6 of the Biggest Benefits of Smart Thermostats

In recent years, two seemingly unrelated issues have been on the forefront of many people’s minds: climate change and home electricity bills. Many of us have been looking for easy ways we can do our part to help protect our environment, while also trying to keep our home energy usage down. Luckily, one piece of technology can offer a relatively affordable, easy solution to both: smart thermostats.

Here are just a few of the top reasons you should consider installing a smart thermostat in your home:

1. Save money on your energy bills

One of the biggest benefits of installing a smart thermostat is the energy savings. The average household spends more than $2,300 a year on energy bills, nearly half of which goes to heating and cooling. By heating and cooling your home more efficiently with a smart thermostat, you can save significant amounts of energy—which can mean savings as high as $145 a year.

2. Adjust the temperature anytime, anywhere

Unlike standard programmable thermostats, smart thermostats’ remote control capabilities allow you to adjust the heat or air conditioning from your mobile phone, tablet, or even smart speaker—even from outside your home. As long as you have a Wi-Fi connection, you can adjust your home’s temperature from anywhere, right on your mobile device. So if you’re coming home earlier or later than usual, or there’s a sudden change in the weather while you’re away, you can rest assured that your home is the perfect temperature—and isn’t wasting energy.

3. Let your thermostat do the work for you

Beyond the remote control capabilities, smart thermostats have several other unique advantages that make them “smart.” Some smart thermostats can learn your heating and cooling preferences as well as your daily routine and automatically adjust accordingly. Some have room sensors that can measure the temperature in a specific room or area of the home and heat or cool it based on its current temperature, reducing hot or cold spots. Thermostats with geofencing can also recognize when people enter or leave the home and turn the system on or off accordingly. All of these “smart” features offer benefits beyond what you’ll receive with a standard programmable thermostat.

4. Stay on top of things

Many smart thermostats can detect and alert you when there’s a problem with your HVAC system, such as a power outage or system failure, and they can remind you when it’s time to perform maintenance such as changing the air filter. Smart thermostats also give you plenty of information to take control of your energy use. On your mobile device, you can see how much energy you’re using and adjust the settings to see the results immediately. Many devices keep track of your energy usage over time, providing reports that allow you to see your usage patterns and make adjustments.

5. Look stylish

Many smart thermostats have modern, sophisticated designs to help blend in with your home’s decor—a stylish replacement for those clunky traditional thermostats. Smart thermostats such as Google Nest, Ecobee, Mysa, and Amazon all offer sleek, modern designs for your 21st century home. 

6. Help protect the environment

Improving the energy efficiency of your home’s heating and cooling system not only saves you money on your energy bills—it also helps protect the environment by reducing harmful emissions from fossil fuel power plants. The less energy you use, the smaller your home’s carbon footprint will be. By installing an energy-efficient smart thermostat, you can help do your part to protect our planet against climate change. Plus, many smart thermostats also offer eco-friendly benefits beyond just the energy efficiency, such as insights into your energy usage and an eco-mode setting for peak energy conservation.

Before you install a smart thermostat, make sure your home’s HVAC system is compatible. For additional savings, you should also look for smart thermostat rebates from ENERGY STAR or your electric utility before purchasing a new thermostat. Also, check out our blog post with even more energy-saving tips to help you save even more energy—and money!

Installing a smart thermostat is an easy way you can make your home more energy efficient. Once you make the switch, make sure the energy you do use comes from 100% clean, pollution-free sources like wind and solar by signing up for Clean Electricity for your home. It’s one of the easiest and most impactful ways you can help protect our planet every day—without having to change your daily routine. Learn more about how you can sign up today in just 2 minutes and help create a better environment for future generations.