Turn on script

Use this action to start a script. The script runs the sequence of actions you defined for it.

Whatever starts the script does not wait for it to finish. The script is started in the background, and the automation or script that started it continues right away. If you want to wait for the script to finish, call the script directly as script.your_script_name instead. For a full comparison, see waiting for a script to complete.

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 run a script from an automation or a 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 setting up a new automation, add a trigger in the When section. Scripts don’t need a trigger. They run when something else calls them.
4. In the Then do section, select Add action.
5. Select what you want to control. Under By target (see Targets), select the script you want to run.
6. From the actions shown for that target, select Turn on script.
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 script.turn_on. A basic example looks like this:

action: script.turn_on
target:
  entity_id: script.notify_pushover

This starts the script.notify_pushover script.

If the script expects variables, pass them in the variables option:

action: script.turn_on
target:
  entity_id: script.notify_pushover
data:
  variables:
    title: "State change"
    message: "The light is on!"

Options in YAML

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 script entity behind that target.

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

• If the script is already running, what happens next depends on its script mode. For example, a script in single mode logs a warning and does not start a second run.
• Errors in the script do not stop the automation or script that started it, because the two run separately.
• If you target several scripts at once, they are all started, in the order you list them.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Open Settings > 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: send a notification through a script when a light turns on

Reuse a notification script and pass the message to it, without holding up the rest of the automation.

• Trigger: Light turned on
  • Target: Bedroom light
• Action: Turn on script
  • Target: Notify Pushover

- alias: "Notify when the bedroom light turns on"
  triggers:
    - trigger: light.turned_on
      target:
        entity_id: light.bedroom
  actions:
    - action: script.turn_on
      target:
        entity_id: script.notify_pushover
      data:
        variables:
          title: "State change"
          message: "The light is on!"

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 off script: Stops a running script.

• Toggle script: Starts a script if it isn’t running, and stops it otherwise.

• Reload scripts: Reloads all the available scripts.