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With affordable security system packages starting at $250, does SimpliSafe offer enough protection?
We’d like to be able to bottom line SimpliSafe’s pricing right here at the beginning – tell you exactly what you’ll pay for equipment and monitoring. We can’t do that. SimpliSafe offers so many options, but that also means you’ve got a lot of choices.
A sampling of SimpliSafe equipment on my dining room table.
The good news is that the buying process is simple. In this guide, we’ll also make sure you have enough information to decide if SimpliSafe is the right system for you. While the company sits near the top of our list of best security equipment and systems, that doesn’t mean it’s going to suit your particular needs.
Before we go any further, let’s talk about how we put guides like this one together. After all, we’re asking you to trust us. We ought to be able to tell you why.
The answer is actually pretty simple: we do the work to ensure our information is reliable. For instance, we perform in-depth research and in-home testing on every system we review. We live with home security systems, do real-world tests on equipment, and learn as much as we can about companies, prices, monitoring plans, and money-back guarantees.
Armed with information and data, we provide you with reviews and we put together pricing pages like this one. Note, though, that we’re not just throwing a bunch of numbers at you. We give you our honest opinion as home security experts. We talk about prices in terms of value as opposed to the bottom line. We compare physical components and features across systems so you have a clear sense of whether or not a particular company is a good fit for you and your family.
You can’t take chances with your home security. We want to make absolutely sure that you have everything you need to make the right decisions.
Equipment is the foundation of any security system, so let’s start by talking about SimpliSafe’s equipment. The company offers seven pre-made packages, so it’s usually easy enough to find one that suits your needs. These packages range in price from $250 to $730 based on how many pieces they include.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
The Starter is SimpliSafe’s most popular system, and it’s great for small homes under 1,200 square feet. The entryway sensors cover your front, back, or side doors, and a well-placed motion sensor protects your home from intruders.
How much does it cost?
The Foundation package costs $250.96.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
SimpliSafe’s Starter package is one step up from the Foundation. It’s targeted at smaller homes under 1,200 square feet, but it provides more entry sensors so you have more coverage of doors and windows. You don’t get any cameras with this package, but you can be certain no one is getting in without triggering an alert.
How much does it cost?
The Starter package costs $282.94.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
When it comes to protecting you from break-ins, the Hearth is almost identical to the Starter package. The one big difference is that the Hearth comes with a 105-decibel siren loud enough to wake you in the event of an intrusion and likely scare potential burglars away. In addition, this package comes with a smoke detector, so you’re protected from environmental dangers as well as intruders.
How much does it cost?
The Hearth costs $412.91.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
The Knox – as in Ft. Knox – is a great system for larger homes with multiple entryways and ground-floor windows. Similar to the Hearth, it includes SimpliSafe’s extra-loud siren and connected smoke detector, but it comes with additional entry sensors so you don’t have to leave any door or window unprotected.
How much does it cost?
The Knox costs $495.87.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
The Haven protects you from break-ins and environmental threats with entryway, motion, temperature and water sensors. There’s also a panic button that activates your siren and contacts SimpliSafe’s monitoring center if you’re a subscriber. We recommend The Haven for larger homes that face multiple threats.
How much does it cost?
The Haven costs $533.86.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
SimpliSafe recommends the Lighthouse package for homes up to 1,600 square feet. It is also the first package on this list that includes a security camera. It’s worth noting that SimpliSafe frequently offers free cameras as part of its deals and sales. In that case, a Hearth, Knox, or Haven package might work just as well. Note, too, that you’ll need a monitoring plan with Active Guard to take full advantage of the outdoor camera’s best features.
How much does it cost?
The Lighthouse costs $482.93.
What does it include?
Who is it good for?
We’d recommend the Beacon for folks looking to keep an eye on threats to their property from all angles and are willing to pay extra for that kind of security. Two outdoor cameras, standard, means you can protect front and back entries, or you can use these two cameras to provide expanded coverage of a larger property.
How much does it cost?
The Beacon costs $733.90.
When it comes to equipment, SimpliSafe sits comfortably atop our list of the most affordable security systems. The company’s most expensive package, the Beacon, costs just $730. And OK, $730 is a chunk of change for most of us, but consider what you get for that price – two outdoor cameras worth $199 each, plus four entry sensors, two motion sensors, a base station, and a keypad. One Vivint camera costs $399. Just the camera. Buy two, and you’re paying more than the entire Beacon package.
And that’s assuming you pay full price for your SimpliSafe system. Turns out SimpliSafe never charges full retail price for equipment. The company is always running a sale. At a minimum, you’ll find equipment discounted by 20 percent, but you can often score even better deals. During SimpliSafe’s 2024 Black Friday sale, all packages were discounted by 70 percent. We’ll do the math for you – that Beacon package was just $219, or $180 less than one of those Vivint cameras.
We’re not huge fans of this kind of sales tactic. It’s designed to put pressure on you to purchase a system now, and makes it hard to tell when there’s actually a good deal. We see it regularly. For example, we noticed it while buying systems for our Cove review and Frontpoint review. Hey, at least it’s not hidden costs.
To give you an idea of what you’ll pay for the systems right now, check out this chart. Keep in mind that as part of the current sale, you also get a free SimpliSafe Outdoor Camera when purchasing a complete package.
SimpliSafe equipment package | Regular price | Current sale price (60% off) |
---|---|---|
The Foundation | $250.96 | $110.40 |
The Starter | $282.94 | $113.20 |
The Hearth | $412.91 | $165.20 |
The Knox | $495.87 | $198.40 |
The Haven | $533.86 | $213.60 |
The Lighthouse | $482.93 | $193.20 |
The Beacon | $733.90 | $293.60 |
On SimpliSafe’s website, you’ll see a big banner across the top of the page with the current sale. It’ll also say when it ends. Don’t worry, another one will immediately take its place. If you’re trying to time your purchase with the best deal, check out our guide to SimpliSafe’s sales.
Pre-made packages are all well and good, and with seven to choose from, SimpliSafe does its best to guarantee you’ll get one that suits your needs. Need a sensor or two, and SimpliSafe makes it easy to add what you need to a package.
Here’s one of our home security experts installing a SimpliSafe motion sensor.
Even so, every home is different, every security situation unique, and sometimes you’re just better off building your own security system. Build your own system from the ground up and you can be sure to have all the equipment you need and nothing you don’t. Plus, in the long run you save money on unnecessary devices.
If you’re going that route, you want to know absolutely all you can about what SimpliSafe charges for each and every device. Note that every SimpliSafe system requires a base station and a keypad, so any package you put together is going to include those. Together, these two pieces cost $199.98, but again, that’s the retail price. Right now, you can get them at a 50 percent discount, just like all of SimpliSafe’s packages and equipment. Then you can pick among a wide range of devices, whatever happens to suit your particular needs.
Equipment | Retail Price |
---|---|
Entryway sensor | $15.99 |
Motion sensor | $34.99 |
Glass-break sensor | $39.99 |
Wireless indoor camera | $149.99 |
Wireless outdoor camera | $199.99 |
Video Doorbell Pro | $169.00 |
Wired indoor camera | $99.00 |
Water sensor | $19.99 |
Smoke and carbon monoxide detector | $69.99 |
Smoke detector | $44.99 |
Temperature sensor | $29.99 |
Panic button | $19.99 |
Key fob | $24.99 |
Smart lock | $119.99 |
Auxiliary siren | $59.99 |
Extra keypad | $69.99 |
Extra yard sign | $3.99 |
A lot of companies offer discounts on packages, but if you try to purchase equipment a la carte, you’ll find you have to pay full cost. Not SimpliSafe. Right now, for instance, the company is running a sale for…well, for the sake of running a sale, and everything is 50 percent off. Everything. We should point out that you do have to sign up for a monitoring plan to get that discount, but that’s a small price to pay in the scheme of things. After all, we recommend professional monitoring in most cases.
Even with SimpliSafe’s discounts, there are companies that offer lower prices. Cove’s systems, for example, start at just $99. SimpliSafe’s equipment is better quality, though, so they still win in value. We feel the quality is similar to ADT and Vivint, both of which cost significantly more. Check out our ADT review and Vivint review to find out how they justify their prices.
Pro Tip: Before you purchase your system, make sure you read our comparison of security companies. You may be surprised about who you end up going with!
That’s all there is to say about SimpliSafe’s equipment, but that’s just one side of the story. Let’s switch gears to SimpliSafe’s monitoring costs.
SimpliSafe changed the way it does monitoring, but we have all the information you need. There are five packages to choose from: Pro Plus Monitoring, Pro Monitoring, Core Monitoring, Standard Monitoring, and Self-Monitoring With Camera Recording. Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll get with each.
Feature | Pro Plus | Pro | Core (formerly Fast Protect) Monitoring | Standard Monitoring | Self-Monitoring With Camera Recording |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Professional monitoring | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Intruder Intervention | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Active Guard Outdoor Protection | 24/7 | Overnight (8 p.m. to 6 a.m.) | No | No | No |
Video verification | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Cellular backup | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Unlimited camera recording | 30 days for up to 10 cameras | 30 days for up to 10 cameras | 30 days for up to 10 cameras | No | 30 days for up to 10 cameras |
Live view | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Alarm texts | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Remotely arm and disarm system | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Arm system with voice assistant | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Extended warranty | Lifetime | Lifetime | Lifetime | 3 years | 3 years |
Discount on new hardware | 10 percent | 10 percent | 10 percent | No | No |
Price | $79.99 per month | $49.99 per month | $31.99 per month | $21.99 per month | $9.99 per month |
FYI: SimpliSafe’s monitoring agents can access qualifying cameras to deter threats with their Intruder Intervention and Active Guard Outdoor Protection features. Intruder Intervention works with the Wireless Indoor Camera and Active Guard Outdoor Protection works with the Outdoor Camera Series 2.
SimpliSafe is a good option for full-on self-monitoring too. If you don’t want to pay a subscription fee, you can monitor the system on your own. We don’t recommend that since you won’t get all the security benefits of a paid system, but it’s an option if budget is a concern.
Installing a SimpliSafe entryway sensor.
Also worth noting: SimpliSafe is one of the best no-contract systems, which means you won’t have to jump through hoops if you decide to change how your system is monitored. We canceled our Core Monitoring during our test period and self-monitored the system to see how big of a difference it made. The process was pain-free.
With monitoring out of the way, let’s talk about specific recommendations.
How does your home measure up when it comes to security? Take this quiz to see how you score, and get recommendations to protect your home.
We can talk about prices in the abstract all day long, and offer recommendations, but what would we do if we had the decision to make? Turns out, we know exactly what we’d do, because we went to the trouble of ordering systems for our own homes.
We’ve got an average-sized property with no more than three doors and four ground-floor windows, and we have a garage. We decided to put together three different SimpliSafe options, just to see how well they fit our particular setup.
Budget-Friendly
Equipment suggestion | Total price |
---|---|
Required base station + keypad | $199.98 |
Entryway sensors (3) | $47.97 |
Motion detector (1) | $34.99 |
Self-monitored | Free |
As a starting point, we tried to see how we’d fare with the minimum amount of equipment. We made sure to buy enough entry sensors to cover our doors, but we didn’t invest in any cameras. In addition, we chose to self-monitor our system. In the end, the equipment cost us $282.94 before taxes, and we paid nothing else once the system was set up.
We felt a bit blind without cameras, but we had the peace of mind of knowing that anyone who tried to force entry into our home would trigger an instant alert.
Middle of the Road
Equipment suggestion | Total price |
---|---|
Required base station + keypad | $199.98 |
Entryway sensors (3) | $47.97 |
Motion detector (1) | $34.99 |
Glass-break sensor (2) | $79.98 |
Wireless outdoor camera (1) | $199.99 |
Video Doorbell Pro (1) | $169 |
Standard monitoring | $21.99 per month |
For this system, we added two glass break sensors, which raised our price total by around $80. The largest costs with this system, though, was the wireless outdoor camera, which cost $199.99, and the Video Doorbell Pro, which cost $169. The glass break sensors added protection to our windows, but the cameras offered the biggest improvement to our overall security. The doorbell, of course, let us know any time someone approached our front door. We positioned the wireless outdoor camera to keep an eye on our backyard.
In total, this system cost us $731.91. We added standard professional monitoring, which runs $21.99 a month. One downside here: we weren’t able to access the outdoor camera’s best features without paying for a more expensive monitoring plan. The camera still worked, of course, but perhaps wasn’t worth the high price tag.
Top of the Line
Equipment suggestion | Total price |
---|---|
Required base station + keypad | $199.98 |
Entryway sensors (3) | $47.97 |
Motion detector (1) | $34.99 |
Glass-break sensor (2) | $79.98 |
Wireless outdoor camera (1) | $199.99 |
Video Doorbell Pro (1) | $169 |
Wireless indoor camera (1) | $149.99 |
Smoke and carbon monoxide detector | $69.99 |
Water sensor (2) | $19.99 |
Temperature sensor (1) | $29.99 |
Key fob | $24.99 |
Core Monitoring | $31.99 per month |
Finally, we decided to see what it might cost to get all the equipment we needed to fully protect our home. In addition to an indoor camera, we added several sensors, including a water sensor, a temperature sensor and a combination smoke/ carbon monoxide detector. With this system, we knew we were protected not just from home intruders but from environmental emergencies as well.
This ultimate system costs $1026.86 before taxes. To the system itself, we added SimpliSafe’s Core monitoring plan with Intruder Intervention, which costs $31.99 a month. All told, this may seem like a lot. We should point out, though, that the Core plan allowed us to access a number of extra features on our cameras. Basically, AI technology alerted the SimpliSafe monitoring center to any suspicious activity outside our home. SimpliSafe agents then accessed our footage and intervened. They are trained to talk with potential home invaders, and they can use camera images to verify activity and get emergency personnel on site faster. We felt fully protected with this setup.
We should add a couple of notes to our experience with SimpliSafe.
First: Your security needs will differ from ours. We suggest covering at least your exterior doors with entryway sensors and a motion detector to cover the largest swath of your home possible. If you can, invest in wireless security cameras next. They’re exceptional burglar deterrents and help you round things out. Finally, think about nonhuman threats to your property. Are you worried about pipes bursting in the wintertime? What about your hot water heater giving off deadly carbon monoxide? If it’s in the budget, invest in environmental sensors as a tertiary priority.
Checking out the privacy screen on SimpliSafe’s indoor camera.
Second: The prices we included above are SimpliSafe’s retail prices. Like we said throughout this article, the company constantly offers discounts. If we bought that top-of-the-line system today, it would cost around $500 instead of over $1,000. When you price out your SimpliSafe system, remember that it’s likely to be discounted.
To bring things home, we want to tell you about our experience with our SimpliSafe system, and then we’ll give you our final recommendation.
If you’re looking for a complete rundown of installation, equipment, and monitoring, you should check out our full review of SimpliSafe, but we can give you high and low points here.
Simply put, SimpliSafe remains the best DIY security system we’ve ever tested. The company’s equipment is high-quality, well-designed, and built to last. SimpliSafe has perfected the installation process as well, so that it’s easy to set up your system and easy to make changes when you need to. You can self-monitor for free, and you still get great features like real-time alerts and access to live footage.
In the last two years, SimpliSafe has also transitioned almost seamlessly into the world of professional monitoring. Intruder Intervention is one of the coolest technologies we’ve seen from professionally monitored systems. AI detection and real-time interaction from live agents is a complete game-changer for the industry, even for what SimpliSafe charges.
Pro Tip: SimpliSafe offers professional installation. It starts around $125, but we wouldn’t recommend it. The SimpliSafe system is designed to be easy to install, even for folks with no handy skills or specialized tools.
Do we have some complaints? Sure. There are no perfect home security systems. Why, for instance, does SimpliSafe insist that every customer purchase a keypad. The technology is clunky at best. More importantly, the SimpliSafe app – one of the best security apps out there – provides all the same functions and then some. And it’s free.
SimpliSafe’s keypad installed next to our front door.
And while SimpliSafe’s installation process is simple and easy, maybe it’s a little too simple? The adhesive strips on the backs of all the equipment eliminate the need for fancy drills or even screwdrivers and hammers. They don’t always hold up, though, when they’re holding up heftier pieces of equipment, like motion detectors. And we can tell you from first-hand experience, that it’s no fun waking up to a 3 a.m. false alarm when one of these devices falls off the wall. The good news is that SimpliSafe always includes the tools necessary for screw-mounting, but they could maybe do a better job of telling you which devices need it.
SimpliSafe’s adhesive strips have done us wrong in the past.
So…genuine complaints, but small complaints. In the end, we were more than happy with the security and convenience we got from our SimpliSafe system.
In a word, yes. You have to know how to read the company’s website, though.
Frankly, SimpliSafe’s listed retail prices are a bit high, but equipment is always priced at least 20 percent lower than those prices, and sometimes you can get discounts up to 60 percent. Once you factor those discounts in, SimpliSafe packages start to look a lot more attractive.
Of course, there are no discounts when it comes to SimpliSafe monitoring, and prices at the high end can be a bit steep. If you’re looking for top-of-the-line professional monitoring with AI assistance, video verification, and available agent intervention, you could pay as much as $80 a month. Even SimpliSafe’s more pedestrian Core plan costs $32 a month, some $12 more than Ring’s plan. Keep in mind, though, that you can also monitor your system yourself for free, so nothing says you can’t save a lot of money with SimpliSafe.
The bottom line? SimpliSafe has always been an amazing self-monitored system. It’s quickly becoming one of the best professionally monitored systems on the market too.
The bottom line is that SimpliSafe has always been a top system if you’re looking to self-monitor. Now it’s become a top system for professional monitoring, too. That’s a pretty unbeatable combination.
It might seem like SimpliSafe is expensive if you only look at their retail prices. But, they’re almost always running a sale which usually gives you about half off your entire system. The best sale we’ve seen was 70 percent off with a free outdoor security camera, a $199 value.
Yes, we think SimpliSafe’s Core monitoring is well worth the extra $10 compared to SimpliSafe’s Standard monitoring. The cloud storage for up to 10 cameras is worth the $10 alone, but you also get video verification and Intruder Intervention.
With the Core Monitoring plan, Intruder Intervention only works for the Wireless Indoor Camera. The Pro and Pro Plus plans expand that capability to the outdoor camera as well. You’ll get overnight active guard protection on the outdoor camera with the Pro plan or 24/7 active guard protection with the Pro Plus plan. But that comes at a hefty price tag of $49.99 or $79.99 per month. That’s a bit much for us, so we’d recommend the Core Monitoring plan for most people.
The best SimpliSafe sale we’ve seen happened last Black Friday when they offered 70 percent off all new systems and components, a free outdoor security camera, and one free month of Core Monitoring.
We definitely found SimpliSafe’s Wireless Indoor Camera to be a great value, but we subscribed to SimpliSafe’s Core monitoring plan, which unlocks features like Intruder Intervention. If you choose self-monitoring or the Standard plan, you might be better off with the Wired Indoor Cam, since it provides you with all the same features as the unmonitored Wireless Indoor but at a much cheaper price.