2026.10.3
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Select device

The HDMI-CEC: Select device action makes one HDMI-CEC device the active source, so your TV switches to its input. It is the CEC equivalent of pressing the input button on your remote and choosing, for example, your media player or game console.

Use it to jump straight to the right input as part of an automation, such as switching the TV to your streaming box when you start a movie.

Using this action from the user interface

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

To switch to an HDMI-CEC device from an automation or a script:

  1. Go to Settings > Automations & scenes.
  2. Open an existing automation or script, or select Create automation > Create new automation.
  3. If you’re setting up a new automation, add a trigger in the When section. Scripts don’t need a trigger. They run when something else calls them.
  4. In the Then do section, select Add action.
  5. From the search box, search for and select HDMI-CEC: Select device.
  6. Enter the Device you want to make the active source.
  7. Select Save.

This action does not support targets. In the UI, you are not prompted to choose an area, device, entity, or label.

Options in the UI

Device (Required)

The device to select. Use an entity ID, a physical address, or an alias from your configuration.

Using this action 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. For how an automation or a script is built in YAML, refer to Automations in YAML and Scripts.

In YAML, refer to this action as hdmi_cec.select_device. A basic example looks like this:

ActionAn action makes Home Assistant do something, for example, turn on a light, send a notification, or activate a scene. Automations and scripts run a list of actions. [Learn more] 
action: hdmi_cec.select_device
data:
  device: "Chromecast"

This makes the device you name the active source on your TV.

Options in YAML

device string Required

The device to select. Use an entity ID, a physical address, or an alias from your configuration.

Good to know

  • You can refer to the device in three ways: by an alias from your hdmi_cec configuration ("Chromecast"), by an entity ID ("switch.hdmi_3"), or by a physical address ("1.1.0.0").

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Open Settings > Tools > Actions, search for this action, fill in the fields, and select Perform action. You see what happens 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] without writing a line of YAML.

More examples

Real scenarios where this action shows up in automations and scripts. Copy any example and adapt it to your setup. In the visual editor, select the UI options listed in the example or paste the YAML code.

Tip

You don’t need to edit YAML to use these examples. Copy a YAML snippet from this page, open the visual automation editor in Home Assistant, and press Ctrl+V (or Cmd+V on Mac). Home Assistant automatically converts the pasted YAML into the visual editor format, whether it’s a full automation, a single trigger, a condition, or an action.

Automation: switch to the streaming box for movie night

When movie night starts, make your streaming box the active source so the TV shows the right input.

  • Trigger: State changed
    • Entity: Movie night helper
    • To: On
  • Action: HDMI-CEC: Select device
YAML example for switching to a device
AutomationAutomations in Home Assistant allow you to automatically respond to things that happen in and around your home. [Learn more] 
alias: "Switch to streaming box"
triggers:
  - trigger: state
    entity_id: input_boolean.movie_night
    to: "on"
actions:
  - action: hdmi_cec.select_device
    data:
      device: "Chromecast"

Still stuck?

To test the action on its own, run it in the automation editor with Run action, and check the message that it shows. To see what the action did when the automation ran, open the trace of that run. For details, refer to Testing automations. For common problems and their solutions, refer to Troubleshooting automations.

If that doesn’t help, the Home Assistant community is quick to help: join Discord for real-time chat, post on the community forum with the action you’re calling and what you expected to happen, or share on our subreddit /r/homeassistant.

Tip

AI assistants like ChatGPT or Claude can also explain actions or suggest the right one when you describe what you want in plain language.

Related actions

Explore related actions:

  • Power on: Powers on all devices on the HDMI-CEC bus that support this function.

  • Standby: Puts all devices on the HDMI-CEC bus that support this function into standby.

  • Update: Updates the state of HDMI-CEC devices from the bus.

  • Send command: Sends a raw CEC command to the HDMI-CEC bus.

  • Volume: Changes the volume or mute state of the HDMI-CEC audio system.