Send message

Use this action to send a text message from your Telegram bot to one or more chats. You can add a title, format the text, and attach a custom keyboard or inline buttons.

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 send a message 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. From the search box, search for and select Telegram bot: Send message.
  6. Enter the Message and, optionally, a Title and other options.
  7. Choose where to send it.
  8. In the Response variable field, enter a name to store the data in, such as garage_message.
  9. Select Save.

This action does not use a standard target. Instead, you choose where it sends in one of these ways:

  • Select one or more Notify target entities. Each one already points at a specific Telegram bot and chat.
  • Provide a Config entry ID together with one or more Chat IDs.
  • If you have a single bot and provide neither, the bot’s first chat is used by default.

Options in the UI

Notify target

One or more Telegram notify entities to send the message to. Each entity points at a specific bot and chat.

Title

An optional title shown above the message.

Message (Required)

The body of the message.

Parse mode

How to interpret formatting in the message text. One of html, markdown, markdownv2, or plain_text.

Disable notification

Send the message silently. The recipient receives a notification with no sound.

Disable web page preview

Disable link previews for links in the message.

Keyboard

Rows of commands to show as a custom keyboard. Use an empty list to clear a previously set keyboard.

Inline keyboard

Rows of buttons to show below the message, each linked to callback data or an external URL.

Message tag

A tag added to the telegram_sent event when the message is sent, so you can identify it later.

Reply to message ID

Mark the message as a reply to an earlier message, given its ID.

Message thread ID

Send the message to a specific topic or thread in a forum supergroup.

Config entry ID

The Telegram bot to use. Required if you have more than one bot.

Chat ID

One or more pre-authorized chat IDs to send to. Defaults to the bot’s first allowed chat.

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 telegram_bot.send_message:

ActionActions are used in several places in Home Assistant. As part of a script or automation, actions define what is going to happen once a trigger is activated. In scripts, an action is called *sequence*. [Learn more]
action: telegram_bot.send_message
data:
  title: Your garage door friend
  message: The garage door has been open for 10 minutes.
response_variable: garage_message

Options in YAML

entity_id string | list

One or more Telegram notify entities to send the message to. Each entity points at a specific bot and chat.

title string

An optional title shown above the message.

message string Required

The body of the message.

parse_mode string

How to interpret formatting in the message text. One of html, markdown, markdownv2, or plain_text.

disable_notification boolean

Send the message silently. The recipient receives a notification with no sound.

disable_web_page_preview boolean

Disable link previews for links in the message.

keyboard list

Rows of commands to show as a custom keyboard. Use an empty list to clear a previously set keyboard.

inline_keyboard list

Rows of buttons to show below the message, each linked to callback data or an external URL.

message_tag string

A tag added to the telegram_sent event when the message is sent, so you can identify it later.

reply_to_message_id integer

Mark the message as a reply to an earlier message, given its ID.

message_thread_id integer

Send the message to a specific topic or thread in a forum supergroup.

config_entry_id string

The Telegram bot to use. Required if you have more than one bot.

chat_id integer | list

One or more pre-authorized chat IDs to send to. Defaults to the bot’s first allowed chat.

Response data

When the message is sent, the action returns a chats list. Each item describes one delivered message:

  • chat_id: The chat the message was sent to.
  • message_id: The ID of the sent message. Use it later to edit or delete the message.
  • entity_id: The notify entity that sent the message.

An example response looks like this:

chats:
  - chat_id: 1234567890
    message_id: 100
    entity_id: notify.telegram_bot_chat

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.

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.

Tip

AI assistants like ChatGPT or Claude can also explain actions or suggest the right one when you describe what you want in plain language.