Smart Plug
Last updated: August 13, 2026
A smart plug is a controllable adapter that sits between a wall outlet and whatever you plug into it, letting you switch that device on or off remotely or on a schedule. It's the cheapest, lowest-commitment way to make a "dumb" appliance smart.
Get weekly smart home insights delivered to your inbox.
The smart plug is most people's first automation purchase, and for good reason: it turns a lamp, fan, space heater, or coffee maker into something you can control without rewiring anything or committing to an ecosystem. Cheaper models speak Wi-Fi; better ones use Zigbee or Matter so they don't clog your network and keep working if the internet drops.
The feature worth paying a little extra for is energy measuring. Better plugs report exactly how much power the plugged-in device is drawing, and that unlocks automations a dumb appliance can't do on its own. The classic example: watch a plain washing machine's power draw and notify you when it drops to near-zero, i.e. the load is done. The same reading tells you which devices are quietly costing you money. Energy-measuring models cost a few dollars more; buy one, because you almost always end up wanting it. Paired with a smart home hub, that power reading becomes a proper trigger, not just a number in an app.
The catch: a plug only does on/off. It can't dim a lamp, and cutting power to something mid-task (a printer, a NAS, a running appliance) can cause problems. Not every plug measures energy, so check the spec before you buy. And for permanently wired lights, a smart switch is usually the tidier answer.
Related Terms
Matter
Matter is an open, royalty-free smart home connectivity standard that enables interoperability between devices from different manufacturers. It lets products from Apple, Google, Amazon, and Samsung work together without compatibility headaches - no proprietary hub required.
Smart Home Hub
A smart home hub is a central device that connects and coordinates smart home devices across different protocols like Zigbee, Z-Wave, and Thread. It translates between protocols, runs automations locally, and gives you a single app to control everything - instead of twelve apps from twelve manufacturers.
Smart Switch
A smart switch is a wall switch that replaces your existing one and adds wireless control, scheduling, and automation to whatever it's wired to, while still working as an ordinary switch for anyone who just wants to flip the lights.