Does a smart thermostat work without Wi-Fi?
Short answer
Nest does, as a basic thermostat. Google says that when a Nest thermostat is offline you can't control it from the app and some features may stop, but you can still set the temperature on the thermostat itself, and it keeps heating or cooling to its Safety Temperatures. Alerts and remote control need Wi-Fi. ecobee doesn't say on its product page what still works without Wi-Fi.
Which products can do it?
- Google Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen)Yes
A Nest thermostat keeps heating or cooling to its Safety Temperatures while home Wi-Fi is down, but you won't get the phone alert.
Good to know: Per Google's help page. Safety Temperatures protect against freezing or overheating; they're not your normal comfort setting.
Why it matters
Routers fail, internet goes down and some people don't want a thermostat online at all, so buyers want to know if the heat still works when Wi-Fi doesn't.
Not proven yet
Which Nest features stop while offline, and whether learning and schedules keep running; Google's page doesn't list them. What an ecobee does without Wi-Fi; ecobee's support pages didn't load for us and its product page doesn't say.
How we know (1 source)
"Thermostat Safety Temperatures" help article (read Nov 2, 2026): Safety Temperatures make a Nest thermostat heat or cool to protect the home in extreme weather, even when it's set to Off. The thermostat keeps heating or cooling while home Wi-Fi is offline, but the phone notification about it needs a working Wi-Fi and internet connection, so it won't arrive during an outage.
Read the source
Status timeline
No status has changed since we started tracking. Every entry is dated and backed by the sources on this page.
- First recorded: In storesGoogle Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen)
Google says you can still set the temperature on a Nest thermostat itself while it's offline, though app control stops and some features may be unavailable.