Programmable thermostats owners stay warm and cozy while also saving money and being energy efficient. Programmable thermostats today are extremely advance and do so much more, such as connecting to the internet and featuring AI capability. There are thermostats on the market that actually learn your heating and cooling behaviors!
They’re looking for a programmable thermostat under $100 there are some great options on the market today. Before we dive into the reviews of each of them, first let’s talk about some of the features you want to keep in mind when choosing a programmable thermostat.
What to Look for in a Programmable Thermostat
Number of Different Day and Time Period Settings
First you’ll want to make sure that the thermostat has the number of programming options you need. For example, you might work outisde of the home five days a week and home every weekend. In this instance you might need two or three different program settings.
Throughout the day you may also want to drop the heat when you’re not home but then raise it when you get back. Others may have a varying schedule and need more flexibility outside of weekday and weekend buckets. So check to see how many day settings you can have and how many time periods within a day are available.
How It Connects to Your Heating/Cooling System
You want to make sure you have the correct configuration in order to hook up the new thermostat to your wall. While many of these are simple and don’t require any hard wiring, some require a C Wire, or “common wire”. This wire allows power to continuously flow to the thermostat.
Most smart thermostats require a C wire. To check whether you have one, first check your thermostat. If you see one there, great! If not, go check out the furnace. There may be a whire coonected on the furnace end, then the wire exists and may be just hidden in the wall somewhere since it wasn’t needed originally.
You can install a C wire if you don’t have one. This is no easy feat so just make sure to check your status prior to making any thermostat purchases.
Controls and Display
There a many different types of thermostat options in terms of display and controls. Some are very high tech looking with touch screen, which is great for some but not for everyone.
You’ll also find some different displays. Some offer large readouts which make it easy for those needing reading glasses to see. Some have a blue light or nightlight feature. This may be something you’re looking for.
Another item you want to consider is ease of use. It’s great to have so many programmable days but if it takes weeks to go through and actually program them, then it’s not worth it. So check to make sure it’s easy to use.
Smart Features, Connectvitiy, and Wi-Fi
Connectivity and other featuress might be another thing that you will want to consider. Many of the option today will connect to the internet. In doing so, these smart programmable thermostats are able to pull in the current temperature and help make heating and cooling adjustments based on your location. Some even integrate with smart home assistants such as Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri.
Some of these connected, smart thermostats will also have a companion app that you can use. These will show heating and cooling trends as well as let you operate the thermostat remotely.
Energy Conservation
Energy conservation and savings is another huge reason why so many people are switching to programmable thermostats. Some thermostats even boast Energy Star ratings. Review the thermostat options to pick one that it’s with your energy saving goals.
Programmable Thermostats Under $100 Reviews
Honeywell Home Wi-Fi 7-Day Programmable Thermostat
The Honeywell Home Wi-Fi 7-Day programmable thermostat works with Alexa. It is voice controlled and works with Google Assistant, Samsung SmartThings, IFTTT, and other programs. WIth all those integrations you’ll be able ot crank up the heat without ever leaving the couch.
With this model you have the option of programming seven different days each day with four time frames.
It has a nice display with Easy-to-Read numbers and a simple, easy to navigate operation..
It has a smart response technology which means that it will learn your schedule and help you make adjustments to your heating and cooling along the way. There’s an app you can download so you will always be able to pull up the stats around your heating and cooling systems.
One thing to keep in mind is that this thermostat does not work for a 120 to 220 volt electric baseboard heating systems.
We really like this option because it’s reasonably priced, easy to use, and has a really nice large display. The 7 day programming options with four time frames per day also give a lot of flexibility in making sure your home stays a comfortable temperature.
Emerson Sensi Wi-Fi Thermostat
Emerson Sensi Wi-Fi thermostat is another voice controlled unit that is Energy Start certified. It works with Google Assitant and Apple HomeKit. You’ll be able to remotely control this unit from anywhere! Just say under that warm blanket and heat up the house from your smartphone. This is especially great during those cold months when you don’t want to make the trip across the house to raise the heat.
This thermostat is easy to install and boasts a 30 minute install. There are some great step by step instructions and videos that can help you out.
Some of the cool features of this thermostat is the alerts you can set on your phone. These can tell you if there’s extreme heat or humidity levels in the house. This is so important especially if you’re a snow bird or you spend time away from home during the colder months. You’re most likely worried about frozen pipes so this will ease your mind. If there are any issues, such as power loss or very cold weather, you’ll be alerted to any issues.
What’s really cool is that this that uses your smartphones location to help set the home temperature. When your phone is not close to the thermoatate i knows what the preferred temperature should be. THen when you come back in range it will then make the adjustments so that your house is the perfect temperature for your arrival.
There’s a seven day programming option so you can customize each day to your liking.
Lux Products Programmable Large Touchscreen Thermostat
The Lux products programmable large touch-screen is another great option with a large display
It has 7-Day digital programs with two or four time. Of the day. It’s also really cool that you’ll be able to lock out on an authorized users if you have someone who consistently bumps up the heat and waste money will be able to lock them out. This is done by a simple four digit PIN number lock screen.
The system is compatible with most 24-volt heating and cooling systems. Like the other options this is not compatible with a 120 to 240 V AC line voltage systems.
Has a cool vacation hold for 1 to 30 days so if you’re on vacation and kind of stop the cycle for the amount of time that you’re gone.
This is dual powered allowing you to either hook us up with the C wire 24 volt power source or to use the battery. So if you don’t have a C wire this is a great option for you.
Display wise is very nice looking unit has a touchscreen so most of the controls you used by touching the screen. When activated have a nice blue glow to it and then when it shuts off obviously it has that nice just dark display.
Well this is programmable it is not what we would consider smart it definitely does not connect to any apps or the internet so this is probably one of the quote-unquote Dumber thermostats that will be reviewed.
Vine Wi-Fi Programmable Touchscreen Thermostat and Nightlight
The vine Wi-Fi programmable smart thermostat energy efficient smart they will have you saving money while staying comfortable.
This thermostat does require a C wire in order to power the thermostat. It could be used for one Heating and Cooling option, one heating option, or one cooling only.
Unit itself has a touchscreen on the left and a dial on the right side. There is an occluded free mobile app that you can access with this product.
You will be able to enter programming for every day of the week. And within each day you can set up to 8 different time frames scheduling to the 15 minute interval. So you can get pretty granualr with how you schedule out your days. This would be really good for someone who has a schedule that has them coming and going frequently during the day and week.
You can use the device as a night light that you can program to turn on at a specific time. This is a nice feature if you have it in a hallway without ambient light during the darker hours.
When the device is connected by Wi-Fi you can actually have the weather displayed on the unit itself. So you don’t need to check the weather you can simply go to your thermostat and check it out. We really like the weather alerts are able to set up so you can be alerted if there are any issues in the area. You can also set up reminders for changing your HVAC filters or draining your boiler. By having these reminders set up it will ensure you’re keeping your heating and cooling systems running as efficiently as possible, ultimately saving you money.
We do wish this was a little bit smarter and work with some of the voice-activated devices such as Amazon Echo or Google Assistant. Some customers have complained about the thermostat not keeping a good connection to the Wi-Fi which then makes operating the thermostat a little bit difficult. They also weren’t crazy about the user interface, the dial being hard to use, and the touchscreen not being as responsive as others.
Orbit Clear Comfort Programmable Thermostat with Large, Easy-to-Read Display
If you’re looking for a straightforward 7-Day programmable thermostat the Orbit Clear Comfort is a great option. You can set a specific program for every day of the week and within each day set four separate periods within each of those days. The program schedules for each day are broken up into a wake, leave, return, and sleep time. For each of those you can set a heating ahd cooling temperature We like the early start functionality which ensures that your I’ll be at the temperature you desire at that given time. For example if you have a wake time for 7 a.m. the thermostat will ensure that your house is at the optimal temperature at 7 a.m. Even if that means kicking on the system prior to 7 a.m.
The unit is powered by three AAA batteries. This thermostat is not power using a C wire so this is a great option if your thermostat does not have a C wire set up. There is a low battery indicator on the system which will help you remember to changer the batteries.
Does thermostat work with many systems such as gas oil electric furnaces central air or heat pump. But like the others, this is not inded to use with base board heaters.
That’s pretty much all there is to the Orbit Clear Comfortt thermostat. It’s extremely simple in a good way. It has a large display with three buttons on the bottom and up and down buttons on the side the operate the system. There aren’t many bells and whistles which some may not like. But this is definitely one of our favorite options since it’s a no-nonsense straight-to-the-point programmable thermostat.
Conclusion
All in all, there are two winners as far as programmable thermostats. under $100. First there is the “smart” thermostat winner is the Honeywell Home Wi-Fi thermostat. We like this one for those looking for smarter features, connectivity, and energy savings.
Our basic thermostat pick is the Orbit Clear Comfort. It has everything you need if you’re looking for basic programming functions. It’s sleek and has a nice large display. It doesn’t have a lot of frills but it’s functional and works well.
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