Best Smart Thermostats for 2022 – CNET [CNET]

April 23, 2022 Megan Wollerton technology

A smart thermostat does more than just manage your home’s heating and cooling: It’s an app-enabled device that comes with tons of different features. It allows you to control your home’s temperature from anywhere, whether you want to turn on the heat on your commute home from the office or you’re on vacation halfway across the world. And because it’s a “smart” device, many leading thermostats can be controlled using a compatible smart display or speaker using voice commands through Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri.

Some smart thermostats also use occupancy sensors to determine if you’re home or away to automatically change the temperature for you. Other thermostats automatically switch between home and away modes based on your phone’s location. Some even employ remote temperature and proximity sensors to extend the detection range of your thermostat to other parts of your home.

To accompany these modern features, many connected thermostats offer innovative designs. From a rounded shape to a responsive touchscreen, smart thermostats look a lot different than traditional models. They can also send you smart alerts, sync with the rest of your smart home devices and provide details on your HVAC system’s energy usage over time.

Without further ado, let’s explore the best smart thermostats.

Amazon Smart Thermostat

Best overall

$48 at Amazon

Ecobee SmartThermostat with Voice Control

Best voice integrations

$200 at EcoBee

Resideo Honeywell Home T9 Smart Thermostat

Best remote sensor

Read our Resideo Honeywell Home T9 Smart Thermostat review.

$199 at Amazon

Nest Learning Thermostat

Best design

Read our Nest Learning Thermostat Third Generation review.

$199 at Amazon

$200 at Best Buy

$249 at HP

Smart thermostat FAQs

What is the most reliable smart thermostat?

Since thermostat performance can vary based on different HVAC systems, electrical wiring and other factors, I can’t definitively say one particular model is more reliable than any other.

I can say that the four smart thermostats I recommend above — the Amazon Smart Thermostat, the Ecobee SmartThermostat with Voice Control, the Resideo Honeywell Home T9 and the Nest Learning Thermostat — all performed reliably during my testing.

By that I mean, each of those smart thermostats consistently adjusted the temperature, setting and mode as expected over the days I tested them. Always check with a professional electrician if you have any questions about your HVAC system’s compatibility with a particular thermostat before you install it.

Are smart thermostats really worth it?

Whether a smart thermostat is worth it or not depends on how you use it — and what exactly you mean by “worth it.”

Smart thermostats make it easier to use less energy and save money because of their advanced features, but you have to take advantage of those features in order to see a benefit.

Options like automatic home/away modes based on your phone’s location — or sensors in the thermostat and in remote accessories that detect proximity — can go a long way toward reducing your monthly bill. In addition, if you take the time to review the energy usage reports smart thermostat companies provide, you’ll be able to identify patterns and potentially save even more money.

But smart thermostats are also more expensive than standard non-smart models. So, you have to think long-term when it comes to savings. It could take a year or more to start saving more than you spent on a smart thermostat, especially a $250 model like the Nest Learning Thermostat or the Ecobee SmartThermostat with Voice Control.

How do I install a smart thermostat?

How to install a smart thermostat can vary widely depending on your HVAC system. Hire a professional electrician to handle the installation or to answer any questions before you attempt the installation yourself.

That said, all of the smart thermostats I’ve tested follow a pretty consistent step-by-step process. If you’re comfortable with basic electrical work and know whether your system is compatible with the specific model you want to buy, it’s a simple DIY process.

Check out my article about how to install the Nest Thermostat for a basic overview of the steps, but remember it could vary based on the system you have at home.

Testing a thermostat

Let’s talk about testing. Smart thermostats start with the installation. Installations can vary widely from thermostat to thermostat and between HVAC systems, but there are some basic steps required for installing these devices. As always, consult a professional installer if you have any questions about the setup process. Here are the general steps:

Turn off power to your thermostat at the circuit breaker
Remove the old thermostat
Install the thermostat’s base plate with the included screws
Attach the wires to the wire terminals
Snap on the faceplate
Turn on power at the circuit breaker

Was the thermostat setup especially difficult to install? If so, why? Certain models require a C-wire, for example, which can complicate the installation if you don’t have one. Not sure what a C-wire is? Start here.

From there, I move on to the app. Every smart thermostat has one. I download the app and create an account if I don’t already have one. Then I configure the thermostat following the steps in the app. This usually means connecting to the local Wi-Fi network, giving your thermostat a name like “Hallway” or “Bedroom” and then you can start using your thermostat.

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How well does the app work? Is it easy to navigate to the thermostat settings you need? Is it simple to create a schedule or enable geofencing? This factors into the thermostat’s usability score, along with how simple the thermostat hardware itself is to control manually.

I also test smart home integration, especially voice-enabled systems you can access through voice assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri. Most connected thermostats have compatibility with at least one voice assistant and some work with all three. Do the voice commands flow naturally, like they would in an actual conversation? Did the thermostat actually adjust the temperature — heating and cooling — according to your commands?

All of these things determine a smart thermostat’s overall score and how likely I am to recommend it. Here’s a running list of the models we’ve tested lately: