The best video doorbells can transform our front doors into the first step of our smart homes, either working alone to make handling couriers and visitors easier or integrating with smart speakers, security cameras, and more to form part of a fully automated home.
Video doorbells are an excellent investment for those who often find themselves too busy or out of the house when important callers arrive. Have you ever been enjoying a relaxing bath when the doorbell rings, only to find out it was the important delivery you had been waiting two weeks for? With a smart doorbell, you can communicate with visitors via your smartphone without interrupting whatever you’re doing at the moment.
Many video doorbells also work seamlessly with Alexa, Google Home, and other smart home devices. This means you can bring up the live feed on your smart display or have your speaker double as a chime. Below, we’ve ranked our favorite video doorbells available right now to help you find the perfect one for your home.
Best Video Doorbells
Google Nest Doorbell
Google has improved on its Nest Doorbell with Battery design to create a second-generation doorbell. The wired and wireless versions are nearly identical, except the battery model offers more placement options. After testing both models, I found plenty to like, especially the super-smart tech Nest offers for free with purchase.
The second-gen Nest Doorbell isn’t perfect. The free video storage is useful but limited to a 3-hour window. Additionally, recharging the battery model every three months can be inconvenient. Despite these minor issues, the hardwired Nest Doorbell is a good value at £180. It’s not the cheapest option—older models from Arlo and Wyze are less expensive—but if you favor Google devices, this user-friendly, feature-rich doorbell is worth the investment.
The doorbell features a 1,280×960-pixel resolution with HDR and clear night vision, providing excellent video quality. Colors are bright during the day, and night vision is clear without additional lighting. However, the 145-degree diagonal, 3:4 ratio field of view can be somewhat limited horizontally.
The sound quality is impressive, with clear two-way audio that isn’t disrupted by background noise. The smart alerts and customizable settings allow you to tailor notifications to your needs. While the free recording feature is limited, a Nest Aware subscription offers extended storage and advanced AI features.
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Ring Battery Doorbell Plus
The Ring Battery Doorbell Plus is an impressive upgrade to Ring’s video doorbell lineup. It boasts high-resolution 1536p video and a 150-degree field of view, capturing a comprehensive head-to-toe view of visitors. This wider coverage ensures you don’t miss any details, whether it’s your doorstep or your front yard. The color night vision and intelligent motion detection enhance its utility, making it a reliable security addition.
Design-wise, the Battery Doorbell Plus retains the sleek satin nickel and glossy black finish of its predecessors, measuring 5.1 by 2.4 by 1.1 inches. The top houses the camera, while the bottom features a removable cover and doorbell button encircled by an LED that lights up during use and setup.
Underneath, a removable 5,800mAh battery charges via a micro USB cable, though you can also hardwire it to traditional doorbell wiring if preferred. Connectivity is through the 2.4GHz Wi-Fi band, and it integrates seamlessly with Amazon Alexa and IFTTT, though it lacks support for Google Assistant and HomeKit.
The user-friendly Ring app provides live feed viewing, two-way talk, and customizable motion zones. However, to fully utilize its features, a Ring Protect subscription is necessary, which can be a downside. Despite the subscription and its higher price point, the Ring Battery Doorbell Plus stands out with its advanced features and high-quality video, making it a worthy investment for home security.
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Eufy Security, Video Doorbell S220
The Eufy Security Video Doorbell S220 has left a strong first impression. With 2K resolution and an impressive 180-day battery life, it excels in both image quality and longevity. Setting up the doorbell was straightforward; it includes a quick start guide, doorbell chime, ethernet cable, power cable, micro USB cable, hardware wiring kit, metal pin, and mounting brackets.
Connecting the home base to the internet was simple, and the app guided me through the rest. The live footage quality is excellent, providing clear, wide-angle views. The two-way audio works seamlessly, although there is a slight delay. The motion detection settings are versatile, offering frequent, balanced, and disabled options.
Mounting the doorbell was easy, thanks to the provided bracket and alignment sticker. The battery comes partially charged but should be fully charged for optimal use. The doorbell integrates well with my phone, delivering instant notifications and saving events directly in the app. The night vision mode performs admirably, ensuring visibility in dark conditions.
Overall, the Eufy Security Video Doorbell S220 is a reliable and high-performing device. It provides excellent security features without the need for a subscription, making it a worthwhile investment for home security.
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TOUCAN Wireless Video Doorbell PRO
If you’re in the market for a smart doorbell but don’t want to deal with wiring and voltage transformers, the Toucan Wireless Video Doorbell is an excellent choice. It runs on a 6,500mAh rechargeable battery that lasts up to four months between charges, making installation a breeze. The package includes a wireless remote chime, two AA batteries, a mounting plate, screws, adhesive, a USB charging cable, and a setup sheet. The chime, which can be placed anywhere in your home or yard, plays one of six sounds and blends seamlessly with the doorbell’s design.
The Toucan doorbell features a camera with a 180-degree field of view, capturing sharp 1080p video. Daytime recordings showcase vibrant colors, while black-and-white night vision, enabled by four infrared LEDs, provides clear footage even in the dark. The device is equipped with a PIR motion sensor, speaker, light sensor, microphone, and an LED ring that indicates motion detection and network connectivity status.
Setting up the Toucan doorbell was straightforward. After downloading the app and creating an account, I added the doorbell by selecting my Wi-Fi network and following the prompts. The doorbell paired with the app within seconds. I mounted it to my front door frame, placed the chime in my backyard, and updated the firmware, all within ten minutes.
Overall, the Toucan Wireless Video Doorbell is a fantastic value. It offers free cloud storage for video recordings, works with Alexa and Google Assistant, and ensures you never miss a visitor with its versatile wireless chime. While it lacks support for Apple HomeKit and IFTTT, its performance and ease of use make it a top contender in the market.
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Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
The Arlo Video Doorbell impresses with its sleek design and high-quality video capabilities. Integrating seamlessly with Alexa for hands-free commands, it features a 1536 by 1536 pixel resolution and HDR, surpassing the industry standard for clarity. Its stylish, pill-shaped design, available in black and white, adds a modern touch to any home.
However, the Arlo Video Doorbell requires a hardwired setup, which can complicate installation compared to wireless options. While this ensures you never worry about battery life, it demands an existing wired doorbell and chime setup. Additionally, it doesn’t support Google Assistant or Apple HomeKit, which may be a drawback for some users.
One standout feature is its built-in siren and tamper detection, enhancing home security. Notifications for person, pet, and package detection are particularly useful, though after the initial three months, a subscription is necessary for person detection. The mobile app’s activity zones help reduce unnecessary alerts by focusing the camera’s attention on specific areas, such as your porch.
The Arlo Video Doorbell is weather-resistant, enduring temperatures from -4 to 113 degrees Fahrenheit, performing well in various weather conditions. Its size, at five inches tall and 1.7 inches wide, may be bulkier than some competitors, but it remains visually appealing.
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Blink Video Doorbell
Amazon-owned Blink offers one of the most affordable video doorbells worth considering, especially during Amazon’s frequent discounts. However, to maximize its functionality, we recommend purchasing it with the Sync 2 module to avoid the need for a subscription. Without the Sync 2, you’ll need a Blink Basic subscription, which costs $3 per month or $30 per year.
The Blink Video Doorbell delivers 1080p video quality with a limited field of view—135 degrees horizontally and only 80 degrees vertically. Notifications arrive slightly slower than some competitors and lack images or videos, but they are reliable. The two-way audio is adequate for most needs.
One of the standout features is its battery life. The Blink Video Doorbell runs for months on just two AA batteries, and it can also be connected to existing doorbell wiring. We appreciate that you can use a USB flash drive with the Sync module for local video storage, and Echo devices can serve as chimes.
You can customize activity and privacy zones and adjust sensitivity to reduce false positives. However, it lacks AI-powered person or package detection. The video quality is basic, and it struggles in mixed lighting conditions, often blowing out bright areas and losing detail in shaded areas. Nighttime visibility is also a challenge.
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