What is the difference between Add tags and Set tags in business rules?

Question

What is the difference between Add tags and Set tags in business rules?

Answer

The Add tags action in triggers and automations adds one or more tags to the tags already on the ticket.

This is how the events of the ticket look like when you use the Add tags action:

The Set tags action removes all current tags and replaces them with the tags you select in your business rule actions.

Dropdown, multi-select, and checkbox ticket fields each have tags for their options. Because this action can remove or add tags, it can also affect ticket fields. For more information, see Understanding tags and ticket fields.

This is how the events of the ticket look like when you use the Set tags action:

Warning: Only use Set tags when you intend to remove all previous tags on the ticket. Tag removal can disrupt your workflows and reports unless it is intentional. Zendesk recommends Add tags in most setups.

For more information about the different action statements, see Trigger conditions and actions reference.