Toggle fan

The Toggle fan action is useful when you want one control to flip a fan between on and off. Use it when the current state can vary and you want a single action that handles both directions.

Using this action from the user interface

If you prefer building automations and scripts visually, Home Assistant walks you through this action step by step. You pick what to target, tweak a few options, and save. No YAML knowledge required.

To use this action in an automation or script:

1. Go to Settings > Automations & scenes.
2. Open an existing automation or script, or select Create automation > Create new automation.
3. If you’re creating an automation, add a trigger in the When section.
4. In the Then do section, select Add action.
5. Select what you want to control. Under By target (see Targets), pick the fan you want to control. You can also select an area, a floor, a device, or a label.
6. From the actions shown for that target, select Toggle fan.
7. Select Save.

Options in the UI

This action has no additional options beyond the target.

Using this action in YAML

If you work directly in YAML, or you want to know exactly what Home Assistant does under the hood, this section has the technical reference. It lists the field names you use in YAML, their types, and which ones are required.

In YAML, refer to this action as fan.toggle. A basic example looks like this:

action: fan.toggle
target:
  entity_id: fan.guest_room

This flips fan.guest_room from off to on, or from on to off.

Options in YAML

This action has no additional YAML options beyond the target.

Targets of the action

This action requires a target. The target is the object of the action. You can point the action at a single entityAn entity represents a sensor, actor, or function in Home Assistant. Entities are used to monitor physical properties or to control other entities. An entity is usually part of a device or a service. [Learn more], a device, an area, a floor, or a label, and Home Assistant will run the action on every matching fan entity behind that target.

• Entity: one specific fan entity, such as fan.living_room.
• Device: every fan entity that belongs to a device.
• Area: every fan entity in a room or area.
• Floor: every fan entity on a floor.
• Label: every fan entity that shares a label.

You can also select different target types in one action. For example, you can add a specific entity and an area as targets in the same action to run the action on both of them at once.

Good to know

• fan.toggle works with fan entities even if other fan features are not supported.
• Because it flips the current state, it is best when you do not need to know in advance whether the fan is on or off.
• If you need a specific result, use Turn on fan or Turn off fan.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Open Developer tools > Actions, search for this action, fill in the fields, and select Perform action. You see what happens on your actual entitiesAn entity represents a sensor, actor, or function in Home Assistant. Entities are used to monitor physical properties or to control other entities. An entity is usually part of a device or a service. [Learn more] without writing a line of YAML.

More examples

Real scenarios where this action shows up in automations and scripts. Copy any example and adapt it to your setup.

Automation: toggle the guest room fan at bedtime

If the fan is usually off at night but sometimes already running, a toggle lets one automation handle both cases.

• Trigger: Time: 22:15
• Action: Toggle fan
• Target: Guest room fan

alias: "Toggle guest room fan at bedtime"
triggers:
  - trigger: time
    at: "22:15:00"
actions:
  - action: fan.toggle
    target:
      entity_id: fan.guest_room

Automation: toggle the patio fan when the deck light turns on

If you use the deck in the evening, the patio fan can follow the deck light with a single action.

• Trigger: State: Deck light changes to on
• Action: Toggle fan
• Target: Patio fan

alias: "Toggle patio fan with deck light"
triggers:
  - trigger: state
    entity_id: light.deck
    to: "on"
actions:
  - action: fan.toggle
    target:
      entity_id: fan.patio

Still stuck?

The Home Assistant community is quick to help: join Discord for real-time chat, post on the community forum with the action you’re calling and what you expected to happen, or share on our subreddit /r/homeassistant.

Related actions

These actions work well alongside this one:

• Turn on fan: Turn on a fan. Optionally set the speed or preset mode at the same time.

• Turn off fan: Turn off a fan.