Pretty-print a value: pprint

The pprint filter formats a value in a human-readable way, making it easier to inspect complex data structures like dictionaries and lists. This is primarily useful for debugging templates. When you are trying to understand the structure of data returned by a sensorSensors return information about a thing, for instance the level of water in a tank. [Learn more] or another template function, piping the value through pprint displays it in a nicely formatted, indented layout. This makes it much easier to read than the default single-line representation.

Usage

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

{{ {"name": "Living Room", "temperature": 22.5} | pprint }}

{'name': 'Living Room', 'temperature': 22.5}

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.

pprint(
    value: Any,
    verbose: bool = False,
) -> str

Function parameters

The following parameters can be provided to this function.

Good to know

• The output is intended for debugging. For structured data you plan to use elsewhere, use to_json.
• With verbose=true, the output also includes the Python type name, which can help identify unexpected types.

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.

Inspect entity attributes

View all attributes of an entity in a readable format for debugging.

{{ state_attr("climate.living_room", "hvac_modes") | pprint }}

['off', 'heat', 'cool', 'auto']

Debug a complex data structure

Pretty-print a nested dictionary to understand its structure.

{{
  {"rooms": {"living_room": {"temp": 22}, "bedroom": {"temp": 19}}}
  | pprint
}}

{'rooms': {'bedroom': {'temp': 19}, 'living_room': {'temp': 22}}}

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:

• Serialize to JSON: to_json - Serializes a value to a JSON string.

• Get the type of a value: typeof - Returns the type name of a value as a string.