2026.10.4
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Sort a list: sort

The sort filter sorts the items of a list in ascending order by default. You can reverse the order, control case sensitivity, and sort by a specific attribute of each item.

This is one of the most frequently used filters when working with 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] collections. It allows you to sort sensorsSensors return information about a thing, for instance the level of water in a tank. [Learn more] by their state value to find the highest or lowest reading, sort lights by brightness, or sort 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] alphabetically by name. Combined with first or last, you can quickly find the minimum or maximum value from any group of entities.

Usage

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

As a filter 
{{ [3, 1, 4, 1, 5, 9] | sort | 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].) 
[1, 1, 3, 4, 5, 9]

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.
sort(
    value: list,
    reverse: bool = False,
    case_sensitive: bool = False,
    attribute: str | None = None,
) -> list

Function parameters

The following parameters can be provided to this filter.

value list Required

The list to sort.

reverse boolean (Optional, default: false)

If true, sorts in descending order. Defaults to false.

case_sensitive boolean (Optional, default: false)

If true, uppercase letters sort before lowercase. Defaults to false, which treats uppercase and lowercase as equal.

attribute string (Optional)

Sort by this attribute of each item instead of the item itself. Useful for sorting lists of objects by a specific property.

Sort in descending order

Use reverse=true to sort from highest to lowest.

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] 
{{ [3, 1, 4, 1, 5, 9] | sort(reverse=true) | 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].) 
[9, 5, 4, 3, 1, 1]

Sort by attribute

Sort a list of objects by a specific attribute. This is particularly powerful with entity state objects.

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]: Sort sensors by state value 
{{
  expand("sensor.temperature_sensors")
  | sort(attribute="state")
  | map(attribute="entity_id")
  | 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].) 
["sensor.bedroom_temp", "sensor.living_room_temp",
 "sensor.kitchen_temp"]

Good to know

  • The default sort is case-insensitive. Pass case_sensitive=true for exact-case ordering.
  • Sorting a list of entity states sorts strings alphabetically, so "9" comes after "10". Convert values to numbers first if you need numeric ordering.
  • Mixing types (strings and numbers together) raises an error.

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.

Find the brightest light

Sort lights by brightness in descending order and get the first one.

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] 
{{
  expand("light.home_lights")
  | selectattr("state", "eq", "on")
  | sort(attribute="attributes.brightness", reverse=true)
  | map(attribute="entity_id")
  | first
}}
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".) 
light.living_room

Sort entities alphabetically by friendly name

Sort a group of entities by their friendly name attribute for display.

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] 
{% for entity in expand("light.home_lights")
  | sort(attribute="name") %}
  {{ entity.name }}: {{ entity.state }}
{% endfor %}
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".) 
Bedroom light: off
Kitchen light: on
Living room light: on

Get the coldest and warmest temperatures

Use sort with first and last to find both extremes.

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] 
{% set sensors = expand("sensor.temperature_sensors")
   | sort(attribute="state") %}
Coldest: {{ sensors | first | attr("entity_id") }}
Warmest: {{ sensors | last | attr("entity_id") }}
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".) 
Coldest: sensor.bedroom_temperature
Warmest: sensor.kitchen_temperature

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: