));
+		},
+	],
+
+	testOtelTrace: [
+		apiKeyHasScopeWithGlobalScopeFallback({ scope: 'otel:manage' }),
+		async (req, res) => {
+			const payload = TestOtelTraceDto.safeParse(req.body);
+			if (!payload.success) {
+				throw new BadRequestError(payload.error.errors[0]?.message ?? 'Invalid request body');
+			}
+
+			const settingsService = Container.get(OtelSettingsService);
+			const connection = settingsService.resolveTestConnection(payload.data);
+			const result = await Container.get(OtelService).sendTestTrace(connection);
+
+			return res.json(result);
+		},
+	],
+};
+
+export = otelHandlers;
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/otel.mapper.ts b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/otel.mapper.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..70a3728f928
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/otel.mapper.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+import type { OtelConfig } from '@/modules/otel/otel.config';
+
+export type OtelSettingsResponse = OtelConfig;
+
+export function toOtelSettingsResponse(config: OtelConfig): OtelSettingsResponse {
+	return {
+		enabled: config.enabled,
+		exporterEndpoint: config.exporterEndpoint,
+		exporterTracingPath: config.exporterTracingPath,
+		exporterServiceName: config.exporterServiceName,
+		exporterHeaders: config.exporterHeaders,
+		tracesSampleRate: config.tracesSampleRate,
+		startupConnectivityTimeoutMs: config.startupConnectivityTimeoutMs,
+		includeNodeSpans: config.includeNodeSpans,
+		injectOutbound: config.injectOutbound,
+		productionExecutionsOnly: config.productionExecutionsOnly,
+	};
+}
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.test-trace.yml b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.test-trace.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..cacc92e48e9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.test-trace.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+post:
+  x-eov-operation-id: testOtelTrace
+  x-required-scope: otel:manage
+  x-eov-operation-handler: v1/handlers/otel/otel.handler
+  tags:
+    - SettingsOtel
+  summary: Test the connection to an OTLP collector
+  description: >
+    Send a single test span to the given OTLP collector and report whether it was accepted. This
+    tests the supplied connection details without changing the stored configuration. Fields managed
+    declaratively via environment variables are overridden with their effective value before the
+    test is sent. Requires the `otel:manage` scope.
+  requestBody:
+    description: The connection details to test.
+    required: true
+    content:
+      application/json:
+        schema:
+          $ref: '../schemas/otel-test-trace.yml'
+  responses:
+    '200':
+      description: Operation successful.
+      content:
+        application/json:
+          schema:
+            $ref: '../schemas/otel-test-trace-result.yml'
+    '400':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/badRequest.yml'
+    '401':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/unauthorized.yml'
+    '403':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/forbidden.yml'
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.yml b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..52ac86ffb26
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+get:
+  x-eov-operation-id: getOtelSettings
+  x-required-scope: otel:manage
+  x-eov-operation-handler: v1/handlers/otel/otel.handler
+  tags:
+    - SettingsOtel
+  summary: Retrieve the OpenTelemetry configuration
+  description: >
+    Retrieve the current OpenTelemetry configuration, including every field exposed in the UI.
+    Requires the `otel:manage` scope.
+  responses:
+    '200':
+      description: Operation successful.
+      content:
+        application/json:
+          schema:
+            $ref: '../schemas/otel-settings.yml'
+    '401':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/unauthorized.yml'
+    '403':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/forbidden.yml'
+put:
+  x-eov-operation-id: updateOtelSettings
+  x-required-scope: otel:manage
+  x-eov-operation-handler: v1/handlers/otel/otel.handler
+  tags:
+    - SettingsOtel
+  summary: Set the OpenTelemetry configuration
+  description: >
+    Set the OpenTelemetry configuration. This is a full replacement: every field must be provided,
+    and a partial body is rejected. The update takes effect exactly as it would from the UI, using
+    the same validation, and is applied to the running instance immediately. Fields managed
+    declaratively via environment variables are read-only: attempting to change one is rejected
+    with 409, while re-submitting its current value (as returned by GET) is accepted. Requires the
+    `otel:manage` scope.
+  requestBody:
+    description: The OpenTelemetry configuration to set.
+    required: true
+    content:
+      application/json:
+        schema:
+          $ref: '../schemas/otel-settings.yml'
+  responses:
+    '200':
+      description: Operation successful.
+      content:
+        application/json:
+          schema:
+            $ref: '../schemas/otel-settings.yml'
+    '400':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/badRequest.yml'
+    '401':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/unauthorized.yml'
+    '403':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/forbidden.yml'
+    '409':
+      $ref: '../../../../shared/spec/responses/conflict.yml'
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-settings.yml b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-settings.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..0ce1216b92c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-settings.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+type: object
+additionalProperties: false
+description: >
+  The OpenTelemetry configuration, matching the fields exposed in the UI. On a write this is a
+  full replacement: every field must be provided. Fields managed declaratively via environment
+  variables are returned with their effective value and ignored on write.
+required:
+  - enabled
+  - exporterEndpoint
+  - exporterTracingPath
+  - exporterServiceName
+  - exporterHeaders
+  - tracesSampleRate
+  - startupConnectivityTimeoutMs
+  - includeNodeSpans
+  - injectOutbound
+  - productionExecutionsOnly
+properties:
+  enabled:
+    type: boolean
+    description: Whether OpenTelemetry tracing is enabled.
+    example: true
+  exporterEndpoint:
+    type: string
+    format: uri
+    description: The base URL of the OTLP collector to export traces to.
+    example: http://localhost:4318
+  exporterTracingPath:
+    type: string
+    description: The path appended to the endpoint for the OTLP traces signal.
+    example: /v1/traces
+  exporterServiceName:
+    type: string
+    minLength: 1
+    description: The `service.name` resource attribute reported on every span.
+    example: n8n
+  exporterHeaders:
+    type: string
+    description: >
+      Additional headers sent to the OTLP collector, as a single string of comma-separated
+      `key=value` pairs (e.g. `authorization=Bearer my-token,x-tenant-id=acme`). Whitespace
+      around each key and value is trimmed; a value may contain spaces but not commas. Use an
+      empty string when unused.
+    example: authorization=Bearer my-token,x-tenant-id=acme
+  tracesSampleRate:
+    type: number
+    minimum: 0
+    maximum: 1
+    description: The ratio of traces to sample, between 0 (none) and 1 (all).
+    example: 1
+  startupConnectivityTimeoutMs:
+    type: integer
+    minimum: 0
+    description: >
+      How long, in milliseconds, to wait when checking the collector is reachable. Also used as
+      the timeout for the test-trace endpoint.
+    example: 2000
+  includeNodeSpans:
+    type: boolean
+    description: Whether to emit a span for each node execution in addition to the workflow span.
+    example: true
+  injectOutbound:
+    type: boolean
+    description: Whether to inject trace context headers into outbound HTTP requests made by nodes.
+    example: true
+  productionExecutionsOnly:
+    type: boolean
+    description: >
+      When true, only production executions of published (active) workflows are traced, not
+      manual/test runs.
+    example: true
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-test-trace-result.yml b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-test-trace-result.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..6b914b53bee
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-test-trace-result.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+type: object
+additionalProperties: false
+description: The outcome of the test connection to the OTLP collector.
+required:
+  - success
+properties:
+  success:
+    type: boolean
+    description: Whether the test span was accepted by the collector.
+    example: true
+  error:
+    type: string
+    description: >
+      The error reported by the collector or exporter. Present only when `success` is false.
+    example: 'Failed to connect: 401 Unauthorized'
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-test-trace.yml b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-test-trace.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..d0dc06ef1f1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/otel/spec/schemas/otel-test-trace.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+type: object
+additionalProperties: false
+description: >
+  The connection details to test against an OTLP collector. Fields managed declaratively via
+  environment variables are overridden with their effective value before the test is sent.
+required:
+  - exporterEndpoint
+  - exporterTracingPath
+  - exporterServiceName
+  - exporterHeaders
+  - startupConnectivityTimeoutMs
+properties:
+  exporterEndpoint:
+    type: string
+    format: uri
+    description: The base URL of the OTLP collector to export traces to.
+    example: http://localhost:4318
+  exporterTracingPath:
+    type: string
+    description: The path appended to the endpoint for the OTLP traces signal.
+    example: /v1/traces
+  exporterServiceName:
+    type: string
+    minLength: 1
+    description: The `service.name` resource attribute reported on the test span.
+    example: n8n
+  exporterHeaders:
+    type: string
+    description: >
+      Additional headers sent to the OTLP collector, as a single string of comma-separated
+      `key=value` pairs (e.g. `authorization=Bearer my-token,x-tenant-id=acme`). Whitespace
+      around each key and value is trimmed; a value may contain spaces but not commas. Use an
+      empty string when unused.
+    example: authorization=Bearer my-token,x-tenant-id=acme
+  startupConnectivityTimeoutMs:
+    type: integer
+    minimum: 0
+    description: How long, in milliseconds, to wait for the collector to respond.
+    example: 2000
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/openapi.yml b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/openapi.yml
index 79062d53146..a181b632452 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/openapi.yml
+++ b/packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/openapi.yml
@@ -49,6 +49,8 @@ tags:
     description: Operations about projects
   - name: SecurityPolicy
     description: Operations about the instance security policy settings
+  - name: SettingsOtel
+    description: Operations about OpenTelemetry settings
   - name: SettingsSsoSaml
     description: Operations about SAML SSO settings
   - name: SourceControl
@@ -67,6 +69,10 @@ paths:
     $ref: './handlers/audit/spec/paths/audit.yml'
   /settings/security-policy:
     $ref: './handlers/security-policy/spec/paths/security-policy.yml'
+  /settings/otel:
+    $ref: './handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.yml'
+  /settings/otel/test-trace:
+    $ref: './handlers/otel/spec/paths/settings.otel.test-trace.yml'
   /settings/sso/saml:
     $ref: './handlers/sso-saml/spec/paths/settings.sso.saml.yml'
   /credentials:
diff --git a/packages/cli/test/integration/public-api/otel-settings.test.ts b/packages/cli/test/integration/public-api/otel-settings.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..cf57a818e8e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/cli/test/integration/public-api/otel-settings.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,333 @@
+import { testDb } from '@n8n/backend-test-utils';
+import { SettingsRepository, type User } from '@n8n/db';
+import { Container } from '@n8n/di';
+import { vi } from 'vitest';
+
+import { OtelSettingsService, OTEL_SETTINGS_KEY } from '@/modules/otel/otel-settings.service';
+import { OtelConfig } from '@/modules/otel/otel.config';
+import { OTEL_ENV_VARS } from '@/modules/otel/otel.constants';
+import { OtelService } from '@/modules/otel/otel.service';
+import { createOwnerWithApiKey } from '@test-integration/db/users';
+import { setupTestServer } from '@test-integration/utils';
+
+const validSettings = {
+	enabled: false,
+	exporterEndpoint: 'http://collector.example.com:4318',
+	exporterTracingPath: '/v1/traces',
+	exporterServiceName: 'n8n-prod',
+	exporterHeaders: 'authorization=Bearer my-token',
+	tracesSampleRate: 0.5,
+	startupConnectivityTimeoutMs: 3_000,
+	includeNodeSpans: false,
+	injectOutbound: false,
+	productionExecutionsOnly: false,
+};
+
+const testConnection = {
+	exporterEndpoint: 'http://collector.example.com:4318',
+	exporterTracingPath: '/v1/traces',
+	exporterServiceName: 'n8n-prod',
+	exporterHeaders: 'authorization=Bearer my-token',
+	startupConnectivityTimeoutMs: 3_000,
+};
+
+describe('OpenTelemetry settings in Public API', () => {
+	let owner: User;
+	const testServer = setupTestServer({
+		endpointGroups: ['publicApi', 'otel'],
+	});
+
+	// Reset both the persisted and in-memory OTel settings to defaults between tests.
+	const resetOtelSettings = async () => {
+		await Container.get(SettingsRepository).delete({ key: OTEL_SETTINGS_KEY });
+		await Container.get(OtelSettingsService).loadSettings();
+	};
+
+	beforeAll(async () => {
+		await testDb.init();
+	});
+
+	beforeEach(async () => {
+		await testDb.truncate(['User']);
+		await resetOtelSettings();
+		owner = await createOwnerWithApiKey();
+	});
+
+	afterEach(() => {
+		vi.restoreAllMocks();
+	});
+
+	describe('GET /settings/otel', () => {
+		it('returns the current OTel settings', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).get('/settings/otel');
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(response.body).toMatchObject({
+				enabled: false,
+				exporterServiceName: 'n8n',
+				exporterTracingPath: '/v1/traces',
+			});
+			expect(typeof response.body.exporterEndpoint).toBe('string');
+		});
+
+		it('exposes exactly the fields the UI configures, and nothing more', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).get('/settings/otel');
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(Object.keys(response.body).sort()).toEqual(
+				[
+					'enabled',
+					'exporterEndpoint',
+					'exporterTracingPath',
+					'exporterServiceName',
+					'exporterHeaders',
+					'tracesSampleRate',
+					'startupConnectivityTimeoutMs',
+					'includeNodeSpans',
+					'injectOutbound',
+					'productionExecutionsOnly',
+				].sort(),
+			);
+			// Internal-only bookkeeping must never leak through the public API.
+			expect(response.body).not.toHaveProperty('envManagedFields');
+		});
+
+		it('rejects with 401 without a valid API key', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer.publicApiAgentWithoutApiKey().get('/settings/otel');
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(401);
+		});
+
+		it('rejects with 403 when the API key lacks the otel:manage scope', async () => {
+			const scopedOwner = await createOwnerWithApiKey({ scopes: ['workflow:read'] });
+
+			const response = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(scopedOwner).get('/settings/otel');
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(403);
+		});
+	});
+
+	describe('PUT /settings/otel', () => {
+		it('sets the configuration and returns the updated values', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send(validSettings);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(response.body).toMatchObject(validSettings);
+		});
+
+		it('takes effect the same way as the UI (write via public API, read via internal API)', async () => {
+			await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).put('/settings/otel').send(validSettings);
+
+			// internal REST responses are wrapped in `{ data }`; the UI client unwraps it.
+			const internal = await testServer.authAgentFor(owner).get('/otel/settings');
+
+			expect(internal.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(internal.body.data).toMatchObject(validSettings);
+		});
+
+		it('reads back a configuration written through the internal API (public API is a faithful stand-in)', async () => {
+			await testServer.authAgentFor(owner).put('/otel/settings').send(validSettings);
+
+			const publicRead = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).get('/settings/otel');
+
+			expect(publicRead.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(publicRead.body).toMatchObject(validSettings);
+		});
+
+		it('toggles enabled both ways', async () => {
+			const enabled = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...validSettings, enabled: true });
+			expect(enabled.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(enabled.body.enabled).toBe(true);
+
+			const disabled = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...validSettings, enabled: false });
+			expect(disabled.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(disabled.body.enabled).toBe(false);
+		});
+
+		it('accepts a GET response body as a PUT body (clean round-trip)', async () => {
+			await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).put('/settings/otel').send(validSettings);
+
+			const getResponse = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).get('/settings/otel');
+			expect(getResponse.status).toBe(200);
+
+			const putResponse = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...getResponse.body, exporterServiceName: 'n8n-updated' });
+
+			expect(putResponse.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(putResponse.body.exporterServiceName).toBe('n8n-updated');
+			expect(putResponse.body.exporterHeaders).toBe(validSettings.exporterHeaders);
+		});
+
+		it('rejects a partial body with 400', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ enabled: true });
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(400);
+		});
+
+		it('rejects a body missing a single field with 400', async () => {
+			const { exporterServiceName: _omitted, ...partial } = validSettings;
+
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send(partial);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(400);
+		});
+
+		it('rejects a well-formed body with invalid values with 400', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...validSettings, exporterEndpoint: 'not-a-url' });
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(400);
+			expect(response.body).toHaveProperty('message');
+		});
+
+		it('rejects with 401 without a valid API key', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentWithoutApiKey()
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send(validSettings);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(401);
+		});
+
+		it('rejects with 403 when the API key lacks the otel:manage scope', async () => {
+			const scopedOwner = await createOwnerWithApiKey({ scopes: ['workflow:read'] });
+
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(scopedOwner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send(validSettings);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(403);
+		});
+	});
+
+	describe('PUT /settings/otel with an env-managed field', () => {
+		const ENV_SERVICE_NAME = 'env-managed-service';
+		let originalServiceName: string;
+
+		beforeEach(async () => {
+			// Simulate `N8N_OTEL_EXPORTER_SERVICE_NAME` being set: mark it env-managed and
+			// pin its enforced value on the (singleton) config read at boot.
+			process.env[OTEL_ENV_VARS.exporterServiceName] = ENV_SERVICE_NAME;
+			originalServiceName = Container.get(OtelConfig).exporterServiceName;
+			Container.get(OtelConfig).exporterServiceName = ENV_SERVICE_NAME;
+			await Container.get(OtelSettingsService).loadSettings();
+		});
+
+		afterEach(async () => {
+			delete process.env[OTEL_ENV_VARS.exporterServiceName];
+			Container.get(OtelConfig).exporterServiceName = originalServiceName;
+			await Container.get(OtelSettingsService).loadSettings();
+		});
+
+		it('rejects changing the env-managed field with 409 naming the field', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...validSettings, exporterServiceName: 'a-different-name' });
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(409);
+			expect(response.body.message).toContain('exporterServiceName');
+		});
+
+		it('does not persist any change when the write is rejected with 409', async () => {
+			await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...validSettings, exporterServiceName: 'a-different-name', tracesSampleRate: 0.1 });
+
+			const read = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).get('/settings/otel');
+			// The non-env field from the rejected body must not have leaked through.
+			expect(read.body.tracesSampleRate).not.toBe(0.1);
+		});
+
+		it('accepts a write that re-submits the enforced value and changes a non-env field', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send({ ...validSettings, exporterServiceName: ENV_SERVICE_NAME, tracesSampleRate: 0.25 });
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(response.body.tracesSampleRate).toBe(0.25);
+			expect(response.body.exporterServiceName).toBe(ENV_SERVICE_NAME);
+		});
+
+		it('accepts a GET response body echoed straight back (clean round-trip)', async () => {
+			const getResponse = await testServer.publicApiAgentFor(owner).get('/settings/otel');
+			expect(getResponse.body.exporterServiceName).toBe(ENV_SERVICE_NAME);
+
+			const putResponse = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.put('/settings/otel')
+				.send(getResponse.body);
+
+			expect(putResponse.status).toBe(200);
+		});
+	});
+
+	describe('POST /settings/otel/test-trace', () => {
+		it('reports a successful connection', async () => {
+			vi.spyOn(Container.get(OtelService), 'sendTestTrace').mockResolvedValue({ success: true });
+
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.post('/settings/otel/test-trace')
+				.send(testConnection);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(response.body).toEqual({ success: true });
+		});
+
+		it('reports a failed connection with the collector error', async () => {
+			vi.spyOn(Container.get(OtelService), 'sendTestTrace').mockResolvedValue({
+				success: false,
+				error: '401 Unauthorized',
+			});
+
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.post('/settings/otel/test-trace')
+				.send(testConnection);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+			expect(response.body).toEqual({ success: false, error: '401 Unauthorized' });
+		});
+
+		it('rejects a partial body with 400', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentFor(owner)
+				.post('/settings/otel/test-trace')
+				.send({ exporterEndpoint: 'http://collector.example.com:4318' });
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(400);
+		});
+
+		it('rejects with 401 without a valid API key', async () => {
+			const response = await testServer
+				.publicApiAgentWithoutApiKey()
+				.post('/settings/otel/test-trace')
+				.send(testConnection);
+
+			expect(response.status).toBe(401);
+		});
+	});
+});
diff --git a/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/types.ts b/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/types.ts
index 489413d2074..d2ae7f97e62 100644
--- a/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/types.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/types.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ type EndpointGroup =
 	| 'community-packages'
 	| 'ldap'
 	| 'saml'
+	| 'otel'
 	| 'sourceControl'
 	| 'eventBus'
 	| 'license'
diff --git a/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/utils/test-server.ts b/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/utils/test-server.ts
index e508f41277b..327ef8cfa69 100644
--- a/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/utils/test-server.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/test/integration/shared/utils/test-server.ts
@@ -255,6 +255,13 @@ export const setupTestServer = ({
 						break;
 					}
 
+					case 'otel': {
+						const { OtelService } = await import('@/modules/otel/otel.service.js');
+						await Container.get(OtelService).init();
+						await import('@/modules/otel/otel-settings.controller.js');
+						break;
+					}
+
 					case 'sourceControl':
 						await import('@/modules/source-control.ee/source-control.controller.ee.js');
 						break;