Nest Thermostat

Easy Installation, Auto Scheduling
Deal Score+20
VS

Ecobee Thermostat

Smarter, Better Voice Assistance
Deal Score+20

The battle for the best smart thermostat is mostly fought by two titans currently: Google Nest and Ecobee. Both of them fight fiercely to ensure they emerge victorious as the best thermostat!

 

It seems this battle has been going on for a while, with both the Nest and Ecobee thermostats trading blows at times. Their eagerness to at least match the quality offered by their opponent has led to both of them constantly improving their products. The real winners here are us, the consumers!

 

But what’s the verdict right now? Is the Nest edging closer to victory or is Ecobee the one leading the fight? Are you eager to see how this battle pans out?

 

In this article, we’ll be going over some of the key specs of Google Nest and Ecobee smart thermostats. We’ll be using these specs to help us decide which one is the current winner!

Compare Main Differences

Nest Thermostat​ vs Ecobee Thermostat​Which is the best smart thermostat?
VS
Control App Google Home ecobee
Google Home
VS
Ecobee
Scheduling
Automatic Learning
VS
Guided Scheduling
Voice Assistant Support
Alexa, Google
VS
Alexa, Siri, Google
Occupancy Sensor
VS
Energy Data Logs
10 Days
VS
18 Months
Multi-Account Support
VS
Air Quality Control
VS
C-Wire Required
No, but recommended
VS
Yes
Warranty Duration
1 to 2 years
VS
3 Years
Design Style
Circle
VS
Rounded Square

Compare Nest and EcobeeThermostat​

Specification Comparison and Reviews

Scheduling

Nest and Ecobee thermostats have had some different approaches when it comes to how to schedule.

 

Right out of the gate, Google’s Nest launched with automatic learning technology. The idea is that you don’t have to manually schedule anything! Just let the Nest thermostat learn your habits and schedule, it will do all the work for you. Of course, you can also turn this off and use a more conventional manual schedule.

 

Ecobee, on the other hand, focused on highly customizable manual schedules. The degree of customization is impressive and highly welcome, for sure! What’s more, newer Ecobee models have adopted the “eco+” learning technology. It works similarly to the Nest’s learning scheduling; it learns from you and adapts to your needs. It’s not quite as robust as Nest’s technology yet, however.

 

Ultimately, the winner in this category depends on your preference. If you want better customization, Ecobee is the way to go! If you want better automation, go with the smarter Nest.

Nest (Automatic Learning) 84%
Ecobee (Guided Shceduling) 68%

🏆 Winner: Ecobee for customization 

🏆 Winner: Nest for automatic scheduling

Voice Assistant Support

As you might imagine, Ecobee offers better and wider support for different voice assistants. It comes with a built-in Alexa speaker, but you can also use Google Assistant or Siri if you want!

 

Google’s Nest, as expected, offers limited support. After all, they want you to use their other Google products! They only offer native support for Google Assistant. However, you can also opt-in for Alexa support from within the Google Home app, so there’s that.

 

Don’t expect support for Siri at all if you go with the Nest, though. Google’s feud with Apple has been going on forever, after all, they wouldn’t support their direction competition’s product.

 

Ultimately, we have to hand it over to Ecobee’s support here. It’s much more versatile with its support, allowing it to more readily fit into any smart home setup!

Nest – Google, Alexa (through the Google Home app) 84%
Ecobee – Alexa (Built-in), Google, Siri 100%

🏆 Winner: Ecobee

Occupancy Sensor

The Occupancy Sensor, also known as Occupancy Detection, is one of the most unique and worthwhile features of Ecobee’s sensors. This feature alone can make it or break it for some people, so it’s worth talking about!

 

The Occupancy Detection technology used in Ecobee’s thermostats and sensors allows them to accurately detect when someone enters a room. This is key for scheduling, as you can set it to change the temperature depending on the people in the room. Newer models even feature a Pet Immunity system to prevent your furry pals from triggering the occupancy sensor!

 

Google’s Nest doesn’t really have anything like this, sadly. They do offer geofencing, which works in conjunction with your phone’s GPS to let the thermostat know when you’re home. However, this is a much more limited and primitive system.

Nest – No, but can use geofencing 50%
•Ecobee – Yes, with later models having Pet Immunity 90%

🏆 Winner: Ecobee

Our Pick

Ecobee Thermostat

Ultimately, we consider Ecobee’s thermostats the winner of this battle! They are cheaper on average, are more compatible with different smart home setups, and have extremely competitive features. The Nest’s biggest pro was their automatic scheduling, which Ecobee is catching up to, making them earn the win in the end!

Buy if...

Nest Thermostat

Ecobee Thermostat

Latest User Reviews

Check what other users on Amazon think about the products

Nest Thermostat​ Reviews

Easy to install without C wire, easy to setup,so far it is working (installed just few days ago)
Marek
5/5
The learning version of this thermostat is annoying to manage. It often does things that a person would want. For example, if I leave my home it will drop the temperatures into Eco mode when there are still other people home. The settings are in place so that multiple phones of each family member auto control the away status based on locatio. Their phones all have app location access set to always for Nest. But still, if I leave, it will drop the temperatures.
Scaticysm
4/5
So with installation, I suggest taking a photo of your old wiring with your regular phone camera, that way if something happens with the app, you still have the photo. It is very easy to install though, with step by step procedures in the app. I set mine to 68 and at night it kept changing to 70, everytime I thought I had turned off all the self learning stuff to stop this, I would find more to shut off. Right now I have mine set up so it will not self learn at all. If I leave the house, I can change the temperature right from my phone if need be.
Tanya
4/5
It lives its own life. None of my friends and "experts/funs" of Nest thermostats weren't able to fix wrong datetime zone settings or figure out why it always decreases temperature in dual mode. And it is not possible to get help from google (I guess all that useless and annoying global help and support portal doesn't need an introduction). Anyway, if you think that you pay extra CAD150-200 for extra quality - you are wrong.
Andrey
3/5

Ecobee Thermostat​ Reviews​

Transitioning from Nest thermostats to the Ecobee has been a revelation for my home climate control. While Nest thermostats are undoubtedly sleek and visually appealing, I found myself drawn to the Ecobee after reading numerous reviews. What stood out immediately was the Ecobee's user-friendly interface, which is intuitive and straightforward to navigate. It's a breeze to set custom temperatures tailored to my preferences, providing a level of control that's both efficient and personalized. This ease of use and the ability to fine-tune temperature settings has had a noticeable impact on my home's comfort and energy efficiency.
Dr.B
5/5
This product is everything they say and more. I love how it senses what room you are in (for any rooms other than the one the thermostat is in you would need the sensors, you get one with the thermostat but it helps if you can have one in each room) and it will focus on that room and keeping it at your set comfort level. It has Alexa built in which is wonderful. You can control everything with voice but to get all you can out of that, install the Ecobee app on your mobile device. This thermostat can not only detect which room you are in, but also if you leave the house and will enter AWAY mode and keep it at the temperature you set for when you aren't home. It automatically re-enters HOME mode when you get home.
Caine
5/5
I hate product descriptions that tell you it only takes X number of minutes to install it, because it's almost never true. While the step-by-step instructions were well written and took into account the different configurations of HVAC systems, what isn't taken into consideration is the configuration of the device. My install of the edobee itself and wiring took about 2 hours. I didn't have a C wire in my old thermostat so I had to install the adapter in the furnace. That added 1/2 an hour to the install since my furnace isn't easy to access. When I pulled the old thermostat off the wall, I found that the white paint underneath was not the same color as the rest of the wall which is an eggplant purple. Since the included wall plate wasn't large enough to cover that area, I had to go find the paint and touch up the wall. That was another 20 minutes of time. Luckily, the wiring was straightforward--it had all the correct wiring colors connected to the proper terminals--and I had extra paint leftover to touch up the wall.
Eric
4/5
Pros: everything about the device is very nice and it looks slick on the wall. Love that it's compatible with the Apple walled garden. Integrates well with Siri (Apple) and can control from my Home pod with voice. Love that I can adjust from anywhere in the house and even when I'm gone. My local electric company provided a rebate so that was nice on the cost. Con: installation. I think if you have an older model AC, you might have trouble installing if not handy or comfortable with wires (mine is from 2003) I tried to follow the prompts but it felt a little "choose your own adventure" and this pesky C wire. I ended up calling in the pros (local HVAC company) who charged me $200 to install so not ideal but... at least it's done and it's working well.
Pinapino
4/5
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