Save heating costs with smart radiator thermostats: Our purchase advice

In addition to the system-bound radiator thermostats, there are also Bluetooth variants for which you do not need a central unit or an existing smart home system. These are then so-called stand-alones. Theoretically, you can also operate both models like manual radiator thermostats with a controller (not all of them have one): But you not only set a level, but exactly the temperature you want. Problem with mechanical thermostats: Which level stands for which temperature depends on the manufacturer. Once the devices are installed on your heaters and networked with your system, it really starts: Discover the comfortable world of automation and IoT.

Technical process for temperature regulation: The thermostat detects the room temperature via a sensor element – sometimes more times less accurately. If it is too warm, a heat-sensitive material expands, which presses on the pin and closes the valve a little. That’s exactly how it works the other way around.

What can you do with a radiator thermostat?

Electronic radiator thermostats surpass conventional ones not only in terms of comfort and design, but also in terms of functionality and flexibility.

A hurdle that each of us has to overcome in the morning: Out of the warm, cuddly bed into the cold of the bathroom. But freezing does not have to be. If you do not have the possibility to control your heating plans with a conventional thermostat with timer, smart radiator thermostats will help you. You too can leave your ceiling burrito and look forward to preheated rooms.

Common functions that a smart radiator thermostat brings with it are:

• Window Open Detection: Automatically lowers the temperature as soon as a window or door is open.
• Heating plans: Create routines for your working days and other daily routines.
• Automation: Link your heating plans with existing routines (morning light, smart kettle).
• Parental control: This is how you ensure that the temperature is not unintentionally changed by dwarfs.
• Holiday mode: Manage your heating behaviour if you are not in your apartment for some time.
• Presence detection: Enter or leave your apartment, the radiator thermostats know and heating is done accordingly.

Depending on which device you have, it is even possible to control it on the go. This is very practical if you have more of an evening off and want to go to your chubby warm home. This process is also called geofencing. If you activate it, your control center will notice when your smartphone is networked with your WLAN. Thus, the system knows exactly when it has to preheat the apartment – so it has a “self-learning function”. It learns when you come home every day after work, university or school.

However, not all manufacturers offer this geofencing free of charge: tado°, for example, requires an additional subscription of € 3.99 per month. Fortunately, this is not the case everywhere. With Hama, Bosch, Homematic IP and Eve you get this function for free. Nevertheless, tado° has the edge with the range of functions: Included in the subscription are detailed statistics about your consumption, savings and suggestions for improvement. Overall, you get most of the functions around your radiator there.

Which radiator thermostat is right for me?

Do you have a smart home system? This should be noted:

Before you buy a smart radiator thermostat, it is important to find out what your requirements and needs are. If you already have a smart home system, this can narrow down your choice. For example, if you use the Bosch system, Eve thermostats will be omitted for you because they do not use the same wireless language and Eve is mainly designed for Apple’s Homekit system.

The first step should be to find out whether the manufacturer of your smart home system offers radiator thermostats itself and what wireless standard they use. Within the same system, the devices are coordinated with each other: they are easier to find and have fewer problems with operation in the app. The better networked the individual components work together, the higher the heating efficiency and thus the energy savings and cost reduction.

Integration of different smart home manufacturers: Bosch has radiator thermostat 2 – but that does not necessarily have to be your choice. Find out which thermostats are compatible with your system. It is advantageous if they speak the same language: Zigbee, WLAN, DECT or Z-Wave are the most represented.

If you don’t have a smart home system yet:

If the world a lá Cyberpunk is still foreign to you, the decisive factor is how much you want to spend and what your priority is. Should it become a comprehensive system for the future or only cover one aspect of the smart home?

You are undecided how to start with the smart home? We support you with our general purchase advice on the subject of Smart Home: Furnishing for beginners.

If you are purely focused on heating, you might be interested in hybrid versions or stand-alone devices. There are companies that specialize in efficient heating and do not offer a comprehensive smart home – but still need a bridge for communication. Stand-alone radiator thermostats such as Eqiva, on the other hand, work easily with Bluetooth. But let me tell you: The range of Bluetooth is not the hit with ten meters. For apartments over 70 sqm, the connection can sometimes go flutes. With system-bound radiator thermostats with radio, the situation is quite different, as many have a range of up to 100 meters.

In addition to Homematic IP, Tado is best known in terms of smart heating – but offers the most extensive functions.

Providers such as Telekom or Fritz offer an integrated smart home control center with some of their routers. It is worth checking whether you already own one of the boxes, so you save costs in the purchase. You no longer need an additional communication base, only the Fritz DECT 302 radiator thermostats or the devices from Telekom.

Once the question of the system has been clarified, you should think about the functions:

• Do you need statistics and evaluations?
• Is only comfort important to me?
• Ventilation: With or without window contact?
• Do you want to control your heating (geofencing) on the go?

Save heating costs with smart radiator thermostats

Saving energy and costs when heating is super easy: One degree less and you are already seven percent richer (according to the EU Commission). However, the potential for savings depends on factors: personal usage behavior, insulation of the apartment or how many exterior walls your apartment has – this can cause some heating to go flute.

With smart radiator thermostats, you throw less money out of the window – in the truest sense of the word. This is made possible by functions such as window open detection. Manufacturers promise savings of up to 30% – but individual factors that play a role are not taken into account. If you are generally already mindful of your energy consumption, such percentages are less likely to occur.

Until your invested money balances out again, you need one thing in particular: patience. With prices between 140 and 300 euros for the set with three radiator thermostats and a control panel, up to eight years are to be accepted. In addition, there are the costs for the batteries, which must be replaced continuously. Batteries would be desirable, but the low voltage is not enough. But if, like me, I like to be a little forgetful or several people romp around in your apartment, it can make a serious difference – after a short time.

Are electronic radiator thermostats useful?

Electronic radiator thermostats make sense in many cases: the question is rather for whom? If you have underfloor heating, these devices are of course superfluous. Even if you have an electric thermostat in a rented apartment or your own apartment, it is important to rethink the advantages and disadvantages. Because heating plans can also be created with it.

Nevertheless, they offer more comfort and functions in many things that conventional radiator thermostats or electric thermostats with timers cannot. They leverage our forgetfulness, reduce worries and provide savings. If you are fans of automation and the smart home in general, then smart radiator thermostats are definitely worthwhile for you to expand your digital home. If you let go before sleeping or when you leave the house often the heating on, then the temperature is regulated by the presence detection.

Heating on the go is an advantage for everyone, also in order to be able to keep an eye on the heating behavior. Via apps you can track your consumption, display the savings, whether a heater should be on and receive suggestions for improvement for heating seasons after analyzing your rhythm.

Neither worries nor thoughts buzz around a radiator that has potentially been left at level five. You no longer have to pay much attention to your heating behavior: Radiator thermostats have one or more temperature sensors that can measure the heat in different rooms. However, the sensors leave much to be desired by some manufacturers: they are not 100% accurate, as they are only based on the registered temperature drop. Unfortunately, it takes time until this is noticed. It is recommended to additionally install magnetic or optical sensors that detect whether windows or doors are open or closed, as well as measure the temperature more accurately.

How much does a smart radiator thermostat cost?

There is no general answer to this question. However, a smart radiator thermostat costs on average between 50€ and 80€ – depending on the smart home system you use. So there are quite cheap models from Hama, which enjoy great popularity and can even call themselves proud winners of the World Smart Home Awards 2021. You can get them for currently for 49,99€ at MediaMarkt. Classics and known for a particularly high level of data protection are radiator thermostats from Bosch and Homematic IP. In terms of price, however, these are rather in a higher segment with 80 € per piece. It looks the same with tado°.

Important to note: If you do not have a smart home system, you will also need a gateway, hub or bridge that communicates between your devices for system-bound radiator thermostats. At Bosch, the price for a middleman is between 60€ and 100€ and at Hama in the range of 40€. Usually it is cheaper to buy the thermostats in a set.

How does a Wi-Fi thermostat work?

The smart thermostats are connected via radio to your smart home control panel, which in turn is linked to your router via LAN or WLAN. All commands, inputs and automations are passed on from your headquarters – be it via apps, voice commands or open software programs such as the Home Assistant. Also keep in mind that the smart thermostats need batteries for operation (mostly AA) – charging via USB-C cable or other charging functions is currently not possible.

In addition to the system-bound radiator thermostats, there are also Bluetooth variants for which you do not need a central unit or an existing smart home system. These are then so-called stand-alones. Theoretically, you can also operate both models like manual radiator thermostats with a controller (not all of them have one): But you not only set a level, but exactly the temperature you want. Problem with mechanical thermostats: Which level stands for which temperature depends on the manufacturer. Once the devices are installed on your heaters and networked with your system, it really starts: Discover the comfortable world of automation and IoT.

Technical process for temperature regulation: The thermostat detects the room temperature via a sensor element – sometimes more times less accurately. If it is too warm, a heat-sensitive material expands, which presses on the pin and closes the valve a little. That’s exactly how it works the other way around.

What can you do with a radiator thermostat?

Electronic radiator thermostats surpass conventional ones not only in terms of comfort and design, but also in terms of functionality and flexibility.

A hurdle that each of us has to overcome in the morning: Out of the warm, cuddly bed into the cold of the bathroom. But freezing does not have to be. If you do not have the possibility to control your heating plans with a conventional thermostat with timer, smart radiator thermostats will help you. You too can leave your ceiling burrito and look forward to preheated rooms.

Common functions that a smart radiator thermostat brings with it are:

• Window Open Detection: Automatically lowers the temperature as soon as a window or door is open.
• Heating plans: Create routines for your working days and other daily routines.
• Automation: Link your heating plans with existing routines (morning light, smart kettle).
• Parental control: This is how you ensure that the temperature is not unintentionally changed by dwarfs.
• Holiday mode: Manage your heating behaviour if you are not in your apartment for some time.
• Presence detection: Enter or leave your apartment, the radiator thermostats know and heating is done accordingly.

Depending on which device you have, it is even possible to control it on the go. This is very practical if you have more of an evening off and want to go to your chubby warm home. This process is also called geofencing. If you activate it, your control center will notice when your smartphone is networked with your WLAN. Thus, the system knows exactly when it has to preheat the apartment – so it has a “self-learning function”. It learns when you come home every day after work, university or school.

However, not all manufacturers offer this geofencing free of charge: tado°, for example, requires an additional subscription of € 3.99 per month. Fortunately, this is not the case everywhere. With Hama, Bosch, Homematic IP and Eve you get this function for free. Nevertheless, tado° has the edge with the range of functions: Included in the subscription are detailed statistics about your consumption, savings and suggestions for improvement. Overall, you get most of the functions around your radiator there.

Which radiator thermostat is right for me?

Do you have a smart home system? This should be noted:

Before you buy a smart radiator thermostat, it is important to find out what your requirements and needs are. If you already have a smart home system, this can narrow down your choice. For example, if you use the Bosch system, Eve thermostats will be omitted for you because they do not use the same wireless language and Eve is mainly designed for Apple’s Homekit system.

The first step should be to find out whether the manufacturer of your smart home system offers radiator thermostats itself and what wireless standard they use. Within the same system, the devices are coordinated with each other: they are easier to find and have fewer problems with operation in the app. The better networked the individual components work together, the higher the heating efficiency and thus the energy savings and cost reduction.

Integration of different smart home manufacturers: Bosch has radiator thermostat 2 – but that does not necessarily have to be your choice. Find out which thermostats are compatible with your system. It is advantageous if they speak the same language: Zigbee, WLAN, DECT or Z-Wave are the most represented.

If you don’t have a smart home system yet:

If the world a lá Cyberpunk is still foreign to you, the decisive factor is how much you want to spend and what your priority is. Should it become a comprehensive system for the future or only cover one aspect of the smart home?

You are undecided how to start with the smart home? We support you with our general purchase advice on the subject of Smart Home: Furnishing for beginners.

If you are purely focused on heating, you might be interested in hybrid versions or stand-alone devices. There are companies that specialize in efficient heating and do not offer a comprehensive smart home – but still need a bridge for communication. Stand-alone radiator thermostats such as Eqiva, on the other hand, work easily with Bluetooth. But let me tell you: The range of Bluetooth is not the hit with ten meters. For apartments over 70 sqm, the connection can sometimes go flutes. With system-bound radiator thermostats with radio, the situation is quite different, as many have a range of up to 100 meters.

In addition to Homematic IP, Tado is best known in terms of smart heating – but offers the most extensive functions.

Providers such as Telekom or Fritz offer an integrated smart home control center with some of their routers. It is worth checking whether you already own one of the boxes, so you save costs in the purchase. You no longer need an additional communication base, only the Fritz DECT 302 radiator thermostats or the devices from Telekom.

Once the question of the system has been clarified, you should think about the functions:

• Do you need statistics and evaluations?
• Is only comfort important to me?
• Ventilation: With or without window contact?
• Do you want to control your heating (geofencing) on the go?

Save heating costs with smart radiator thermostats

Saving energy and costs when heating is super easy: One degree less and you are already seven percent richer (according to the EU Commission). However, the potential for savings depends on factors: personal usage behavior, insulation of the apartment or how many exterior walls your apartment has – this can cause some heating to go flute.

With smart radiator thermostats, you throw less money out of the window – in the truest sense of the word. This is made possible by functions such as window open detection. Manufacturers promise savings of up to 30% – but individual factors that play a role are not taken into account. If you are generally already mindful of your energy consumption, such percentages are less likely to occur.

Until your invested money balances out again, you need one thing in particular: patience. With prices between 140 and 300 euros for the set with three radiator thermostats and a control panel, up to eight years are to be accepted. In addition, there are the costs for the batteries, which must be replaced continuously. Batteries would be desirable, but the low voltage is not enough. But if, like me, I like to be a little forgetful or several people romp around in your apartment, it can make a serious difference – after a short time.

Are electronic radiator thermostats useful?

Electronic radiator thermostats make sense in many cases: the question is rather for whom? If you have underfloor heating, these devices are of course superfluous. Even if you have an electric thermostat in a rented apartment or your own apartment, it is important to rethink the advantages and disadvantages. Because heating plans can also be created with it.

Nevertheless, they offer more comfort and functions in many things that conventional radiator thermostats or electric thermostats with timers cannot. They leverage our forgetfulness, reduce worries and provide savings. If you are fans of automation and the smart home in general, then smart radiator thermostats are definitely worthwhile for you to expand your digital home. If you let go before sleeping or when you leave the house often the heating on, then the temperature is regulated by the presence detection.

Heating on the go is an advantage for everyone, also in order to be able to keep an eye on the heating behavior. Via apps you can track your consumption, display the savings, whether a heater should be on and receive suggestions for improvement for heating seasons after analyzing your rhythm.

A topic that currently affects each of us: energy costs. Unfortunately, these continue to rise and on social media platforms such as Youtube and TikTok the wildest ideas and DIYs can be seen, which should keep the apartment warm in winter. Probably some of them are practical, but there are also comfortable solutions how you can save energy and costs when heating – the potential here is huge! In households alone, 71% of the energy is used for heating – there is something that can be done.

One approach can be smart radiator thermostats. They are not exactly cheap to buy and only pay off over the years. The expenses once again in it, but you can save depending on the nature of your apartment up to 30% of the heating costs every year!

My recommendation for rental apartments: Bosch Radiator Thermostat 2. Yes, they are very expensive, but you have the basis for an extensive smart home system with over 100 actuators. Bosch is one of the most secure systems because it hardly wants any data from you. There are some features such as geofencing, which are additionally behind a paywall at other manufacturers. Bosch’s wireless standard is based on Zigbee 3.0 and can be paired with many devices. Including Philips Hue, thanks to the existing partnership: lamps of this brand can be added in the Bosch app and minimize your effort as well as the number of apps on your phone.

As always, we cannot make a definitive claim to completeness. There are an infinite number of manufacturers and ways, even the individual requirements are different. Do you have a point that absolutely has to be included here? Feel free to write it in the comments so that we can all benefit from swarm knowledge.

What is a smart radiator thermostat?

A smart radiator thermostat is the easiest way to adjust the temperature in your apartment, heat efficiently and save a little at the same time. They are usually used as collective heating systems. In addition, they offer more comfort compared to conventional, manual radiator thermostats: Enjoy an automatically adjusted temperature in each room based on your heating plans and habits. Opening or closing the radiator valve for the hot water flow, they regulate without your intervention. Manual operation of the knobs is no longer necessary – but still possible with many electronic radiator thermostats. Once you have set your desired temperature, the little minions do everything to keep your booth warm.

Neither worries nor thoughts buzz around a radiator that has potentially been left at level five. You no longer have to pay much attention to your heating behavior: Radiator thermostats have one or more temperature sensors that can measure the heat in different rooms. However, the sensors leave much to be desired by some manufacturers: they are not 100% accurate, as they are only based on the registered temperature drop. Unfortunately, it takes time until this is noticed. It is recommended to additionally install magnetic or optical sensors that detect whether windows or doors are open or closed, as well as measure the temperature more accurately.

How much does a smart radiator thermostat cost?

There is no general answer to this question. However, a smart radiator thermostat costs on average between 50€ and 80€ – depending on the smart home system you use. So there are quite cheap models from Hama, which enjoy great popularity and can even call themselves proud winners of the World Smart Home Awards 2021. You can get them for currently for 49,99€ at MediaMarkt. Classics and known for a particularly high level of data protection are radiator thermostats from Bosch and Homematic IP. In terms of price, however, these are rather in a higher segment with 80 € per piece. It looks the same with tado°.

Important to note: If you do not have a smart home system, you will also need a gateway, hub or bridge that communicates between your devices for system-bound radiator thermostats. At Bosch, the price for a middleman is between 60€ and 100€ and at Hama in the range of 40€. Usually it is cheaper to buy the thermostats in a set.

How does a Wi-Fi thermostat work?

The smart thermostats are connected via radio to your smart home control panel, which in turn is linked to your router via LAN or WLAN. All commands, inputs and automations are passed on from your headquarters – be it via apps, voice commands or open software programs such as the Home Assistant. Also keep in mind that the smart thermostats need batteries for operation (mostly AA) – charging via USB-C cable or other charging functions is currently not possible.

In addition to the system-bound radiator thermostats, there are also Bluetooth variants for which you do not need a central unit or an existing smart home system. These are then so-called stand-alones. Theoretically, you can also operate both models like manual radiator thermostats with a controller (not all of them have one): But you not only set a level, but exactly the temperature you want. Problem with mechanical thermostats: Which level stands for which temperature depends on the manufacturer. Once the devices are installed on your heaters and networked with your system, it really starts: Discover the comfortable world of automation and IoT.

Technical process for temperature regulation: The thermostat detects the room temperature via a sensor element – sometimes more times less accurately. If it is too warm, a heat-sensitive material expands, which presses on the pin and closes the valve a little. That’s exactly how it works the other way around.

What can you do with a radiator thermostat?

Electronic radiator thermostats surpass conventional ones not only in terms of comfort and design, but also in terms of functionality and flexibility.

A hurdle that each of us has to overcome in the morning: Out of the warm, cuddly bed into the cold of the bathroom. But freezing does not have to be. If you do not have the possibility to control your heating plans with a conventional thermostat with timer, smart radiator thermostats will help you. You too can leave your ceiling burrito and look forward to preheated rooms.

Common functions that a smart radiator thermostat brings with it are:

• Window Open Detection: Automatically lowers the temperature as soon as a window or door is open.
• Heating plans: Create routines for your working days and other daily routines.
• Automation: Link your heating plans with existing routines (morning light, smart kettle).
• Parental control: This is how you ensure that the temperature is not unintentionally changed by dwarfs.
• Holiday mode: Manage your heating behaviour if you are not in your apartment for some time.
• Presence detection: Enter or leave your apartment, the radiator thermostats know and heating is done accordingly.

Depending on which device you have, it is even possible to control it on the go. This is very practical if you have more of an evening off and want to go to your chubby warm home. This process is also called geofencing. If you activate it, your control center will notice when your smartphone is networked with your WLAN. Thus, the system knows exactly when it has to preheat the apartment – so it has a “self-learning function”. It learns when you come home every day after work, university or school.

However, not all manufacturers offer this geofencing free of charge: tado°, for example, requires an additional subscription of € 3.99 per month. Fortunately, this is not the case everywhere. With Hama, Bosch, Homematic IP and Eve you get this function for free. Nevertheless, tado° has the edge with the range of functions: Included in the subscription are detailed statistics about your consumption, savings and suggestions for improvement. Overall, you get most of the functions around your radiator there.

Which radiator thermostat is right for me?

Do you have a smart home system? This should be noted:

Before you buy a smart radiator thermostat, it is important to find out what your requirements and needs are. If you already have a smart home system, this can narrow down your choice. For example, if you use the Bosch system, Eve thermostats will be omitted for you because they do not use the same wireless language and Eve is mainly designed for Apple’s Homekit system.

The first step should be to find out whether the manufacturer of your smart home system offers radiator thermostats itself and what wireless standard they use. Within the same system, the devices are coordinated with each other: they are easier to find and have fewer problems with operation in the app. The better networked the individual components work together, the higher the heating efficiency and thus the energy savings and cost reduction.

Integration of different smart home manufacturers: Bosch has radiator thermostat 2 – but that does not necessarily have to be your choice. Find out which thermostats are compatible with your system. It is advantageous if they speak the same language: Zigbee, WLAN, DECT or Z-Wave are the most represented.

If you don’t have a smart home system yet:

If the world a lá Cyberpunk is still foreign to you, the decisive factor is how much you want to spend and what your priority is. Should it become a comprehensive system for the future or only cover one aspect of the smart home?

You are undecided how to start with the smart home? We support you with our general purchase advice on the subject of Smart Home: Furnishing for beginners.

If you are purely focused on heating, you might be interested in hybrid versions or stand-alone devices. There are companies that specialize in efficient heating and do not offer a comprehensive smart home – but still need a bridge for communication. Stand-alone radiator thermostats such as Eqiva, on the other hand, work easily with Bluetooth. But let me tell you: The range of Bluetooth is not the hit with ten meters. For apartments over 70 sqm, the connection can sometimes go flutes. With system-bound radiator thermostats with radio, the situation is quite different, as many have a range of up to 100 meters.

In addition to Homematic IP, Tado is best known in terms of smart heating – but offers the most extensive functions.

Providers such as Telekom or Fritz offer an integrated smart home control center with some of their routers. It is worth checking whether you already own one of the boxes, so you save costs in the purchase. You no longer need an additional communication base, only the Fritz DECT 302 radiator thermostats or the devices from Telekom.

Once the question of the system has been clarified, you should think about the functions:

• Do you need statistics and evaluations?
• Is only comfort important to me?
• Ventilation: With or without window contact?
• Do you want to control your heating (geofencing) on the go?

Save heating costs with smart radiator thermostats

Saving energy and costs when heating is super easy: One degree less and you are already seven percent richer (according to the EU Commission). However, the potential for savings depends on factors: personal usage behavior, insulation of the apartment or how many exterior walls your apartment has – this can cause some heating to go flute.

With smart radiator thermostats, you throw less money out of the window – in the truest sense of the word. This is made possible by functions such as window open detection. Manufacturers promise savings of up to 30% – but individual factors that play a role are not taken into account. If you are generally already mindful of your energy consumption, such percentages are less likely to occur.

Until your invested money balances out again, you need one thing in particular: patience. With prices between 140 and 300 euros for the set with three radiator thermostats and a control panel, up to eight years are to be accepted. In addition, there are the costs for the batteries, which must be replaced continuously. Batteries would be desirable, but the low voltage is not enough. But if, like me, I like to be a little forgetful or several people romp around in your apartment, it can make a serious difference – after a short time.

Are electronic radiator thermostats useful?

Electronic radiator thermostats make sense in many cases: the question is rather for whom? If you have underfloor heating, these devices are of course superfluous. Even if you have an electric thermostat in a rented apartment or your own apartment, it is important to rethink the advantages and disadvantages. Because heating plans can also be created with it.

Nevertheless, they offer more comfort and functions in many things that conventional radiator thermostats or electric thermostats with timers cannot. They leverage our forgetfulness, reduce worries and provide savings. If you are fans of automation and the smart home in general, then smart radiator thermostats are definitely worthwhile for you to expand your digital home. If you let go before sleeping or when you leave the house often the heating on, then the temperature is regulated by the presence detection.

Heating on the go is an advantage for everyone, also in order to be able to keep an eye on the heating behavior. Via apps you can track your consumption, display the savings, whether a heater should be on and receive suggestions for improvement for heating seasons after analyzing your rhythm.

A topic that currently affects each of us: energy costs. Unfortunately, these continue to rise and on social media platforms such as Youtube and TikTok the wildest ideas and DIYs can be seen, which should keep the apartment warm in winter. Probably some of them are practical, but there are also comfortable solutions how you can save energy and costs when heating – the potential here is huge! In households alone, 71% of the energy is used for heating – there is something that can be done.

One approach can be smart radiator thermostats. They are not exactly cheap to buy and only pay off over the years. The expenses once again in it, but you can save depending on the nature of your apartment up to 30% of the heating costs every year!

My recommendation for rental apartments: Bosch Radiator Thermostat 2. Yes, they are very expensive, but you have the basis for an extensive smart home system with over 100 actuators. Bosch is one of the most secure systems because it hardly wants any data from you. There are some features such as geofencing, which are additionally behind a paywall at other manufacturers. Bosch’s wireless standard is based on Zigbee 3.0 and can be paired with many devices. Including Philips Hue, thanks to the existing partnership: lamps of this brand can be added in the Bosch app and minimize your effort as well as the number of apps on your phone.

As always, we cannot make a definitive claim to completeness. There are an infinite number of manufacturers and ways, even the individual requirements are different. Do you have a point that absolutely has to be included here? Feel free to write it in the comments so that we can all benefit from swarm knowledge.

What is a smart radiator thermostat?

A smart radiator thermostat is the easiest way to adjust the temperature in your apartment, heat efficiently and save a little at the same time. They are usually used as collective heating systems. In addition, they offer more comfort compared to conventional, manual radiator thermostats: Enjoy an automatically adjusted temperature in each room based on your heating plans and habits. Opening or closing the radiator valve for the hot water flow, they regulate without your intervention. Manual operation of the knobs is no longer necessary – but still possible with many electronic radiator thermostats. Once you have set your desired temperature, the little minions do everything to keep your booth warm.

Neither worries nor thoughts buzz around a radiator that has potentially been left at level five. You no longer have to pay much attention to your heating behavior: Radiator thermostats have one or more temperature sensors that can measure the heat in different rooms. However, the sensors leave much to be desired by some manufacturers: they are not 100% accurate, as they are only based on the registered temperature drop. Unfortunately, it takes time until this is noticed. It is recommended to additionally install magnetic or optical sensors that detect whether windows or doors are open or closed, as well as measure the temperature more accurately.

How much does a smart radiator thermostat cost?

There is no general answer to this question. However, a smart radiator thermostat costs on average between 50€ and 80€ – depending on the smart home system you use. So there are quite cheap models from Hama, which enjoy great popularity and can even call themselves proud winners of the World Smart Home Awards 2021. You can get them for currently for 49,99€ at MediaMarkt. Classics and known for a particularly high level of data protection are radiator thermostats from Bosch and Homematic IP. In terms of price, however, these are rather in a higher segment with 80 € per piece. It looks the same with tado°.

Important to note: If you do not have a smart home system, you will also need a gateway, hub or bridge that communicates between your devices for system-bound radiator thermostats. At Bosch, the price for a middleman is between 60€ and 100€ and at Hama in the range of 40€. Usually it is cheaper to buy the thermostats in a set.

How does a Wi-Fi thermostat work?

The smart thermostats are connected via radio to your smart home control panel, which in turn is linked to your router via LAN or WLAN. All commands, inputs and automations are passed on from your headquarters – be it via apps, voice commands or open software programs such as the Home Assistant. Also keep in mind that the smart thermostats need batteries for operation (mostly AA) – charging via USB-C cable or other charging functions is currently not possible.

In addition to the system-bound radiator thermostats, there are also Bluetooth variants for which you do not need a central unit or an existing smart home system. These are then so-called stand-alones. Theoretically, you can also operate both models like manual radiator thermostats with a controller (not all of them have one): But you not only set a level, but exactly the temperature you want. Problem with mechanical thermostats: Which level stands for which temperature depends on the manufacturer. Once the devices are installed on your heaters and networked with your system, it really starts: Discover the comfortable world of automation and IoT.

Technical process for temperature regulation: The thermostat detects the room temperature via a sensor element – sometimes more times less accurately. If it is too warm, a heat-sensitive material expands, which presses on the pin and closes the valve a little. That’s exactly how it works the other way around.

What can you do with a radiator thermostat?

Electronic radiator thermostats surpass conventional ones not only in terms of comfort and design, but also in terms of functionality and flexibility.

A hurdle that each of us has to overcome in the morning: Out of the warm, cuddly bed into the cold of the bathroom. But freezing does not have to be. If you do not have the possibility to control your heating plans with a conventional thermostat with timer, smart radiator thermostats will help you. You too can leave your ceiling burrito and look forward to preheated rooms.

Common functions that a smart radiator thermostat brings with it are:

• Window Open Detection: Automatically lowers the temperature as soon as a window or door is open.
• Heating plans: Create routines for your working days and other daily routines.
• Automation: Link your heating plans with existing routines (morning light, smart kettle).
• Parental control: This is how you ensure that the temperature is not unintentionally changed by dwarfs.
• Holiday mode: Manage your heating behaviour if you are not in your apartment for some time.
• Presence detection: Enter or leave your apartment, the radiator thermostats know and heating is done accordingly.

Depending on which device you have, it is even possible to control it on the go. This is very practical if you have more of an evening off and want to go to your chubby warm home. This process is also called geofencing. If you activate it, your control center will notice when your smartphone is networked with your WLAN. Thus, the system knows exactly when it has to preheat the apartment – so it has a “self-learning function”. It learns when you come home every day after work, university or school.

However, not all manufacturers offer this geofencing free of charge: tado°, for example, requires an additional subscription of € 3.99 per month. Fortunately, this is not the case everywhere. With Hama, Bosch, Homematic IP and Eve you get this function for free. Nevertheless, tado° has the edge with the range of functions: Included in the subscription are detailed statistics about your consumption, savings and suggestions for improvement. Overall, you get most of the functions around your radiator there.

Which radiator thermostat is right for me?

Do you have a smart home system? This should be noted:

Before you buy a smart radiator thermostat, it is important to find out what your requirements and needs are. If you already have a smart home system, this can narrow down your choice. For example, if you use the Bosch system, Eve thermostats will be omitted for you because they do not use the same wireless language and Eve is mainly designed for Apple’s Homekit system.

The first step should be to find out whether the manufacturer of your smart home system offers radiator thermostats itself and what wireless standard they use. Within the same system, the devices are coordinated with each other: they are easier to find and have fewer problems with operation in the app. The better networked the individual components work together, the higher the heating efficiency and thus the energy savings and cost reduction.

Integration of different smart home manufacturers: Bosch has radiator thermostat 2 – but that does not necessarily have to be your choice. Find out which thermostats are compatible with your system. It is advantageous if they speak the same language: Zigbee, WLAN, DECT or Z-Wave are the most represented.

If you don’t have a smart home system yet:

If the world a lá Cyberpunk is still foreign to you, the decisive factor is how much you want to spend and what your priority is. Should it become a comprehensive system for the future or only cover one aspect of the smart home?

You are undecided how to start with the smart home? We support you with our general purchase advice on the subject of Smart Home: Furnishing for beginners.

If you are purely focused on heating, you might be interested in hybrid versions or stand-alone devices. There are companies that specialize in efficient heating and do not offer a comprehensive smart home – but still need a bridge for communication. Stand-alone radiator thermostats such as Eqiva, on the other hand, work easily with Bluetooth. But let me tell you: The range of Bluetooth is not the hit with ten meters. For apartments over 70 sqm, the connection can sometimes go flutes. With system-bound radiator thermostats with radio, the situation is quite different, as many have a range of up to 100 meters.

In addition to Homematic IP, Tado is best known in terms of smart heating – but offers the most extensive functions.

Providers such as Telekom or Fritz offer an integrated smart home control center with some of their routers. It is worth checking whether you already own one of the boxes, so you save costs in the purchase. You no longer need an additional communication base, only the Fritz DECT 302 radiator thermostats or the devices from Telekom.

Once the question of the system has been clarified, you should think about the functions:

• Do you need statistics and evaluations?
• Is only comfort important to me?
• Ventilation: With or without window contact?
• Do you want to control your heating (geofencing) on the go?

Save heating costs with smart radiator thermostats

Saving energy and costs when heating is super easy: One degree less and you are already seven percent richer (according to the EU Commission). However, the potential for savings depends on factors: personal usage behavior, insulation of the apartment or how many exterior walls your apartment has – this can cause some heating to go flute.

With smart radiator thermostats, you throw less money out of the window – in the truest sense of the word. This is made possible by functions such as window open detection. Manufacturers promise savings of up to 30% – but individual factors that play a role are not taken into account. If you are generally already mindful of your energy consumption, such percentages are less likely to occur.

Until your invested money balances out again, you need one thing in particular: patience. With prices between 140 and 300 euros for the set with three radiator thermostats and a control panel, up to eight years are to be accepted. In addition, there are the costs for the batteries, which must be replaced continuously. Batteries would be desirable, but the low voltage is not enough. But if, like me, I like to be a little forgetful or several people romp around in your apartment, it can make a serious difference – after a short time.

Are electronic radiator thermostats useful?

Electronic radiator thermostats make sense in many cases: the question is rather for whom? If you have underfloor heating, these devices are of course superfluous. Even if you have an electric thermostat in a rented apartment or your own apartment, it is important to rethink the advantages and disadvantages. Because heating plans can also be created with it.

Nevertheless, they offer more comfort and functions in many things that conventional radiator thermostats or electric thermostats with timers cannot. They leverage our forgetfulness, reduce worries and provide savings. If you are fans of automation and the smart home in general, then smart radiator thermostats are definitely worthwhile for you to expand your digital home. If you let go before sleeping or when you leave the house often the heating on, then the temperature is regulated by the presence detection.

Heating on the go is an advantage for everyone, also in order to be able to keep an eye on the heating behavior. Via apps you can track your consumption, display the savings, whether a heater should be on and receive suggestions for improvement for heating seasons after analyzing your rhythm.