Ecobee launches entry-level Smart Thermostat Essential for under $129.99

At CES 2025, Ecobee announced the Ecobee Smart Thermostat Essential, its cheapest smart thermostat yet. Although considerably smaller than the other options in Ecobee's lineup, the Essential comes with a full-colour touchscreen, works with the Ecobee app, and maintains the classic 'squircle' appearance of Ecobee thermostats, despite costing only $129.99. 

With this approach, Ecobee is clearly targeting users who are yet to switch from dated programmable thermostats to modern alternatives. But Ecobee will find an obvious challenger in Google's Nest Thermostat (2020), which retails for exactly the same price (or even less on Amazon). Both thermostats can integrate with most HVAC systems but unike Nest, the Essential can work seamlessly with the $99.99 Smart Sensors from Ecobee. The caveat here is limited connectivity due to Ecobee's reluctance to add support for the Matter smart home standard. Still, the entry-level Ecobee thermostat has Alexa built-in and is capable of working with Apple HomeKit and Google Assistant.

With the launch of the Essential in March 2025, Ecobee will be retiring the $150 Ecobee3 Lite. However, that thermostat has a few years of support left, so you can get it on the Ecobee website while it is still listed.