Google Nest Mini 2nd Gen
(Image credit: Google)The best Google Home compatible devices use Google Assistant to streamline your living space with a snappy, hassle-free smart home system.
Adding any of the best Google Home speakers or smart displays (like the Google Nest Mini or Google Nest Hub Max) to your home lets you control and communicate with the best smart home devices on this list using either the Google Home app or your voice. As the name of Google's smart home gadget lineup suggests, the best Google Home-compatible devices also double as the best Nest-compatible products.
Once you know how to use Google Assistant to its fullest, you can say things like “Hey Google, turn on the living room TV for me,” and have the best Google Home compatible smart plugs or Chromecast with HDMI-CEC carry out your command.
You can also set up routines so that an action from one device triggers a response from a different one. For example, activating the August Smart Lock Pro on your front door can turn on your entryway’s Philips Hue lights so you're not fumbling around in the dark when you get home.
Keep reading to see all of the best Google Home compatible devices below.
The quick list
The best smart hub
Google's newest Nest Hub smart display is the best command center for your Google smart home. It balances an ideal size, rich speakers, and a wealth of smart features with an affordable price so that you can place a few throughout key rooms in your home.
The best security camera
Cut the cord on your home security system with this high-resolution wireless security camera. Google's smart home security platform offers plenty of value including free subject detection (person, animal, or vehicle) in addition to three hours of cloud video storage.
The best video doorbell
This sharp HD doorbell captures all activity at your front door. In addition to your phone you can access its live video feed from connected Google smart home displays and streaming devices like a Chromecast.
The best smart lock
This easy-to-install conversion smart lock only replaces the inner half of your existing deadbolt. It has a wide variety of auto-lock and unlock features plus alerts you if your door is left ajar. The extensive platform support spans beyond Google to work with HomeKit, Alexa, Z-Wave, Nest, IFTTT, and more.
The best streaming stick
Add a Chromecast to your TV or monitor and you can stream media from devices like your phone, tablet, or laptop directly to it. The streaming device's built-in OS lets you manage your smart home and watch video feeds. Plus it can turn your TV on or off if it supports HDMI-CEC.
The best smart thermostat
Automate your climate controls so that your home stays warm in the winter and cool during the summer. This learns your habits and can be automated to help you cut down on your energy bills.
The best Google Home compatible devices
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Best smart home hub
The $99 Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is a speaker for music, screen for your visual Google Assistant needs, and a communication center. It even tracks your sleep, too. When positioned on your nightstand, the upgraded Google Nest Hub uses the Soli radar sensing chip to see how well (or not) you're sleeping at night. It's a little creepy, but the contactless tracking abilities will let you forget it's there.
Soli's superpowers also enable air gestures with your fingers, letting you pause and play YouTube videos or snooze an alarm. These gestures don't work all the time, but are useful when they do. As for sound, Google boosted the bass by 50% this time around, which is an improvement over the total absence of bass in the first-generation model.
Read our full Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen) review.
Best smart lock
Google Home can bring you peace of mind with its support for the August Smart Wi-Fi Smart Lock. Just ask Google if your front door is locked, and it'll tell you if it is or not— plus you can lock or unlock it using your voice. The August Smart Wi-Fi Smart Lock also helps you keep track of guests coming to your home, letting you open the door remotely for a dog walker or delivery when you're not home.
The August Smart Wi-Fi Smart Locks sits atop our list of best smart locks and is one of the best Google Home compatible devices. It's also a solid upgrade to its predecessor the August Smart Lock Pro. Everything we liked about the August Pro is available in the new model: A simple installation process, features such as DoorSense (which lets you know if your door has been left ajar), and interoperability with a huge range of other smart home systems, from Alexa to Google Assistant to Xfinity. And, the August Wi-Fi lets you keep the keys from your existing deadbolt.
Read our full August Wi-Fi Smart Lock review.
Best smart thermostat
The Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium gets a much-needed makeover; now, the thermostat actually looks, well, premium, thanks to its zinc body and larger display. On the inside, the thermostat now has an air quality sensor that can let you know if you need to turn on your air purifier.
As with the previous models, the Smart Thermostat Premium has an Alexa speaker built in, but it’s also one of the best Google Home compatible devices and is our favorite smart thermostat. You can use your voice assistant to keep each room in your house at the right temperature and benefit from Ecobee's improved remote sensors. The sensors are able to detect both temperature and occupancy, meaning your thermostat can to make sure the coldest parts of your house get warm, but only if there are people currently in that area.
The latest Ecobee also has a much better speaker than its predecessor and also offers Spotify support. Yes, this thermostat is able to play your tunes if you're looking for some background music. It's not a true smart speaker replacement, but its sound is powerful enough for smaller spaces.
Read our full Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium review.
Best smart plug
The Wemo WiFi Smart Plug is 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. Yes, even Siri for those with Apple loyalists living under your roof.
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 video doorbell
Following up the Nest Hello (now Nest Doorbell wired), the Nest Doorbell battery is the best video doorbell you can buy. As with its predecessor, the Nest Doorbell earns high marks because of its video quality and features — and now, some of those features, such as person, package, and vehicle detection are available without a subscription. And, it comes with three hours of rolling video recording free, making it an even better deal than before.
Also, because this three hours of video is stored on the camera itself, it also means that if your power or internet connection goes down, you will still be able to view any footage of someone who might come to your door. Simply put, the Nest Doorbell is about as complete a video doorbell as you could want, making it one of the best Google Home compatible devices on this list.
Read our full Nest Doorbell (battery) review.
Best smart lights
Philips Hue White starter kit, the best smart light bulbs for most people, includes two bulbs and a hub to connect them to other smart home devices. While you can't change these bulbs' colors, you can adjust their brightness (up to 800 lumens), and add up to 50 to a single hub. Philips Hue lights work with a wide range of smart home systems, but they are among the best Google Home compatible devices.
The original Philips Hue Connected Bulb pack is a bit pricier because it can change to more than 16 million colors and includes a third light. The White starter kit will suffice for most people, but those who want to illuminate their home with blue or red hues will find more value in the Connected Bulb pack.
Read our full Philips Hue White starter kit review.
Best streaming device
One of the coolest features of Google Home is the ability to play video and control video on certain devices using your voice. The best way to facilitate this integration with a TV you already own is with the $50 Google Chromecast with Google TV, which is one of the best streaming devices we've ever tested.
This device has a few advantages over other streaming sticks. It supports a couple of key content services that competing devices lack. Plus it's a Chromecast device, which makes it easy to beam pretty much anything you want to your TV. Google Assistant's superpowers are at your beck and call, too.
Read our full Google Chromecast with Google TV review.
Best security camera
The Nest Cam (battery) is among the best Google Home devices because you can view a live feed from any where surrounding your house through your connected Chromecast or Google TV-enabled devices. Check in on your home at any time from wherever you are, even from a different room in the house.
We think Nest cameras are valuable for their clear and sharp pictures. The Nest Cam (battery) is a bit more expensive than other cams, but we're impressed with its design, installation, and performance. It’s easily one of the best home security cameras for indoors or out. Better yet, you don’t need a subscription.
Read our full Nest Cam (battery) review.
Best smart faucet
The Orbit B-hyve smart faucet ensures your precious plants stay watered with the help of Google Assistant. As one of the best Google Home compatible devices, you can integrate the B-hyve into your smart home routines. For example, when you’re out of town you can time the smart faucet to water your garden at the same time you would tend your plants when you’re home.
In our review, we found the smart features of the Orbit B-hyve helped the growth of tomatoes, zucchini, herbs and other garden produce. We especially liked how you can use Orbit's app for Android and iOS to customize the faucet's spray and watering schedule. Set up can be a bit tricky, but the payoff is certainly worth it for busy home growers.
Read our full Orbit B-hyve review.
Best wall 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.
Best robot vacuum
The iRobot Roomba is the best robot vacuum we've tested overall for its great feature set, self-emptying bin and ability to keep your floors clean. It picked up an average of 100 percent of kitty litter on carpet and hardwood floors, and was equally adept with Cheerios and dog hair.
The S9+ is fast to map your home, and it was a fairly simple matter to create rooms in the app and then direct the robot vacuum to clean individual areas. You can even set specific times to clean rooms. And, if you have the Braava jet m6 robot mop, the S9+ can tell it to start mopping once the S9+ is done vacuuming.
Read our full iRobot Roomba S9+ review.
How to choose the best Google Home compatible devices for you
Choosing the best Google Home compatible devices for you might seem daunting, as there are hundreds of smart home companies and gadgets to pick from. Most people will want to start with a Google Assistant-enabled smart speaker, while smart lights or a smart plug are sensible second purchases.
Take your own living space and budget into account when shopping. If you live in a small apartment with limited counter space, you might want to get the Google Nest Hub instead of the Google Nest Hub Max. Similarly, you might find it more affordable to illuminate a larger home with Sengled’s smart lights rather than Philips Hue’s. And if you need just one smart light for your bedroom, forgo a starter kit and get one of Lifx’s Wi-Fi lights.
We developed a guide on how to set up a Google Home routine for more ways you can make the best Google Home compatible devices work with each other. Check out the best Google Assistant commands and best Google Home commands for using your smart home’s powers to your advantage, too. And if you have an Android 12 device, check out the many ways to launch Google Assistant on Android 12.
How we test the best Google Home compatible devices
When we conduct reviews of the best Google Home compatible devices on our list, we consider how each compare to products within their respective categories. For example, we weighed the Google Nest Hub Max against the Lenovo Smart Display and other Google Assistant smart home speakers. We found it sounded the best and provided the most features among the competition.
In addition, we consider factors like ease of setup, aesthetic appeal, cost value and the performance of smart features. All the devices on this list satisfy most, if not all, of these criteria. We included links to full reviews above so you can get a comprehensive look at what we like and dislike about the devices on this list.
Not a Google fan? Then here are the best Alexa compatible devices, best HomeKit devices, and best smart displays.
- The best home security systems
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