Add Custom Icons to Home Assistant iOS Notifications

# What this does Home Assistant notifications on iPhone can include a colored icon so alerts are easier to scan. This is a small YAML change: choose an MDI glyph, a background color, and an icon color. The Companion app for iOS renders a generated icon next to the notification.

# Quick example you can copy Include a title (iOS uses it as the sender name) and place the icon fields inside the nested data block. The example below shows a package alert with a white package glyph on a purple background.

action: notify.mobile_app_your_iphone

message: "Your package is at the door."

notification_icon: "mdi:package-variant-closed-check"

notification_icon selects a Material Design Icon (MDI). color sets the icon background. notification_icon_color sets the glyph color. Keep hex colors in quotes so YAML treats the hash as part of the value.

# Using a shared notification helper If you funnel alerts through a shared notification script to centralize recipient routing and common options, assign icons inside that helper as group presets. Automations then call the helper instead of notify.mobile_app_... directly. Example call into a helper that selects a garbage reminder preset:

To override a helper's preset for an individual alert, pass notification_icon and color in the helper call's data. For example, a driveway alert that uses the helper but wants a car icon:

These helper examples depend on the specific script and recipient names in the author's setup. Install or adapt the documented helper before copying the exact calls.

# Icon and image behavior If you prefer your own image, use icon_url with a public URL or supported relative path. icon_url takes precedence over notification_icon. If you supply an image, the MDI background and glyph colors apply only to generated icons and won't recolor your image.

In the shared helper, an empty string for notification_icon (notification_icon: "") opts out of group presets. Untitled notifications and clear_notification commands also skip the helper's icon fields.

# Practical choices and small details Pick an icon that matches the message category (package, car, vacuum, garbage). Keep the notification text specific so the icon supplements, not replaces, the message. A color is purely visual and does not change notification urgency.

Existing recipients, tags, attachments, action buttons, and interruption levels remain unchanged. If your automations already include camera snapshots or action buttons, adding an icon is a visual cue alongside those elements.

# Try one alert first Start with a package or chore reminder to confirm rendering on your devices. Then pick consistent icons and colors for the alerts you use most. The author shows a short video walkthrough with examples and the YAML fields called out on screen.

Watch the notification icon tutorial on YouTube if you want a visual guide.