Ecobee Thermostats Review

Ecobee thermostats are some of the most feature-rich and user-friendly smart thermostats on the market, offering energy cost savings through eco+ software. We especially love the Ecobee SmartThermostat, which doubles as a voice assistant.

Ecobee currently sells two thermostats: the Ecobee SmartThermostat with voice control (also known as the SmartThermostat Pro) and the Ecobee3 Lite.

The SmartThermostat has more features, including a microphone and speaker for voice control, an occupancy sensor, 5G connectivity, and wire terminals for HVAC accessories like dehumidifiers and ventilators.

Ecobee SmartThermostat:

• Ecobee SmartThermostat
• Mounting plate
• Ecobee SmartSensor with detachable stand
• Install and quick start guide
• Wire labels
• Screws and drywall plugs
• Power extender kit
• Trim plate

Ecobee3 Lite:

• Ecobee3 Lite thermostat
• Backplate
• Installation guide
• Wire labels
• Screws and drywall plugs
• Power extender kit
• Trim plate

Like any programmable thermostats worth their salt, the Ecobee thermostats let you create heating and cooling schedules. Because your home doesn’t have to be the perfect temperature when there’s no one home or awake to enjoy it, these schedules adjust the temperature and help you save money on your energy bills.

Thanks to its intuitive touchscreen, it’s much easier to set up a schedule on the Ecobee compared to a traditional thermostat. You can also set up schedules on the Ecobee app if you prefer.

Ecobee offers three different modes that you organize into any time slot:

• Home
• Away
• Sleep

Go to Menu and Comfort Settings to adjust the temperature for each mode.

For example, you might set the temp to 72°F when you’re home, 70°F when you sleep, and 65°F when you’re away.

1. To create a schedule, go to Menu and Schedule.
2. Tap the day of the week you want to edit, and then tap the plus-sign icon.
3. Choose either Home, Away, or Sleep mode, and select its start time.

Although the programmed temperatures appear on the schedule screen, they can’t be edited here. Exit to the menu and select Comfort Settings to tweak the temps.

Vacation mode overrides your normal schedule for a period of time. Go to Menu and Vacation. Enter the start and end times plus your desired temperature and fan settings.

Here’s where the Ecobee SmartThermostat goes from average to genius: smart heat/cool recovery mode and Smart Home and Away mode.

Other programmable or smart thermostats typically use schedules as a cue to turn on the HVAC system. You’d need to set the thermostat to “Home” about an hour earlier than your actual arrival time to avoid entering a cold house.

Forget about all that guesswork with the Ecobee. With the smart heat recovery or smart cool recovery modes enabled, the Ecobee automatically calculates when it needs to turn on the system so that your home reaches the desired temperature exactly when your Home, Away, or Sleep mode begins.

That means you come home to a perfectly comfortable temperature every single time.

Don’t worry if you deviate from your typical home/away schedule. The occupancy sensor—only available in the SmartThermostat or SmartSensor accessory —detects whether you’re home or not.

• If the Ecobee detects your presence while it’s set to Away, it will automatically switch to Home mode.
• If the Ecobee senses that no one is home while it’s set to Home, it will automatically switch to Away mode.

You can enable or disable this feature by tapping Menu and Sensors.

Or quickly switch modes by tapping Settings and then Home for now or Away for now.

With the Ecobee SmartThermostat, you essentially get an Amazon Echo disguised as a thermostat. You don’t pair it with Alexa—the SmartThermostat is Alexa.

Use your voice to adjust the thermostat, check the weather forecast, or perform any other Alexa skill via the Ecobee SmartThermostat.

Don’t worry if you already have another voice assistant—both Ecobee thermostats also work with Apple Homekit, Google Assistant† , and Samsung SmartThings. The only difference is they aren’t built into the Ecobee Thermostat, so you’ll have to own the corresponding hub and pair it through the app.

Eco+ is a free software upgrade that recommends personalized energy-saving settings for your thermostat. It analyzes local weather forecasts, humidity levels, and fluctuations in the cost of electricity. Eco+ also pulls in data from the SmartThermostat’s occupancy sensor and the SmartSensor’s motion sensor.

Access eco+ settings from the main menu, and use the slider to indicate how much energy you want to save. Although no savings are guaranteed, Ecobee claims it can decrease energy consumption by 1%–20%.

Eco+ won’t make changes without your permission. You can toggle each eco+ setting on and off or disable eco+ entirely. Here’s what you can expect from the eco+ settings:

• Adjust temperature for humidity: Ecobee focuses on your home’s “feels like” temperature, allowing it to run up to several degrees warmer or cooler than the regular temperature setting.
• Time of use: If your electricity costs less at certain times of the day, Ecobee preheats or precools your home during these times. This feature doesn’t work if you pay a fixed rate for your electricity.
• Community energy savings: If your local power grid experiences a spike in use, Ecobee adjusts the temperature of your home to use less energy. This program helps your community avoid tapping into dirtier power reserves, like coal-based energy.
• Schedule assistant: Ecobee recommends a new schedule if your home-and-away habits routinely differ from the existing schedule. This is similar to the Nest Learning Thermostat’s flagship feature but requires your approval.
• Smart Home and Away: This feature relies on the SmartThermostat occupancy sensor or SmartSensor motion sensor. It overrides the thermostat schedule if it senses you’re home during the “away” period and vice versa. Smart Home and Away isn’t unique to eco+, but it appears in the eco+ menu.)

Eco+ also emails you monthly energy reports.  

Under Settings and Preferences in the Ecobee SmartThermostat, you can set custom alert thresholds for home temperature and humidity levels.

This helps you stay ahead of problems like frozen pipes, moldy walls, and warped wood. These alerts also give you time to address the problem before older family members, pets, or even house plants become ill. Even the SmartThermostat itself won’t work below 32°F.

Enable alerts to show up on the thermostat itself, or opt to receive them through your smartphone only.

Regular HVAC filter changes and professional inspections are important home maintenance tasks. You’re not alone if you forget to do them, but your home’s energy efficiency and air quality are at stake.

Ecobee is your ally here. Under Settings, Preferences, and Maintenance Reminders, you can schedule recurring alerts for filter replacement and professional service.

The wireless SmartSensor acts like an extra occupancy sensor and temperature sensor. Each SmartThermostat comes with one SmartSensor, but you can purchase extras.

For example, if you aren’t likely to walk past your SmartThermostat when you get home, you won’t trigger the occupancy sensor. Place a SmartSensor near the door to take full advantage of motion-dependent features like Smart Home and Away or the eco+ Smart Schedules.

You can also use the SmartSensor in the nursery or corners of your home to keep an eye on hot and cold spots. Although Ecobee can’t create hot and cold zones in your home (you’d need dampers for that), the SmartSensor’s temperature readings will tell you when to adjust the thermostat, add a space heater, or turn on a fan.

An open door or window makes it impossible for your home to maintain the right temperature. Your HVAC system ends up working overtime, and that’s never good for your bank account.

The Ecobee SmartSensor for Doors and Windows nips this problem in the bud. If a door or window is left open, the Ecobee thermostat stops heating or cooling.

We love this concept, but it’s not perfect. First, the door or window has to be open for five minutes before the Ecobee shuts down. That’s a long time and a lot of lost air. Two minutes seems more reasonable.

Second, it’s hard to predict which windows will be left open. A two-pack of sensors costs nearly $80, so it’s expensive to protect every window in your home. If you’re on a budget, consider how long it will take for the sensors to pay for themselves in energy bill savings.

You have the makings of a humble home security system by the time you get a SmartThermostat (base station), SmartSensor (motion sensor), and SmartSensor for Doors and Windows (entry sensor). You can also add an Ecobee camera to the lineup.

The SmartThermostat’s built-in speaker listens for the sound of your existing smoke alarm. Once it detects this siren, it sends an alert to your phone and uses RapidSOS to notify first responders.

RapidSOS professional monitoring is only available with the $10 per month Complete plan. To self-monitor the system, choose the $5 per month Standard plan.

Ecobee thermostats pair with other smart home products and apps for extra automation and control:

• IFTTT
• Abode Home Security
• Blue by ADT
• Brilliant Smart Home Control
• Flair smart vents
• Keen smart vents
•  Alarm.com
• Microsoft Cortana
• Control4

Before you buy an Ecobee, make sure you don’t have an incompatible system:

• Millivolt system, such as a gas fireplace
• DC voltage system, often found in RVs
• Line or high voltage systems, such as electric baseboard heaters or forced fan heaters
• Radiator heating

In addition, using an Ecobee thermostat with a “communicating” HVAC system turns it into a “non-communicating” system, which means it disables built-in efficiencies. Communicating HVAC system brands include Infinity, Affinity, iComfort, Evolution, and ComfortNet.

We found consistent complaints of poor Wi-Fi connectivity among Ecobee users. If you know you have a spotty Wi-Fi connection or have had trouble getting smart home devices to connect to your Wi-Fi in the past, you may want to skip the Ecobee.

Without Wi-Fi, the Ecobee functions like a traditional thermostat but loses all of its smart features, like app control.

Ecobee thermostats have a lot to offer energy-conscious homeowners. There’s hardly anything bad to say about the Ecobee that can’t be said about other smart thermostats, such as some compatibility limitations and the potential need for professional installation.

We recommend the Ecobee SmartThermostat over the Ecobee3 Lite because the voice control, built-in occupancy sensor, and included SmartSensor are just too good to pass up.

Ecobee thermostats are hardwired to your HVAC system. The thermostat’s built-in temperature sensors signal the HVAC unit to turn on and off. This is true for all thermostats, whether “smart” or not.

The Ecobee’s smart features rely on additional sensors that detect motion and humidity. Ecobee thermostats also connect to Wi-Fi, giving them access to local data like weather and electricity costs. All of this information is used to calculate an ideal temperature setting.

There’s no monthly fee for using the Ecobee thermostat. If you want to sign up for Ecobee Smart Security, costs range from $5 to $10 per month. 

We relied on our team’s hands-on experience for our Ecobee thermostat review. We also read the customer support pages and watched tutorial videos to understand the nuances of the Ecobee. We then compared the Ecobee’s features and performance with other smart thermostats we’ve reviewed.

For more information, visit the Safewise methodology page.

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