Selection changed

The Selection changed trigger fires after the selected option of a dropdown 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] changes. It works with both Select entities provided by integrations and the Dropdown helper (“input_select”) you create yourself. Use it to react when someone switches modes, scenes, presets, or any other choice you have set up as a dropdown.

This trigger fires when the selected option changes from one valid option to another. To run only when the dropdown is set to a specific option, combine it with the Option is selected condition.

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 Selection changed 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. Select what you want to monitor. Under By target (see Targets), pick the dropdown entity you want to watch. You can also select an area, a device, or a label.
5. From the triggers shown for that target, select Selection changed.
6. Select Save.

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 select.selection_changed. A basic example looks like this:

trigger: select.selection_changed
target:
  entity_id: select.washing_machine_program

This fires every time the selected option of the washing machine program dropdown changes.

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 select entity behind that target.

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

Good to know

• This trigger works with both Select entities provided by integrations (domain select) and Dropdown helpers you create yourself (domain input_select).
• The trigger does not filter by which option was selected. To run only on a specific option, add an Option is selected condition, or use a State trigger with the to option.
• The trigger only fires when switching between two valid options. It does not fire when the dropdown becomes unknown or unavailable, or when it changes from unknown or unavailable to a valid option. To react to those cases, use a State trigger.

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: announce the soundbar’s sound mode

Some media players expose their sound mode as a select entity, for example select.living_room_soundbar_sound_mode with options like Music, Movie, and Night. When the sound mode changes, announce the new mode on the living room speaker so everyone knows what the soundbar is set to.

• Trigger: Selection changed
  • Target: Living room soundbar sound mode
• Action: Send TTS message
  • Target: Living room speaker

alias: "Announce soundbar sound mode"
triggers:
  - trigger: select.selection_changed
    target:
      entity_id: select.living_room_soundbar_sound_mode
actions:
  - action: tts.speak
    target:
      entity_id: tts.home_assistant_cloud
    data:
      media_player_entity_id: media_player.living_room
      message: >-
        Soundbar sound mode set to
        {{ states('select.living_room_soundbar_sound_mode') }}.

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.