Variable Reference Syntax

Step Output Shapes

Each Step type stores its own output structure (1 is the trigger and 2 is an action):

For non-looping Code editor Steps, {{ 2.total }} and {{ 2.output.total }} alias {{ 2.result.output.total }}.

Nested & List Indexing

Separate nested fields with dots ({{ 1.customer.address.city }}). Index into a list with a dot or square brackets starting at 0:

{{ 1.items.0.name }}
{{ 1.items[0].name }}
{{ 1.items.2.price }}
{{ 1.items[1][2].field }}
{{ 1.[0].name }}

• Bracket parsing rules. Only an all-digit bracket at the end of a segment acts as a list index ({{ 1.items[0].name }} or {{ 1.[0].name }}). Other balanced brackets stay part of a key name (data[email], tags[], items[-1]). Unbalanced or unseparated brackets ({{ 1[0] }}) fail validation.
• Process every item. Use Run for each item instead of a fixed index. In list Steps (Filter, Sort, Remove duplicates, Limit, Summarize, Combine), {{ 2.orders.lineItems }} gathers that field across all records.

Full Output & Fallbacks

• Whole output ($full_result). Use {{ 5.$full_result }} for a Step’s full value (object, list, or scalar), including scalar outputs from Split Text or HTML to text. Objects and lists serialize to JSON in text fields; pick specific fields for AI Steps to save tokens.
• Missing fields and fallbacks. A missing field without a fallback fails the Step (“Placeholder 99.nothing didn’t find data”). Add | default:"Unknown" ({{ 3.company | default:"Unknown" }}) to use a fallback and log a warning. A fallback never fixes a missing Step number.
• Permanent Step numbers. Steps keep their number when renamed, reordered, or when other Steps are deleted. Deleted numbers are never reused.

System Variables

System variables resolve from execution context in UTC without referencing a Step:

Workspace Variables & Secrets

Reference values stored in Secrets & Variables. Keys match case-insensitively ({{ $var.region }} equals {{ $var.REGION }}):

• {{ $var.REGION }}: Plain workspace variable.
• {{ $secret.STRIPE_API_KEY }} and {{ $key.SERVICE_KEY }}: Encrypted secret or API key decrypted at runtime.

Glow replaces known secret and API-key values (6+ characters, including common encodings) in Step outputs and errors with [REDACTED]. Script transformations make masking best-effort, so keep raw credentials out of Step outputs. Referencing a secret or API key in an authorized outbound request sends the decrypted value to that destination.

Subflow Input ($input)

When a Subflow Step or AI Agent workflow tool starts an automation, read the caller payload under Input data:

• {{ $input }}: Full input object from the parent run.
• {{ $input.customer.email }}: Nested field from the input.
• {{ $input.userId | default:"guest" }}: Returns "guest" when absent or in a standalone run. Without | default:..., {{ $input }} fails in standalone runs.

Files & Webhook URLs

• Files ({{ $file.<id> }}). Reference a file from File Management. Text files return text contents. Binary files (PDFs, images, spreadsheets) return a short-lived download URL.
• Webhook URLs ({{ $webhook.1.url }}). Reference the URL of Webhook trigger Step 1. Pausing keeps the token, and the automation must be Live to receive events. Treat the URL as a credential.