diff --git a/client/app/pages/alert/components/Criteria.jsx b/client/app/pages/alert/components/Criteria.jsx
index 3971499a77..57516fd899 100644
--- a/client/app/pages/alert/components/Criteria.jsx
+++ b/client/app/pages/alert/components/Criteria.jsx
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import React from 'react';
 import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
-import { head, includes, toString } from 'lodash';
+import { head, includes, toString, isEmpty } from 'lodash';
 
 import Input from 'antd/lib/input';
 import Icon from 'antd/lib/icon';
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ DisabledInput.propTypes = {
 };
 
 export default function Criteria({ columnNames, resultValues, alertOptions, onChange, editMode }) {
-  const columnValue = resultValues && head(resultValues)[alertOptions.column];
+  const columnValue = !isEmpty(resultValues) ? head(resultValues)[alertOptions.column] : null;
   const invalidMessage = (() => {
     // bail if condition is valid for strings
     if (includes(VALID_STRING_CONDITIONS, alertOptions.op)) {
diff --git a/client/app/pages/alert/components/NotificationTemplate.jsx b/client/app/pages/alert/components/NotificationTemplate.jsx
index d3c1178436..31e10bdc12 100644
--- a/client/app/pages/alert/components/NotificationTemplate.jsx
+++ b/client/app/pages/alert/components/NotificationTemplate.jsx
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import React, { useState } from 'react';
 import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
-import { head } from 'lodash';
+import { head, isEmpty, isNull, isUndefined } from 'lodash';
 import Mustache from 'mustache';
 
 import { HelpTrigger } from '@/components/HelpTrigger';
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ import './NotificationTemplate.less';
 
 
 function normalizeCustomTemplateData(alert, query, columnNames, resultValues) {
-  const topValue = resultValues && head(resultValues)[alert.options.column];
+  const topValue = !isEmpty(resultValues) ? head(resultValues)[alert.options.column] : null;
 
   return {
     ALERT_STATUS: 'TRIGGERED',
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ function normalizeCustomTemplateData(alert, query, columnNames, resultValues) {
     ALERT_URL: `${window.location.origin}/alerts/${alert.id}`,
     QUERY_NAME: query.name,
     QUERY_URL: `${window.location.origin}/queries/${query.id}`,
-    QUERY_RESULT_VALUE: topValue,
+    QUERY_RESULT_VALUE: isNull(topValue) || isUndefined(topValue) ? 'UNKNOWN' : topValue,
     QUERY_RESULT_ROWS: resultValues,
     QUERY_RESULT_COLS: columnNames,
   };