Is there anything smart about the best smart thermostats? Not only do they keep your home comfortable, but they are also effective at saving money and, not coincidentally, fighting climate change through better energy conservation. All of that is done automatically by the smartest ones.
The Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium, our top pick for best smart thermostats, maintained a more pleasant temperature year-round than any other model we tested, likely because it calculates humidity effects. It includes a remote SmartSensor that balances the temperature in your home, as well as a smart speaker that can be used with Alexa or Siri. The company’s privacy policy is best in class, and even the company’s earliest models are still supported.
Things You Need to Know:
| Compatibility: | Geolocation: |
| It is important to remember that not all smart thermostats work with all HVAC systems (most models do not support electric heating). On the manufacturer’s website, check compatibility before you buy. | Your thermostat can save energy by adjusting your home’s temperature based on your location by enabling geolocation, which tracks your smartphone’s location. A thermostat’s settings can be adjusted to turn it off, but energy savings may be lost. |
| Control options: | Remote sensors: |
| Besides touch controls and smartphone apps, smart thermostats can be adjusted via voice commands through a smart speaker that supports Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, or Google Assistant. | In many thermostats, you can add small wireless sensors to trouble spots to even out temperatures. |
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The 4 Best Smart Thermostats:
The Best Smart Thermostat
The top-tier Ecobee comes with an air-quality monitor, a built-in microphone and speaker, Alexa voice control, and the best remote sensor we’ve tested.
Compatible with: Apple Home, Alexa, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings
We recommend the Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium since it isn’t the easiest to set up, but it’s best overall for maximizing energy efficiency. This thermostat has a lot of settings to fine-tune your indoor climate. A smart sensor can be controlled by voice commands and can play audio via Alexa. The unit consistently maintained a comfortable temperature throughout the house in our tests. Despite its fewer features, the Ecobee Smart Thermostat Enhanced works equally well and costs far less.
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Best For Baseboards
The Mysa is one of the few smart thermostats capable of controlling inefficient electric baseboard heaters. It uses scheduling, geofencing, and an “Eco” mode to help you save energy and money.
Compatible with: Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Apple Home,
Mysa Smart Thermostat (v2) adds smart control to electric baseboard heating (or other high-voltage resistance heating). The Mysa system uses scheduling, geofencing and an “Eco” mode to help you save money and energy. (It can’t control cooling systems.) It claims to save you up to 26% on your annual heating bills. In multiroom setups, you may want to consider the more affordable Mysa Lite, which performs the same but has more basic controls and fewer features. Since most electric baseboard systems require an individual thermostat for each room, the cost can mount up quickly.
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The Smartest Thermostat
With artificial intelligence, the smartest thermostat is also the easiest to set up, but that extra brain comes at a higher cost.
Compatible with: Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings
Google Nest Learning Thermostats have built-in AI to simplify setup, making them the best choice for those who prefer a simpler setup. There is no remote sensor included (and Nest’s are less useful than Ecobee’s) or built-in smart speaker functionality, which may not be needed for some owners. It has been found that some users have to override Nest’s AI in order to optimize their comfort and energy efficiency.
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Frugal Find
We chose this thermostat for its simplicity, ease of use, and low cost, though it is not as sophisticated as our other picks.
Compatible with: Ring, Amazon Alexa
Some people find the Amazon Smart Thermostat ideal because it does what it does well, with simple controls and rudimentary artificial intelligence. The device can be programmed to run on a schedule, or, by using Alexa Hunches (Amazon’s AI-based learning feature), it can eventually learn your patterns and suggest customized settings. It’s disappointing that our top picks don’t include remote sensors, which we find to be an essential feature.