Power Automate Body/Value Expression

 In Power Automate, the expression

output('List_rows_1')?['body/value']

(or equivalently outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value'])
is used to extract the data rows returned by a "List rows" action from Dataverse, SharePoint, or another connector that returns a list of items.

Let’s break it down 👇

🔍 Explanation of Each Part

Part	Meaning
outputs('List_rows_1')	Refers to the entire output (JSON) of the action named List_rows_1. The action name can differ (e.g., List_rows, List_records, etc.)
?	Safe navigation operator — prevents errors if that property doesn’t exist.
['body/value']	Accesses the array of records in the response body — i.e., all the rows returned by the List Rows action.

---

🧩 Example

Suppose your List rows action (List_rows_1) retrieves contact records from Dataverse.
The raw output might look like this (simplified):

{
  "body": {
    "value": [
      {
        "fullname": "John Doe",
        "emailaddress1": "john@contoso.com"
      },
      {
        "fullname": "Jane Smith",
        "emailaddress1": "jane@contoso.com"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Then this expression:

outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value']

returns:

[
  {
    "fullname": "John Doe",
    "emailaddress1": "john@contoso.com"
  },
  {
    "fullname": "Jane Smith",
    "emailaddress1": "jane@contoso.com"
  }
]

That’s an array of objects — one per row retrieved.

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🧠 Common Use Cases

• In an “Apply to each” loop:

  Apply to each: value = outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value']
  

  → This loops over every record returned.

• To get a specific field from the first row:

  first(outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value'])?['fullname']
  

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🧩 Example Setup

Let’s say your List rows action (List_rows_1) retrieves records from a Dataverse table (like Contacts), and its output looks like this:

{
  "body": {
    "value": [
      {
        "fullname": "John Doe",
        "emailaddress1": "john@contoso.com",
        "contactid": "12345"
      },
      {
        "fullname": "Jane Smith",
        "emailaddress1": "jane@contoso.com",
        "contactid": "67890"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Now, here’s how you can extract values from it 👇

---

🎯 1. Get All Rows (Array)

To get all rows:

outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value']

This returns an array of records (like above).

---

🎯 2. Get the First Row

To get only the first record:

first(outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value'])

This returns:

{
  "fullname": "John Doe",
  "emailaddress1": "john@contoso.com",
  "contactid": "12345"
}

---

🎯 3. Get a Specific Column Value

To extract a specific field from that first record:

Field You Want	Expression
Full Name	first(outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value'])?['fullname']
Email	first(outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value'])?['emailaddress1']
Contact ID	first(outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value'])?['contactid']

---

🎯 4. Get a Field from a Specific Record in a Loop

If you use an Apply to each action:

Apply to each: value = outputs('List_rows_1')?['body/value']

Inside the loop, you can access each field using:

Field	Expression inside the loop
Full Name	items('Apply_to_each')?['fullname']
Email	items('Apply_to_each')?['emailaddress1']
Contact ID	items('Apply_to_each')?['contactid']

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⚡ Quick Tip

If you renamed your loop, replace 'Apply_to_each' with the actual loop name — for example:

items('Apply_to_each_2')?['fullname']

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Would you like me to show how to filter or pick a specific row (for example, the one where email = "john@contoso.com")?