Compare Home Security in New Zealand at Canstar Blue. Eufy, Ring, Swann, TP-Link and Arlo were compared on Overall Satisfaction, Connectivity, Ease of Use, Features & Functionality, Performance & Reliability, Value for Money and Video Quality.
See our Ratings Methodology.
Kiwi consumers are secure in the knowledge that Eufy is protecting their homes and families, rating it New Zealand’s No.1 home security brand and, for the third year in a row, the winner of Canstar Blue’s Most Satisfied Customers | Home Security Award.
Our review compares home security brands on customer satisfaction, so you can discover what other Kiwis think about our compared home security brands before you go ahead and make a purchase. Think of it like asking hundreds of your closest mates which home security brand they recommend!
Canstar Blue surveyed 562 Kiwis who had purchased and installed home security equipment at their home during the past three years and asked for their feedback on the home security brand they purchased.
Respondents rate their satisfaction with their home security brands from zero to ten, where zero is extremely dissatisfied and ten is extremely satisfied. Brand satisfaction was rated by respondents on the following criteria:
The winning brand is the one that receives the highest Overall Satisfaction rating once all the scores from the Overall Satisfaction criteria are combined and averaged.
Brands must have received at least 30 responses to be included, so not all brands available in the market have been compared in this survey. The brands rated in this survey are listed below in order of best overall satisfaction.
Find more information on our Most Satisfied Customer methodology.
EufyAs the winner of Canstar’s Home Security Award three years in a row, it’s clear that Eufy and its range of home security systems are a hit with Kiwi consumers. Eufy is the only brand in this year’s award to earn 5 Stars for Overall Satisfaction. It’s a rating it achieves in a further four categories, including Features & Functionality, Connectivity, Value for Money and Video Quality.
Eufy is a US-based company that produces smart-home devices, including security devices, lighting and robotic vacuum cleaners. It’s part of the Anker company, a large Chinese electronics manufacturer.
Its range of security products includes indoor and outdoor security cameras and floodlight cameras, alarm systems, smart locks and video doorbells, all accessible through the Eufy app.
Its wireless, weather-proof video cameras are easy to install, link easily to wi-fi and can operate for months on a full charge, eliminating the need for a mains power supply. Solar camera options overcome the need for charging entirely.
When paired with a HomeBase station, Eufy camera systems can use face-recognition technology to ignore the activity of family and friends and can integrate with Amazon Alexa/Google Home. Plus the HomeBase allows you to record and access your security footage without the need to pay a monthly subscription for cloud storage.
RingThe winner of our 2021 award, this year Ring places second on our awards table. It earns its highest ratings, 5 Stars, for Features & Functionality, Connectivity and Video Quality. Across all other categories, including Overall Satisfaction, Ring has great 4-Star ratings.
Amazon-owned Ring has become a dominant force in home security. Best known for pioneering the smart doorbell, Ring now offers smart security cameras, as well as a range of doorbell options.
Its outdoor cameras come in a range of battery, plug-in and hardwired models, featuring HD video capture, motion detection and spotlight/floodlight and two-way talk options. Ring’s indoor and outdoor cameras are available singularly or in multipacks.
All Ring products can be accessed and controlled through the Ring app, although online storage of footage is only available through the Ring Protect subscription service, from NZ$4.95 per month ($49.95/year).
Swann takes home predominantly great 4-Star ratings from its customers, including for Overall Satisfaction, placing it third on our awards table. Swann earns its highest scores, 5 Stars, for Ease of Use and Value for Money.
Swann was founded in Australia and pioneered DIY set-up home security systems. Its range encompasses simple indoor cameras and outdoor driveway sensors, through to full home security systems featuring 4K HD vision, infrared night vision and thermal imaging.
Swan’s products are compatible with the Swann Security app and can be found in most good electrical retail chains throughout NZ.
TP-Link’s customers award it top 5-Star ratings in the important categories of Performance & Reliability and Value for Money. TP-Link achieves its lowest rating, 3-Stars, for Video Quality, and 4 Stars in each of the other award categories.
TP-Link is best known for its internet routers and smart home gadgets. However, it does also produce a range of low-price indoor and outdoor security cameras. These can be linked to your own smart home network, plus they come with their own app, providing motion alerts and vision/audio to your smart phone.
Arlo rounds out our awards table with a strong set of 3-Star ratings across all categories. While not a top rating, 3 Stars is by no means a measure of dissatisfaction by Arlo’s customers. Rather it indicates they are happy with the levels of performance and value offered by their Arlo home security purchases.
American security company Arlo offers home security products similar to those from Eufy and Ring. These include smart doorbells, indoor and outdoor security cameras, and floodlit cameras, which can be controlled and accessed through a smart phone app.
While standalone Arlo products feature live video and chat and motion notifications, customisable smart activity zones, advanced motion detection (vehicles/animals) and event/video history is only accessible via an Arlo Secure Plan subscription, from NZ$6.67 per month ($80.04/year).
Not all home security brands in the market qualify for our ratings (based on minimum survey sample size), but that doesn’t mean they’re not worth considering. Here are some more home security brands to check out before booking a trip.
Unlike the other home security brands in this year’s award ratings that sell products that require DIY installation, ADT Security delivers the full home security package. This involves the installation of a security system designed specifically for your home and security needs, plus permanent monitoring.
As such, ADT Security only offers security packages that combine with its subscription services, providing 24/7 monitoring by an NZ-based security team.
Much like ADT Security, Chubb doesn’t sell stand-alone security tech. Instead, it installs full home security packages, plus offers the option for 24/7 monitoring. Its basic home security systems are more like conventional burglar alarm systems, featuring motion sensors. Video cameras and app-based functionality are optional extras.
KoganKogan is an Australian online shopping giant that built its name retailing quality own-brand electronic goods. Kogan’s range of security products covers outdoor/indoor security cameras and smart door locks and doorbells. Basic cameras retail for as low as $60, and are still compatible with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, plus the Kogan SmarterHome app.
XaiomiXaiomi started as a mobile phone company in China just 12 years ago, and has quickly grown into an international brand producing a wide range of electronic consumer goods.
As part of its smart home range of products, it sells indoor video cameras and motion and window sensors. Its inexpensive cameras provide HD vision and two-way talk and motion alerts through the Mi Home/Xiaomi Home App. Cloud storage subscriptions for video footage are also available.
As part of our home security awards research, we ask consumers to rate the main factors that contribute to their overall satisfaction with their purchases.
And although Features & Functionality and Performance & Reliability (19%) rank as most important, Connectivity and Value for Money are not far behind (17%).
Given the importance of clear vision when it comes to home security, it’s surprising that Video Quality (11%) ranks the least important factor – although this is probably because most home security cameras deliver clear, high-definition video footage.
Here’s the full rundown of what the consumers in our survey say are the main things they considered when rating their home security choices:
About the editor of this pageBruce Pitchers is Canstar NZ’s Content Manager. An experienced finance reporter, he has three decades’ experience as a journalist and has worked for major media companies in Australia, the UK and NZ, including ACP, Are Media, Bauer Media Group, Fairfax, Pacific Magazines, News Corp and TVNZ. As a freelancer, he has worked for The Australian Financial Review, the NZ Financial Markets Authority and major banks and investment companies on both sides of the Tasman.
In his role at Canstar, he has been a regular commentator in the NZ media, including on the Driven, Stuff and One Roof websites, the NZ Herald, Radio NZ, and Newstalk ZB.
Away from Canstar, Bruce creates puzzles for magazines and newspapers, including Woman’s Day and New Idea. He is also the co-author of the murder-mystery book 5 Minute Murder.
Home security services are becoming more necessary: 71%
Feel safer due to home security system: 70%
Security system was professionally installed: 23%
Security system is part of a wider smart-home set-up: 21%
Security camera has alerted to the presence of an intruder: 19%
Pay for the additional cloud services offered with device: 17%
Outdoor camera: 64%
Indoor camera: 27%
Video doorbell: 18%
Motion activated light: 20%
Motion sensor: 15%
Smart lock: 10%
Full home security system/kit: 8%
Lock box: 8%
Safe: 6%
Window alarm: 5%
Canstar Blue surveyed 2576 New Zealand consumers across a range of categories to measure and track customer satisfaction, via ISO 26362 accredited research panels managed by PureProfile. The outcomes reported are the results from respondents who had purchased and installed a home security equipment at their home in the past three years. In this case, 365 New Zealanders. Brands must have received at least 30 responses to be included. Results are comparative and it should be noted that brands receiving three stars have still achieved a satisfaction measure of at least six out of 10. Not all brands available in the market have been compared in this survey. The ratings table is first sorted by star ratings and then by mean overall satisfaction. A rated brand may receive a ‘N/A’ (Not Applicable) rating if it does not receive the minimum number of responses for that criterion.
The past winners from Canstar Blue’s Home Security ratings:
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