The Best Security Systems for Large Homes

ADT Equipment

ADT’s indoor and outdoor security cameras come directly from Google Nest. They offer the full lineup of cameras at the same price including outdoor cameras with integrated floodlights for enhanced perimeter lighting and deterrence. You’ll also find battery-operated indoor/outdoor models that can be positioned virtually anywhere on expansive properties without worrying about power outlets.

Google Nest cameras use intelligent detection to distinguish between people, animals, and vehicles in their field of view. With a Complete Monitoring plan, you also get facial recognition capabilities that power customized alerts depending on who approaches your property. In our testing, we got distinct notifications when our neighbor dropped by versus when our enthusiastic aunt arrived with her latest collection of unusual home décor finds.

The Google Nest Cam with Floodlight unboxed and ready for our technician to install.

Other than the cameras, ADT offers a complete suite of sensors. They have motion and entry sensors, garage door sensors, glass break sensors, smoke alarms, water leak sensors, and gas leak sensors, just to name a few. And the best part is, all those ADT sensors are monitored professionally.

ADT Monitoring

Speaking of professional monitoring, ADT is simply a cut above the rest because it has 12 monitoring facilities across North America. For comparison, Vivint has two monitoring centers and most other companies have only one or they outsource their monitoring service.

ADT maintains that many facilities for redundancy — if a storm or outage disrupts one location, others can seamlessly pick up the slack. ADT’s monitoring plans start at $24.99 per month if you install the system yourself. Because we purchased several Nest cameras and opted for professional installation, we signed up for the most comprehensive plan at $49.99 per month — on par with what Vivint and Frontpoint charge at similar tiers.

ADT Home Automation

Having home automation is a blessing for large homes. Instead of going around the house turning off lights or locking doors, you can use an app to make a schedule or control them manually. You can also have automation rules. “If I arm my system, then turn off the lights” — that sort of thing.

ADT offers home automation. We control our smart lights from the ADT+ app and schedule them to turn on and off at all hours. We’ve also set our smart thermostat to enter energy-saving mode when we arm ADT to Away mode.

When we arm our ADT system from this simple-looking base station, our schedules for other devices kick in.

Vivint Equipment

Vivint sensors look a bit clunky for a high-tech security system, especially those bulky door sensors that they offer. But if you can look past that, you’ll see interesting pieces of equipment from Vivint.

Our Vivint’s entryway sensor looks clunky, but is reliable.

Our personal favorite (and recommendation for large homes) is the Vivint Outdoor Camera Pro. The best feature is Smart Deter, which uses person detection and personalized rules to scare off intruders with lights and sounds.

The Vivint Outdoor Camera Pro is also customizable. You define the monitored area, the parameters for triggering Smart Deter, and the light type (e.g., strobe, soft glow, etc.) and alarm tone. It’s best paired with the Spotlight Pro, which uses AI to follow around the movement of anyone that walks into frame. It literally shines the spotlight on intruders.

>> Keep Reading: Vivint Home Security Cameras

Vivint Monitoring

All Vivint systems require professional monitoring. And as we mentioned earlier, Vivint has two monitoring facilities for redundancy — one in Utah and another in Minnesota.

As for cost, Vivint’s monitoring prices aren’t publicly listed on their website — you’ll need to call for a personalized quote. When we called, the sales agent told us plans typically start around $44.99 per month and go up depending on the equipment and cameras you add. Our plan ended up on the higher end since we added cameras. One potential dealbreaker for big homes is that you may be limited in the number of cameras per subscription.

On the plus side, Vivint is one of the security systems with the fastest response times. We had text message alerts arrive in less than 10 seconds and phone call follow-ups within 60 seconds. That’s in line with the industry average.

Vivint Home Automation

Vivint excels when it comes to home automation capabilities. The Smart Home Hub supports up to 232 third-party Z-Wave devices, including smart locks, dimmer switches, and thermostats. You can even integrate Google Nest devices like the Nest Thermostat. During our installation, the technician told us that the hub can connect up to 100 Vivint sensors as well.

Vivnt’s Outdoor Camera

The Vivint app offers impressive customization options. You can create automations that connect your Vivint devices with third-party Z-Wave products. For example, you could set hallway lights to dim automatically when the system enters Stay mode at night using compatible smart switches. This level of flexibility has earned Vivint recognition as one of the best security systems with an app.

SimpliSafe Equipment

SimpliSafe’s equipment is one of the best DIY security systems. The components are wireless, lightweight, and remarkably easy to install. You can opt for professional installation starting from $124.99, but we don’t think it’s necessary even for a large home system. We had everything up and running within 30 minutes.

Here’s how easy it is to install the SimpliSafe motion sensor.

As for your options, SimpliSafe offers sensors that detect intrusion and safety hazards like fire and gas leaks. There is one item missing though: A garage door sensor or tilt sensor. SimpliSafe recommends using the typical door sensor for that.

>> Other Options: The Best Security Systems for Homes With a Garage

SimpliSafe Monitoring

SimpliSafe is one of the most affordable home security systems around. However, if you want live agent intervention with your SimpliSafe monitoring plan, you’ll pay similar prices to ADT and Vivint, if not more. For indoor intruder intervention, you’ll need at least the Core plan at $32.99 per month. To expand this to your outdoor cameras, you need the Pro plan at $49.99 per month for overnight coverage or the Pro Plus plan at $79.99 per month for 24/7 coverage.

The Core, Pro and Pro Plus plans also include unlimited camera recording with 180 days of cloud storage for up to 10 cameras and cellular backup for the base station. This is a handy feature if your Wi-Fi range is inadequate or prone to drop out. Just be aware that features like Smart Alarm Camera Verification require a Wi-Fi connection.

SimpliSafe Home Automation

SimpliSafe’s home automation is its biggest weakness. Unlike Vivint, which integrates with Z-Wave products, and ADT, which offers smart devices like smart bulbs, SimpliSafe focuses primarily on home security. SimpliSafe sells a smart lock, and you can control the system with your voice via Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, but that’s about it. For larger homes seeking comprehensive smart home integration, you may need to supplement with third-party devices.

The SimpliSafe app makes it easy to add more SimpliSafe devices in the future.

Frontpoint Equipment

We noticed a significant difference between Frontpoint’s equipment and devices from ADT, Vivint, and SimpliSafe. For instance, Frontpoint’s sensors and batteries are durable, but lack the modern, sleek design of Vivint devices. The keypad is also a bit of an eyesore.

Here’s Frontpoint’s cheaper analog keypad.

The camera selection continues to expand and now offers a broad selection that covers most needs. We got the Premium Floodlight Camera, an upgrade from the standard Outdoor Camera. It distinguishes between people, animals, and objects and comes with a siren and 3,000 lumen flood lights to scare off intruders. We also like that you can manually activate the siren if you notice something suspicious.

Frontpoint Monitoring

There is only one Frontpoint professional monitoring plan available online, and it’s $49.99 per month. It doesn’t matter the size of your system, the cost remains $49.99 per month. You get great features like text alerts, 24/7 police and fire protection, and home automation, which we’ll cover next. If you’re looking for a lower-cost option, you’ll need to give Frontpoint a call. They offer simpler plans starting at $4.99 per month.

Frontpoint Home Automation

Vivint is the top home automation option for smart homes, but Frontpoint has unique features like geofencing. The Frontpoint app syncs your phone’s location with the security system. If you forget to arm it when you leave the house, you’ll get a notification. We once got an alert when we were halfway down the street. Instead of turning back, we used the app to arm the system.

Frontpoint’s home automation also supports third-party products, particularly those using Z-Wave. Like Vivint, Frontpoint can connect with up to 232 Z-Wave devices. The main difference is Frontpoint’s reliance on its app, so expect to be on your phone more often.

Ring Alarm Equipment

Ring Alarm doesn’t have an extensive equipment range like other companies on its list. However, the equipment it does offer works great. Our sensors blend into the house better than Frontpoint’s, and the keypad has a more modern design.

Ring makes up for its lack of range with plenty of security cameras though. Here’s an overview of Ring’s most popular cameras:

If your house is on a large estate, I recommend the Floodlight Cam from Ring. It’s an outdoor camera which you can either wire to a junction box or plug into an outdoor outlet. It has two floodlights sitting side-by-side that can function either as normal floodlights or as motion-activated lights. And again, you can have as many of these cameras as you want.

>> Keep Reading: Ring Security Camera Review

Ring Alarm Monitoring

Ring offers self-monitoring plans starting at $4.99 per month. For professional monitoring, the Ring AI Pro plan is $20 per month and bundles in Eero Wi-Fi 6 mesh routing. For an additional fee, you can add Virtual Security Guard — a service where trained agents monitor your live camera feeds and respond to activity in real time.

Ring Alarm Home Automation

Ring Alarm and SimpliSafe are similar. But Ring is slightly better in the home automation department. It supports third-party Z-Wave devices including smart lights, smart switches, smart locks, and smart thermostats, all controllable through the Ring App.

We could manage every component of our Ring system in the app.

Speaking of the Ring App, it’s the all-in-one control center for all Ring and Ring-connected devices. But you can also control Ring devices using an Amazon Echo smart speaker or display. Our Echo Show 8 announces when someone rings the Ring doorbell and displays the live video feed, so we can see who’s there.