New year, new energy bills. If you're running Home Assistant, you have automation potential that most people never tap into. Here's what separates the hobbyists from the projects that produce measurable results: automations that run without you thinking about them.
I've been refining my energy automation system for over a year. Five automations consistently offer useful measurements and low-effort control. Here's what they do—and why they work.
Five practical energy controls
One complete example below, plus four patterns you can evaluate against measurements from your own home.
1. Standby Killer
Your TV, soundbar and game console may still draw power while apparently off. Measure the strip first: annual energy is measured watts × idle hours ÷ 1,000, and cost is that result × your tariff. If the reading is negligible, skip this automation.
The fix: cut power when devices have been off for 10 minutes, restore it before you'd typically use them.
# Standby Killer - TV Entertainment Center
alias: "Standby Killer - TV"
trigger:
- platform: state
entity_id: media_player.living_room_tv
to: "off"
for: "00:10:00"
condition:
- condition: time
after: "23:00:00"
before: "06:00:00"
action:
- service: switch.turn_off
target:
entity_id: switch.tv_plugThis automation removes the idle draw you actually measured during the scheduled window. You'll need a matching "restore power" automation before typical usage times—weekday evenings and weekend mornings.
That's one automation. Simple. Measurable. Set it once, then compare idle-load kWh before and after.
2. Cheap Rate Appliances
If you have dynamic pricing or day/night tariffs, this can shift usage to a lower-priced interval. Your dishwasher and washing machine don't care when they run. Your wallet does.
The concept: Create a "waiting" state. When you load the dishwasher, mark it as waiting. The automation watches electricity prices and triggers the appliance when rates drop below your threshold.
How to evaluate it: multiply appliance kWh per cycle by the price spread and the number of cycles you can genuinely shift. Use your own tariff history rather than a generic annual estimate.
Full YAML Available
The complete automation with price thresholds, notifications, and safety timeouts is included in our Energy Dashboard Guide.
3. Away Mode
Heating an empty house to 21°C is pure waste. This automation detects when everyone leaves and drops heating, kills standby loads, and optionally arms security.
The concept: Use a presence group (phones, person entities, door sensors). When the group shows "not_home" for 15+ minutes, trigger energy-saving actions. The delay prevents false triggers when someone takes out the trash.
How to evaluate it: compare heating energy during similar occupied and away periods, while keeping weather and comfort settings in view.
4. Night Setback
A lower overnight setpoint can reduce heat loss, but the result and morning recovery depend on insulation, weather and the heating system. Heat pumps often need a smaller change; begin with 0.5-1°C and monitor comfort.
The concept: Time-triggered temperature changes with workday awareness. Drop temperature at 23:00, restore at 06:00 on workdays, 08:00 on weekends. The Home Assistant workday sensor handles holidays automatically.
How to evaluate it: compare weather-normalised weekly heating use before and after the change. There is no honest universal percentage.
5. High Usage Alert
This one doesn't save money directly. It makes you aware of when you're burning through power. Awareness changes behavior. Behavior changes bills.
The concept: Monitor whole-house power. When consumption exceeds 150% of your baseline for 5+ minutes, send a notification. You want alerts for anomalies—a forgotten appliance, a malfunctioning device—not for making dinner.
This is the one automation that needs real hardware behind it: a whole-house power reading you can trust, plus enough history to know what your baseline actually is. If you don't have that yet, our complete guide to Home Assistant energy monitoring covers the meters and sensor setup that make this alert meaningful rather than noisy.
Value: Catches problems before they cost you. One forgotten space heater alert can save more than a month of standby killing.
These 5 automations are just the start. Our Energy Dashboard Guide includes 16 production-ready automations plus 4 reusable patterns, with the architecture to make them work together as a system.
Why These 5?
I've tested dozens of energy automations. These five have the best ratio of effort to savings. They're also foundational—they work independently but become more powerful when combined.
That's the part most tutorials miss. Individual automations are useful. A system of automations that share sensors, helpers, and logic? That's where real optimization happens.
The Bigger Picture
These 5 automations are the starting point. The complete energy management system includes:
- 16 production-ready automations plus 4 reusable patterns (not 5)
- Window-open detection that pauses heating instantly
- Vacation mode that drops everything to minimum
- Price-based scheduling that goes beyond "cheap/expensive"
- Dashboards that answer "how am I doing?" at a glance
- The architecture that makes it all work together
The individual automations matter. The system matters more.
Get the Complete System
16 production-ready automations plus 4 reusable patterns. Adaptable YAML and dashboards. The architecture to make it work. 120+ pages with 24 months of compatibility updates.
Get the Guide — €29 →30-day money-back guarantee. No questions asked.
Start Today
Copy the Standby Killer automation above. Implement it this weekend. Watch your idle power consumption drop.
One automation. Ten minutes. Real savings.
Happy 2026.