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Automation actions

An action is the part of an automation that makes something happen, for example, turning on a light, sending a notification, or activating a scene. When a trigger starts the automation and the conditions are met, the automation runs its actions.

You add actions in the Then do section of the automation editor. For the steps, refer to Adding an action in the editor. Scripts use the same actions.

Parts of an action

Each action does one thing. For example, Turn on light turns on lights. For a description of all actions, refer to the list of available actions.

Many actions also have some of the following parts:

  • Targets: what the action controls, for example, the lights in the living room.
  • Options: details of what the action does, for example, the brightness of the lights.
  • Response data: what the action returns, for example, the calendar events of the next week.

Actions run in order

An automation runs its actions one after the other, from top to bottom.

This is why:

  • If a condition between the actions isn’t met, the actions after the condition don’t run. For details, refer to Condition.
  • If an action fails, the actions after the failed action don’t run. To continue anyway, refer to Continuing when a step fails.
  • Actions don’t run at the same time. To run actions at the same time, use Run in parallel.

Actions and building blocks

Building blocks control whether, when, and in which order the actions run. For example, a building block can check a condition, wait a few seconds, repeat steps, or choose between steps. To add a building block in the editor, select Add action, and then select Blocks. For all building blocks, refer to Building blocks and actions.

Running the actions directly

You can run the actions of an automation without waiting for its trigger: all actions at once, or a single action. For the steps, refer to Testing all the actions and Testing an action.

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