Timer time remaining

The Timer time remaining trigger fires when a running timer reaches the remaining time you set. Use it for reminders shortly before a timer finishes.

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. Select what you want to monitor. Under By target (see Targets), pick the timer you want to watch. You can also select an area, a floor, a device, or a label.
5. From the triggers shown for that target, select Timer time remaining.
6. Under Time remaining, enter the remaining time that should trigger the automation.
7. 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 timer.time_remaining. A basic example looks like this:

trigger: timer.time_remaining
target:
  entity_id: timer.laundry
options:
  remaining: "00:05:00"

This fires when timer.laundry has five minutes left.

Options in YAML

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 timer entity behind that target.

• Entity: one specific timer entity, such as timer.living_room.
• Device: every timer entity that belongs to a device.
• Area: every timer entity in a room or area.
• Floor: every timer entity on a floor.
• Label: every timer 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 is useful for reminders shortly before a timer finishes.
• If you want to react when the countdown reaches zero, use Timer finished instead.

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: send a reminder when the laundry timer has five minutes left

Get a reminder before the cycle finishes so you can be ready to empty the machine.

• Trigger: Timer time remaining
  • Target: Laundry timer
• Time remaining: 00:05:00
• Action: Send a notification message
  • Target: My Device (notify.my_device)

alias: "Notify when the laundry timer has five minutes left"
triggers:
  - trigger: timer.time_remaining
    target:
      entity_id: timer.laundry
    options:
      remaining: "00:05:00"
actions:
  - action: notify.send_message
    target:
      entity_id: notify.my_device
    data:
      message: "The laundry timer has five minutes left."

Automation: flash the hallway light when the entry timer has one minute left

Use a short visual warning before a timed hallway light is about to turn off.

• Trigger: Timer time remaining
  • Target: Entry timer
• Time remaining: 00:01:00
• Action: Turn on light

alias: "Flash the hallway light when the entry timer has one minute left"
triggers:
  - trigger: timer.time_remaining
    target:
      entity_id: timer.entry
    options:
      remaining: "00:01:00"
actions:
  - action: light.turn_on
    target:
      entity_id: light.hallway
    data:
      brightness_pct: 100

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:

• Timer finished: Triggers when one or more timers finish.

• Timer started: Triggers when one or more timers are started.