Slash Your Utility Bills in 2026: The 7 Top Smart Thermostats We've Tested to Save You the Most Money

Works with just about everything: With support for Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit, IFTTT, and Samsung SmartThings, the Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium integrates with your smart home setup no matter which platform or voice assistant you use.

Monitors air quality: Besides sensing the temperatures of the room it's in and another room via its included remote sensor, this thermostat can also monitor your air quality, tracking carbon dioxide, humidity, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Doubles as a smart speaker: For even more usefulness besides air quality monitoring, the thermostat is a fully functional smart speaker with Alexa built in, or Siri if you have a compatible Apple hub device.

Triples as a security device: Presence and motion sensors can tell when someone is in the room, so the thermostat can tell you if anyone's around when they shouldn't be. It can also serve as a home security hub you can expand with door and window sensors, or an Ecobee SmartCamera.

Versatility seekers: Since it does much more than just control your heating and cooling, this is a top choice for anyone willing to pay a premium for versatility. This stylish device houses an air quality monitor, includes a remote room sensor, and can serve as both a home security hub and a standalone Alexa-powered smart speaker. It works with most 24V HVAC equipment, including conventional gas and oil furnaces, air conditioning systems, heat pumps, boilers, humidifiers, dehumidifiers, and ventilators.

Platform-agnostic users: No other smart thermostat we've tested supports as many smart home platforms, which is particularly helpful if you have a hybrid setup or enjoy experimenting with the latest features each platform offers. While it lacks Matter integration, its broad support for third-party devices means it should still work with all your other connected gadgets.

People who care about air quality: The inclusion of an air quality sensor is uncommon but very sensible, as it means one fewer device to buy, and thermostats tend to be located in key areas of the home. The air quality sensor monitors VOCs (volatile organic compounds), humidity, and carbon dioxide levels and sends an alert when these measurements fall within an unhealthy range.

Budget shoppers: The Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium costs more than twice as much as some other models on this list. Plus, if you want all the features it offers, you have to add a $5 monthly subscription that includes freeze detection, smoke alarm detection, motion alerts, and the ability to add security devices.

Already well-equipped smart homes: If you already have your security devices, voice assistants, and other smart home components all set up to your liking, the extra features on the Ecobee Premium will seem redundant.

Inexpensive and full-featured: The Ecobee Smart Thermostat Essential is reasonably priced compared with its Premium sibling, and it's still packed with features such as a color touch screen and energy usage reports.

Widely compatible: The Essential integrates with your smart home via Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Google Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings, covering all the bases.

Budget-minded buyers: The Ecobee Smart Thermostat Essential is a great choice for homeowners on a tight budget. It doesn’t offer built-in Alexa smart speaker functionality or air quality monitoring like Ecobee's Premium thermostat, but it worked flawlessly in testing, making it easy to control the temperature via the app, touch screen, and voice commands. It supports remote room sensors (sold separately) and can also serve as a home security hub when paired with other Ecobee devices. Additionally, it provides energy usage reports that can help you reduce your energy consumption.

Homeowners who need versatile compatibility: This thermostat works with most 24V gas, oil, heat pump, electric, forced air, and conventional HVAC systems and supports two heating/one cooling or one heating/two cooling stages. Installation requires a C (common) wire; however, a Power Extender Kit ($24.99) is available as a workaround. It supports Alexa, Google, and HomeKit for voice control, as well as third-party device integrations.

Anyone who wants to use features that rely on presence detection: The big compromise that makes the Essential so affordable is the lack of a radar occupancy sensor, a feature found on Ecobee's higher-end smart thermostats. This means it can't be set to change the temperature based on whether someone is in the room, or function as a security device.

Looks great: The basic Nest Thermostat is one of the best-looking smart thermostats on the market. It's a circular puck with a mirrored touch display and a simple, elegant profile. It avoids the utilitarian look that a lot of other smart thermostats have, and also comes in multiple colors with optional trim kits.

Inexpensive and full-featured: It's affordable yet offers plenty of smarts. It provides energy reports, supports geofencing, and can even notify you if something seems wrong with your HVAC system, such as it not activating properly or cooling a space at its typical rate.

Works with most smart home systems: Nest is Google's brand, but the thermostat works with more than just Google. It supports Alexa and Matter, so you can also use it if you rely on Amazon, Apple, or Samsung for your smart home platform.

Budget-minded Google and Nest users: This is a top pick for anyone shopping for a smart thermostat on a budget. It's ideal if you have a smart home built around Google Assistant, especially if you use other Nest devices, since they are all designed to work together. However, its Matter support lets you integrate it with other smart home platforms. Be aware of its limitations, though, like a lack of support for three-stage heating systems, automatic scheduling, and remote room sensors.

Design fans: Although the Nest Thermostat doesn't include a touch screen, its mirrored display and clean lines make it one of the better-looking smart thermostats we've tested. Controlling it via the capacitive pad on the edge is easy, keeping fingerprints at bay. It comes in a range of attractive colors, including white (Snow), peach (Sand), dark gray (Charcoal), and green (Fog).

People who want to set it and forget it: Unlike higher-end Nest thermostats, this model can't learn your home habits and automatically build a schedule around them. You'll have to manually set those details yourself.

Affordable: At $80, the Amazon Smart Thermostat is one of the cheapest smart thermostats you can find.

Offers energy reports: Even though it's so cheap, Amazon's thermostat will still show you how much energy your HVAC system uses.

Budget-minded Alexa users: The Amazon Smart Thermostat is best for budget shoppers who already have a home built around Alexa (and Ring) devices. It doesn't integrate well with other devices, but if you have an Echo, it's a budget-friendly option that works well with Alexa voice commands.

Minimalists: With its white exterior and understated design, this smart thermostat is meant to blend in rather than stand out. It lacks some niceties of more expensive models, such as remote room sensors, but it supports scheduling, works with hunches that will adjust the set point when Alexa detects you're away or asleep, and provides energy usage reports.

Anyone who doesn't use Alexa: This is an Alexa smart thermostat, period. It doesn't work with Google, HomeKit, IFTTT, Matter, SmartThings, or anything else. If you aren't using Amazon's voice assistant to control your smart home, you can pass on this.

Wide HVAC and smart home compatibility: The Nest Learning Thermostat works with most 24V heating and cooling systems, supports two-stage cooling and three-stage heating, and can control humidifier and dehumidifier equipment. It also works with Alexa, Google, HomeKit, Matter, and SmartThings.

Multi-room, multi-sensor monitoring: In addition to standard temperature sensors, it can track ambient light, humidity, and motion, and it includes a remote sensor to monitor the environment in a second room.

Automation fans: If you're looking for a thermostat that learns from your behavior and then automatically adjusts, and you want premium features like AI-powered scheduling and remote room sensing, the fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat is a top choice. It works with the Google Home app (available on Android and iOS) and supports Google Assistant voice commands, as well as Matter, which enables integration with Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, and Samsung SmartThings ecosystems, allowing for control through those respective apps.

Design lovers: Available in Polished Gold, Obsidian, or Silver, the fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat features an attractive mirrored display and a stainless steel bezel. If your old thermostat is an eyesore, this should be a big aesthetic and functional upgrade.

Budget shoppers: This is the most expensive smart thermostat on the list, so it's not the best option if you want to save money.

Big color touch screen: For displaying information and controlling your HVAC system, the Sensi Touch 2 features one of the largest touch screens we've seen on a smart thermostat. It isn't a simple light-up LED display like some other thermostats; instead, it has a full 4.3-inch screen with touch controls.

Can cover many rooms: You can pair the thermostat with up to 15 remote room sensors to track temperatures and balance heating and cooling throughout a large home.

Hands-on users: While most smart thermostats have rudimentary interfaces that display only basic information and leave you to fine-tune settings via their apps, the Sensi Touch 2 features a large, responsive color touchscreen.

Those with large homes: The thermostat supports up to 15 room sensors for balanced temperatures throughout your home. As a downside, you'll have to buy them separately, and at $39.99, the cost can add up if you need a lot of them.

Matter and IFTTT adopters: The Sensi Touch 2 can work with Amazon and Google's voice assistants and Samsung's SmartThings platform, but it doesn't support the wider Matter standard, and it won't work with IFTTT.

Wide compatibility for the price: The Sensi ST55 is relatively inexpensive, especially for a thermostat that supports Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Google, and Samsung SmartThings. It doesn't work with IFTTT or Matter, though.

Supports geofencing: In addition to useful features like energy usage reports and reports, the ST55 can use geofencing to automatically dial back the heating or cooling when you're physically away from your home.

Apple users on a budget: If you're a dedicated Apple fan and you want to use Siri to control your home's temperature, the ST55 is one of the more affordable options. In addition to HomeKit and Siri, it works with the Alexa, Google, SmartThings, and Wink home automation systems.

Traditionalists: It's also the best choice if you prefer a model that resembles a conventional thermostat rather than a smart home device. Its LCD offers a wealth of information, including Wi-Fi and battery level indicators, the current time, the current set temperature and mode (heating or cooling), and the current room temperature.

Design fans: The ST55's style is a bit utilitarian and dull, and it looks more like a non-smart thermostat than anything else on this list. If your thermostat is in a prominent spot, you might want something more stylish.