Smart home and energy: how to save with a smart home
By Laurens Arends · updated 05-10-2026
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The smart applications
The amounts come from the research table below. The buttons go to the range at Coolblue; if you buy something there, we receive a fee. That changes nothing about the price or our explanation, see our how we make money.
Saving energy with a smart home
A smart home only saves energy if, thanks to automation, appliances run for a shorter time, less warm or with less power. Operating an appliance with an app alone does not make it economical. A smart meter is the basis of the story, because it lets you measure consumption. An energy usage manager, thermostat or smart home platform uses that information to make consumption visible or to control appliances.
Saving energy with a smart home therefore works in three steps: measuring, deciding and switching. For example, you see high night-time consumption, look for the cause and from then on automatically switch off an unnecessary appliance. Or a smart thermostat lowers the temperature when nobody is at home.
If you save energy with a smart home, you will in principle also pay less for your energy. It can also work the other way round: with a smart home you can use energy at other times of the day. In combination with a dynamic contract, you then pay less for the same consumption.
What does a smart home really save?
There is no general saving percentage for smart homes. A smart meter, smart thermostat, smart radiator valve and smart plug affect different parts of consumption. Moreover, the result depends strongly on your current behaviour. Those who already control their heating and appliances carefully may save little or nothing.
Smart meter with a continuously visible display
A smart meter does not save any energy by itself. The effect only arises when you see and use the consumption information. Research by PBL and Tilburg University (2021) compared three types of energy usage managers. With a continuously visible display in the living room or kitchen, electricity consumption fell by 2,2% on average and gas consumption by 6,9%.
For the studied app with historical feedback and the combination of an email and web application, PBL could not demonstrate any saving. So merely collecting data with a smart meter is not enough. The feedback has to be visible and give reason to actually change behaviour.
Smart thermostat
With a smart thermostat the research results vary widely. A systematic literature review by Lomas and colleagues (2018) assessed more than 2.400 publications on heating controls. For most smart functions, the evidence was weak, very weak or absent. The researchers found evidence of moderate quality that a smart thermostat is not automatically more economical than a well-set ordinary thermostat or programmable thermostat. This is also shown by two randomised American field experiments with 1.385 households (2022). After eighteen months, the researchers found no statistically or economically significant average energy saving. Residents turned out to regularly override energy-saving settings manually. A smart thermostat can save, however, when it prevents your home from staying unnecessarily warm while you are away or at night. The saving then comes from the lower temperature and shorter heating time.
Smart radiator valves and zone control
Better practical evidence is available for separate zone control. Researchers at Loughborough University (2021) followed 68 British homes for two years. Zone control was installed in 37 homes. The other homes formed a comparable control group. Annual gas consumption fell by 3,5% on average compared with the control group. Gas consumption decreased in two thirds of the homes. The saving arose mainly because bedrooms were heated less in the evening. A smart radiator valve therefore mainly pays off if, without zone control, you regularly heat unused rooms.
Smart plugs
A smart plug can make standby consumption visible and switch appliances off automatically. In a South Korean field study among 125 households (2020), participants used about 5% less electricity than average households after fifteen months. However, the participants also received an explanation about energy saving and checked the consumption of their appliances. The outcome can therefore not be attributed entirely to the smart plugs.
Smart lighting
Research into smart lighting sometimes reports large percentages, but these relate only to the electricity consumption of the lighting. A scientific literature review by Soheilian, Fischl and Aries (2021) found savings of 2% to 93% on lighting energy. The differences arose from varying combinations of presence detection, daylight control, dimming and schedules. The researchers warn that most research has been carried out in controlled environments. According to Milieu Centraal an average of 11% of household electricity consumption goes to lighting. Applied to the average for 2026 of 1.747 kWh estimated by CBS and PBL, that comes to about 192 kWh of lighting energy per year. Of this, 2 to 93% can then be saved.
Smart switching with dynamic prices
Smart applications can also lower costs without total energy consumption falling to the same extent. That happens when a charging point, boiler, heat pump or other appliance is switched on during cheap hours. A randomised study by Resources for the Future (2021) examined automatic thermostat control with time-dependent electricity prices in Ontario. Households that activated the automatic function used their air conditioning 88% less during the most expensive hours. Over the six peak hours, this amounted to about 44 minutes less compressor operation. The study shows that automation can effectively shift energy demand to other hours.
With a fixed or variable contract with a single electricity rate, shifting usually does not yield a direct price advantage. With a dynamic energy contract it can pay off. The actual saving then depends on the current electricity prices, the power of the appliance and how much consumption you can shift. It is very difficult to express the saving in money, because dynamic energy prices fluctuate constantly.
Research results converted to 2026 price levels
For the calculations below, we use the average consumption for 2026 estimated by CBS and PBL: 928 m³ of gas and 1.747 kWh of electricity. Only the variable supply costs and energy tax fall when you use less. Fixed supply charges and grid operator charges stay the same. The CBS amounts for January 2026 therefore give a marginal price of about € 1,31 per m³ of gas and € 0,26 per kWh of electricity. We use the figures as they emerge from the studies above to calculate the potential saving.
| Smart application | Outcome of the research | Converted saving | Indicative amount per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Continuously visible display with the smart meter | 2,2% less electricity and 6,9% less gas | 38 kWh and 64 m³ | About € 94 |
| Smart radiator valves with zone control | 3,5% less annual gas consumption | About 32 m³ | About € 43 |
| Smart plugs, monitoring and guidance | About 5% less electricity consumption | About 87 kWh | About € 23 |
| Smart lighting | 2% to 93% less lighting energy | About 4 to 179 kWh | About € 1 to € 47 |
You should not simply add up the research results. A consumption display, smart plugs and smart lighting partly affect the same electricity consumption. A display, smart thermostat and smart radiator valves can also prevent the same unnecessary heating. By adding up all the amounts, you would count part of the saving twice.
For a combined but cautious scenario, we therefore take one effect per type of energy. We combine 32 m³ of gas saving through zone control, worth about € 43, with 38 kWh of electricity saving through visible feedback, worth about € 10. That comes to about € 53 per year. In addition, we combine the measured 64 m³ of gas saving from the continuously visible display, worth about € 84, with the 87 kWh from the research into smart plugs, monitoring and guidance, worth about € 23. That comes to about € 107 per year.
On the basis of these studies, a rounded potential saving of € 50 to € 110 per year is defensible for an average household. In doing so, we assume the consumption of 928 m³ of gas and 1.747 kWh of electricity estimated by CBS and PBL and the price level of January 2026. We do not add smart lighting separately to these amounts, because the saving can overlap strongly with the general electricity saving from feedback and smart plugs.
With a dynamic energy contract you can save even more money with a smart home. For January 2026, CBS and PBL calculated an electricity bill of € 392 with a dynamic contract, compared with € 414 for the average of fixed and variable contracts. That is a difference of € 22 per year. If we add the average contract difference to the calculated saving of € 50 to € 110, the result is a total indicative range of, rounded, € 80 to € 180 per year. This only applies if you have a dynamic energy contract and can actually shift consumption. Without an electric car, heat pump, boiler or other large flexible consumer, the price advantage often remains limited.
Payback period for a smart home
The purchase price determines whether saving energy with a smart home is also financially interesting. For a concrete calculation example, we take four current product sets. The prices used are as we established them on 7 September 2026. We assume that you already have a suitable smart meter and thermostatic radiator valves. Installation, adapters, batteries, electricity consumption and any subscriptions are not included.
| Smart application | Product example | Purchase price |
|---|---|---|
| Continuously visible energy consumption | HomeWizard Energy Display and P1 Meter | € 59,95 + € 24,95 = € 84,90 |
| Smart radiator valves with full zone control | Honeywell Home Evohome with control unit and four radiator valves | € 599,00 |
| Smart plugs | Four HomeWizard Energy Sockets | 4 × € 27,95 = € 111,80 |
| Smart lighting | Philips Hue Essential starter kit with four E27 bulbs and Bridge | € 139,99 |
| Complete example package | € 935,69 |
There is no reliable independent lifespan data for each individual product set. A scientific life cycle analysis of a smart thermostat used an expected lifespan of 9,5 years. That is why we use 9,5 years as the joint calculation period for the smart electronics. That is no guarantee that every device will keep working that long.
Payback period per smart application
The calculation below uses the annual savings from the preceding research table. The payback period is the purchase price divided by the annual saving. The total return has been calculated as follows:
Return = (saving over 9,5 years − purchase price) ÷ purchase price × 100%
| Smart application | Saving per year | Payback period | Nettoresultaat na 9,5 years | Total return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visible display with the smart meter | € 94 | 0,9 years | € 808 positive | +952% |
| Smart radiator valves with zone control | € 43 | 13,9 years | € 191 negative | −32% |
| Four smart plugs, monitoring and guidance | € 23 | 4,9 years | € 107 positive | +95% |
| Smart lighting | € 1 to € 47 | 3,0 to 140 years | € 130 negative to € 307 positive | −93% to +219% |
Bar: payback period in years, the scale runs to 15 years; longer is cut off.
You should not add up these outcomes. A display and smart plugs partly affect the same electricity consumption. Smart radiator valves and general behavioural change can prevent the same unnecessary heating. For the complete package of € 935,69 we therefore use the previously calculated savings range without double counting.
Fixed or variable energy contract
average saving per year
- Total saving per year
- € 50 to € 110
- Payback period
- 8,5 to 18,7 years, on average 11,7 years
- Netto na 9,5 years
- € 461 negative to € 109 positive, on average € 176 negative
- Total return
- −49% to +12%, on average −19%
Dynamic contract, including contract and price advantage
average saving per year
- Total saving per year
- € 80 to € 180
- Payback period
- 5,2 to 11,7 years, on average 7,2 years
- Netto na 9,5 years
- € 176 negative to € 774 positive, on average € 299 positive
- Total return
- −19% to +83%, on average +32%
Without a dynamic energy contract, the complete package does not pay for itself within the assumed lifespan at the average saving. Purely as a savings investment, the package is then usually not interesting. You buy the devices mainly for the insight, comfort and automatic control. With a dynamic energy contract the financial outcome is more favourable, provided you can really shift a lot of electricity to cheap hours. This calculation is still relatively favourable. We do not take into account installation costs, replacement batteries, defects, standby consumption, inflation or the time value of money. If an installer first has to replace radiator valves or adjust the boiler control, it is mainly the payback period of smart zone control that becomes longer. If your main aim is to lower your energy bill, insulation is often more cost-effective than a complete smart home package.
Saving energy with a smart home in just 6 steps
First decide from which environment you want to operate the devices. Examples are Google Home, Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings and Home Assistant. Check in advance which platforms your phone and existing devices support.
Not every smart device automatically works with every platform. So before buying, check which app, hub, bridge and wireless connection are needed. Many devices use wifi, Zigbee or Thread. Matter is a joint standard that lets devices from different brands work together better. Look beyond the logo on the packaging. A platform may, for example, support switching on and off, but not display energy consumption, all thermostat functions or advanced automations. So check exactly which functions are available.
Do not buy a complete package straight away. Start with the component with which you can probably save the most in your home. A P1 meter or visible display helps if you have insufficient insight into your consumption. A smart thermostat can be useful if the heating is often on unnecessarily. With a smart radiator valve you control the temperature per room. Smart plugs are mainly useful for appliances that stay on unnecessarily or whose consumption you want to measure. Smart lighting can help if lights are often left on. If you already have economical LED bulbs and switch them off consistently, replacing them with smart bulbs will probably yield little extra energy saving.
First install a device according to the instructions in the manufacturer's app. Then update the software, give the device a recognisable name and link it to the right room. That makes it easier later to create zones, schedules and automations. You can usually install a P1 meter, smart plug or smart bulb yourself. For built-in switches, the electrical installation, a central heating boiler or replacing radiator valves, an installer may be needed.
Add the installed devices to the chosen central platform. A hub or bridge translates the signals from devices that do not communicate directly via wifi. Devices with Matter can in many cases be linked to more than one suitable platform, but the available functions may differ per platform. The link only pays off once devices respond to each other. For example, have the heating go down when nobody is at home, switch an appliance off completely as soon as it is no longer needed, or close the sun shading before the home heats up.
Create schedules that match your actual daily rhythm. Set per room when heating is needed and decide when lighting and appliances switch off automatically. You can also control this schedule on the basis of presence detection, a window contact or geofencing. With a dynamic energy contract you can have some appliances respond to changing electricity prices. After four to six weeks, compare gas and electricity consumption with a suitable earlier period. Take temperature differences and changed usage into account. Adjust schedules if rooms stay unnecessarily warm, appliances switch on too early or the saving is disappointing.
Smart home, smart contract. With a dynamic energy contract, the saving can rise to € 80 to € 180 and the average payback period falls to 7,2 years.
View dynamic contractsFrequently asked questions about saving energy with a smart home
Does a smart meter save energy automatically?
No. The smart meter measures and sends data. According to PBL, a demonstrable saving did arise with a continuously visible display, but other situations did not produce a measurable decrease.
Do I need a hub for a smart home?
Not always. Some devices work directly via an app or local network, others need a hub. Before buying, check whether devices work together and what happens if the internet goes down.
Can a smart plug make any appliance smart?
A smart plug can measure or switch the power, but does not make an appliance's internal programme smart.
Is a smart thermostat always more economical?
No. It only saves if it prevents unnecessary heating or controls the boiler more efficiently. Those who already use a good timer programme and heat consciously mainly get extra convenience.
Can I refuse a smart meter?
Yes. According to the Rijksoverheid you can choose a digital meter without communication or have the communication function of a smart meter switched off. You then have to pass on your meter readings yourself and cannot use all smart energy services.