Wyze’s new DIY home security system is dirt cheap

(Image credit: Wyze)

Simplisafe, Abode, and ADT better watch out. Wyze, the company best known for its dirt-cheap home security cameras, is now entering the DIY home security market with the Wyze Home Monitoring kit. Available for preorder today and shipping in March, the company will offer the base hardware for free is you sign up for professional monitoring, which itself is just $60 per year.

In some ways, the Wyze Home Monitoring kit is the most logical extension of its original product. Since the launch of the $20 Wyze Cam, the company has since expanded to smart watches, robot vacuums, headphones, and more. Yet, its camera — one of the best home security cameras — remains the centerpiece of its portfolio.

Wyze will offer its Core Starter Kit for free, provided you sign up for an annual plan ($60/year). This includes a main hub, a keypad, two door/window sensors, and a motion sensor. If you sign up for a monthly plan ($5/month), you'll have to pay $50 upfront for the equipment.

Additional entry sensors will cost $20 for a pack of three, motion sensors are $8 apiece, and the keypad is $15.

Wyze Home Monitoring — (Image credit: Wyze)

The Wyze Sense Hub connects to your network via Wi-Fi or Ethernet, and contains an 85dB siren to warn intruders. It also has a battery backup, but no cellular connection in the event your Internet goes down. Professional monitoring services will be provided by Noonlight.

You'll also be able to link Wyze's security cameras to the system, so that in the event a motion or entry sensor is tripped, you'll be able to view security footage from that time. However, the cameras themselves can't trigger an alarm.

Initially, Wyze's video doorbell and smart lock won't be compatible with the system, but the company plans to incorporate them in the future.

Wyze's professional monitoring cost is one of the cheapest we've seen. Among the best DIY home security systems, Ring's professional monitoring is $100/year, and Simplisafe's plans start at $180/year. Neither of them offer free equipment, either.

We're going to wait until we've had a chance to test Wyze's Home Monitoring kit, but its low price of ownership is definitely going to put some pressure on the bigger names.

Michael A. Prospero is the U.S. Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide. He oversees all evergreen content and oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories for the site. In his spare time, he also tests out the latest drones, electric scooters, and smart home gadgets, such as video doorbells. Before his tenure at Tom's Guide, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, the Times of Trenton, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. He received his undergraduate degree from Boston College, where he worked on the campus newspaper The Heights, and then attended the Columbia University school of Journalism. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight — or chagrin — of his family.