Automation Variables

Reference record data inside automation actions using variables that resolve at run time.

Variables let an automation pick up values from the record that triggered it — or from related records — and use them inside action inputs. Drop {Field Name} into an email body, an HTTP request, a Slack message, or a field update and Blue substitutes the current value when the automation runs.

Inserting a variable

Wherever an automation action accepts text — email body, subject, HTTP URL, JSON payload, message text, field value — type { to open the variable picker. Pick the field you want and Blue inserts the placeholder. When the action runs, the placeholder is replaced with the record’s actual value.

Supported field types

Most field types are usable as variables. Each resolves to a sensible plain-text representation.

  • Text fields — single-line, multi-line, URL, email, phone — resolve to the raw value.
  • Number / currency / percent / duration — resolve to the formatted value, respecting workspace format settings.
  • Date — formatted per the workspace’s date format.
  • Single-select — the option label.
  • Multi-select / list variables — joined as a comma-separated list, with optional separator customization on most actions.
  • Checkbox variables — render as true / false, or as a custom label pair (e.g. Yes / No) per action.
  • Assignee — the assignee’s name; multiple assignees join as a list.
  • Reference / lookup — the referenced record name (or list of names).
  • Formula / rollup — the computed value at run time.
  • System fields — record name, project name, status, created at, updated at, completed at, updated by, due date.

Bulk automations

When a single trigger fires actions across many records (for example, “every Monday, for every overdue record, send the assignee an email”), variables resolve per record — each record produces its own email with its own field values substituted in.

This works for bulk email and HTTP actions too, not just field updates.

Behavior

  • Variables resolve at the moment the action runs. An automation that fires later (because of a delay or schedule) uses the value at that point, not at trigger time.
  • An empty field substitutes an empty string. Plan your templates so a missing value doesn’t produce awkward output.
  • A variable pointing at a field that no longer exists on the record renders as an empty string.

Combine variables with conditional automations — use conditions to make sure the relevant fields are populated before the action runs, so your variables always resolve to something useful.