Motion detected

The Motion detected trigger fires when one or more motion sensors start detecting motion.

Use it to automate actions, such as turning devices on or off, or sending notifications, based on motion detection in an area of the house. Use a single motion sensor to detect motion in specific spots and a group of sensors for larger areas.

Using this trigger from the user interface

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

To use this trigger in an automation:

1. Go to Settings > Automations & scenes.
2. Open an existing automation, or select Create automation > Create new automation.
3. In the When section, select Add trigger.
4. From the search box, search for and select Motion detected.
5. Select Add target (see Targets) and pick the motion sensor that you want to watch. You can also select an area, a floor, a device, or a label.
6. Under Trigger when (see Behavior), pick Each, First, or All to control how the trigger behaves when multiple sensors are targeted.
7. Under For at least, you can set how long the sensor must remain detecting motion before the trigger fires. Leave it at zero to fire immediately.
8. Select Save.

Options in the UI

Using this trigger 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 trigger as motion.detected. A basic example looks like this:

trigger: motion.detected
target:
  entity_id: binary_sensor.movement_backyard
options:
  for:
    hours: 1
    minutes: 5
    seconds: 2

This fires 1 hour, 5 minutes and 2 seconds after the sensor entity binary_sensor.movement_backyard starts detecting motion.

Options in YAML

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

Targets of the trigger

This trigger requires a target. The target is the object that Home Assistant will watch. You can select 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 as a target, and Home Assistant will watch every matching motion entity behind that target.

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

You can also select different target types in one trigger. For example, you can add a specific entity and an area as targets in the same trigger to monitor 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 Trigger when option controls how the trigger responds:

• Each (any in YAML, default): the trigger fires every time any one of the targeted entities transitions. For example, if you monitor three motion sensors in the living room and someone walks past sensor 1, the automation fires. When they walk past sensor 2 a moment later, it fires again. Every individual event counts.
• First (first in YAML): the trigger fires only on the first transition in the targeted group, then waits until all targeted entities have reset before it fires again. For example, if you monitor the same three motion sensors, the automation fires when the first one picks up movement (someone entered the room). The other two firing afterward are ignored, so you get one notification per “someone walked in” event instead of three.
• All (last in YAML): the trigger fires only after the last targeted entity in the group has fired, meaning all of them are now in the expected state. For example, if you monitor the lights in the living room, bedroom, and hallway, the automation fires only once all three have turned off. This is useful for scenarios like “start the robot vacuum only after every light on the floor is off,” so you know the room is truly empty.

Good to know

• Use single sensors for motion detection in areas of passage, such as hallways or entrances, or very specific spots like an office desk.
• Add the For at least option to your automation to avoid turning off devices too quickly if someone is still in the room.
• For reliable motion detection in larger areas, you can use grouped motion sensors and input boolean helpers.
• When you automate lights turning on, combine motion with ambient light sensors, or time conditions, and only turn on lights if the room is dark enough. This avoids unnecessary activations.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Go to Settings > Automations & scenes, create a new automation, and add this trigger. Save the automation, then change the state of the targeted entity to watch the trigger fire 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].

More examples

Real scenarios where this trigger fires in automations and scripts. Copy any example and adapt it to your setup.

Automation: turn on light when motion is detected and it is dark

When motion is detected at the entrance of the hallway and if it is dark, this automation turns on the light there.

• Trigger: Motion detected
  • Target: Entrance binary sensor
• Condition: Time (after 21:30:00 and before 07:00:00)
• Action: Turn on light (in hallway)

alias: "Turn on light in hallway if dark and motion is detected"
triggers:
  - trigger: motion.detected
    target:
      entity_id: binary_sensor.movement_hallway
conditions:
  - condition: time
    after: "21:30:00"
    before: "07:00:00"
actions:
  - action: light.turn_on
    target:
      entity_id: light.hallway_entrance_light

Still stuck?

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

Related triggers

These triggers work well alongside this one:

• Motion cleared: Triggers after one or more motion sensors stop detecting motion.