Google Assistant is one of several major names in the smart-home business, and it’s also one of our favorites when it comes to cross-brand compatibility. Outside of first-party hardware like the Google Home speaker and theNest thermostat, your Google Assistant can be paired with hundreds of smart door locks, cameras, AV products, and even kitchen appliances, for a bigger and better smart-home experience.
Here’s a list of various smart-home categories, each with a number of recommendations for the best products that are Google Assistant-compatible.
Thermostats
Connect Google Home to your smart thermostat to control the temperature and other settings with your voice. One of our favorite offerings in the world of climate control is the fantastic Ecobee SmartThermostat. With Alexa already built in, this is a great investment for Amazon fans, but just as strong a choice for Google Assistant households. The included SmartSensor automatically adjusts room temp based on total occupancy, and install is a cinch.
The Honeywell Color thermostat is another solid option. It’s aesthetically pleasing in your home, and once you link your Honeywell Total Connect Comfort account to Google Home, you can use your voice to adjust the temperature, ask how cool or warm it is in the house and more. The Honeywell Color will also provide you with alerts like air filter change reminders and high and low temperature warnings.
If you want a thermostat that learns and adjusts to your lifestyle, the Nest Learning Thermostat is another great pick. It figures out how you like your home temperature settings, and adjusts itself accordingly. You can also read the display from across the room. If you connect it to Google Home, you can use your voice to make it cooler, warmer, set a specific temperature, and more.
Lighting
If you connect your Philips Hue lights to Google Assistant, you can do more than just switch the lights on and off. You can also ask Google if you left the lights on, adjust dimming, change colors in certain rooms, sync your lights, and set scenes (like “concentrate” or “tropical twilight”). You have a variety of Hue options to choose from including light strips, individual bulbs, white bulbs, and multicolor bulbs. Keep in mind, unless you get a starter kit (which includes everything you need), you’ll also need to buy a bridge.
Sengled’s Element series has a lot to offer too. You can connect your Sengled Element lights to Google Assistant using an Element hub. You can also connect bulbs directly to an Echo Plus, SmartThings, or Wink smart home hub. If you have the Element Hub, you can do things like turn lights on and off, dim, and set schedules. You can also choose between a variety of dim white and multicolor bulbs.
Cameras
When Google switched its branding to Nest and updated its privacy policies, not all security cameras retained compatibility. Some, like the original Arlo, are no longer compatible with Google devices in the way they once were. However, there are still a number of reliable security cameras that will work with Google Home or Nest. The Wyze Cam 2 is one good option that includes free 14-day cloud storage, night vision, motion sensors, and other important modern security tech.
Or you could stick with Google’s own Nest devices. The Nest Cam is a reliable indoor cam that’s great for simple surveillance and guaranteed to work with Home/Nest. There are also outdoor versions of this camera if you want to expand your security options. Or you could combine security and door monitoring with the Nest Hello, Google’s latest security doorbell that lets you check who’s at the door and when you get a package.
Switches and Plugs
You can find tons of smart light switches on Amazon these days, and many of them don’t even require a hub. The Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Switch by TP-Link works with Google Assistant, and you can set schedules to automatically turn on and off your lights while you’re home or away. If you’re looking for a solid, yet affordable smart switch, the Gosund 15A Smart Wifi Light Switch with Remote Control and Timer also works with Google Assistant, and it’ll only cost you less than $15.
In the market for a smart plug? The Belkin WeMo Mini Wi-Fi Smart Plug is affordable, easy to set up, and it lets you control your lights and appliances using your voice. There is also no hub or subscription required. The Kasa Wifi Smart Plug by TP-Link is yet another good option for Google Home. Plus, you can usually find it for around $20 to $30.
Security and Locks
Retrofitting with your existing lock, August Smart Lock lets you lock your door with your voice via Google Home. The lock bolts shut automatically, and unlocks when you approach. It also has DoorSense, which can tell you if your door is securely closed and locked. Want to let a repair person into your home? You can let someone have access for a few weeks, a few hours, or even a few minutes.
The Nest X Yale Lock is a key‑free deadbolt with a keypad. Sleek in its design, the Nest X Yale Lock works with Google Assistant. You can use your voice to lock the door, or check and see if the door is locked. Your Nest camera will also work with Google Home. You can tell Google Home to play your Nest cam’s live video on a TV with Chromecast.
Google Home also works with your Vivint Home Security System. You can say things like, “Hey Google, arm my system to (stay or away).” or “Hey Google, is my system armed?”
Hubs
Having a smart hub takes your smart home to the next level. It makes it so you can centralize all of your smart home products, instead of controlling a bunch of devices through several different apps. Some devices require a hub to even work.
Samsung SmartThings Hub 3rd Generation grants access to a veritable pantheon of devices. (You can find a comprehensive list here). It makes your devices work in harmony, so you can set routines that fit your individual lifestyle. For instance, your “good morning” routine could turn on the lights, adjust the thermostat, and turn on the TV. Like SmartThings, Wink’s Hub 2 works with lots of products, so items from different manufacturers can seamlessly work together.
You can also take advantage of IFTTT, which is another way to get all your apps and devices talking to each other. If you don’t know what IFTTT is and how it works, check out our rundown here. Once you’re familiar with the free online service, you’ll see it offers all sorts of neat features such as turning on the heat when you leave the office or starting your coffee when your head leaves the pillow. It’s a little confusing at first, but you’ll start using recipes like a pro in no time.
AV
Google Assistant can also really enrich your next at-home music or cinema experience. For starters, there’s the famous Google Chromecast that lets you cast 4K video to your TV from some of our favorite streaming apps like Netflix, YouTube, and Amazon Prime. Once connected, you can use your Chromecast’s built-in Assistant to check news, weather, and sports, as well as what’s new on Google-owned YouTube.
For big cinema-sound, the Bose Soundbar 500 has both Google Assistant and Alexa on board. Audio is rich and deep, and voice commands can easily be heard with the bar’s eight mics, even in loud settings.
For straight-up jams, there’s always the loud and reliable Google Home speaker for rocking out to your favorite playlists. The Sonos One is another great Assistant-enabled speaker. In terms of sound quality and ease of use, Sonos always delivers. With features like Auto-Tuning, which calibrates your speaker based on room acoustics, and the sleek and friendly Sonos App for iOS and Android, you really can’t go wrong.
Appliances
Google Assistant works with a boatload of appliance brands, ranging from iRobot to Shark, along with Frigidaire, LG, and plenty others. For cookers and bakers, the KitchenAid Electric Smart Oven can be linked to your Assistant to let you monitor your meal, adjust temperature, and remotely power the oven. You can even log recipes in your stove’s memory banks that you can call upon with simple voice commands. Google Assistant can also help with other devices in the kitchen too, like the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker. You can use your voice to do things like start cooking, stop cooking, set the timer, increase or decrease the temperature, and check the current temperature.
Google can even make your next load of laundry a “smart load.” The LG Smart Top Load Washer can be linked with your Assistant profile to start and stop wash cycles, adjust settings mid-wash, and help you diagnose washer issues if they ever arise.
You don’t have to lift a finger to vacuum when you connect Google Assistant to your Shark Ion R85 robot vacuum. You can just say “OK Google, tell Shark to start cleaning,” and your vacuum will come to life. If you want to have your vacuum absolutely do all the work, even empty itself, the Roomba i7+ has automatic dirt disposal. You can use your voice to start it and dock it. Then, it automatically dumps the dust and dirt into an enclosed, disposable bag that holds 30 robot bins.
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