TCRThe Comparison Report

Smart Thermostats / Amazon

Amazon · Smart Thermostat

Amazon Smart Thermostat

Cheap, Honeywell-built and heavily rebated — but Alexa-only, and a C wire is required.

$79.99

Overall score 4.5/10

Pros

  • + $79.99 list, frequently discounted to $50-60, and rebated by more US utilities than almost anything else here
  • + Honeywell Home hardware underneath, so the relay and wiring side is Resideo-grade rather than a no-name design
  • + Alexa Hunches away-control works without you configuring a schedule at all
  • + Trim plate included in the box, which Copeland charges extra for on the Sensi Touch 2

Cons

  • A C wire is a hard requirement and the adapter is not in the box — the real cost in a four-wire home is the thermostat plus an adapter
  • Alexa only. There is no Google Home, no Apple Home, no HomeKit and no Matter, so it is a dead end outside Amazon's ecosystem
  • Most settings are not on the thermostat itself; without a phone and the Alexa app you can barely configure it
  • No remote sensors of any kind — the Echo comfort-zone workaround is not the same as a real room sensor
  • Amazon publishes no stage count, no accessory terminals and no wiring detail, so multi-stage and heat-pump owners are buying blind

Amazon Smart Thermostat review: what the specs say

Cheap, Honeywell-built and heavily rebated — but Alexa-only, and a C wire is required. At $79.99, Amazon's 2021 model sits among the cheapest we cover — the smart Thermostats we compare run from $79 to $259.99. It scores 4.5/10 overall, calculated from published specifications across 8 categories rather than from a subjective impression.

Its strongest showing is Value at 8.5/10 — what the money buys once accessories, adapters and sensors are added in. The weakest is C-Wire Freedom at 1.5/10, which is the trade-off to weigh before buying: if that is the specification you care about most, one of the alternatives below will serve you better.

Worth knowing before you buy: a C wire is a hard requirement and the adapter is not in the box — the real cost in a four-wire home is the thermostat plus an adapter; and alexa only. There is no Google Home, no Apple Home, no HomeKit and no Matter, so it is a dead end outside Amazon's ecosystem. Every specification on this page comes from Amazon's own documentation or a verified retail listing — where a figure is not published, the table says so rather than estimating it.

Specifications and price last verified . Report an error

Full Specifications

System VoltageLow voltage 24V — Amazon lists conventional forced air, heat pump and radiant boiler. It does not work with 110-240V systems
C-Wire RequiredYes, hard requirement. Every Amazon, Best Buy and utility-store listing is titled 'C-wire required'
Adapter / Power Kit IncludedNo — the C-Wire Power Adapter is a separate purchase, or you buy the bundle SKU instead of this one
Heating & Cooling StagesNot published by Amazon. The listings say only 'most 24V heating and cooling systems (conventional forced air, heat pump, radiant boiler)' with no stage count anywhere — run Amazon's compatibility checker before buying
Heat Pump & Aux HeatListed as compatible with heat pumps. Amazon does not publish how it handles auxiliary or emergency heat
Humidifier / Ventilator TerminalsNone published, and no humidifier, dehumidifier or ventilator control is advertised anywhere in the listing
Remote SensorsNo dedicated remote sensor exists for this thermostat. Best Buy's listing states comfort zones can use select Echo devices or the Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor as temperature inputs instead
Occupancy DetectionNone at the thermostat. Away behaviour comes entirely from Alexa Hunches
Matter SupportNo
Voice & Smart Home PlatformsAmazon Alexa only. No Google Home, no Apple Home, no HomeKit, no SmartThings. The Alexa app is mandatory and most settings are not reachable on the thermostat screen at all
Utility Rebates & Demand ResponseENERGY STAR certified and one of the most heavily rebated thermostats in US utility marketplaces; several utilities bundle it into demand-response enrolment
Account or Subscription NeededNo subscription, but an Amazon account and the Alexa app are required and there is no web dashboard
ConnectivityWi-Fi
MaterialWhite plastic with a capacitive front panel; trim plate included
Warranty12 months

Compare Amazon Smart Thermostat With

Cheaper Alternative

Sensi Lite (ST25) — $79.00

Premium Alternative

Google Nest Thermostat (2020) — $129.99