With a smart thermostat, you can change the temperature in your home from anywhere in the world. Some models can also pre-heat your home before you arrive, automatically turn off when you leave, and help you save even more on your energy bill. Here is our list of the best smart thermostats, from budget options to premium models for any smart home ecosystem.
With so many smart thermostats on the market, it can be difficult to find the right one for you. That’s why we created a quiz that will help you find the perfect one for your needs. Give it a try by clicking the button below:
Before you buy a smart thermostat, it’s important to know if it will work with your current HVAC and power systems. Otherwise, you won’t be able to install it.
Can You Install a Smart Thermostat in Your Home?
Most smart thermostats on the market today will only work with low-voltage power systems. To find out if your current thermostat is compatible, remove the cover faceplate and check the listed voltage. If you see 100V (volts) or up, you won’t be able to install most smart thermostats.
You can also tell if you have a high-voltage system if your current thermostat only has 2 wires or if you have thick wires that are capped or stranded.
Many smart thermostats will also require you to have a “C wire” (or “common wire”) in order to power your device. If your current thermostat doesn’t have this wire, you might be able to buy an adapter, but there’s still no guarantee that it will work.
If you would rather have your thermostat installed by a professional, HelloTech can send a technician to your home as soon as today. Our experts are hand-picked and fully vetted to install your smart thermostat for you, connect it to your WiFi network, and show you how to use the most important features.
Amazon Smart Thermostat: Best Budget Model
- Works With: Alexa
Amazon’s first smart thermostat is one of the cheapest models you can get, but it comes with a few high-end features. With Alexa Hunches, this smart thermostat uses AI (artificial intelligence) to learn your normal routines and automatically change the temperature when you’re home, away, or asleep.
You can also use the Alexa app on your smartphone to manually adjust the temperature, create your own custom schedules, and check your energy usage history. However, the Amazon Smart Thermostat does not come with a speaker built-in, and you can only use an Alexa smart speaker to change the temperature with voice commands.
The Amazon Smart Thermostat isn’t compatible with any temperature sensors, which means you can’t set up different temperature zones around your home. Plus, the Alexa app won’t let you control different thermostats individually, so you will only be able to set a single temperature for your whole home.
Google Nest Thermostat: Best Mid-Range Model
- Works With: Google, Alexa
Google’s latest Nest Thermostat has an elegant design with a display that shines through a mirrored screen. At half the price of most premium models, this budget thermostat is designed to help you save as much money as possible on your next energy bill.
While it doesn’t use AI to learn your schedule and automatically change your temperature, the Nest Thermostat does have a geofencing feature. This allows you to link your smartphone and your smart thermostat, so it can detect when you leave home and automatically turn on “Eco Mode.”
You can also create your own schedules in the app, and the Nest Thermostat will pre-heat or pre-cool your home before the scheduled time, so it will be the perfect temperature when you arrive. Google claims these features will save users an average of 10%-12% on heating bills and 15% on cooling bills.
Honeywell T9 WiFi Thermostat: Best for Large Homes
- Works With: Alexa, Google, Apple HomeKit
The Honeywell T9 Pro is one of the best smart thermostats for large homes because of the temperature sensor that it comes with. You can place this sensor in any room to control the temperature for that room individually. This way, you don’t have to heat or cool your entire home just to make one room feel cozy.
With its built-in motion detector, this sensor can also tell when a person enters the room and automatically adjust the temperature. It can even tell when a person is just walking through a room or spending some time there. You can connect up to 20 of these temperature sensors and use them all to set an average temperature across your home.
While it doesn’t have integrated speakers, this smart thermostat works with Alexa, Google, and Apple HomeKit smart speakers. You can also use the companion app to control the temperature, and it will even alert you when your air filters need to be changed.
Nest Learning Thermostat: Best for Home Automation
- Works With: Google, Alexa
The third-generation Nest Learning Thermostat is eight years old, but it’s still one the smartest thermostats on the market today. As its name implies, this smart thermostat learns your schedule and programs itself to automatically change the temperature after just 1 week of use.
When you go to bed or leave for work, this thermostat will automatically switch to “Eco Mode.” It even takes the weather and other outside factors into account, and it will guide you to the right settings to help you save on your energy bills.
Since Nest made the first smart thermostat that was awarded an Energy Star certification from the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), you know it will save you money. In fact, Google studied the energy bills of users in 41 states and found this thermostat saved them $131 to $145 a year. That means this device should pay for itself after just 2 years.
You can control this thermostat with the companion app or your Alexa or Google speakers. While the Nest Learning Thermostat does not come with a temperature sensor, you can buy up to 6 sensors for $39 each or $99 for a 3-pack.
ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium: Best Overall
- Works With: Alexa, Google, Apple HomeKit, Apple Watch
The newest smart thermostat from ecobee comes with an advanced sensor and uses radar to detect motion and occupancy more accurately. The ecobee Premium also uses geofencing and AI technology to learn your routines. But instead of changing the temperature automatically, this smart thermostat just gives you recommendations on how you can optimize your schedule to save energy.
With its eco+ software, this smart thermostat can adjust the temperature based on local energy demand and peak energy prices. It also has a “feels like” feature that will adjust the temperature based on the humidity. According to ecobee, these features can save you up to 26% on heating and cooling costs.
Unlike cheaper thermostats, the ecobee Premium has an Alexa speaker built-in, so you don’t need a separate smart speaker to control the temperature with voice commands. You can also enable Siri on the built-in speaker, as long as you have a HomePod or HomePod mini.
This is also the first smart thermostat to include a built-in air quality monitor, which will notify you when your air quality drops below a certain level and give you tips on how to improve it. You will also receive alerts when you need to change your air filters, and you can even have them automatically delivered when they need to be changed.
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