The Counter helper stores an integer that automations and dashboards can increase, decrease, reset, or set to a specific value. Use it to count events such as door openings, dishwasher cycles, completed chores, or reminders sent.
What a Counter is for
A Counter keeps a current value; it does not inspect past state history. For runtime, percentage of time, or state matches over a period, use History Stats instead.
Create a Counter in the current interface
- Go to Settings > Devices & services > Helpers.
- Select Create helper, then Counter.
- Set the name, initial value, minimum, maximum, step, and icon.
- Save it and use its
counter.nameentity.
Settings and state restoration
Initial is the reset value; minimum and maximum bound the number; step controls each increment/decrement. With restore enabled (the default), Home Assistant restores the last known value after a restart. Initial is used when no prior state is available or on reset.
YAML example
counter:
dishwasher_cycles:
name: Dishwasher cycles
initial: 0
minimum: 0
maximum: 999
step: 1
restore: true
icon: mdi:dishwasherActions, triggers, and automations
In the automation editor, use the current actions: counter.increment, counter.decrement, counter.reset, and counter.set_value. Counter triggers include incremented, decremented, reset, minimum reached, and maximum reached. The counter.is_value condition checks a threshold.
alias: Count front door openings
triggers:
- trigger: state
entity_id: binary_sensor.front_door
to: "on"
actions:
- action: counter.increment
target:
entity_id: counter.front_door_openingsCounter or History Stats?
Choose Counter for a value changed by events and actions. Choose History Stats to analyse a source entity’s state history over today, a week, or another time window—for example, appliance runtime or how often a state matched.
Troubleshooting
If a counter does not persist, check that restore is enabled. If it never reaches a limit, verify its entity ID, step, and maximum. Do not use a Counter as a substitute for historical runtime reporting.
See the official Counter documentation for the current reference.
Two practical Counter patterns
Notify when a maximum is reached
Use the counter.maximum_reached trigger for a chores or reminders limit, then reset the counter for the next cycle.
alias: Notify when reminder limit is reached
triggers:
- trigger: counter.maximum_reached
target:
entity_id: counter.reminders
actions:
- action: notify.send_message
target:
entity_id: notify.my_phone
data:
message: "Reminder limit reached"
- action: counter.reset
target:
entity_id: counter.remindersSet a known value
counter.set_value is useful when an automation needs to establish a known starting point. It still follows the helper’s configured limits.
When not to use a Counter
A Counter cannot reconstruct past states or measure physical runtime. For hours on, a daily ratio, or historical state matches, use History Stats. For an editable decimal setting, use input_number instead.