Zigbee 4.0 and "Suzi": Competition for Matter or useful addition?

The Connectivity Standards Alliance is probably best-known for its smart home standard called Matter. However, the much older wireless standard Zigbee is also getting a major update. In addition to Zigbee 4.0, the CSA also announced Suzi, which is a new brand for the sub-GHz variant with longer range.

The update to version 4.0 introduces major changes to the foundation of the mesh network, including the integration of Zigbee Direct. This allows Zigbee devices to be set up directly via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), so a dedicated hub is no longer required for this. Also useful is a new option that lets users add multiple devices to the network at the same time, which is feature that’s officially called batch commissioning.

In addition, the new standard puts an emphasis on improved security measures but remains fully backward compatible with Zigbee 3.0 and Smart Energy. The CSA wants to ensure that different generations of these devices can work together.

Suzi puts wireless signals through thick walls

Besides Zigbee 4.0, the CSA introduced the new Suzi branding. While Zigbee continues to operate in the familiar 2.4GHz frequency band, Suzi runs on lower frequencies, roughly 800MHz in Europe and 900MHz in North America. Lower frequencies pass through walls and ceilings more easily compared to high-frequency signals, which results in a longer range.

Moreover, technologies like WiFi already occupy the 2.4GHz band, which makes it prone to interference in urban areas. Therefore, Suzi could be an alternative to other long-range technologies such as LoRaWAN and Z-Wave Long Range.

It is not entirely clear whether this wireless standard will be a mandatory part of Zigbee 4.0 or if it requires a separate certification. According to the CSA, certifications are expected to kick off in the first half of 2026, so it will take some time before the first products hit the market.

And what about Matter?

With all that said, do we even need Zigbee 4.0 if we have Matter? Matter was designed to unify various smart home standards and is being updated continuously, as illustrated by the recent 1.4.2 update. On the other hand, Zigbee is expected to remain an energy-efficient alternative that can be integrated into the Matter ecosystem via bridges. This means the two technologies do not really compete but work together to offer a solid foundation for cross-device communication in smart home setups.