A programmable thermostat can help reduce those costs by turning your HVAC system on when you anticipate being home, and off when you don’t think you’ll need indoor climate control. A smart thermostat goes far beyond relying on a simple schedule. It will not only enable you to create more sophisticated schedules for every day of the week, and give you complete control over your HVAC system, even when you’re away from home. We continually test and evaluate smart thermostats and can help you find the right one for your home.
Updated April 15, 2020 to report that Ecobee has announced a new home monitoring platform called Ecobee Haven. The system builds on ecobee’s existing smart thermostat and room sensors by adding a new home security camera with Alexa built in, plus new door/window sensors. Unlike most home security systems, Ecobee is touting that its new system doesn’t have a central keypad for arming and disarming the system. We’re expecting a review system and will have an in-depth evaluation
Nest usually gets all the attention—and the company deserves credit for shaking up a once sleepy market—but Ecobee’s latest smart thermostat is the best you can buy today. The new model builds on the model that preceded it, which was itself very well executed. Many other smart thermostats rely on measuring a home’s temperature in just one spot: Where the thermostat is located. Trouble is, that spot is usually in a hallway or somewhere else that you never spend any time in. Ecobee lets you place multi-purpose sensors in various rooms in your home, so that the thermostat instructs your HVAC system to heat or cool to keep you comfortable.
Best budget smart thermostat
If you don’t need all the bells and whistles that fancier smart thermostats offer (and you don’t need to control a humidifier, dehumidifier, or ventilator), Breeze’s Hl117 series thermostat is a great choice. It’s not as sophisticated as our top picks in this category, but it’s considerably less expensive.
