Get dictionary key/value pairs: items

The items filter returns the key/value pairs from a dictionary as a list of (key, value) tuples. This makes it possible to iterate over a dictionary’s entries in a template, accessing both the key and the value in each iteration.

This is useful when you need to loop over the attributes of an 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] or any other dictionary structure. For example, you might want to display all attributes of a sensorSensors return information about a thing, for instance the level of water in a tank. [Learn more] along with their values, process configuration options stored as a dictionary, or transform a dictionary into another format. It converts a dictionary into a format that works with the template for loop unpacking.

Usage

Here’s how to use this template function. Copy any example and adjust it to your setup.

{{ {"a": 1, "b": 2, "c": 3} | items | list }}

[('a', 1), ('b', 2), ('c', 3)]

Function signature

The signature is a technical summary of this template function. It shows the name of the function, the values (called parameters) it accepts, and what type of data each parameter expects (for example, a piece of text or a number).

Function parameters that have a = with a value after them are optional. If you leave them out, the default value shown is used automatically. Function parameters without a default are required.

items(
    value: dict,
) -> list[tuple]

Function parameters

The following parameters can be provided to this filter.

Good to know

• Returns an iterable of (key, value) tuples, not a list. Wrap with | list when counting or reusing.
• Order depends on how the dictionary was built. Use dictsort for a guaranteed sort order.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Open Developer tools > Template, paste the example into the Template editor, and watch the result update on the right. Edit the values to see how the function adapts to your own 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].

More examples

Real scenarios where this function comes up in automations and templates. Copy any example and adapt it to your setup.

Display all entity attributes

Iterate over all attributes of a sensor and display them.

{% for key, value in state_attr("climate.living_room", "hvac_modes")
  | default({}) | items %}
  {{ key }}: {{ value }}
{% endfor %}

Iterate over a configuration dictionary

Loop over a dictionary of settings and display each one.

{% set config = {"mode": "heat", "target_temp": 22, "fan": "auto"} %}
{% for key, value in config | items %}
  {{ key }} = {{ value }}
{% endfor %}

mode = heat
target_temp = 22
fan = auto

Filter dictionary entries

Combine items with selectattr or conditional logic to filter dictionary entries.

{% set temps = {"kitchen": 22.5, "bedroom": 19.8, "living_room": 21.3} %}
{% for room, temp in temps | dictsort %}
  {% if temp > 20 %}
    {{ room }}: {{ temp }}°C
  {% endif %}
{% endfor %}

kitchen: 22.5°C
living_room: 21.3°C

Still stuck?

The Home Assistant community is quick to help: join Discord for real-time chat, post on the community forum with your template and expected result, or share on our subreddit /r/homeassistant.

Related template functions

These functions work well alongside this one:

• Sort a dictionary: dictsort - Sorts a dictionary by its keys or values, returning a list of key/value pairs.

• Transform list items: map - Applies a filter to each item or extracts an attribute from each item in a list.

• Merge dictionaries: combine - Merges multiple dictionaries into one.