10 Of The Best Renter-Friendly Smart Home Gadgets

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You don’t have to own a smart home to live in one. If you’re renting your home, you’ll be glad to know there are plenty of smart, high-tech gadgets that can make your life easier without the permanency of hard-wired fixtures. When your lease is up, you can take your gadgets with you and keep enjoying the benefits of your investments.

Smart home technology lets you manage and monitor your home from your phone. From seeing who’s ringing your doorbell to automatically turning on your lights when you arrive, you can program your home to help you live a higher quality of life. Best of all, you don’t need to invest in whole-home automation to enjoy this level of convenience. With the right gadgets, you can add value to your rental where and when you need it by making it “smarter.”

Let’s explore 10 of the best renter-friendly smart home gadgets and why they’re a great option based on ease of installation, ease of use, and budget-friendly costs.

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Amazon Echo acts as a smart home hub that powers multiple smart gadgets and devices. It plugs into the wall and connects wirelessly to your home network, so there’s no permanent installation involved. And since it’s small and discreet, you can place it just about anywhere in your rental and even move it from room to room.

Its most basic functions allow it to serve as your personal assistant. You can ask it questions about the current weather, get local movie times, or set alarms and reminders. Sync it to your streaming services like Amazon Music or Spotify to play your favorite songs using a simple voice command.

As a smart home hub, you can pair it with other smart technologies like lighting and sensors, allowing you to program various settings and automations to make your rental home function more like a smart home. For example, you can use Amazon Echo to tell your smart lights to turn off or on at certain times of the day. Or, if you have a smart coffee maker, you can sync up with Amazon Echo to have a freshly brewed coffee waiting for you during your morning routine.

Amazon Echo fourth generation costs about $99 and comes in three colors to suit your style. You can purchase additional accessories like wall mounts and battery bases to enhance your experience.

Many smart doorbells need to be hard-wired into your home, which makes them a no-go for renters. As a result, Ring created a great solution that runs solely on battery power and can be mounted with a couple of screws. The Ring Battery Doorbell Pro gives you the benefits of a smart doorbell camera without tricky or messy installation.

Inside the kit, you’ll receive a Ring doorbell device complete with a 536p HD+ camera with Color Night Vision. It captures head-to-toe images of visitors so you know who’s visiting. It also includes a lithium battery pack that easily inserts into the camera. You can recharge the battery via the included micro USB cable. You can also purchase a separate Ring solar charger for hands-free, worry-free charging.

One of its unique features is the angled mounting bracket that helps you get the right field of view. You can install the unit directly on the wall or doorframe at whatever height suits you best. In other words, you’re not limited to the position of your rental’s current doorbell, if it has one. Installation takes about five minutes, plus it’s easy to remove when your lease is up.

If the Ring Battery Doorbell Pro isn’t in your budget (it currently runs about $230 or so), Ring has other battery powered options like the Video Doorbell ($100) and the Battery Doorbell Plus ($150).

SwitchBot

Robot vacuums handle one of the most hated household chores. But for many renters, the size of standard robot vacuums isn’t feasible. The SwitchBot K10+ Mini Robot Vacuum offers a viable solution with its smaller diameter. It’s designed for smaller spaces like rental apartments or small homes but maintains the strength of normal-sized robot cleaners.

The SwitchBot K10+ Mini Robot Vacuum is about 30% smaller than other models, which makes it effective in getting into tight corners or tough spaces. Its size doesn’t affect its suction power though, and it can collect a fair amount of dirt and debris before you need to empty it.

And speaking of emptying its dust hoard, the SwitchBot takes that task off your to-do list with its auto-empty feature. Its docking station includes a bag for debris collection, which you’ll need to empty yourself when it gets full. But you can go longer between cycles without having to lift a finger regarding your floors.

One other feature that stands out is the vacuum’s ability to mop your hard surface floors. It comes with a mopping plate and 30 mop cloths to handle yet another annoying cleaning task. When you’re not using them, you can store these items in the vacuum’s docking station, saving you more space in your rental home.

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Smart plugs are a highly underrated yet very handy must-have device to turn your rental into a smart home. These plugs use existing outlets to help you control electrical products from your phone. Simply plug the smart plug into an outlet, then plug in anything from Christmas lights to hair straighteners and turn them on or off remotely.

Eve Energy Smart Plugs includes automation and other features in its smartphone app. You can also monitor how much energy you save by controlling devices via smart plugs. Schedule when certain devices are allowed to run, turn off devices you forgot about before you left home (like hair tools or chargers), and save money by reducing energy usage throughout your home.

Smart plugs are a great option for renters to infuse better technology into their daily lives. No major installation is required, and you can take your smart plugs with you when you move to another rental.

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Smart air purifiers provide an intelligent way to monitor and manage your indoor air quality while upgrading your living room. These devices use sensors and Wi-Fi to monitor and clean the air in your rental home. They adjust their runtimes based on air quality readings instead of taking an always-on approach.

Like other smart home gadgets, smart air purifiers give you insights and control via a mobile app. You can monitor your purifier’s runtime, check air quality readings and pollutant levels, and receive alerts when the air quality suffers.

Even better, they give you a way to improve your indoor air quality without a whole home purifier or duct redesign. This is especially beneficial to renters with allergies and asthma, people with pets, or anyone who prioritizes health and convenience. You can see how your air quality changes with the seasons or weather and gain insights on how to create a healthier living space.

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Smart lighting doesn’t require smart light fixtures; all you need is a smart bulb. Philips Hue Lighting is arguably one of the leaders when it comes to smart lighting. The brand makes a wide range of products in all shapes, sizes, and colors. From strip lights to single bulbs, you can customize your rental home’s lighting without having to do any electrical work.

One of Philips Hue Lighting’s most notable features is its customization options. You can choose where you want your lighting in addition to its colors, schedules, brightness, and more. Use its smart bulbs in light fixtures or lamps, or install strip lights under cabinets, behind bed headboards, or along stairways. You can control everything via the app and even connect it to your smart home devices, like the Amazon Echo.

If you’re not sure where to begin with smart lighting, Philips offers a starter kit that includes multiple bulbs. This system scales as you need, with the option to connect more bulbs and lighting products to the app. The lineup also includes dimmer switches and motion sensors so you can customize your lighting setup even more.

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Smart fans pack a one-two punch in the rental benefits department, and would be a great choice to install this summer. They can help you keep cool all summer long while saving money on energy costs. Plus, they’re a great asset for renters because they don’t require installation. Just like a traditional fan, you can set it up, plug it in, and use it anywhere in your home where there’s a power outlet. The only extra step is connecting it to your Wi-Fi and smartphone app, which takes just a few minutes to do.

If you don’t have central AC in your rental home, a smart fan is an undeniable comfort saver. If you do have central AC or window units, smart fans can keep cooling costs lower by running only when you need them. You can also cool only the rooms you need instead of the whole home and put comfort right where you need it.

A regular fan offers these benefits too, so why do you need a smart fan? That depends on whether you like the idea of hands-free operation, temperature and humidity sensors, and cooling schedules when you’re not home (and want to keep the fur babies happy), to name a few benefits. Your smart fan connects to your smartphone, which you can use as a remote control. Adjust fan’s speed, turn it on or off, and adjust the white noise depending on whether you’re asleep or awake. You can even operate some smart fans with your voice.

Making your home smarter is about improving your quality of life, as well as your pet’s. If you have fur babies at home, the Whisker Feeder-Robot automatic pet feeder is a great option for renters, even if you never knew it existed. It’s portable, has a small footprint, and will keep your pets happy while you’re away (or trying to catch a few extra Z’s).

This automatic pet feeder dispenses food at a preset time. Your pets can stick to a predictable eating schedule no matter where life takes you. It includes a large food storage compartment so it has plenty of servings to dispense before it needs to be refilled. This also means you won’t have to store your bags of pet food on the ground or other places where they’re likely to be gnawed into. You’ll keep a cleaner floor, and your pets can enjoy mealtimes on a schedule that works for them.

The Whisker Feeder-Robot gives you insights into your pet’s feeding schedule and habits. It notifies you when food becomes jammed or runs low so you can take action. You can also program how much food to dispense at one time, which is especially helpful when your pet’s dietary needs a change, or you add new pets to your family. Set it up once, monitor it on your home, and enjoy a hands-free helper in the  kitchen.

Another renter-friendly smart home gadget from Amazon, the Echo Show 8 Smart Display adds the visual element that the traditional Echo lacks. This screen-bearing device is an Alexa-enabled smart display, which acts like a knowledge hub and can connect other smart devices into a well-oiled machine.

Like other Amazon devices, the Echo Show 8 connects via Wi-Fi and your Amazon account. Once connected, you can install it anywhere in your home where you have a power outlet and can maintain a strong Wi-Fi signal. It can be mounted on the wall with a stand (sold separately, which requires drilling into the wall to mount and might not be renter-friendly), or you can prop it up on the kitchen counter or bedroom nightstand.

Once set up, the use cases are nearly infinite. It can serve as a mini TV, thanks to built-in streaming apps like Hulu and Prime Video. You can make video calls over Wi-Fi, play music or games, look up information, or view footage from your Ring doorbell or security camera. The power lies in its ability to connect with other smart devices and technology, which means you can use it as a video baby monitor, digital photo frame, recipe finder, or calendar.

Nanit

For renters with babies, the Nanit Pro Complete Monitoring System is easy to install and just as easy to remove. More importantly, it gives parents peace of mind by having audio and visuals of their little ones when they’re not in the same room. And with no hard wiring or extensive installation required, the Nanit Pro Complete Monitoring System is a great option for renters.

The 1080p camera quality is among its most notable features. Users can get clear, crisp visual quality along with two-way audio to talk to your children when you’re not in the room. You can also use the camera to play nature sounds, like birds singing or ocean waves. Instead of having a separate monitoring device, you’ll use an app on your smartphone for live video and audio. And if you need to close the app, you can leave the background noise option on to hear your baby when they need you. 

Installation-wise, the Nanit Pro is pretty simple. You can choose between a wall-mount option (which might not be renter-friendly), a floor stand, or a tabletop stand. The floor stand reaches an impressive 65 inches so you can place it above your baby’s crib and capture every corner. This option also includes good cable management so your growing baby won’t be able to pull the cords. Once in place, you can connect the camera to your Wi-Fi network, set up the app, and sync the device.

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Smart home technology is constantly evolving. Sometimes it offers immense value to our daily lives, and sometimes it feels like overkill. We selected smart home gadgets with four things in mind: ease of installation, ease of use, value, and cost. These qualities matter to everyone, but they’re especially important to renters who don’t want to upgrade someone else’s space and have to leave their investments behind when their leases expire.

Our recommendations for smart home gadgets for renters ensure you can take your devices with you when you leave without having to fill holes in the walls or cut wiring. We also wanted these devices to be easy to use and offer real value to daily living, not just flashy, expensive tech that looks cool. Last but not least, with rental rates climbing ever skyward, we chose smart home gadgets that are under $500 and can fit within more budgets.

Use these recommendations to enhance your quality of life, no matter where you call home.