Ecobee vs. Nest: Full Comparison

Key Points

• Ecobee supports all the major voice assistants. Nest only supports Amazon Alexa and Google Home.
• Ecobee can’t be installed without using a C wire while Nest can.
• Ecobee gets its power directly from a hardwired connection. The Nest is powered by a rechargeable battery that is built-in.

Everyone in the modern world understands the importance of home automation better. Smart homes are slowly taking over and becoming everyone’s dream home in a way that home appliances and devices can communicate with each other. Every home needs something to keep it warm and cozy. The thing that will do all this for you is the thermostat.

We are in a digital age, and things keep changing every day and getting smarter, like your home heating system or your lighting system. One of the home devices to go smart and keep the digital pace was the thermostat, with a new technology name, the smart thermostat. Today, smart thermostats are available all over and can function as the old ones, but much better.

Using the smart thermostat helps cut the power usage directly from the HVAC system and offers heat, thus scheduling functionality. These smart thermostats can be controlled locally and remotely by using a PC, tablet, or even a Smartphone.

One of the basic functions is temperature control, which the smart thermostat does by the use of a temperature sensor that is in-built. Choosing the best smart thermostat can be challenging because of the many varieties available on the market today. The leading smart thermostat manufacturers are Ecobee and Nest. Both companies have differences and similarities, as well as pros and cons.

Ecobee vs. Nest: Side-by-Side Comparison

Category	Ecobee	Nest
What it is:	Ecobee is a home automation company that is in Toronto and one of the top commercial and residential thermostats manufacturers.	Nest lab is a top manufacturer and one of the outstanding names of smart home devices like outdoor and indoor security cameras, thermostats, and smoke detectors, among other devices.
Appearance:	Ecobee has a rectangular look that it took from a programmable thermostat that was used in the past years. It looks like an oversized clock.	Nest has a new modern look that looks exactly like Honeywell Round.
Voice control:	Ecobee is most likely to have a dedication to voice control.	Nest, on the other hand, only supports Amazon Alexa and Google Home. It does not support Apple Homekit directly, but unlikely it will ever support it.
C wire:	Ecobee can’t be installed without using a C wire. It includes some extra sets of wires that are called the power extender kit (PEK). If the system lacks a c-wire, you will have to install the PEK. This installation only needs you to attach a few wires directly to your HVAC control board.	Nest thermostat can be installed without the need for a c-wire. This gives you a chance to avoid the struggles of having to install the c-wire all by yourself.
Learning schedule:	Ecobee mostly uses a more conventional schedule. You can choose your desired temperatures and times when you are sleeping, at home, and away. After setting the temperature and time, they will remain the same unless you decide to change them. It is easy to set up the schedule because it can be done directly from the thermostat, web console, or mobile app.	After installing the nest, it first makes a few assumptions about you that are mostly based on typical humans. It uses guesses for its schedule. Later, you will start feeling too cold or too warm; thus, you need to adjust the temperature by using the thermostat or mobile phone.  Once you make any adjustments, nest records it.  After a few weeks, it will monitor your schedule and know the temperature settings you love.
Data reports:	Ecobee records as well as analyzes HVAC data for 18 months. All motion and temperature data from the remote sensors and thermostat are also recorded. The Ecobee analysis tool is known as Home IQ. It can be directly accessed through the web console, and it is offered for free, but only if you own the thermostat.	Nest has data feedback as well, but it only records data for only 10 days. It doesn’t give any analysis.  It only shows visuals of the moments your system went on and off in those 10 days. It will also show when the thermostat set point got changed.
Account:	Ecobee thermostat can only be connected to just one account.	Nest thermostats can be connected to multiple accounts.
Remote sensors:	Ecobee remote sensors can be placed anywhere they are required in your home.	Since the release of Ecobee3 years ago, their remote sensors have attracted most Nest customers. Recently, Nest launched their remote sensors, which serve the same function as the Ecobee sensors, but Nest remote sensors only have temperature sensing.
Assistant:	Ecobee has an already inbuilt Alexa, Amazon’s voice assistant.	Nest can only work with Alexa and can be compatible with Google Assistant.

Ecobee vs. Nest: Must-Know Facts

• Ecobee supports all the major voice assistants. These devices have a built-in Alexa speaker. Nest, on the other hand, only supports Amazon Alexa and Google Home. It does not support Apple Homekit directly, but unlikely it will ever support it.
• Unlike Nest thermostats, Ecobee can’t by any chance be installed without using a C wire.
• Ecobee records as well as analyzes HVAC data for 18 months. Nest has data feedback as well, but it only records data for only 10 days.
• Ecobee gets its power directly from a hardwired connection. Thus, it doesn’t rely on a battery or any equipment for HVAC to charge itself. On the other hand, the nest is powered by a rechargeable battery that is built-in and gets its power directly from the cooling or heating system wires. 

What is Ecobee?

Ecobee is a home automation company that is located in Toronto. This is one of the top companies that produce commercial and residential thermostats. The smart thermostat is Wi-Fi-enabled, which makes it possible to always be at the forefront of some of the smart thermostats available on the market for many years. This company is still competing with its rival, Nest, thus expanding the lineup of its products.

This company has rapidly grown since it was started and launched its first product back in 2009. It has expanded its business by doubling it and has outgrown most of its customer base in a few years. Today, Ecobee is one of the top distributors of smart Wi-Fi-enabled thermostats.

Their latest one in line is the Ecobee4, as the company says that this new product is designed to be heard and seen. This is the first smart thermostat that has Amazon’s voice assistant, Alexa, built-in.

Ecobee Features

• It has a SmartSensor that extends the most comfort to be used in some of the important rooms.
• saves at least 26% each year on cooling and heating costs.
• Energy star certified
• It can be controlled with the Ecobee app
• Apple HomeKit integration 
• Supports all HVAC accessories. 
• Bluetooth and Spotify streaming.

Pros	Cons
Seamless integration directly into your smart home ecosystem.	Increase in energy consumption.
Voice commands that are built into Siri or Alexa.	Unexpected modifications.
It has a built-in occupancy sensor, thus keeping your home at the right temperature when the system automatically senses your presence.	Erroneous vacant detection.
With an amazing feature called innovative time, it allows you to cool and heat your home at moments when energy becomes cheap without interfering with your home comforts.
It has the ability to be connected to a Bluetooth speaker for streaming music.
It has a three-year warranty.
Energy Star rated.
You can control the temperature from your phone by only using the Ecobee app.

What is Nest?

Nest is a group of smart home products like thermostats, smoke detectors, smart displays, smart speakers, streaming devices, security systems, and routers. These security systems include cameras, smart locks, and smart doorbells.

The “nest” name was owned by Nest Labs and co-founded by Matt Rogers and Tony Fadell, former Apple engineers. Its main flagship product was the Nest Learning Thermostat, the first offering by the company and launched in 2011.

The Nest Learning Thermostat is self-learning, programmable, WI-FI enabled, and sensor-driven. These features are mostly found in other nest products. The second product to be launched was the carbon monoxide and smoke detectors in October 2013.

In 2014, after it acquired Dropcam, it went ahead and launched the Nest Cam branding, which was for security cameras, in June 2015. By the end of 2012, the company had expanded to over 130 employees. The acquisition of Nest Labs by Google was worth US $3.2 billion back in January, and the company employed 280.

After Google organized itself under the new holding company Alphabet Inc., Nest started to work independently of Google from the year 2015 to 2018. In 2018, Nest merged again into Google’s home-devices unit, ending its existence as a separate business. In July 2018, it was publicly announced that almost all Google Home electronics products would start being marketed under the new brand Google Nest.

Features of Nest

• It can be controlled using the same iOS, Android, or web-based app.
• The screen can display the target or current temperature, a digital or analog clock, and the weather.
• Furnace Heads-up is used to always monitor the cycles of your furnace’s power.
• Sense abnormalities.
• It has motion sensors for detecting one’s presence.
• It studies your home compound.
• The Nest is smart home compatible.

Pros	Cons
You can control your temperature by just using your smartphone, even if you are far from it.	It requires a c-wire for installation.
Notifies you if it detects something in your vicinity.	It is very expensive.
It is very easy to control.	External sensors are very expensive.
It teaches you the ways.
It incorporates weather data.
Keep an eye out for any HVAC problems.
There are rebates available.
Wonderful and unique design.

Ecobee vs. Nest: Which One Is Better? Which One Should You Use?

Ecobee and Nest are the top names in the smart thermostat market, which function almost in the same way, but each has its pros and cons. But the amazing part is that they serve the same purpose, to ensure your home is cozy and warm.

If you always love the design of a product, it is evident that you will choose Nest over Ecobee. But when it comes to amazing features and usability, Ecobee wins over the nest. If you need a smart device that has Alexa with remote sensing ability and is compatible with Apple’s HomeKit for a big home, the Ecobee is the best choice.

Ecobee and Nest in the News

On April 18, 2023, Ecobee announced that their latest line of smart thermostats will be able to be intergrated with Generac home standby generators. This will now allow users to have a central interface and easily see that their generator is ready to switch on in the event of a power outage.

On April 7, 2023, Google announced that products which rely on the Nest app — including Nest Secure — will not be compatible with the new Google Home from April 4, 2024. This means that after this date Nest Secure will no longer work. This is a move by Google to phase out their older software. However, users of Nest Secure will be offered a free ADT Self Setup System, or alternatively they can receive a $200 credit for the Google store.