Node-RED integration with Home Assistant: a TypeScript node package that adds Home Assistant nodes to Node-RED so automations can be built as flows and connected to a Home Assistant instance over a WebSocket link, aimed at self-hosters, home-automation hobbyists and anyone already running both tools.
What it is
node-red-contrib-home-assistant-websocket is a Node-RED node collection, written in TypeScript and published under the MIT licence, that provides various nodes for setting up automation with Node-RED while communicating with Home Assistant. It lives in the Node-RED contributor ecosystem, distributed as a standard npm package and installable through the Node-RED Manage Palette, and it targets Home Assistant v2024.3 or newer. Development activity is current, with the last push recorded on 2026-09-12, 599 stars, 127 forks and 60 open issues.
The concrete problem it solves is the wiring between two separate automation systems. Node-RED handles flow-based logic and Home Assistant handles devices, entities and state, so something has to carry state and commands between them across a shared connection. This package fills that gap, so the connection does not have to be assembled by hand. The "websocket" in the name reflects the transport used to talk to Home Assistant, which makes the node the interface layer between a Node-RED flow and a Home Assistant instance rather than a stand-alone automation engine.
Key capabilities
- Supplies Home Assistant nodes for Node-RED, so automation can be assembled as flows instead of by other means.
- Communicates with Home Assistant over a WebSocket connection, as named by the package itself.
- Ships as an npm package named
node-red-contrib-home-assistant-websocket, installable from the Node-RED Manage Palette.
- Supports Home Assistant Community add-on users: the add-on includes this node out of the box, and the server node config carries an
I use the Home Assistant Add-on checkbox.
- Runs against Home Assistant v2024.3 and later, with Node-RED v3.1.1 or later and Node.js v20 or later as prerequisites.
- Maintained as TypeScript source with a CI workflow and a documentation site on GitHub Pages.
- Invites contributions through documented development-environment and documentation guides.
Who uses it and how
- Home Assistant add-on users who run the Community add-on and enable the node by checking
I use the Home Assistant Add-on in the server node config, with no separate package install.
- Self-hosters running Node-RED and Home Assistant side by side, who add the node through the Manage Palette and then build automation flows against their existing instance.
- npm-based deployments, where the package is installed inside the
~/.node-red directory and Node-RED is restarted to pick it up.
- Node-RED users on Node-RED v3.1.1+ and Node.js v20+ who need their flows to read from and act on Home Assistant.
- Contributors following the development environment and documentation guides to extend the node collection or improve the documentation.
Getting started
Install node-red-contrib-home-assistant-websocket through the Node-RED Manage Palette, or from the command line with npm install node-red-contrib-home-assistant-websocket inside ~/.node-red followed by a Node-RED restart. Home Assistant Community add-on users already have the node and only need the I use the Home Assistant Add-on checkbox.
How it compares
This registry entry lists no paid product that the project replaces, and the facts name no competing integration, so the package stands alone here. The two named projects, Node-RED and Home Assistant, are companions rather than substitutes: Node-RED supplies the flow engine and Home Assistant supplies the devices and entities, while this package is the connection between them. Nothing in the provided facts describes an alternative connection layer to measure it against.
When to use it — and when not to
Pick it when Node-RED and a Home Assistant v2024.3+ instance are already running and the goal is to drive devices and entities from flows; the self-hoster must operate both applications, Node.js v20+ and Node-RED v3.1.1+. Skip it if Node-RED is not in use or if automations already live entirely inside Home Assistant, since the package only adds value as the link between the two. Be aware that the README is short, deferring detail to the external documentation site, and that 60 open issues remain against 599 stars.
