Nest Doorbells vs. Ring Doorbells: Which is Better?
Smart homes start at the front door.
Buying the best smart doorbell for your home is important, so I’m sharing the pros and cons to the Ring doorbells versus the Nest – both the best on the market right now. We’re also sharing some added highly-rated doorbell choices!
Nest Doorbells pros vs. cons
Buy it at Best Buy – $189.99
Pros of the Nest doorbells:
- Detect visitors at your door before they even ring.
- Syncs with your smart device.
- Review and record up to 3 hours of recent activity outside your door.
- Built-in camera to see who’s at your door.
- 24/7 streaming so you can check in any time.
- Videos store safely in your Cloud.
- Allows multiple people to view visitors at once.
- Works and can sync with your Alexa Show.
- Night vision feature so you can see when it’s dark.
- Respond to visitors with convenient, pre-recorded messages.
- Quiet mode available, so you’re never disturbed during nap time again.
- HD Talk and Listen feature.
- Talk to your visitors.
- Clear communication.
- No distracting background noise.
- Weather-proof.
- Less expensive than a Ring doorbell.
- Free Nest mobile app for Androids or iOS devices.
- Always stay connected.
- Receive instant alerts.
- View live feed.
- Talk directly to visitors.
Cons of the Nest doorbells:
- May require you to upgrade your data plan so you don’t go over.
- Requires WiFi.
- Requires wired doorbell and chime.
- Users may experience occasional delays or false motions based on feedback.
- Requires monthly fees for larger storage of videos.
- Not suitable for homes in climates that are extremely hot or cold consistently.
Ring Doorbell 2 pros vs. cons
Buy it at Best Buy – $199.99
Pros of the Ring doorbells:
- Detect visitors at your door before they even ring.
- 1080HD wide-angle video.
- Two-way audio.
- Customized motion detection features.
- Doesn’t require a pre-existing doorbell.
- Syncs with your smart device.
- Also works with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Ring.
- Free Ring app.
- See, hear, and speak with visitors from anywhere.
- Always stay connected.
- Receive instant alerts.
- View live feed.
- Night vision feature so you can see when it’s dark.
- Two color options.
- Weather resistant.
Cons of the ring doorbells:
- Requires monthly subscription for live streaming and recording videos.
- Battery operated which requires inconvenient charging.
- Requires special batteries that come with the doorbell.
- Colder or hotter temperatures may shorten battery lifespan.
- Even when hard-wired, the battery needs to be charged.
- More expensive than the Nest doorbell.
- Second battery pack while other battery charges is not included.
So which do we like more?
We love the Nest more because it doesn’t need charging, doesn’t require a monthly subscription, and the overall reviews are better. Plus, it’s currently even cheaper than its competitor. Win, win!
“My parents always rave about their Nest doorbell and love it. My husband ended up buying the Ring doorbell, but ultimately I wanted the Nest because even without paying the monthly subscription you could still view live feeds. The reviews overall for the Nest were just so much better too. Our Ring is fine, but since we have other Nest products I would have loved to have them all integrated together. ”
– Michelle
Overall Winner: Nest doorbell 
3 other Ring smart doorbells to consider:
1. Ring Wi-Fi Smart Video Doorbell
Buy it at Best Buy – $99.99
Here are the main differences between this doorbell and the more expensive Ring 2:
- Also works with SmartThings and Wink.
- $100 cheaper.
- Built-in two-way talk.
- No chime.
- Lower video resolution (720).
- Lower Sound quality.
- Slightly larger design.
2. Ring Video Doorbell Pro
Buy it at Best Buy – $249.99
Here are the main differences between this doorbell and the Ring 2:
- Also works with SmartThings and Wink.
- Slimmer, sleeker design.
- Hard-wired so there’s no hassle of charging batteries.
- $50 more expensive.
3. Ring Video Doorbell Elite
Buy it at Best Buy – $499.99
Here are the main differences between this doorbell and the Ring 2:
- Hard-wired so there’s no hassle of charging batteries.
- Built-in two-way talk.
- Live View gives you an on-demand look at your property.
- Create and customize your own motion zones.
- Lifetime purchase protection.
- Ring replaces any stolen camera so you’re always protected.
- Slightly larger design.
- $300 more expensive.
Read whether digital keylocks are really worth it for your home.
I bought a Nest doorbell about a year ago – and while the installation was super easy, the delay from the time the person pushed your doorbell until the time I got a notification on my phone or the doorbell rang in the house was super long! Long enough that most people ringing a doorbell would have walked away by then. I contacted Nest and they told me that it was probably my WiFi network, but I had just upgraded my WiFi to the fastest my provider offered knowing that I was adding this (and some other cameras which did not have the same issue). After having it up for a week and just becoming more and more frustrated, I gave up and returned it. I hope this issue can be fixed in the future because I really loved the idea of a video doorbell.
Oh bummer! Sorry to hear about that, Amy! That sure does sound frustrating. Thanks for sharing your experience! Hoping that glitch is gone if you decide to try again!