Get first item: first

The first filter returns the first item of a list or the first character of a string. It provides a clean, readable way to access the beginning of a sequence.

This is commonly used at the end of a filter chain to pick the top result after sorting, selecting, or otherwise narrowing down a list of 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]. For example, after sorting temperature sensorsSensors return information about a thing, for instance the level of water in a tank. [Learn more] by value, you can use first to grab the coldest reading. After filtering lights by state, use first to get the first match. It is one of the most frequently used filters when working with entity collections.

Usage

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

{{ [10, 20, 30] | first }}

10

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 = are usually required. A few optional parameters have no default value, so the signature shows them without a = as well. To check whether a parameter is required, look at the parameter list below the signature. Each parameter is marked as Required or Optional.

The most common optional parameter without a default value is default. The default parameter sets the value a function returns when the function can’t produce a result, for example, when float gets text that isn’t a number. If you leave out default, there is no fallback value, so most functions raise an error and the template fails. The parameter list of each function says what happens. If you set default, the function returns your value instead.

round(
    value: Any,
    precision: int = 0,
    method: str = "common",
    default: Any,
) -> float | int | Any

first(
    value: list,
) -> Any

Function parameters

The following parameters can be provided to this filter.

Good to know

• If the sequence is empty, the result is undefined. It shows as empty, and the template editor shows a warning. If the template uses that result further, for example, in (items | first).name, you get an error. Chain with | default(value) if emptiness is possible.
• Works on any sequence, including strings (returns the first character) and generators.
• first doesn’t sort. It returns the first item in the order it receives. For example, the result of expand isn’t sorted, so add | sort(attribute="entity_id") first if the order matters.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Open Settings > 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.

Get the entity with the lowest temperature

States are text, so sorting the states directly puts "9" after "21". To sort by temperature, this example pairs each temperature, as a number, with its entity ID. It then sorts the pairs and picks the first (lowest) one. Sensors without a number, such as unavailable ones, are left out. If no sensor has a number, the template returns nothing.

{% set sensors = expand("sensor.temperature_sensors")
  | selectattr("state", "is_number") | list %}
{% if sensors %}
{{
  zip(
    sensors | map(attribute="state") | map("float"),
    sensors | map(attribute="entity_id")
  )
  | sort
  | first
  | last
}}
{% endif %}

sensor.bedroom_temperature

Get the first active light

Find the first light that is currently on.

{{
  expand("light.home_lights")
  | selectattr("state", "eq", "on")
  | map(attribute="entity_id")
  | first
}}

light.kitchen

First character of a string

The first filter also works on strings, returning the first character.

{{ "Hello" | first }}

H

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:

• Get last item: last - Returns the last item of a list or the last character of a string.

• Sort a list: sort - Sorts the items in a list, with optional attribute-based and reverse sorting.

• Filter items by test: select - Filters a list, keeping only items that pass a given test.