Amazon Smart Thermostat vs. Wyze: Which should you buy?
Here's how these two value-packed thermostats compare.
Credit:
Amazon / Wyze / Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
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Smart thermostats are among the most popular smart home gadgets on the market. They’re not only convenient to use, but they can also help save you energy, money, and time by automating your HVAC system. Both the Amazon Smart Thermostat and Wyze Smart Thermostat rank among the best smart thermostats around offering impressive automation features at a great price. But which one is right for your home?
These two thermostats are neck-and-neck in almost every category, with only a few minor differences setting them apart. As the competition heats up, we're taking a deep dive into their features, design, installation, and more to see how they stack up.
Buy the Amazon Smart Thermostat at Amazon
Buy the Wyze Smart Thermostat at Amazon
Setup and installation
When it comes to ease of use, Wyze Thermostat is one of the best.
The installation for each thermostat is easy and quick—even for a beginner. Both apps offer clear instructions with pictures and tips, making the setup process a breeze.
A common wire (C-wire), which carries continuous power between your HVAC system and thermostat, is necessary for the standard installation of either thermostat which may not be present in some older homes. However, if you know you need a C-wire, you can purchase an adapter from Amazon or Wyze along with your thermostat. (Not sure if you need a C-wire adapter? You can check your home’s compatibility with both Amazon and Wyze.)
The Amazon Smart Thermostat is managed in the Alexa app, meaning an Amazon account is required to set up and use your thermostat, and the same goes for the Wyze, requiring you to download the Wyze app and get an account.
Our pick: Tie
Cost
Both of these thermostats cost less than $100, making either option a choice your pocketbook will approve. However, for $60, Amazon makes the more affordable option of the two. Wyze’s smart thermostat originally launched under $60, too, but has progressively increased in price since its release to $70.99 (at time of publication).
If your setup requires a C-wire adapter, you’ll need to factor in those costs as well. Amazon’s Smart Thermostat with C-Wire Adapter has an $85 MSRP, but you can usually find the bundle on sale for $75. The Wyze C-Wire Adapter costs $24.99 (plus the cost of the thermostat). Once you total it all up, the Amazon Smart Thermostat is still the cheaper choice (with or without a C-wire).
Our pick: Amazon Smart Thermostat
Smart home compatibility
Amazon Echo speakers and smart display, like the Echo Show 10 (pictured), can be used to control the Amazon Smart Thermostat.
The Wyze Smart Thermostat offers voice control support for both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. But, as you may expect, the Amazon Smart Thermostat only works with Alexa voice control. For now, Wyze offers a broader range of compatibility with either the Amazon Echo or Google Home ecosystems. (Neither thermostat works with Apple HomeKit.)
Both Wyze and Amazon have pledged to support Matter, a forthcoming smart home protocol designed to unify these different ecosystems. But until that happens, the Wyze thermostat offers a better spread of voice assistant support, giving you more options as you build out your smart home.
Our pick: Wyze Smart Thermostat
Features and functionality
Here's a look at how we tested the Amazon Smart Thermostat. When cool air comes on, the blue button lights up. When the heat is on, the red button lights up.
Both devices offer a similar spread of features like remote control via Wi-Fi, scheduling, and location-based temperature control. But there are some notable differences in how each device automates your HVAC system.
Amazon’s smart thermostat uses Alexa Hunches. This optional feature permits Alexa to adjust the temperature automatically based on your preferences, and can help learn your thermostat habits. For example, if she gets a “hunch” that you’re not home (based on your location) or that everyone is asleep (if no one has interacted with the thermostat for a while at night), she will adjust the temperature accordingly. However, it does take some time for Amazon's thermostat to get to know you, so be prepared to make your own temperature adjustments in the interim.
The Wyze Smart Thermostat can't learn your habits (this feature is supposedly in the works), but it operates in a similar fashion using geofencing, which will change your thermostat to Away mode when it detects your phone has left the house, and back to your Home temperature when you return. However, Wyze's geofencing feature offers a smoother experience over Alexa Hunches when it comes to HVAC automation since there's no downtime spent trying to learn your habits. (To use these energy-saving features, you need to give the Amazon Alexa or Wyze app permission to track your phone’s location at all times.)
Another major difference between the two is that Wyze's works with temperature sensors, but Amazon's does not. Temperature sensors, when placed throughout your home, can help your HVAC system more accurately heat and cool by constantly talking to your thermostat. These sensors can make the biggest difference in large homes where there’s more square footage for your system to cover.
Our pick: Wyze Smart Thermostat
Design and usability
Navigating the Wyze Smart Thermostat manually is simple and intuitive.
Looks are one area where these two thermostats are vastly different. The Amazon Smart Thermostat, roughly 3.5-inches tall by 3.5-inches wide, has a white, square design with rounded edges. By comparison, the Wyze Smart Thermostat is long and slender with rounded edges. It measures 4.5-inches long by 2.5-inches wide, making it a better choice if you’re tight on space.
Amazon’s thermostat lacks a defined display screen on the front like the Wyze thermostat, too. The front of the device is all one blended design with big digital temperature numbers appearing in white.
While I didn’t have any trouble seeing the temperature on Amazon's thermostat from across the room, I think the contrast of colors on the Wyze thermostat (black background with white numbers), coupled with the device’s black design, stands out more sharply at a distance.
And while I found the tap-to-touch controls on Amazon’s thermostat responsive and easy to use, I preferred the physical satisfaction of turning the dial on the Wyze thermostat.
Our pick: Wyze Smart Thermostat
The apps
The Wyze app offers a more user-friendly experience than the Amazon Alexa app. The Wyze thermostat appears on the app’s, alongside any other Wyze cameras or smart plugs you may have connected already. It’s also a pleasure to navigate and control remotely.
The Amazon Smart Thermostat is buried in the Amazon Alexa app, making it hard to find if you aren't accustomed to the app already. You can add the thermostat to your “Favorites” list in the “Devices'' section of the app, which makes it a little easier to find on the fly.
Ultimately, the Amazon Alexa app has too much going on—there are too many options for too many different things. While the Amazon Alexa app is a central place to manage Alexa by design, those looking for less clutter will appreciate the Wyze app’s simplicity and ease of use.
Our pick: Wyze Smart Thermostat
And the winner is…
The Wyze Smart Thermostat is a value-packed choice for remotely managing your HVAC system.
The Wyze Smart Thermostat is a better choice for most smart homes. It offers plenty of energy-saving smarts and intuitive features that play nicely with either the Amazon Echo or Google Home ecosystems, whereas Alexa is currently the only smart assistant that works for voice control with the Amazon Smart Thermostat. I also think the Wyze thermostat offers a better design and a more accessible interface than the Amazon thermostat (both physically and for remote control in the app).
If you’re already deep into the Amazon smart home ecosystem and want the benefits of a learning thermostat, the Amazon Smart Thermostat is an affordable and intuitive choice.
But Wyze's thermostat offers plenty of energy-saving features (with more to come) that are helpful and easy to use daily. While both smart thermostats are chock full of incredible value and smarts, when push comes to shove, the Wyze Smart Thermostat is the better choice for most.