The Best Smart Thermostats of 2023

The Nest Thermostat is a more basic version of our No. 1 pick for smart thermostats, the Nest Learning Thermostat. It’s compatible with Google Assistant andAmazon Alexa, and it can be controlled remotely via the Google Home app. Unlike the Nest Learning Thermostat, it does not work with the Nest app and cannot learn your temperature preferences over time.

However, the new Nest Thermostat includes comparable features to the Nest Learning Thermostat like Eco Mode, Home/Away Assist, and scheduling features to help you save on energy costs, offering good value for the money. We found these settings easy to adjust within the Google Home app and enjoyed reviewing the energy reports, which offer helpful insights into when your unit is running and for how long.

The first HVAC system we tried to test the thermostat on didn’t have a C-wire, and we experienced some unpredictable behavior that Nest attributed to the lack of a C-wire. With the second system, we had a few hiccups during the setup process, but Nest customer service sent us a new thermostat right away, and once connected, the thermostat performed well at heating and cooling. Everything you need to get started is in the box, except the trim kit, which can be purchased separately.

Read our full review of the Nest Thermostat

The Emerson Sensi Touch, our previous Best Value pick, isn't a household name in the smart thermostat space (even among tech nerds like us), but it occupies a good niche: it's the most similar to a traditional thermostat in terms of ease of use. Setup is a piece of cake (as long as you have a C-wire, which is required), and the app walks you through everything you need to know. We were able to get it set up in a few minutes.

The thermostat's touch screen doesn't include too many buttons or fancy gestures, just an up and down arrow that lets you adjust the temperature. It doesn't have a motion sensor that wakes the screen up like other thermostats, but you can wake it up with a tap of your finger and tweak its sleep settings so it isn't lighting up the room at night. In our tests, the Sensi was very responsive, kicking in as soon as we adjusted the temperature, and we didn't have any problems maintaining connectivity, either over Wi-Fi or via cellular data.

Within the app, you get some useful adjustments (like minimum and maximum temperatures), basic geofencing, and voice assistant support. The app can be a bit clunky to use at times—schedules, for example, required some unintuitive gestures to set up—but it's not frustrating to use by any means. If the Nest is intuitive for those familiar with ubiquitous technology like the iPod, the Sensi Touch is ideal for less tech-savvy folks who are used to the way traditional thermostats work—but want the ability to adjust it from afar.

While the Nest aims to be easy and hassle-free, the Ecobee SmartThermostat is more about creating an incredibly feature-rich system. It uses a touch screen with a drag-to-adjust slider for changing the temperature, alongside a plethora of settings to tweak. In our experience, the touch slider is a bit under-sensitive, making it a tad annoying to adjust the temperature from the thermostat itself, but this is a small gripe—especially when you consider the Ecobee has Amazon Alexa microphones built-in, so you can adjust the temperature with your voice instead. Its included conversion kit is also great for systems that don't have a C-wire, though it does add some complexity to the setup process.

Ecobee's scheduling may seem confusing at first blush, but it's nice once you get the hang of it: instead of merely setting temperatures based on time of day, you set your desired "comfort settings" for different instances: like setting the AC to 76 when you're at home, 80 when away, 74 when sleeping, and so on. Then you schedule those comfort settings for certain times of day, or assign them to Ecobee's external room sensors. For example: we have the Ecobee switch to the "sleep" temperatures when our toddlers are napping in the afternoon, and it uses the sensors in their room to determine the temperature rather than the thermostat's sensor in the living room.

Options like this make the Ecobee extremely powerful, alongside its geofencing features, community rebates, and other eco-monitoring options. Personally, I'd rather use an Echo or Echo Dot than the microphones in the thermostat—Amazon cripples a few too many features in third-party Alexa devices—but even if those weren't included, this is the most powerful thermostat for tinkerers who want everything just so.

Sensi's standard Wi-Fi thermostat has nearly identical functionality to its touch-screen sibling, but with a more traditional form factor. In fact, not only does it look like a traditional thermostat (which may be a pro or a con depending on your preferences), but its wiring is more old-school as well, requiring a screwdriver for each contact. It also allows for batteries to power the thermostat interface, and with some HVAC configurations, you might be able to use this in place of a C-wire—but we'd recommend contacting a professional before doing so.

Despite the interface having actual buttons rather than a touch screen, the usability is nearly identical to that of the Sensi Touch thermostat, though it does not have the ability to set up temperature and humidity notifications. In the Sensi Wi-Fi thermostat, the only HVAC settings are heat, cool, and off—which may be enough to dissuade some users from buying it, given that auto is such a useful feature in those in-between seasons like spring and fall.

The flexible scheduling and geofencing found in the Sensi Touch thermostat are also present in the Sensi Wi-Fi thermostat, and we were able to successfully change the temperature with Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri. Remote access with mobile data worked beautifully as well, though we did experience connectivity issues when we tested this thermostat last year, where the device would be unavailable from the smartphone app despite the internet working.

Ecobee's lower-cost "Lite" thermostat is very similar to its more expensive sibling: it has the same touch screen interface, the same app, and most of the same features. It's a bit slimmer, so it looks better against your wall, but doesn't come with the built-in Amazon Alexa microphones, nor does it come bundled with a room sensor. It does, however, still come with the power extender to accommodate those without a C-wire.

Whether it's worth the discount depends on your usage. Since it doesn't come with a room sensor—which is part of what makes Ecobee's thermostats great—you'll probably have to buy a 2-pack separately, which will bring you up to the same cost as the Ecobee SmartThermostat (though you'll have two sensors instead of one). If you don't plan on using the Amazon Alexa mics and prefer the slimmer profile, the Ecobee3 Lite is a great alternative.

The Honeywell Lyric T5 thermostat is the more basic cousin of the Honeywell Lyric Round thermostat. The full touchscreen on the T5 makes it easy to change the temperature and check the settings. The Lyric T5 lacks the motion sensor of the Lyric Round thermostat, but other than that, the experience with changing the temperature, geofencing, scheduling, and vocal assistant integration is identical.

The Lyric T5 looks a bit more industrial than the Lyric Round, with a square black profile with a slightly smaller footprint than those of standard thermostats. A new version of this thermostat is now available, but we haven't tested it. The new model, the Honeywell Home T5+, is available on Amazon.

Honeywell has been in the heating and cooling system business for over 100 years, but their smart thermostats haven't quite gained the recognition that other companies have. The Honeywell T9 deserves a bit more love than it gets, thanks to its balance between features and ease of use, though it does have a few small drawbacks that keep it from being best in class.

While other thermostat apps help you check your configuration and adjust the instructions accordingly, the Resideo app doesn't walk you through the process at all, leaving you to fend for yourself with the paper instructions. Then, connecting it to the app is a slight hassle involving Airplane Mode, but once you're in, the app is great—it'll help you set up your schedules and geofencing right off the bat, and even prompt you to look for rebates. It's easy to use, and room sensors ensure you can keep a consistent temperature in whatever room you're currently using.

Unfortunately, there is a bit of a delay when you give the thermostat a command. In our testing, adjusting the temperature on the app or through a voice assistant seemed to register on the thermostat's screen instantly—but the actual A/C wouldn't click on for a minute or so. This will likely to drive some of you a little batty. It's a good thermostat, but it doesn't quite overtake the others we tested.

The Cync Smart Thermostat is the first smart HVAC controller from the smart home brand, formerly known as GE Lighting. Cync’s debut dial offers all of the basic functionality you’ll find on many other thermostats, including remote control, scheduling, and voice control with Alexa and Google Assistant. One of its most notable features is that it works with Cync’s temperature sensors, which can help you heat and cool your home more efficiently.

The thermostat supports up to six temperature sensors and is an additional purchase. While the sensors are a help and work accurately to alleviate hot and cool spots in your home, the thermostat does not offer intuitive learning features that can make money-saving adjustments to your HVAC system, like the Amazon Smart Thermostat and Nest Learning Thermostat (third-gen).

Cync’s thermostat is also not Energy Star certified, a designation that many other smart thermostats (like Google Nest and Amazon) offer.

If you’re already invested in Cync’s ecosystem of smart home products, like light bulbs, indoor and outdoor plugs, and security cameras, then adding the thermostat to your roster makes a lot of sense in terms of managing your smart home from one central app. Otherwise, in a nutshell, the Cync thermostat is more expensive with less features than other more affordable models, like the Wyze Smart Thermostat.

Read our full review of the Cync Smart Thermostat..

Arguably the snazziest looking thermostat we tested, the Glas Smart Thermostat is undeniably futuristic, with its transparent OLED touch screen and built-in voice assistant. Unfortunately, that voice assistant is Microsoft's Cortana, which means you're either buying in fully to Microsoft's system (unlikely) or settling for something other than what your other smart speakers use. It's easy to ignore Cortana and just use your existing Amazon Echos or Google Homes, but it's a bummer that you're paying for functionality you might not even use.

Still, Glas is pretty neat, with a well-designed app that makes adjusting temperatures and setting schedules fairly easy.

Unfortunately, that's where most of the big benefits end—setup was difficult thanks to some frustrating wire terminals, and there's no geofencing feature like the other thermostats we tested had. It wasn't very responsive to temperature changes from the app, either, often taking a minute or two to shut itself off when asked to. Given its steep price over its competitors, it's hard to fully recommend the Glas, unless you're willing to pay for aesthetics alone (and sacrifice features in the process).

The Lux Kono is a futuristic-looking thermostat, and it offers removable faceplates in multiple colors to match your decor. But in terms of usability, it was a distant finisher among the thermostats we tested. Setup was needlessly complicated compared to its competitors, with no in-app instructions until after you get Wi-Fi set up—which is difficult using only the thermostat's tiny LED screen and knob (as opposed to the high-res screen other thermostats provide).

The app was no better, with an absolute mess of an interface, overloaded with information and difficult to use, whether you're adjusting the current temperature or creating a schedule (which only allows you 2 or 4 "changes" per day—no more, no less—and splits heating and cooling schedules into two separate sections, even if you use Auto mode). The app looks like it used to be better, but apparently went through a redesign that was undoubtedly a step backward. Like the Honeywell and Glas thermostats, it often took minutes to respond to commands from the app (though Alexa and Google Assistant were strangely faster). Geofencing worked fine in our tests, but overall, there's little reason to use the Lux Kono over other, better-designed thermostats.