Ever feel like your Home Assistant dashboard is a bit… generic? You’ve got all your smart home goodness hooked up, but navigating it feels like a chore, or maybe it just doesn’t quite look the way you want it to. If you’re nodding along, then diving into Lovelace YAML is probably your next step. It’s the way to take control and build dashboards that are not only functional but also perfectly tailored to your needs.

The good news? Creating custom Home Assistant dashboards using Lovelace YAML isn’t as scary as it might sound. It’s essentially telling Home Assistant what you want to see and how you want to see it, using a simple text-based language. You’re not writing a novel; you’re just arranging your smart home’s information in a way that makes sense to you. This guide will walk you through the essentials, from setting things up to making your dashboards truly shine.

Getting Started: The Basics of Lovelace YAML

Before you start rearranging your smart home’s digital furniture, it’s good to understand what Lovelace YAML actually is. Think of Lovelace as Home Assistant’s user interface – it’s what you see and interact with. YAML (which stands for “YAML Ain’t Markup Language”) is the file format used to configure many things in Home Assistant, and Lovelace is no exception.

When you first set up Home Assistant, you’re often presented with an automatically generated dashboard. This is the “UI mode” of Lovelace. While it’s great for getting started, it’s limited in its customization. To truly unlock the power, you need to switch to “YAML mode.”

Why Switch to YAML Mode?

This is where the magic happens. While the UI editor is convenient for quick changes and simple layouts, it hits its limits when you want to do something more complex.

• Complete Control: YAML gives you granular control over every aspect of your dashboard. You can arrange cards precisely, set up specific views for different purposes, and even embed custom HTML or JavaScript if you’re feeling adventurous (though we’ll stick to the core for now).
• Version Control: Treat your dashboard configuration like code. You can store your dashboard-config.yaml file in a version control system like Git, allowing you to track changes, revert to previous versions if something goes wrong, and even collaborate with others.
• Reusability: Once you’ve perfected a specific card or layout, you can easily copy and paste it into other dashboards or reuse it in different sections of the same dashboard.
• Advanced Features: Many powerful custom cards and integrations offer features that can only be fully utilized or configured through YAML.

Enabling YAML Mode

Switching to YAML mode is usually a one-time setup process per dashboard.

1. Navigate to Your Dashboard: Open your Home Assistant instance in a web browser.
2. Go to Dashboard Settings: Click on the three dots in the top-right corner of your screen (the “Kebab menu”) and select “Edit Dashboard.”
3. Switch to Raw Configuration: In the “Edit Dashboard” dialog that pops up, you’ll see an option for “Raw configuration editor.” Click this.
4. Confirm and Copy: Home Assistant will likely warn you that you’re about to switch to YAML mode. Confirm this. You’ll then see the raw YAML code for your current dashboard. This is crucial: copy all of this code.
5. Create Your YAML File: On your Home Assistant server, navigate to your config directory. Create a new file named, for example, lovelace-my-custom-dashboard.yaml. Paste the copied code into this new file.
6. Configure Home Assistant: Now, you need to tell Home Assistant to use this YAML file. Open your main configuration.yaml file and add the following:

“`yaml

lovelace:

resources:

• url: /local/lovelace-my-custom-dashboard.yaml

type: module

“`

• Make sure the url path matches where you saved your YAML file. /local/ refers to the www folder within your config directory. So, if you put lovelace-my-custom-dashboard.yaml directly inside config/www/, this is correct. If you put it in a subfolder like config/www/dashboards/, then the URL would be /local/dashboards/lovelace-my-custom-dashboard.yaml.
• The type: module is important for loading custom resources.

1. Restart Home Assistant: Save your configuration.yaml file and restart Home Assistant for the changes to take effect.

After restarting, your dashboard should now be controlled by the YAML file you created. If you go back to “Edit Dashboard” and look for the “Raw configuration editor,” you’ll see the same YAML code you’re working with.

If you’re interested in enhancing your Home Assistant experience, you might also want to check out an article that delves into various tech topics, including smart home technologies.

This article provides insights that can complement your understanding of creating custom dashboards using Lovelace YAML. You can read more about it here: Hacker Noon Covers a Range of Topics Across the Tech Sector.

Understanding Lovelace Structure: Views, Cards, and Elements

At its heart, a Lovelace dashboard is built with a hierarchical structure. You have the main dashboard, which can contain multiple “views,” and each view is a collection of “cards” that display your smart home entities and information.

Think of it like a book:

• Dashboard: The entire book.
• Views: Chapters in the book. Each chapter focuses on a particular topic or section.
• Cards: Paragraphs or sections within a chapter. These are the individual pieces of information or controls you interact with.

The Top Level: title and views

Your lovelace-my-custom-dashboard.yaml file will start with some general settings and then a list of views.

“`yaml

title: My Awesome Smart Home

views:

• title: Overview

icon: mdi:home-assistant

cards:

Cards for your Overview view go here

• title: Lights

icon: mdi:lightbulb-outline

cards:

Cards for your Lights view go here

• title: Climate

icon: mdi:thermometer

cards:

Cards for your Climate view go here

“`

• title: This is the name that appears at the top of your Lovelace dashboard.
• views: This is a list (indicated by the hyphen -) of all the different screens or sections you want in your dashboard. Each item in the list represents a single view.

Inside a View: title, icon, path, and cards

Each view has its own set of configurations:

• title: The name of this specific view, which appears as a tab or selectable option in your dashboard navigation.
• icon: A Material Design Icon (MDI) that visually represents the view. You can find tons of these at Material Design Icons.
• path (Optional): This allows you to create specific URLs for your views, making them bookmarkable or linkable. If you don’t specify a path, Home Assistant generates one based on the title.
• cards: This is the most important part of a view. It’s a list of all the cards you want to display on that particular screen.

What are Cards?

Cards are the building blocks of your dashboard. They display information about your entities (like the state of a light, the temperature from a sensor, or the battery level of a device) or provide controls (like buttons to turn things on/off, sliders to adjust brightness, or toggles).

Home Assistant comes with several built-in card types, and the world of custom cards is vast. Here are a few common ones you’ll encounter:

• entity card: Displays a single entity with its state and an optional tap action.
• entities card: A simple way to list multiple entities.
• glance card: Shows entity states with simple icons and can include buttons.
• gauge card: Displays a numerical value (like temperature) with a visual gauge.
• history-graph card: Shows the historical data for an entity.
• picture-elements card: A powerful card for creating custom layouts with images and overlays.
• markdown card: Allows you to display formatted text, headings, and links.

Building Your First Custom Cards

Let’s get practical and start building some cards. The cards section within a view is a list, so each card is defined by its type and then specific configurations relevant to that type.

The entity Card: Simple and Essential

The entity card is the most basic. It’s perfect for showing the status of a single device and allowing you to interact with it.

“`yaml

cards:

• type: entity

entity: light.living_room_lamp # The entity ID of your light

name: Living Room Lamp # Optional: A friendly name for the card

tap_action:

action: toggle # What happens when you tap it (toggle on/off)

“`

• type: entity: Tells Lovelace to use the entity card.
• entity: This is the unique ID of your Home Assistant entity (e.g., light.living_room_lamp, sensor.outside_temperature, binary_sensor.front_door).
• name: Overrides the entity’s default friendly name for this specific card.
• tap_action: Defines what happens when you tap the card. toggle is common for lights, but you can also use more-info (to open the entity’s details), call-service, or navigate to another view.

The entities Card: Grouping Information

The entities card is great for displaying several entities without needing a separate card for each one.

“`yaml

cards:

• type: entities

title: Upstairs Sensors

entities:

• entity: sensor.bedroom_temperature
• entity: sensor.bedroom_humidity
• entity: sensor.hallway_motion

“`

• type: entities: Specifies the entities card.
• title: A title for this group of entities.
• entities: A list of entities to display. Each item in the list is just the entity ID.

You can also add actions to individual entities within an entities card:

“`yaml

cards:

• type: entities

title: Controls

entities:

• entity: light.kitchen_overhead

tap_action:

action: toggle

• entity: switch.smart_plug_fan

name: Living Room Fan

tap_action:

action: toggle

“`

The glance Card: Quick Status Overview

The glance card provides a compact view of entities, often showing an icon and its state. It’s good for a quick scan of multiple devices.

“`yaml

cards:

• type: glance

title: Quick Actions

entities:

• entity: light.all_lights_off

service: light.turn_off

service_data:

entity_id: all

• entity: switch.main_power

“`

• tap_action: Here, we’re demonstrating call-service. This allows you to trigger a Home Assistant service directly from the card. In this example, we’re calling the light.turn_off service for all lights.

Combining Elements: The picture-elements Card

This card is a bit more advanced but incredibly powerful for creating visually appealing and interactive dashboards. You can overlay elements like text, icons, and controls onto an image.

Imagine you have a floor plan of your house.

You can use picture-elements to place icons over rooms that represent lights, sensors, or thermostats, and click them to control them.

“`yaml

cards:

• type: picture-elements

image: /local/images/floorplan.png # Path to your floor plan image

elements:

• type: state-icon

entity: light.bedroom_lamp

style:

top: 20%

left: 30%

• type: state-label

entity: sensor.bedroom_temperature

style:

top: 30%

left: 30%

tap_action:

action: more-info

• type: state-icon

entity: climate.thermostat

style:

top: 40%

left: 50%

tap_action:

action: more-info

“`

• image: The URL to your image. /local/ points to the www folder in your config directory.
• elements: A list of elements to draw on top of the image.
• type: state-icon: Shows the icon of an entity.
• type: state-label: Shows the name and state of an entity.
• style: This is where you position the element using CSS-like properties (top, left, width, height, color, etc.). The percentages are relative to the image size.
• tap_action: As with other cards, you can define what happens when an element is tapped.

Advanced Customization with card-mod and Custom Cards

The built-in cards are great, but to truly make your dashboard unique, you’ll want to explore custom cards and styling.

Styling with card-mod

card-mod is a fantastic Home Assistant integration that allows you to apply CSS styling to any Lovelace card or element. It’s incredibly powerful for fine-tuning the look and feel of your dashboard.

1. Install card-mod: You can install card-mod via HACS (Home Assistant Community Store).
2. Add to Lovelace Resources: After installation, you need to add it to your configuration.yaml under lovelace.resources:

“`yaml

lovelace:

resources:

• url: /hacsfiles/card-mod/card-mod.js

type: module

“`

(Ensure the URL is correct based on your HACS installation.)

1. Apply Styles: You can now add a style key to any card to apply CSS.

“`yaml

cards:

• type: entity

entity: sensor.outside_temperature

name: Outside Temp

style: |

ha-card {

background-color: #e0f7fa; / Light cyan background /

border-radius: 10px;

box-shadow: 2px 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.2);

}

.info.name { / Target the name part of the card /

color: #00796b; / Teal color for the name /

font-weight: bold;

}

“`

• The | indicates a multiline string, allowing you to write more CSS.
• ha-card targets the main container of the card.
• You can inspect elements in your browser’s developer tools to find specific CSS selectors.

Exploring Custom Cards

The Home Assistant community has developed hundreds of custom Lovelace cards that extend functionality far beyond the built-in options. You can find them on GitHub, often linked from the Home Assistant forums or HACS.

Some popular examples include:

• mini-graph-card: For beautifully rendered, compact graphs of entity history.
• button-card: Highly customizable buttons with various states, actions, and styling options.
• slider-entity-row: A more visually appealing slider for entities like lights.
• layout-card: For creating complex multi-column layouts and grids.

To use a custom card:

1. Install via HACS: Most custom cards can be installed directly through HACS.
2. Add to Lovelace Resources: Sometimes, you’ll need to add the card’s JavaScript file to your configuration.yaml under lovelace.resources, similar to card-mod. HACS usually handles this automatically.
3. Use in YAML: Once installed and loaded, you can use the custom card by referencing its type in your dashboard YAML.

“`yaml

cards:

• type: custom:mini-graph-card # Example for mini-graph-card

entities:

• sensor.outside_temperature

name: Outside

show_state: true

decimals: 1

“`

• The custom: prefix is a convention for custom cards.

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Organizing Your Dashboard: Views and Layouts

As your smart home grows, so will your dashboard. Effective organization is key to keeping it manageable and intuitive.

Using Multiple Views

Views are your primary tool for breaking down your dashboard into logical sections. Don’t try to cram everything onto a single page.

• By Function: One view for “Lights,” another for “Climate,” “Security,” “Media,” etc.
• By Location: A “Living Room” view, a “Kitchen” view, a “Bedroom” view.
• By Purpose: A “Daily Overview” view, a “Monitoring” view, a “Control Panel” view.

Consider the icon and title for each view to make them easily identifiable.

Using Layout Cards

For more complex arrangements within a view, consider using a layout-card (a custom card). It allows you to create columns, grids, and other sophisticated layouts.

“`yaml

Example using layout-card to create columns

cards:

• type: custom:layout-card

layout: horizontal # Or vertical, grid, etc.

cards:

• type: entities

title: Morning

entities:

• light.bedroom_lamp
• input_boolean.wake_up_alarm
• type: entities

title: Evening

entities:

• light.living_room_lamp
• input_boolean.goodnight_scene

“`

Tips for Effective Lovelace YAML Dashboards

Creating dashboards is an iterative process. Here are some tips to make yours more effective and enjoyable to use.

Naming and IDs

• Entity IDs: Always use precise entity IDs. If you’re unsure, find them in the Developer Tools -> States menu in Home Assistant.
• Friendly Names: Use name within cards to provide clear, user-friendly labels, especially if the default entity name is technical.

Icons Matter

• Consistent Icons: Use consistent icons for similar types of entities (e.g., all lights use mdi:lightbulb, all sensors use mdi:thermometer or mdi:wave-sensor).
• View Icons: Choose meaningful icons for your views to make navigation quick.

Actionable Elements

• Tap Actions: Think about what the user will want to do with each entity. Toggle lights, open more info for sensors, call services for scenes.
• Hold Actions: Some cards, like button-card, allow hold_action for secondary functions.

Readability of Your YAML

• Indentation: YAML relies on indentation. Be consistent with spaces (usually 2 spaces per level).
• Comments: Use # to add comments explaining complex sections or the purpose of a card. This is invaluable for future you.

Backup Regularly!

• Version Control: As mentioned, use Git or another version control system.
• Manual Backups: Keep copies of your configuration.yaml and your Lovelace YAML files in a safe place.

Start Simple, Iterate

• Don’t try to build the perfect dashboard on your first try. Start with a few essential cards and views.
• As you use your dashboard, you’ll identify what works, what’s missing, and what could be improved. Make small, incremental changes.

By diving into Lovelace YAML, you’re not just customizing your smart home’s interface; you’re gaining a deeper understanding and control over your smart home ecosystem. It’s a rewarding process that transforms Home Assistant from a collection of devices into a truly personalized and efficient smart home hub.

FAQs

What is Home Assistant?

Home Assistant is an open-source home automation platform that allows users to control and automate various devices and services in their home.

What is Lovelace YAML?

Lovelace YAML is a way to create custom dashboards in Home Assistant using YAML configuration files. It allows users to have more control and flexibility in designing their home automation dashboards.

How do I create custom dashboards using Lovelace YAML?

To create custom dashboards using Lovelace YAML, users can define their dashboard layout, cards, and entities in a YAML configuration file. They can then customize the appearance and functionality of their dashboard using various configuration options.

What are the benefits of using Lovelace YAML for custom dashboards?

Using Lovelace YAML for custom dashboards allows users to have more control over the layout and design of their dashboards. It also provides a way to create more complex and customized dashboard configurations that may not be possible with the standard user interface.

Are there any limitations to using Lovelace YAML for custom dashboards?

While Lovelace YAML provides a lot of flexibility and customization options, it may require a deeper understanding of YAML configuration and Home Assistant’s capabilities. Users should also be aware that changes made to the YAML configuration file may require a restart of Home Assistant to take effect.