The best HomeKit devices in 2024

All of the best HomeKit devices are controlled by Apple’s voice assistant, Siri. HomeKit makes it easy to manage the best smart home devices and link them together. You can control compatible gadgets manually from your iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV or go hands-free with voice commands on any Siri-enabled gadget such as the HomePod smart speaker. 

Apple's platform streamlines your smart home setup so that it's easier to use and more cohesive.

While HomeKit may not be as popular as Amazon's Alexa or Google Home, it streamlines your smart home setup. Many find Apple's smart home platform easier to use and appreciate its speed since HomeKit processes your data locally instead of in the cloud. Like the best Alexa compatible devices or the best Google Assistant compatible devices, the best HomeKit devices allow you to expand your smart home’s powers with remote controls and automations.

Looking for more top smart home products? Make sure you check out all of our picks for smart speakers, lights, locks, and more on our best smart home devices page.

Scroll down to see all of the best HomeKit devices below.

The quick list

Here are the best HomeKit gadgets you can buy right now based on our lab testing and reviews. Scroll on for our full in-depth breakdowns of their individual performance and everyday experience. 

The best HomeKit devices you can buy today

Best overall

Apple's budget smart speaker is small—funnily enough around the size of a large apple—but delivers excellent audio. That's thanks to its massive radiators, an acoustic waveform guide, and computational audio. All of this tech works together to analyze and fine-tune everything the HomePod mini plays. 

Another reason that the HomePod mini is one of the best HomeKit devices is that it acts as a HomeKit hub, and even supports Thread, a next-generation networking technology. The HomePod mini can also be paired in stereo and linked with the Apple TV 4K, so you can use them as a soundbar when watching movies and TV. 

Read our full Apple HomePod mini review.

Best streaming device

We love the Apple TV 4K (2022) at $129, which is $50 lower than before. This price drop makes one of the best HomeKit devices (especially for Apple users) even more accessible. But that's just the beginning. Apple's super-charged the Apple TV 4K with the new A15 Bionic system-on-chip, delivering some of the fastest load times we've seen on any streaming device. 

On top of that, the new media box brings some major upgrades like HDR10+ (if your TV supports it) and a USB-C remote (from Apple's Lightning connector). Smart home enthusiasts will be excited for the inclusion of the Thread support for Matter, and some may be annoyed you need to spend $20 more for an Ethernet port. The Roku Ultra, for example, includes one by default at $99. That said, one of the best reasons to get the Apple TV 4K is tvOS, which is still the cleanest interface out there and integrates as smoothly as possible with HomeKit.

Read our full Apple TV 4K (2022) review.

Best sound performance

Apple's second-generation HomePod has a few improvements over the original, and makes it better suited for smart homes. That's because the HomePod (2nd gen) has built-in support for Matter — so it should be easier to connect and control smart home devices — and has temperature and humidity sensors, too. The HomePod 2 can also listen for the sound of a fire alarm in your home and send you an alert.

The HomePod 2 sounds just as great as the original, and it works really well within Apple's ecosystem; you can use it as the audio output for an Apple TV 4K, and seamlessly transfer music playing on your iPhone to the speaker. However, $299 is pretty pricey, so you'll want to think hard about how deep you want to get in with Apple. 

Read our full Apple HomePod (2nd generation) review.

Best smart plug

The $25 Wemo WiFi Smart Plug is one of the best Homekit devices and our top choice among the best smart plugs. It's more compact than competing options out there, even its predecessor the Wemo Mini. And while it doesn't have energy monitoring like some other smart plugs, the Wemo WiFi Smart Plug does work with all the major smart assistants.

This smart plug has a physical switch, so if you don’t want to use your voice or an app to turn your appliance on or off, you can click the switch on the Wemo. It also has a clever Away mode. which can make it seem like you’re home even when you’re not by turning a lamp on intermittently. 

Read our full Wemo WiFi Smart Plug review.

Best smart lock

How many times have you tried getting into your house when your arms are full of groceries? Those who own an Apple Watch will definitely appreciate the Schlage Encode Plus in those moments; it’s a lot easier to tap your wrist against your door rather than trying to dig your keys out of your pocket. Thanks to NFC and support for Apple's digital keys, your iPhone can quickly unlock the door as well.

We wish this lock stored as many codes as some of the other smart locks we tested, and you still need to use the Schlage app to access many of the features. But this is one of the few third-party smart home products we've used that's with HomeKit and Apple users in mind. 

Read our full Schlage Encode Plus review. 

Best smart thermostat

As one of the best smart thermostats overall, the Ecobee SmartThermostat controls temperature of your home while providing a background soundtrack with its support for Spotify. It's still far below cheap smart speakers in terms of audio quality, but it's an economical way to get voice control into a room. Plus when it's paired to your HomeKit system, you can control its settings from wherever you are using your smartphone. The Ecobee has Alexa built in, but you can also connect it directly to Siri, so you can use its microphone and speaker directly with Apple's assistant.

More importantly, the latest Ecobee model has redesigned remote sensors that have much better range and battery life. We're not enamored with the Ecobee's looks, though; its plasticky design hasn't changed much since the original, and unlike the Nest, is beginning to look dated.

Read our full Ecobee (5th gen) review.

Best smart light switch

The Lutron Caseta Dimmer Switch Starter Kit is one of the best HomeKit devices because it works with any desk or table lamp (and up to 800 different bulbs), making the "dumb" device smart. Unlike a standard smart plug, Lutron’s gadget lets you dim the bulb, rather than simply turn it on or off. The Starter Kit includes a handy remote, but you can skip that if you want to control it with Siri via your iPhone or iPad. 

Unfortunately, the Lutron Caseta smart wireless kit isn't cheap. For just under $200, you get two plugs, two remotes and the necessary Wi-Fi bridge. Extras plugs cost about $54 each. That said, we believe it’s worth the investment because the kit requires very limited input once you set it up with your HomeKit routines.

Read our full Lutron Caseta Dimmer Switch Starter Kit review.

Best smart home control panel

Brilliant’s Smart Home Controller, one of the best smart light switches overall, offers HomeKit compatibility. We like the Smart Home Controller because it acts as a universal remote of sorts for all your connected smart home devices. Brilliant allows you to control everything from the Sonos One and Nest Thermostat to the Ring Video Doorbell and Philips Hue lights. And with Apple HomeKit, you can ask Siri with your voice to control any device connected to your Brilliant panel. 

The Brilliant Smart Home Controller panel also has built-in motion sensors, and a small camera so you can use it as a video intercom. It’s the most comprehensive smart switch system we’ve ever reviewed, and is an excellent choice for those who need to get a reign on their large collection of smart home devices. 

Read our full Brilliant Smart Home Controller review.

Best smart light bulb

The Philips Hue White Starter Kit, which is the best smart lighting foundation for most people, includes two bulbs and a hub to connect them to your system of smart home gadgets. For an additional $30, you can add two more bulbs. As long as you have a single Philips Hue hub, you can outfit your entire home with up to 50 of the company’s reliable and versatile smart light bulbs. Philips Hue makes bulbs that work without the hub, too, but a hub offers more features and flexibility.

While the bulbs in this starter kit don’t change colors, you can adjust their brightness (up to 800 lumens.) Philips Hue bulbs also work well with smart home routines and lightning scenes, meaning you can make your lights bright first thing in the morning, but dimmer at night as you wind down for the day. 

Read our full Philips Hue White starter kit review.

Best smart garage door opener

Apple HomeKit users can open and close their car garage doors using nothing but their voice with the help of Siri. As one of the best HomeKit devices, the Chamberlain myQ smart garage opener lets you control your garage without fumbling around for the standard remote. The myQ model comes with a sensor for your garage door as well as a hub that connects to your Wi-Fi network. Most garage doors created after 1993 should be compatible.

When you send a command using your smartphone or voice, it is relayed to the Chamberlain hub, which then communicates with the sensor that activates your garage door’s movement. The myQ also happens to be at the top of our list of best smart garage door openers, making it the top recommendation for most people.

Read our full Chamberlain myQ review.

Best color-changing smart lights

The $199 Nanoleaf Shapes light panels are modular hexagon tiles that connect together like custom puzzle pieces, pair to Google Assistant and provide a healthy dose of chaos to a boring bedroom or work-from-home setup. 

With all their brightness settings, color patterns and pulsing music modes, these mountable panels aren’t like any of the best smart lights around. They're better. Or more fun, at least. Though they're pretty pricey, especially for something ornamental, Nanoleaf Shapes will upgrade any smart home space instantly.

Read our full Nanoleaf Shapes review.

How to pick the best HomeKit devices for you

Deciding which of the best HomeKit devices above are ideal for your smart home can be daunting, so it’s important to consider which conveniences you’re looking for before buying. These are the factors you can use to differentiate your options.

Design: Is this product conducive with my current home setup? In the case of a smart plug, for instance, is it slim enough so that it doesn't block your other outlet? You want to make your home less complicated, not create complications.

Functionality: What features does the smart home device have? If it's a smart plug or a smart light, does it have a Home/Away feature for when you travel? Pay attention to your daily routines to see what role your smart home devices can play.

Price: Often, the cheapest smart home device is not the best. You may be tempted by a $10 gadget, but make sure it meets your needs before buying it. In fact, a number of HomeKit devices are pricier because of the quality the platform tries to uphold.

How we test the best HomeKit devices

When reviewing the best HomeKit devices, or any smart home device for that matter, we consider at a few things before assigning it a rating. 

First and foremost we look at how simple the device is to install. We look at the ease of installation to ensure that the devices don’t cause any unnecessary headaches before they even work. Once they're set up we gauge performance. Does the gadget actually work as advertised? Is its app easy to use, with a sensible layout?

We also compare each of the gadgets within their individual category to see how the device’s features stack up relative to its price range. Price and value are also factored into our testing. How expensive is it when compared to similar devices? What kind of features does it deliver compared to the most advanced option. 

Want a change from Apple? Then here are the best Alexa compatible devices, best Google Home compatible devices and best smart displays that we recommend.

• The best smart plugs to try out now
• The best smart light switches