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Rachel Cericola is a writer covering smart home. In addition to testing hundreds of smart devices, she has also tested dozens of ice cream sandwiches. home security
We have refreshed this guide with up-to-date information and our latest recommendations.
Achieving peace of mind for your home doesn’t have to be pricey or difficult.
Traditional home security systems often require long contracts and expensive professional installation, but most smart DIY security systems are affordable and easy to install, and they allow you to pay for a monitoring plan only when you want it.
Ring offers two of the best-performing and easy-to-use DIY home security systems we’ve tested: the Ring Alarm Pro and the original Ring Alarm. You can set up and control either system using the same simple smartphone app, and you can customize yours to suit your preferences with a wide range of add-on accessories. Ring also offers more camera and video-doorbell options than any of our other picks, and its monitoring plan is the most comprehensive and one of the least expensive.
This system works with almost every type of security accessory, offers options for internet and power backup, and has a built-in Wi-Fi 6 router.
The original Ring system is easy to use and inexpensive to set up, and it has more camera add-ons than any of our other picks.
This kit is affordable and easy to install and use, and it works reliably. The optional monitoring plan costs the same as the one for our top pick but doesn’t provide video storage.
Abode offers more smart-home integration than any other security system we tested, which allows you to tie it into smart-home devices from different manufacturers.
Though most systems don’t require a monitoring subscription, we always recommend signing up so that you never miss an alert and you have someone on call 24/7.
Cameras enhance a system’s effectiveness. Confirm that your subscription plan includes storage for video recordings.
Most security systems allow customization with extra sensors that detect carbon monoxide, water, smoke, and extreme temperatures.
To cut down on false alarms, some cities require a permit or other provisions to install security systems that connect to emergency services.
This system works with almost every type of security accessory, offers options for internet and power backup, and has a built-in Wi-Fi 6 router.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Works With Ring
Ring has the best-performing sensors and devices of any system we tested. It also offers the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to professional monitoring ($20 per month or $200 per year). With that plan, you receive 180 days of video storage, cellular backup, and 3 GB of 24/7 backup internet with the option for more ($3 per 1 GB). The Ring Alarm Pro system is a standout because it also has a built-in Eero Wi-Fi 6 router. That allows you to replace your standard home Wi-Fi router, depending on your service, or even create a wireless mesh network, which can improve your Wi-Fi’s range and speed—a big help for security cameras and other smart-home devices around the house. Ring no longer allows new customers who choose self-monitoring to receive smartphone notifications and arm or disarm the system using the app, so you’ll probably want the monitoring plan (and we don’t really recommend self-monitoring anyway). Ring has halted a controversial program that allowed law enforcement and emergency officials to directly request access to Ring owner videos. Those officials will still be able to view publicly posted video, and also may potentially gain access to user videos through Ring directly via a warrant, or in situations where Ring determines there is a serious, time-sensitive event.
The original Ring system is easy to use and inexpensive to set up, and it has more camera add-ons than any of our other picks.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Works With Ring
The Ring Alarm system offers the same great performance as the Ring Alarm Pro does. It’s reliable, it’s fast, and it has an excellent selection of add-ons, including more cameras and doorbells than you can find for any of our other picks. The only difference is that this model does not include a built-in Eero 6 router, but if you already have a mesh network or don’t want one, you can get almost the exact same security system for less money.
This kit is affordable and easy to install and use, and it works reliably. The optional monitoring plan costs the same as the one for our top pick but doesn’t provide video storage.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, August Smart Locks
SimpliSafe is the only one of our picks to offer true self-monitoring, which means you can arm or disarm the system from the app and receive smartphone alerts when a sensor is triggered without having to pay a monthly fee. We strongly recommend paying for professional monitoring, however, and so the good news is that SimpliSafe’s monitoring prices are both competitive and adjustable based on your needs. The company offers a good selection of accessories, including door, smoke, and other sensors, as well as indoor and outdoor video cameras, a doorbell camera, and a smart lock. Other than smart speakers, the only non-SimpliSafe devices this system is compatible with are August locks.
Abode offers more smart-home integration than any other security system we tested, which allows you to tie it into smart-home devices from different manufacturers.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, IFTTT, Zigbee, Z-Wave
Abode is for the smart-home enthusiast who wants a security system that can integrate with smart lighting, thermostats, voice-controlled speakers, and other connected devices—and who doesn’t mind going through the steps to put together that type of setup. Abode supports both Zigbee- and Z-Wave–enabled devices, as well as Amazon Alexa, Apple Home (HomeKit), Google Home, and IFTTT (If This Then That). That type of support comes at a price: We found Abode starter packages, most accessories, and live monitoring to be more expensive than those of our other picks.
I first started testing smart-home devices more than 20 years ago, when the only smart-home devices were X10. I have been covering smart-home gear for Wirecutter since 2016 and have had my hands on everything from smart bird feeders, smart outdoor lighting, and in-wall smart light switches to indoor security cameras, outdoor security cameras, and smart doorbell cameras. I’ve also contributed to The New York Times, Wired, and Men’s Health, among others.
For this guide, we interviewed peers, home security consultants, police departments, and insurance agents. We also sent security companies detailed questionnaires about their products and services.
A security system with professional monitoring is the best way to find peace of mind about the safety of your family and the security of your belongings—you know that there’s always someone watching over your home, should the need arise. “An alarm system might sit there for 10 years and do absolutely nothing,” said Bob Dolph, a home security consultant who has spent decades in the business. “You only need it to work that one time.”
Although a home security system can’t stop a determined burglar from breaking into your house, it can discourage someone from breaking in if they know you have it, frighten someone away if they do get in, and summon help in case of an emergency. Security systems are effective enough that insurance companies typically offer a discount—as much as 10%—on home insurance premiums if you pay for professional monitoring.
Security systems aren’t just about crime prevention. Most allow you to customize them with extra sensors that can protect you and your household in the event of fires, floods, and frozen pipes.
Home security systems can also play a part in helping to watch over loved ones who need extra care. For instance, indoor cameras and motion and door/window contact sensors can alert you to how active a parent or grandparent is, as well as if they’ve accidentally left a door or window open. Also, many of these systems can integrate with other smart-home devices so you can use a smart speaker to arm or disarm the system with the sound of your voice, or trigger cameras and lights to turn on based on alerts or your location.
Neighbors is the focus of a lot of controversy. We clear up the good, the bad, and the questionable practices surrounding Ring’s in-app feature.
Investing in a security system is a great idea, but they aren’t one size fits all. Ask yourself these questions to find the one that’s best for you.
You can find two general types of security systems: professionally monitored and unmonitored. With a professionally monitored system, when an alarm goes off at your home, a support representative at the monitoring company receives a notification and then attempts to contact you (and, if need be, your local emergency services). An unmonitored, aka self-monitored, system leaves all the work up to you. That means you need to be on call, day and night, during work and vacation time, with a smartphone at hand in case a sensor is tripped and your alarm goes off, and then you have to be ready to determine whether police, the fire department, or other emergency services need to be dispatched. And you must make that call yourself. It’s a big difference, and it’s why we think a professionally monitored system is fundamentally more secure.
For this guide, we look only at DIY security systems that offer professional monitoring options—the key feature that sets a security system apart from a local alert system. We also insist on no-contract systems, because they cost less in the long run and allow you to be in total control of the equipment and monitoring services you use.
We don’t consider professionally installed systems, which usually cost substantially more, typically come with long and often onerous contracts, and rely on the same equipment and monitoring companies as self-installed systems. A good example is the Vivint Smart Home Security system, which we’ve reviewed and don’t recommend for most people.
After years of researching and reviewing security systems, we’ve also restricted our picks to systems that include the following:
To test each system, we spend weeks triggering motion and contact sensors, soaking water-leak detectors, setting off sirens, and cutting power to test battery backups. We also look at cameras, keypads, and iOS/Android apps, when available.
Keep in mind that the monitoring company’s reaction time has absolutely nothing to do with the speed at which your local authorities respond to the alarm—if they respond at all. Many municipalities have rules designed to limit the time and resources that police and fire departments waste on false alarms; you may even be fined if you have too many. For instance, Salt Lake City requires confirmation of an emergency from a responding private security guard before police are dispatched. Several cities, such as Los Angeles, also require a permit for you to even own and operate a home security system.
As part of our vetting process for home security systems, we look at the security and data-privacy practices behind our picks. This process includes long-term testing and tracking of app, firmware, and policy updates, as well as hardware and security incidents. Should any privacy or security issues be found with any of our selected products, we’ll report it here and, if necessary, update or alter our recommendations.
During our testing, we read the manufacturer’s privacy policies for our picks, specifically looking for sections that stray from what we consider to be standard in the category. For instance, most security companies say that in certain circumstances, they will cooperate with police and may turn over camera footage with your permission or by court order. Also, some companies offer “visual verification,” which allows the monitoring center to view cameras in case of an active alarm.
Most security companies say that they share data with third parties; however, “third parties” typically refers only to the partner monitoring companies that support the security systems, and the “data” collected merely concerns which type of alarms or alerts are triggered (and when), as well as the address where emergency services would be sent. Ring says that it will share customer data with third-party and app analytics services, but customers can opt out of that. SimpliSafe told us that it also shares information with app developers at Google Firebase and the analytics company Heap to keep tabs on the user’s app experience and make improvements.
If you opt to use security cameras, consider only those models made by companies that provide robust cybersecurity and privacy protections. Our top pick and our runner-up pick include two-factor authentication, which does a good job of ensuring that access to your camera and video recordings is restricted. The Abode Smart Security Kit is the only one of our picks that currently makes 2FA an option—Ring and SimpliSafe require it.
One especially daunting topic is how companies encrypt video, a process that keeps outside entities and companies from accessing your data and video recordings. All three companies that produce our picks encrypt video in transit and at rest, which means when it’s moving (such as from your device to the cloud) as well as when it’s not moving (like when it’s stored on a hard drive). Ring is the only one of our picks that offers encryption from end to end (as an opt-in feature). That means your videos can’t be accessed by anyone, including Ring, even if the footage is requested by law enforcement via a subpoena or court order.
This system works with almost every type of security accessory, offers options for internet and power backup, and has a built-in Wi-Fi 6 router.
The original Ring system is easy to use and inexpensive to set up, and it has more camera add-ons than any of our other picks.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Works with Ring
The Ring Alarm Pro system is the most comprehensive DIY home security system we’ve tested. It’s easy to set up and use, it allows you to customize it with a large selection of compatible add-ons, and it features an affordable monitoring plan priced at $20 per month or $200 per year. The Ring Alarm Pro system can’t integrate with as many third-party smart-home devices as our other picks can, but it does have a built-in Eero Wi-Fi 6 router (more on that below), which can replace your existing router or create a mesh network to improve your Wi-Fi’s speed (see our guide to the best mesh-networking kits for more info). The Eero router also provides backup internet access via a cellular connection (as part of a Ring Protect Pro plan), should you have a power or internet outage.
However, if you already have a mesh Wi-Fi network, don’t want one, or don’t need backup internet, opt for the original Ring Alarm system instead; it performs almost exactly the same way but costs about $50 to $100 less, depending on your starter package.
They’re always on call. Ring is the only one of our picks to offer both 24/7 monitoring and 24/7 customer service, which is available over the phone. In contrast, SimpliSafe customer service is available only from 8:00 a.m. to midnight Eastern, while Abode has live phone support from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily.
It works really well. Measuring a deafening 113 dB on our sound meter, the Ring Alarm system has the loudest siren of any system we tested. The Ring Alarm Pro came close, tying with the Abode system for second at 104 dB. Both Ring systems sent us smartphone alerts within 4 seconds of the alarm being triggered, with email alerts as an option, as well. You can configure the siren on the base station to go off from 0 to 180 seconds after a triggering event. If you dismiss an alarm within 30 seconds, the monitoring service will not call you. Ring also has a “customizable police response” option, which means you have to okay a police response versus the monitoring company just sending them.
The monitoring plan packs in a lot of extras. The Ring Protect Pro plan includes live monitoring, app access, smartphone notifications, cellular backup, and 180 days of video storage for cameras. It also enables Ring Edge, a new feature that allows you to choose to store video recordings locally on a microSD card inserted into the Ring Alarm Pro base station, as opposed to having it uploaded to the cloud. We think cloud-based recordings are superior because you can access the content during a power outage and don’t have to worry about stolen hard drives. Ring Edge is not available on the original Ring Alarm and isn’t compatible with Ring’s Video Doorbell 4, Floodlight Cam Wired Pro, Video Doorbell (1st generation), or Stick Up Cam (1st generation).
It can get super-fast Wi-Fi. The Ring Alarm Pro has a built-in Eero Wi-Fi 6 router. That means the base station can both serve as the brains of your security system and replace your current Wi-Fi router, depending on your service. If your home is particularly large or has struggled with Wi-Fi coverage in the past, you can also set up the Eero router as a mesh Wi-Fi network, which can extend and improve your Wi-Fi’s range and performance with extra Eero 6 Extenders. Eero claims that its network covers 1,500 square feet and can support up to 75 connected devices at a time. Although we didn’t test that many devices, we did put an extender by the front door to ensure a strong connection with outdoor cameras. When connected to our home internet, the Eero router actually gave us speeds a little better than promised, up to 900 Mbps.
There’s a backup plan for the backup plan. The base station has a built-in battery that provides 24 hours of backup power (confirmed by our testing), which is comparable to that of SimpliSafe’s system. However, with Ring Alarm Pro, you can also add up to three backup power packs for an additional 24 hours of power, depending on usage. The monitoring plan also includes 24/7 internet backup, which is powered by AT&T, in case your Wi-Fi goes down. Speeds on this backup connection are noticeably slower than normal, though we were able to live-view security cameras and even stream Netflix while connected to the Eero router. The backup connection includes 3 GB of data, which you’ll eat through quickly if you’re viewing cameras, watching movies, and doing anything else you normally do on the web—it’s really designed for short-term emergency situations. (Should you need, you can purchase additional data for a reasonable $3 per gigabyte.)
You have a lot of hardware options. Ring’s system doesn’t integrate with a lot of third-party smart-home systems and devices, but Ring does offer a lot of compatible accessories, including a smoke/CO listener, the First Alert Z-Wave Plus Smoke/CO Alarm (2nd generation), a water-leak sensor, a glass-break sensor, and even a sensor for when you want to monitor doors or windows that are cracked open a little. It also has more indoor, outdoor, and doorbell camera options than any other system we’ve tested. The Ring Alarm Pro base station also incorporates the features of the Ring Smart Lighting Bridge, a tiny box that can wirelessly connect Ring lights to your home network.
Ring also offers service add-ons. If you’re looking to beef up your security, Ring announced two opt-in services (we plan to test them soon). Alarm Verified Guard Response is a service that will send out an eyewitness to verify an event before sending emergency services. It’s available only in areas where your town or municipality requires verification, and it costs $75 per response. The other service, Ring Virtual Security Guard, costs a steep $99 per month but is like having your own personal security team to monitor your camera activity for suspicious activity and intervene as necessary.
Ring has improved its privacy policies. No company we cover has encountered more controversy for its products and service than Ring. There have been reports of hacking and even incidents citing Ring’s own employees spying on customers. Ring has worked on cleaning up its practices by adding mandatory two-factor authentication and settings that allow customers to opt out of law enforcement requests and the ability to view and manage all services and users linked to your Ring account from the app (under Device Settings). They also suspended use of the Request for Assistance tool in the Neighbors app, which allowed law enforcement to request and receive video footage without a warrant or subpoena. Ring is also the only one of our picks to offer end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for cameras, which means no one can access your video content except you, even in the case of a subpoena from law enforcement, though complying is a pretty common practice with most video cameras.
Editor Jon Chase has been a Ring customer since May 2020, and he says that he has never had an issue with false alarms—except in instances where he forgot to disarm the system. “This weekend, I tripped it and then turned it off using the app, but I instantly received an automated call asking me to acknowledge that I had turned off the alarm. It works great, and I haven’t had the fear of false alarms and the cops showing up, as I’ve had in the past.”
You may need a subscription plan. As of March 29, 2023, all new system owners need a Ring Protect Pro plan to use the Ring app to arm and disarm the system, as well as to receive smartphone notifications about alarm triggers. The company previously made these features free for all Ring Alarm customers. Ring has confirmed that Ring system owners who purchased their alarm system prior to that date will continue to have full app access.
You may need an extra app. One of the bonus features of the Ring Alarm Pro system is its built-in Eero Wi-Fi 6 router. That said, to set up and manage the Eero router’s features, you need to download the Eero app. So this one product uses two apps—plus the Alexa app, if you plan to add a smart speaker to your system. However, once you set up the router, you probably won’t consult the Eero app much.
It doesn’t always play nice with others. Ring doesn’t offer as much integration with third-party smart-home devices, since it supports only Alexa and everything under the Works with Ring umbrella. If you want more integration and the ability to arm, disarm, and check the status of your security system by voice, we recommend our also-great pick, the Abode Smart Security Kit.
This kit is affordable and easy to install and use, and it works reliably. The optional monitoring plan costs the same as the one for our top pick but doesn’t provide video storage.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, August Smart Locks
SimpliSafe is a close second to Ring, offering consistent response times and a straightforward installation at an affordable price. Its system doesn’t have as many optional accessories as our top pick does, but SimpliSafe sells its own doorbell, indoor and outdoor cameras, and smart lock, all of which work very well—just not as well as the options from Ring. It’s also the only one of our picks to offer free self-monitoring that sends smartphone alerts whenever a device is triggered and allows you to arm, disarm, and check the system status via the app. (We recommend professional monitoring, but we still appreciate the option for people who are on a budget or want monitoring only during certain months.)
You get several monitoring options. For $20 per month, you can add around-the-clock professional monitoring and a cellular connection with the Standard Monitoring plan, which enables the hub to communicate with the monitoring service without requiring a landline connection. The $30-per-month Fast Protect Monitoring plan adds unlimited camera recordings for up to 10 cameras and Video Verification, an opt-in feature that permits the monitoring service to view live video inside your home to confirm whether there’s an actual emergency before they call in the cavalry—a system intended to reduce false alerts (and, as noted above, a requirement in some communities). The company even offers a $10 self-monitoring plan, which includes video storage for up to five cameras.
You can choose your response. In every one of our tests, the Cops Monitoring service called exactly 44 seconds after the SimpliSafe alarm sounded. The service was always polite, and for security it requires a safeword to restore the peace. The company also has an option for Fast Protect alarm texts, which send you a text message when the alarm triggers, a handy option for cancelling any false alarms with a text reply before you actually have to talk to someone. Fast Protect also includes Critical Alarm Notifications, an opt-in service that bypasses Do Not Disturb settings or muted smartphones in case of an emergency. We are currently testing this feature and will update this guide with our results.
The extras work well. SimpliSafe has a variety of add-ons, including a wireless 1080p outdoor camera, an indoor 1080p camera, and a smart video doorbell; none are on a par with our picks in those respective categories, but they work well with the system and allow for the Video Verification feature. SimpliSafe also offers a door lock, which you can lock and unlock via the app or the included PIN pad that attaches to the outside of your door; it works well, but you have to set it up through the system’s keypad (versus in the app). The Smart Alarm Wireless Indoor Security Camera also has a feature called 24/7 Live Guard Protection, which allows the monitoring service to live-stream and communicate with intruders inside the home in real time. This feature is available only with the Fast Protect plan; you also need to opt in to it, as well as Video Verification, through the SimpliSafe app. (The company plans to expand this service to the outdoors to all customers by the end of 2024.)
Voice prompts aid setup. Unlike the base stations from Ring and Abode, SimpliSafe’s base station provides voice prompts during setup, as well as when the system is arming and disarming. This is a great addition, especially since the impending alarm can cause a little panic sometimes, particularly when you are trying to rush out of the house.
Some smart-home features are limited. SimpliSafe’s system also works with Amazon Alexa and Google Home, allowing you to arm and check the system using only voice commands. Unlike our other two picks, it doesn’t allow you to disarm the system using the sound of your voice. It also doesn’t work with many third-party smart-home devices, such as Ring cameras and doorbells.
Supervising editor Daniela Gorny has been a SimpliSafe customer since 2021, and she says that she appreciates being able to adjust the sensors’ sensitivity. “The first time we went out of town, we had a false alarm, but I think it’s because our doors can jiggle a bit with the wind and make it seem like they’re open. The lights going on and off in our living room have also sometimes triggered the motion sensor.”
Abode offers more smart-home integration than any other security system we tested, which allows you to tie it into smart-home devices from different manufacturers.
Compatible with: Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, IFTTT, Z-Wave, Zigbee
If you already use a bunch of smart-home devices and want a security system that can integrate with many of them, you might prefer the UL-certified Abode Smart Security Kit. It is compatible with sensors and accessories that communicate wirelessly using Z-Wave, Zigbee, and AbodeRF (radio frequency), as well as many popular third-party platforms. However, the Abode kit isn’t as pretty as our top pick, the add-on cameras don’t work quite as well, and it costs more for the main system and most accessory devices.
Abode plays well with others. Abode supports every major smart-home platform, so you can incorporate more smart-home devices into your system than with any of our other picks. That support includes Google Nest cameras, Philips Hue bulbs, Ecobee thermostats, and Schlage door locks, among others.
Placement isn’t easy—or pretty. Unlike our other two picks, the Abode hub needs to be connected to your network router with an Ethernet cable. (The Abode Iota uses Wi-Fi, but we don’t recommend that system.) We found the Abode Gateway hub to be less attractive and a little bulky compared with our other picks, about the same size as a standard router. In addition to network and cellular connections (with a paid Pro Plan subscription), the base station has a backup battery that’s good for five hours, which is 19 hours less than the backup power on the Ring and SimpliSafe base stations.
It costs a bit more. The Abode starter kit comes with fewer devices than our other picks. For $200 to $250, you get the Gateway and just one door/window sensor, one motion sensor, and a key fob. At $300, only the Ring Alarm Pro kit is more expensive, but in addition to the base station with the built-in Eero router, that kit includes a keypad, four window/door sensors, one motion detector, and a plug-in range extender.
You’ll need a subscription plan. Abode offers two subscription plans. For $7 per month or $70 per year, the Standard plan adds 10 days of events and video storage as well as CUE automations—which, similar to IFTTT, allow you to create multistep conditional triggers and Routines in the Abode app that can factor in details such as the weather, the time, and the phone locations of family members. The $23 Pro option adds 24/7 pro monitoring and cellular backup. Without a subscription, you can access the Abode app to arm or disarm the system and live-view cameras, but you don’t get smartphone alerts or recordings.
Abode-branded devices don’t work as well as others. We’ve tested a few of the Abode cameras, the Abode Wireless Video Doorbell, and the Abode Lock, and we don’t think any of them work as well as the cameras and locks associated with our other picks (or any of our standalone picks). For instance, we found that the Abode Cam 2 worked best when used with 24/7 video recording, an optional, $10-per-month add-on to Abode’s subscription plans. Otherwise, the camera is limited to capturing up to 30 seconds of video, and it leaves huge gaps between clips. We also tested the Abode Water Leak Sensor, which worked well but is the only such sensor among our picks that doesn’t also summon a monitoring service when it sends a smartphone alert.
Wirecutter senior software engineer Eric Dulcet has been an Abode customer since 2021, and he says he’s still very pleased with his purchase. “I’ve actually leaned into the ecosystem a lot more and bought smart fire/CO detectors, smart plugs, and the Abode smart bulbs, and started toying around with the CUE automation system. No issues with anything there, and everything was easy to set up.”
If you want a compact multitasker: The Arlo Home Security System combines multiple features into the least amount of devices. The hub has an integrated keypad, a siren, a motion detector, and the ability to listen for smoke and CO alarms. The sensor combines eight sensors into one, monitoring for entry, tilt, temperature, light, motion, water leaks, and smoke/CO alarms. However, we had issues setting up those sensors. On top of that, Arlo doesn’t currently offer a glass-break sensor, the subscription is more expensive than those of our picks ($25 per month), and you have to pay an extra $80 (plus the subscription fee) to get battery and cellular backups.
Although they worked well, we dismissed the Ecobee Smart Security system and the Eufy Security 5-Piece Home Alarm Kit due to lack of add-ons. Also, both systems don’t offer any type of cellular backup. The Wyze Home Security System is missing cellular backup and fire protection, and we no longer recommend using Wyze products.
We like that the Abode Security Kit (which is different from the Abode Smart Security Kit) is smaller than our also-great pick, but any of our other picks—or even the Arlo system—would be a better buy. Also, this one doesn’t currently support carbon monoxide detection.
We don’t recommend ADT’s Self Setup, Frontpoint Security, or Scout because of the cost of the system and/or the monitoring plans. We also dismissed the Ooma Smart Security system because the monitoring option isn’t currently available in Alabama, Arkansas, the District of Columbia, Florida, Maryland, Montana, Rhode Island, or Virginia.
We eliminated the Abode Iota and the Cove system due to issues we encountered during testing. While the Abode Iota had several problems with the internal camera and false alarms, the Cove system would repeatedly freeze up and lock us out.
The Abode Edge Camera is a camera that is the first on the market to use ultra long-range HaLow wireless with a range of more than a mile. It also has a rechargeable battery that Abode says will last about a year on a single charge. Other features include object detection, facial recognition, and anomaly detection. It can be used with and without our also great pick, the Abode Security System, but to capture video, you'll need a cloud plan (starting at $7 per month or $70 per year).
We’re also planning to test glass-break sensors from Ring, SimpliSafe, and Abode, and we will update this guide with our findings.
This article was edited by Jon Chase and Grant Clauser.
The cost of a home security system varies depending on the number of devices and accessories included. A good starter system costs around $200 and should include a base station, a keypad, at least one door/contact sensor, and a motion sensor. Look for a system that allows you to start small and add on other devices and features as your needs change; contact sensors go for as little as $15, cameras can cost anywhere from $30 to $350, and so on.
Most home security systems come packaged with everything you need to get started, including the base station, at least one door/window sensor, and a motion sensor. You are also able to add your choice of additional sensors, including more contact sensors for doors and windows, as well as water-leak sensors and glass-break sensors. We highly recommend adding smoke and carbon monoxide detectors or monitors that will “listen” for sounds from existing smoke/CO detectors. Other popular add-ons include indoor and outdoor cameras, video doorbells, smart door locks, key fobs, and panic buttons.
While some security systems may support some sensors and devices from other companies, others may limit compatibility to their own branded devices. That may be an important consideration for anyone hoping to have a highly customized system.
Having a security system in an apartment is a good idea, especially in buildings with high traffic. You never know who your neighbor could be buzzing in—in fact, they might not even know. A security system can also alert you to dangers from fire, flood, and frozen pipes.
DIY security systems are perfect for pretty much any living situation, including rental houses and apartments. Many of the various accessories, such as the contact and motion sensors, come with strong, two-sided adhesive, so you don’t need to drill into walls (and risk losing your security deposit). Also, because many security systems offer month-to-month contracts, you don’t have to worry about being locked into something long term or passing a contract on to the next renter. Make sure to check with your landlord before you invest in a system, in case your lease contains clauses that forbid the use of cameras or other security accessories. At the very least, it’s a good idea to let them know you’re installing a system that could trigger a loud alarm or visits from the police or fire department.
If you opt for a professionally monitored system—and we strongly recommend it—you may need to apply for a permit. A permit registers your system with your city/town, and is intended to cut down on false alarms. If your area requires a permit and you don’t have one, you could be charged a hefty fee if you have a false alarm and emergency services are dispatched. Some monitoring companies may be able to help you figure it out, but you should be able to find out if you need a permit by checking your town or city’s website or calling the non-emergency line of emergency authorities.
Rachel Cericola is a senior staff writer at Wirecutter who has been covering smart-home technology since the days of X10. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Wired, Men’s Health, USA Today, and others. She hopes her neighbors read this bio because it would explain why she always has four video doorbells running simultaneously outside her home.
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HomeKit is a straightforward smart-home system for anyone who uses Apple devices. Here’s how it works and our pick of the best compatible smart devices.
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