2026.10.4
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Test less than: lt

The lt test checks whether a value is strictly less than another value. It is also available under the aliases lessthan and <. When used with is, it reads naturally: value is lt(other).

While you can always use < directly in conditions, the lt test is essential when working with selectattr, select, and similar filters that require a test name as a string. This lets you filter collections by comparing values to an upper limit without writing explicit loops.

Usage

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

As a test 
{% if 3 is lt(5) %}
  Less than
{% endif %}
Result (stringA piece of text, like a name, message, or entity ID. In templates, wrap strings in quotes, like "living_room" or "lights are on".) 
Less than

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.

How to read a signature

Here is the signature of the round filter as an example:

round(
    value: Any,
    precision: int = 0,
    method: str = "common",
    default: Any,
) -> float | int | Any
  • round is the name of the function.
  • Between the parentheses are the parameters. Each parameter has a name, followed by a colon and the type of value the parameter expects. The type only tells you what kind of value to pass. For default: Any, you pass a value of any type, such as 0 or "unknown", not the word Any.
  • = 0 and = "common" are default values. You can leave out precision and method, and round uses these default values.
  • default has no =, but the parameter list marks default as optional. If you leave out default and round gets a value that isn’t a number, round raises an error.
  • -> shows the type of value the function returns.
  • Inside a signature, | means “or”. This function returns a decimal number, a whole number, or the value you passed as default.

round is a filter, so the first parameter, value, is the value before the |. For example, {{ 3.14159 | round(2) }} returns 3.14.

The types you’ll see most often:

  • str: text, such as "hello"
  • int: a whole number, such as 5
  • float: a decimal number, such as 3.14
  • bool: true or false
  • list: a list of values, such as [1, 2, 3]. list[str] is a list of texts.
  • dict: a set of keys and values, such as {"name": "Kitchen"}
  • datetime and timedelta: a date and time, and a duration. For details, refer to Dates and times.
  • None: no value
  • Any: any type of value

Some signatures use special forms:

  • *args means you can pass any number of values, separated by commas. For example, average(1, 2, 3).
  • value | name(...) means the function is a filter. The value before the | is passed to the filter as its first parameter. Some filter signatures, like the round example, show this value as the first parameter between the parentheses instead.
lt(
    value: Any,
    other: Any,
) -> bool

Function parameters

The following parameters can be provided to this function.

value any Required

The value to test. This is the left-hand side of the comparison.

other any Required

The value to compare against.

Aliases

This test can also be used as:

  • lessthan - value is lessthan(other)
  • < - Only as the name of the test in select or selectattr, such as select("<", 20). value is <(other) doesn’t work.

Using with selectattr

Filter entities below a certain threshold, for example to find low battery devices.

TemplateA template is an automation definition that can include variables for the action or data from the trigger values. This allows automations to generate dynamic actions. [Learn more]: Low battery devices 
{{
  states.sensor
  | selectattr("attributes.battery_level", "number")
  | selectattr("attributes.battery_level", "lt", 20)
  | map(attribute="name") | list
}}
Result (listAn ordered collection of values, like a list of entity IDs or a list of numbers. Written with square brackets in templates, for example [1, 2, 3].) 
['Remote Control']

Good to know

  • Entity states are always strings, so comparing a state with this test compares text, not numbers. For example, "9" and "unavailable" both count as greater than "25". Compare a numeric attribute instead, or convert the state with float first.
  • If an entity doesn’t have the attribute, or its value is None, the comparison raises an error. To skip those entities, add selectattr("attributes.battery_level", "number") first, as in the example above.
  • This is strict. A value equal to the threshold does not pass. Use le for less-or-equal.

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.

Filter values below a limit

Use select to find numbers below a threshold.

TemplateA template is an automation definition that can include variables for the action or data from the trigger values. This allows automations to generate dynamic actions. [Learn more] 
{{ [10, 25, 30, 15, 40] | select("lt", 20) | list }}
Result (listAn ordered collection of values, like a list of entity IDs or a list of numbers. Written with square brackets in templates, for example [1, 2, 3].) 
[10, 15]

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.

Tip

AI assistants like ChatGPT or Claude can also explain or fix templates when you describe what you want in plain language.

Related template functions

These functions work well alongside this one: