Variables & data

The four mechanisms that hold a value in Drizz — Store, SET, dataset variables and placeholders — compared in one table.

Drizz holds values in four mechanisms: SET dataset variables and placeholders.

Platforms	Android · iOS
Naming	snake_case, case-sensitive
Lifetime	SET last one run. Dataset values come from outside the run
Reserved	ctx — {{ctx.*}} is set by Drizz and you can't assign to it
Watch out	A dataset variable that shows red in the editor doesn't exist in the bound dataset. That run will fail

Prerequisites

None.

The four mechanisms

	Written as	Where the value comes from	Lives for	Reference it as
SET	SET city = "Bangalore"	Assigned in the script — a literal, another variable, an API field, or a structured screen read	The test run	{{city}}
Dataset variable	{{phone}}	A dataset, bound when the test plan runs	The run, supplied externally	{{phone}}

Selecting a mechanism

Rows apply top to bottom. The first matching row wins.

Condition	Mechanism	Written as
The value is on the screen now and several fields are needed as one object	SET with a screen read	SET <var> = screen(...)
The value changes per environment, per account or per run	Dataset variable	{{var}}
The value is fixed for this one test	SET	SET <var> = "<literal>"
The value comes from an API step	SET	SET <var> = API.<name>.response

A dataset variable is what makes one script run against staging and production, or across ten user accounts. Syntax for SET is on Store & SET; dataset authoring is on Datasets & test data.

All four mechanisms in one ShopEase test:

# ShopEase — apply a coupon and check the total drops

OPEN_APP {{app_package}}
Wait Until 5 Seconds

Type {{phone}} in the mobile number field
Tap on Get OTP
Type {{otp}} in the OTP field
Tap on Continue
Wait Until 5 Seconds

Tap on Cart
Wait Until 2 Seconds


Type {{coupon_code}} in the coupon field
Tap on Apply
Wait Until 3 Seconds

{{app_package}}, {{phone}} and {{otp}} come from a dataset bound to the plan.

Naming

Rule	Detail
Case	snake_case for every mechanism — subtotal_amount, customer_name, app_package
Case sensitivity	Dataset variable names must match the dataset key exactly. {{Phone}} and {{phone}} are two different variables
Reserved namespace	ctx is reserved. {{ctx.*}} is populated by Drizz on every run, including inside modules. SET ctx… is rejected
One style per value	A value that lives in a dataset is always {{phone}}, never <phone>. A placeholder is inert text — Drizz types the literal characters <phone> into the field and the step passes

Common mistakes

What you write	What happens
<phone> for a value that's in the dataset	Drizz types the literal text <phone>. The step passes and the login fails
{{Phone}} when the dataset key is phone	Renders red in the editor, resolves to nothing at run time
Reusing one variable name for two different captures	The second write overwrites the first, permanently
A placeholder for a value managed centrally	It has to be edited by hand before every run. Use a dataset variable

Next

• Store & SET

• Datasets & test data

• Modules

---

Last updated: 6 August 2026