Homey Pro 2026 review

Product name: Introduction

• Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Ethernet (via adpator)
• Ecosystems: Zigbee, Z-Wave, Thread, Matter, IR and 433MHz

Going from a powerful smart home system with limited support, to one of the most flexible and well-supported systems, Homey has, in my eyes, become the best overall system for controlling a smart home. With the Homey Pro 2026 enthusiasts get a bit more of what they need: a more powerful hub that can handle more devices and apps.

It’s a basic tweak on the Early 2023 version of the hub, but is it worth upgrading to or, if you’re new to Homey, buying new? Read my full review to find out.

Design and protocol support

• Ethernet via adaptor
• Supports Zigbee, Thread, Matter, IR and 433MHz devices

There’s no external difference between the Homey Pro Early 2023 hub and the Homey Pro 2026 that I have on review here. That’s a bit of a shame, as it feels like a missed opportunity to give the unit a tweak.

In particular, while dual-band Wi-Fi 5 is built in, there’s still no Ethernet port, something that the Homey Pro mini has (although that entry-level hub doesn’t have Wi-Fi). There’s the optional Ethernet adaptor, but it would be neater to have a wired connection as standard.

I recommend buying the Ethernet adaptor. I prefer wired connections for devices like this, as you get a more stable connection. I would connect the Homey Pro 2026 to Wi-Fi first, though.

Once connected to Wi-Fi, you can plug the Ethernet adaptor in, and the hub will switch to the wired connection. Then, if you have an issue, the Pro 2026 can fall back to Wi-Fi.

Protocol support is the same on the Homey Pro 2026 as for the Pro Early 2023, which is to say that there’s support for everything: Zigbee, Thread, Matter, 433MHz and InfraRed. And, there’s cloud support for an even wider range of devices that don’t support a direct connection.

So, what’s different? The Homey Pro 2026 has double the RAM: 4GB versus 2GB on the older one. That increases the app limit to 100+ from 60 on the older one. For large homes with a lot of smart devices (or growing homes), the new limit adds more flexibility.

Features and in-use

• Supports 100+ apps
• Exceptionally powerful Flows
• Getting Thread to work can require some thought

It’s easy to add the Homey Pro 2026 to the app. If you’ve got an older hub, you can back it up (I pay the cheap monthly fee for the cloud backup service as it makes life easier) and then restore. All devices will reconnect, although you do need to give them time.

Otherwise, if you’re starting from scratch, you can add the hub and then follow the Wizard through to create the organisation of your home, which let me create floors and then rooms, following the layout of my home.

For the most part, adding devices is easy, but it’s worth talking about Thread devices. Due to the way that the radios are set up, Zigbee and Thread are shared. Currently, it’s not possible for the Homey Pro 2026 to join an existing Thread network, so range can be limited.

Placing the Homey Pro 2026 in my garden office, I couldn’t directly connect Matter over Thread devices that were inside my home. Moving the Pro 2026 to the back of my kitchen, my house was covered but my Ultion Nuki 2025 smart lock wouldn’t connect.

Having more plug-in Thread devices connected to the Homey Pro 2026 would help improve the mesh network, but these are surprisingly rare: all of my Thread devices that aren’t hubs are battery powered.

There’s a second limitation with Thread. Initial connections are made via Bluetooth, so the Pro 2026 needs to be within Bluetooth range first. It’s not always possible to move a device that close.

There are options. If you really want to, you can run two Homey Pro devices. This creates two separate instances, but the HomeyLink app can be used to bridge them together, so you can control multiple devices from one interface.

In an ideal world, Homey would launch an updated version of the Bridge that has Thread support (the current one offers Z-Wave and IR), for range extension.

Secondly, you can connect your Thread devices to another system first, and then add secondary control via Homey. I do this method, connecting devices to Apple Home, and then sharing them to Homey.

In this way, all of my devices, such as my Tado X heating system and Ultion Nuki 2025 smart lock, have a stable connection. This method also gives me a backup control. Should Homey go down, I can still remote control via Apple Home.

Device support is excellent. Obviously, anything with Matter can be connected, but the range of official and unofficial apps now covers all of my devices. For example, using the community Ring app, I can add my Ring Alarm (2^nd-gen). I now no longer need a Raspberry Pi running HomeBridge for Apple Home, as Homey does everything.

It’s an exceptionally powerful system, too. At its most basic, the simple interface gives each device its own tile, so I can turn on a light, unlock my door or shut my blinds, for example.

It’s with automations (or Flows as Homey calls them) that things get very powerful. There choices for simplicity. For example, when I unlock my office door, my blinds open, and the Ring alarm turns off (and the opposite happens when I lock the door).

But, Flows also have an And option, allowing more flexibility. So, I can use this option to turn on my garden lights when my office door locks and it’s after sunset. That way, my garden lights turn on to light the way back to my house only when it’s getting dark.

Homey Pro also exposes more triggers from devices. Connecting a Tado X temperature sensor to Home, I either get the option to watch for a temperature change, or to check when the heating is turned on or off (it varies by day and device as to which is presented). With Homey I get both of these triggers, plus the option to watch for humidity changes and more.

Via the website, there’s also an advanced Flow creator, using flow charts to craft exceptionally powerful flows: multiple triggers and actions, plus the ability to wait for multiple things to happen. Add in custom variables and Homey will do everything from the most simple to the most complex.

Flows run fast, too. As soon as I unlock my office, the blind springs into action. And, it’s all very reliable to. In fact, I’ve moved all of my routines to Homey, as it gives me all of the control and device support that I need.

Final thoughts

The question isn’t particularly whether the Homey Pro 2026 is good or not, it’s whether it’s worth buying for you. If you’re into Homey and have an older bridge that’s reached its limit, then go for this new one. Likewise, if you’re new to the system but have a lot of smart devices, then this is the one to buy. 

If your older hub is working fine, then it’s not worth upgrading. And, if you have few smart devices but like the look of Homey, the Homey Pro mini is a better starting point, and it’s a lot cheaper.

How we test

When we publish our reviews, you can rest assured that they are the result of “living with” long term tests.

Smart home hubs usually live within an ecosystem, or a range of products that – supposedly – all work in harmony. Therefore, it’s impossible to use a connected light for a week and deliver a verdict.

Because we’re testing smart home kit all day, everyday, we know what matters and how a particular hub compares to alternatives that you might also be considering.

Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair and, of course, we are never paid directly to review a device.

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