Smart smoke and CO detectors send phone alerts when you're away, silence false alarms from an app, and warn you before batteries die. Here are the best hubs to build a connected safety setup around them.
Smart smoke and CO detectors do everything a traditional alarm does—plus they send phone alerts when you're away, let you silence false alarms from an app, and warn you before batteries die. With Google's Nest Protect discontinued, the landscape has shifted: Kidde and First Alert now lead, with new partnerships (Kidde+Ring, First Alert+Nest) reshaping the market.1
The case for upgrading is straightforward. About 60% of fire fatalities occur in homes without working fire alarms, and over 400 people die from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning each year.4 A smart detector won't prevent a fire, but it can tell you about one when you're not home—and that heads-up can be the difference between a contained incident and a total loss.
The key features that separate smart detectors from traditional ones:
Kidde Smart Smoke + CO Alarm is Wirecutter's top pick at roughly $72. It's hardwired, works with Alexa and Google Home, offers app hush, interconnects with non-smart Kidde alarms, and restricts low-battery alerts to daytime hours.1
First Alert SC5 Hardwire Smart Smoke & CO is the official Nest Protect replacement at about $129. It integrates with Google Home, interconnects with existing Nest Protect units and select First Alert and BRK models, and offers fail-safe hush.15
Kidde Ring Smart Smoke + CO is the best option for Ring users at roughly $67–75. It offers professional monitoring (about $5/month) that can dispatch the fire department—the only pick offering pro monitoring without a full security system.13
X-Sense Smart Smoke & CO Combo is the best budget and battery-powered option at roughly $33–46. It offers Wi-Fi app alerts, shareable notifications, and requires no hardwiring—great for renters.23
A smart smoke detector is only as useful as the system it connects to. The right hub or smart speaker adds voice alerts, automations (like turning on all the lights when smoke is detected), and cross-platform integration. Below are the best hubs for building a smart smoke and CO safety setup, organized by ecosystem.
If you live in an Apple Home household, the Aqara Hub M1S pairs with Aqara's Zigbee smoke detector for HomeKit integration and Matter support, with a built-in siren for security alerts.67 Alexa households can use an Amazon Echo or Echo Show 8 to integrate with Kidde and Ring detectors for voice alerts and automations. Google Home users get visual alerts and smart home control through the Nest Hub Max, which integrates directly with the First Alert SC5.5 And Apple purists can rely on the HomePod mini as a Matter controller and Thread border router for Siri-based smoke detector notifications.
AskBuy may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. That doesn't affect what we recommend—or why.
This page was written by the engine and the engine is still on the line. The conversation below picks up where the article stops.
Yes — the picks above are the engine's current verdicts. Ask a sharper version of this question below and you'll get a custom answer with the latest pricing.