I compared Thread, Zigbee, and Matter – here’s the best smart home setup for you
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As a smart home user, you’ve probably heard multiple mentions of Thread, Zigbee, and Matter from different companies, and seen all three names printed on the boxes of smart home devices or in their product listings. However, how do Thread, Zigbee, and Matter work in the smart home?
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After covering smart home devices over the past four years, one of the most common questions I get is how to explain smart home connectivity protocols like Matter in ways that non-tech-savvy people can understand.
While Mater is a connectivity protocol that determines what language your smart home devices speak, Zigbee and Thread are wireless protocols that control how your devices interact.
You should choose thread if…
1. You have too many small devices
Unlike Matter, which is a connectivity protocol, Thread and Zigbee are networks. With Thread, you create a mesh network of low-power devices that you can connect to the rest of your smart home using a border router.
Thread is a low-power mesh network designed for modern IP-based networking. It responds faster as devices communicate more directly and efficiently. Thread networks are self-healing, which helps you experience fewer random disconnects than older protocols like Zigbee.
Because it’s a single network that will connect to your Wi-Fi rather than multiple different devices circling your network, Thread (especially Matter on Thread) is best for multiple small, low-power devices. These include motion, presence and contact sensors, as well as smart locks, lightbulbs and switches.
2. You hate hubs cluttering up your smart home
Thread does not require a dedicated hub. Instead, Thread uses border routers built into the devices that work together to form a self-healing mesh network. In this scenario, if a node on the network goes down, traffic is automatically rerouted. A border router is needed to connect the low-power Thread network to the rest of your smart home.
Thread is a key component of Matter, a modern connectivity protocol. Here are some examples of devices with thread border routers:
- apple homepod mini
- apple homepod 2
- apple tv 4k
- google nest hub
- Google Nest Hub Max
- Google TV Streamer
- amazon echo
- amazon echo show 8
- amazon echo show 10
- Eero Pro 6e, 6, 6+
- Eero 7 Dual-Band Mesh Wi-Fi 7
- eero max 7
- Home Assistant Connect ZBT-2
You should choose Zigbee if…
1. You agree with a dedicated hub
While Thread is less dependent on a single hub than older networks, Zigbee is intrinsically dependent on hubs. Zigbee is also a network, but it relies on a dedicated hub to connect to the Internet.
For example, Philips Hue lightbulbs can be used with Bluetooth for local control, as long as you live near them. However, if you want to add them to your Wi-Fi network so you can control them remotely from an app on your phone (no matter how far away you are), you’ll need a hub.
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Once you install the Zigbee Hub at home and connect it to the Internet, it can find compatible Zigbee devices around it and connect to them, centralizing them. Unfortunately, Zigbee is not IP-based, so it may be slower than Thread.
2. You want cheap, widely available equipment
Compared to the newer Thread protocols, Zigbee users may experience more setup friction and brand lock-in.
The advantage that Zigbee has over being much older than Thread is that there are already Zigbee-compatible smart bulbs, sensors, and plugs on the market. There are also plenty of Zigbee hubs, such as ones for specific brands of devices and universal hubs.
You should choose Matter if…
1. You don’t want to be locked into an ecosystem
Matter is not a competitor to Thread or Zigbee; It’s like a language spoken by your device. Matter is specifically designed to work over Thread or Wi-Fi, so it’s meant to work together, not compete. While Thread and Zigbee control how your smart home devices connect, what matters is how your devices understand each other.
As a result, Matter’s goal is not to connect devices; This is to make devices compatible – to level the playing field – so that users can work multiple brands together seamlessly in one smart home.
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Matter is a software layer that can be added over-the-air to a device. That’s why Apple, Amazon, Google, Samsung, and other manufacturers were able to update their existing devices to become Mate-compatible when the connectivity standard launched.
2. You want a more compatible device
Before Matter, having an Apple HomePod mini served as a smart home hub for Apple HomeKit, which you could use with the Apple Home app. In this scenario, if you decided to add a Google Nest doorbell to your front door because that’s the brand you prefer, you wouldn’t be able to see or access that video doorbell in the Apple Home app because it was incompatible.
Matter makes supported devices work together, even if they’ve never done so before. The Google Nest doorbell can now be controlled from the Apple Home, as they both support Matter, and the same is true for thousands of other devices.
What Matters on Thread vs Matter on Wi-Fi?
Matter over Thread occurs when intercompatible Matter-certified devices talk over a Thread Mesh network composed of thread border routers. The border router then connects that mesh network to your Wi-Fi. Matter over Thread delivers faster, more consistent response times with no lag, even when your Wi-Fi is congested.
With Matter over Wi-Fi, Matter-certified smart home devices connect directly to your router without a mesh network. Of course, this means you won’t need a border router, and the network will still be pretty fast, but it also means your network will fill up more quickly if you add too many devices.
When to use Matter on Threads or Matter over Wi-Fi?
Matter Over Thread is best for many low-power devices, such as smart home sensors, smart locks, smart bulbs, and smart switches.
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Matter over Wi-Fi is best for devices that require high bandwidth, like security cameras, video doorbells, speakers, smart appliances, and air purifiers.
What is Z-Wave?
Z-Wave is an older smart home radio that operates at 900 MHz. Zigbee and Thread operate at 2.4GHz. Like Zigbee, Z-Wave devices require a dedicated hub but are very reliable and experience less interference with other devices.
Since it doesn’t require the cloud, Z-Wave is popular for completely local smart home setups and running local automation, especially among the home assistant userbase.
However, Matter does not run on Z-Wave, and there are fewer new Z-Wave devices than Thread and Matter.
