The Best Video Doorbell Depends On Your Needs

Smart doorbells can tell you who is at your door without you having to open the door — or even get up or be home. They offer an enhanced degree of home security, thanks to app-enabled motion sensor alerts and the ability to view video in real time over your smartphone.

If you’re looking the for best video doorbell, here’s what some reviewers say are the products to consider.

Perhaps the best known in the category is the Ring video doorbell, which is compatible with Amazon’s Alexa personal assistant. The tech experts at the Wirecutter liked the Ring Video Doorbell 2 ($199) for its enhanced (1080p, versus 720p for the original Ring Video Doorbell) recording resolution.

Consumer Reports rated it “very good” for its response time in delivering you a live feed of who’s at your door. If you want to record and save video, you’ll need to pay for a monthly subscription. Prices start at $3 a month (or $30 a year) for the basic plan, which gives you access to 60 days’ worth of monitoring. For $10 a month (or $100 annually), you can get real-time professional monitoring in addition to that.

Wirecutter dubbed the hardwired only (no internal battery) Ring Video Doorbell Pro “also great.”

The DoorbellPro, which also has 1080p video resolution, is smaller in size and higher in price ($249) than the Ring Doorbell 2; it also is the only Ring video doorbell to be an “editor’s pick” on PCMag.com’s evaluation of video doorbells.

Nest Hello is designed to be compatible with Google’s smart home infrastructure. Consumer Reports reserved their highest praise for the Nest Hello, and Wirecutter says it’s great for home security. At $229, it’s about the same price to purchase as the Ring Doorbell 2. It has sophisticated facial recognition and offers 24/7 recording. Prices start at $5 a month for five days’ worth of recordings.