Lawn mower is idle

The Lawn mower is idle condition passes when one or more targeted mowers are stopped in the yard, neither docked nor paused. Use it when an automation should only continue while the mower has no task, like starting a fresh run, sending it back to the dock, or reminding you that it was left outside.

Using this condition from the user interface

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

To use this condition in an automation:

1. Go to Settings > Automations & scenes.
2. Open an existing automation, or select Create automation > Create new automation.
3. In the And if section, select Add condition.
4. From the search box, search for and select Lawn mower is idle.
5. Select what you want to check. Under By target (see Targets), pick the area where your mower is used. You can also select a floor, a device, a specific entity, or a label.
6. Under Condition passes if (see Behavior), pick Any or All.
7. Under For at least, set how long the mower must stay idle before the condition passes. Leave it at zero to check the current state only.
8. Select Save.

Options in the UI

Using this condition 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 condition as lawn_mower.is_idle. A basic example looks like this:

condition: lawn_mower.is_idle
target:
  entity_id: lawn_mower.backyard

This passes when lawn_mower.backyard is currently idle.

Options in YAML

YAML sometimes provides additional options for more complex use cases that are not available through the UI.

Targets of the condition

This condition requires a target. The target is the object that Home Assistant will check. You can point the condition 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 evaluate every matching lawn_mower entity behind that target.

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

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

Behavior with multiple targets

When you target more than one entity (or select an area, floor, or label that contains several), the Condition passes if option controls how the results combine:

• Any (default): the condition passes if at least one of the targeted entities matches. For example, if you check three smoke sensors and only one of them detects smoke, the condition still passes. This is useful for questions like “is there smoke anywhere in the house?”
• All: the condition passes only when every targeted entity matches. For example, if you check the same three smoke sensors, the condition passes only once all three report cleared. This is useful for “is the entire house safe now?” checks, so your automation does not send an all-clear while one room still has a reading.

Good to know

• Mowers in the unavailable or unknown state are ignored when Home Assistant evaluates the condition.
• A paused mower does not pass this condition: it still has a task to resume. Use Lawn mower is paused for that case.
• Not every mower reports an idle state. Check the states your integration supports.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Go to Settings > Automations & scenes, open an automation, and add this condition. Trigger the automation with and without the condition met, and watch whether it continues or stops.

More examples

Real scenarios where this condition gates an automation. Copy any example and adapt it to your setup.

Automation: Start the evening run only if the mower is idle

If the mower was stopped earlier and left in the yard, start a fresh run in the evening instead of leaving it there overnight.

• Trigger: Time: 19:00
• Condition: Lawn mower is idle
  • Target: Backyard mower
• Action: Start lawn mower
  • Target: Backyard mower

alias: "Evening run if the mower is idle"
triggers:
  - trigger: time
    at: "19:00:00"
conditions:
  - condition: lawn_mower.is_idle
    target:
      entity_id: lawn_mower.backyard
actions:
  - action: lawn_mower.start_mowing
    target:
      entity_id: lawn_mower.backyard

Automation: Remind yourself that the mower was left outside

Check every hour and send a reminder while the mower stays idle in the yard.

• Trigger: Time pattern: Every hour
• Condition: Lawn mower is idle
  • Target: Backyard mower
  • For at least: 00:30:00
• Action: Send a notification message
  • Target: My Device (notify.my_device)

alias: "Remind me that the mower is outside"
triggers:
  - trigger: time_pattern
    hours: "/1"
conditions:
  - condition: lawn_mower.is_idle
    target:
      entity_id: lawn_mower.backyard
    options:
      for: "00:30:00"
actions:
  - action: notify.send_message
    target:
      entity_id: notify.my_device
    data:
      message: "The backyard mower is still standing in the yard."

Still stuck?

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