Best Smart Home Hubs for Alexa, Google, Apple or Local Use

Choose the hub that matches the voice assistant and phone you already use, because that decides which app runs the house. The radios come second: a hub can only reach a Zigbee, Z-Wave or Thread device if it has that radio inside. If all you want is the cheapest sensible choice, each of Amazon, Google and Apple sells a speaker or display for $100 to $130 that is a full Matter hub with a Thread radio.

Everything below is from the makers’ own pages and stores. We have not handled any of these hubs.

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The hubs compared

Prices are the makers’ US prices, rounded. Every hub here also controls Wi-Fi devices and is a Matter controller.

Matter and Thread in plain words

Matter is a common language for smart home devices. The Connectivity Standards Alliance, which runs it, calls it a unifying, IP-based connectivity protocol and a seal of approval that devices will work together. It says Matter runs over Wi-Fi and Thread, and uses Bluetooth Low Energy to set a device up. Google’s help pages add that a Matter device can be controlled from several apps at once, such as Google Home, Apple Home and Alexa.

Thread is one of the networks Matter travels over. The Thread Group describes it as a low-power mesh network built for smart homes, in which devices pass messages along to each other. It needs at least one Thread border router to join it to your Wi-Fi, and that is the job most of the hubs above do.

Zigbee and Z-Wave are older radio networks that many sensors, locks and switches still use. A hub without that radio cannot see those devices at all, which is why the table matters. The alliance’s own explanation is on its Matter page.

If you already use Alexa

Amazon Echo Dot Max, about $100

Amazon’s product page lists its smart home hub as Zigbee, Matter and a Thread border router, and Amazon says it is the first Echo Dot to have one. Amazon announced it at $99.99 in the US and ₹10,999 in India. The Alexa app runs on Android, iOS and Fire OS.

The ordinary Echo Dot is not the same thing. Amazon’s developer pages list it for Matter but not for Zigbee or as a Thread border router, so it can set up Matter devices that use Wi-Fi and no others.

On working offline, Amazon says two things. Its developer pages say Matter lets Alexa control a device locally during an internet outage. Its help page for offline voice control names only the Echo Plus and the second-generation Echo Show, both old models. Plan on needing the internet. Amazon Echo Dot Max on Amazon

If you want a screen, the Echo Show 8 has the same Zigbee, Matter and Thread hub. Amazon announced it at about $180.

If you already use Google

Google Nest Hub (2nd gen), about $100

A 7-inch touchscreen that Google’s spec sheet lists as a hub for Google Home with Matter and a built-in Thread border router. You can tap the screen to switch lights or change the thermostat, which is the reason to choose it over a speaker. The spec sheet lists no Zigbee or Z-Wave radio. The Google Home app runs on Android and iOS. Google Nest Hub (2nd gen) on Amazon

Google’s help pages say a hub is required before you can add any Matter device to Google Home, and that Matter devices then take commands over the home network without going through the cloud. Its Matter page lists which Google devices count as hubs.

The same $100 buys the new Google Home Speaker, which has no screen but adds Wi-Fi 6 and is also a Matter hub and Thread border router. Google is moving its speakers and displays from Google Assistant to Gemini for Home. Our guide to Google’s own home devices covers that change.

If you use an iPhone

Apple HomePod mini, about $130

Apple says a HomePod, HomePod mini or Apple TV can be the home hub, and that the hub is what lets you control accessories away from home, share control with other people and run automations. The HomePod mini is the cheapest of them at $129 and has a Thread radio. Apple lists no Zigbee or Z-Wave radio, and the only assistant is Siri.

The Apple TV 4K is the other route. Only the $249 model with Ethernet has Thread. The $199 Wi-Fi model does not, by Apple’s own comparison.

Two limits. Apple says the HomePod mini needs an iPhone or iPad, so this hub suits a house where everyone has one. And Apple’s help page for the HomePod says network and internet problems may affect Siri requests and control of accessories, so it makes no offline promise. Apple HomePod mini on Amazon

If the house is a mix

Aeotec Smart Home Hub 2, about $120

The SmartThings hub now carries Aeotec’s name. Samsung sells the Aeotec Smart Home Hub 2 on its US site for $119.99. SmartThings says it supports Zigbee, Thread and Matter, with a Thread border router built in, and that automations keep running if the internet goes down. The SmartThings app runs on Android and iOS, and Aeotec says it links to Alexa and Google Home.

Z-Wave is not on that list. The original Aeotec Smart Home Hub, still on Aeotec’s site, has it: up to 100 Z-Wave and 100 Zigbee devices, plus Matter and Thread. Aeotec is plainer about that older hub when offline: only some limited automations with some devices. Aeotec Smart Home Hub 2 on Amazon

If you want it to work without the internet

Hubitat Elevation C-8 Pro, about $185

Hubitat’s whole pitch is that automations run on the hub in your house and carry on during an internet outage. The C-8 Pro has Zigbee 3.0, Z-Wave 800 with Long Range, Bluetooth and Matter, and connects by Ethernet or Wi-Fi. Hubitat says there is no subscription for normal use, and that its built-in links to Apple Home, Alexa and Google Home let those assistants control devices on the hub.

The standard model has no Thread radio. A Thread edition at about $250 swaps the Zigbee radio for a Thread one, so you choose. Hubitat says the hub can be used in any region, with a Z-Wave frequency setting for countries including India. It is our pick for local control, because it is the cheapest box in the table with both Zigbee and Z-Wave inside, and it has no monthly fee. Prices are on Hubitat’s store. Hubitat Elevation C-8 Pro on Amazon

Home Assistant Green, about $200

Home Assistant is open-source software, and the Green is the ready-made box that runs it. Its maker says your data stays in the house and the system works when the internet is down, though the first setup needs a connection.

The box has no smart home radio of its own. The Connect ZBT-2 stick adds Zigbee or Thread for $49, but only one of the two at a time, and the Connect ZWA-2 adds Z-Wave for $69. A Green with one ZBT-2 comes to about $248. Add the Z-Wave stick and it is about $317. Home Assistant’s own FAQ still marks Thread support as under development, and it recommends its paid cloud subscription for linking Alexa and Google Assistant.

Pick it if you like to tinker. Skip it if you want to plug in and be done. Home Assistant Green on Amazon

Homey Pro, about $450

The one box with nearly every radio: Zigbee 3.0, Z-Wave, a Thread border router, Bluetooth, infrared and Matter. Homey says it processes everything locally and stays up when the internet is down, and that it works with Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri Shortcuts.

The price is the obstacle. The Homey Pro mini is $249 with Zigbee, Thread, Matter and Ethernet, and the $69 Homey Bridge adds Z-Wave, Bluetooth and infrared. Together that is $318, or $131 less than the Pro. Homey Pro on Amazon

We left out IKEA’s DIRIGERA. At about $140 in the US it costs more than an Echo Dot Max, and IKEA describes it as a Matter controller and a bridge for its own range, so it only makes sense in a house full of IKEA devices.

What happened to the old list

This page first listed six hubs in 2020. Here is where each stands.

• Samsung SmartThings: the platform is alive, and its hub is now sold under Aeotec’s name, as above.
• VeraPlus: Vera is now part of Ezlo, whose store sells no Vera hubs. It offers its own Ezlo Plus hub at about $180 and an upgrade path for Vera owners.
• Wink Hub 2: Wink’s site still shows it at $99 with Thread marked as “future”. Wink’s blog set its monthly subscription at $5.99 and has had no new post since early 2024. We would not start a house on it.
• Amazon Echo and Echo Dot: the Echo Dot on sale now has no Zigbee or Thread radio. The Echo Dot Max is the small Echo with a hub.
• Logitech Harmony: Logitech says it has stopped making Harmony remotes and will keep supporting the ones already sold.

Which to pick

• You already talk to Alexa: the Echo Dot Max. It is the only $100 hub here with a Zigbee radio as well as Thread.
• You already use Google Home: the Nest Hub (2nd gen), for the screen. The Google Home Speaker if you would sooner have no screen.
• Everyone has an iPhone: the HomePod mini.
• Android and iPhone under one roof, or Samsung appliances: the Aeotec Smart Home Hub 2 with SmartThings.
• Local control without a subscription: the Hubitat Elevation C-8 Pro.
• Local control, and you enjoy the setting up: Home Assistant Green with a ZBT-2.

Outside the US, check what is sold first. Amazon sells the Echo Dot Max in India. Google’s India store lists phones, watches and earbuds but none of its home devices. Home Assistant lists sellers for the Green in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Quick answers

Do I need a smart home hub?

Not if every device is on Wi-Fi and you are happy in each maker’s app. You need one for Zigbee, Z-Wave or Thread devices. Google also requires a hub before Matter devices can be added to Google Home, and Apple requires one for remote control and automations.

Which smart home hub works without the internet?

Hubitat, Home Assistant and Homey all say their hubs run automations locally when the internet is down. SmartThings says the same of the Aeotec Smart Home Hub 2. Amazon, Google and Apple make no such promise for voice control.

What is the best smart home hub with a screen?

The Google Nest Hub (2nd gen) at about $100 for a Google home, or Amazon’s Echo Show 8 for an Alexa home.

Is Alexa a smart home hub?

Alexa is the assistant. The hub is the Echo it runs on, and only some have the extra radios. Amazon’s lists name the Echo Dot Max, Echo Studio, Echo Show 8, Echo Show 11 and Echo Hub among those with both Zigbee and a Thread border router.

What is the best smart home hub for Matter?

All seven hubs above control Matter devices, so choose by ecosystem. For Matter devices that use Thread, check for a Thread border router. The standard Hubitat C-8 Pro lacks one, and Home Assistant Green needs the ZBT-2 stick.

Prices move, so confirm on the maker’s store before you pay.