Customer Ratings & Reviews

The SimpliSafe - Outdoor Home Security System lives up to its name. It certainly is simple to set up. The app created to support the system is also quite simple for the most part. The system I received has the Base Station, a Keypad with a small LCD screen, four (4) entry sensors for doors and windows, 2 indoor/outdoor wireless cameras and a motion sensor. It also comes with some signs and some stickers stating this house is protected by SimpliSafe. I read it’s not a good idea to announce the exact system protecting your house because thieves will know what system they need to look for and how to deactivate it. A generic sign would be a better idea. As with most things these days, you start by downloading an app (or going online) and setting up an account. There you need to give them your info (address, phone numbers, who lives at the home, secondary contact info, etc). Be careful when you set this up and make sure you let your secondary contact know that they will receive a text regarding your alarm. I did my setup at 1am and it sent a text to my brother. He told me it woke him up and he almost blocked the number. Luckily, he saw my name and didn’t. After that, you need to select a monitoring plan to use with the system. They have 3 plans. The low-cost, self-monitoring plan basically stores video and sends you alerts from the system. The standard monitoring plan eliminates the video storage and verifications but gives you the professional monitoring where they call you in the event of an emergency. If they can’t get you, they will call the police. The Fast Protect plan costs about $1 a day and includes the professional monitoring. It also includes cellular backup in the event of a blackout/internet outage, extends the equipment warranty as long as you ae subscribed and give you a 10% discount on additional hardware purchases. Setting up the devices is also quite simple. The app will guide you through the process for each device. Basically, tell the app which device you are setting up, pull the battery tab (or install a battery), press a button on the device, give it a location/name and install the device. They have videos in the app and online. Very convenient. Using the keypad is easy enough as well. There are 3 modes OFF, HOME & AWAY. Home and Away activate the system, however, different sensors will be activated. Away mode will turn on everything. Home Mode deactivates the motion sensors and the camera(s) will only turn on if there is a trigger event. These settings can be modified for your requirements. I did have a few issues with my setup. First, one of the cameras was missing a mount. I may have received a refurbished kit as the seals had some wrinkles in then but I can’t say for sure. However, the cameras do have an option for a threaded mount which I will likely use. I did try the online customer service, but there were issues with the links they sent me. I needed to call them to fix my issue. Additionally, the sensors are all white. If you have dark painted trim or paneling, like I do, the sensors really stand out and don’t look good. An option for black & colored sensors would be great. Finally, the cameras are very heavy. My house has aluminum trim everywhere I might want to mount the cameras. I’d rather use two-sided tape to mount them so I don’t need to put holes in the trim. My current security cameras are very light weight and I was able to mount them with automotive grade mounting tape. I don’t think I’ll be able to do that with the SimpliSafe cameras. I’ll need to think of an alternative way to mount these. All-in-all, this is a very affordable and easy to set up system. I’ve already received offers for additional components at 40% off. I will probably buy a couple more cameras, a remote keypad for my side door, some smoke/CO alarms and a panic button for my father. I would definitely recommend this to someone looking for a reasonably priced home alarm system.

SimpliSafe is truly a simple self install home security system. Most of the included parts can be installed with the pre-attached sticky pads or some small screws. Once you get the app and make an account, the install process takes you step for step on getting everything connected. They have so many other products that can be attached to the system that are not in this particular kit, but this is a good start. It has 4 door/window entry sensors, 1 motion sensor, 2 outdoor cameras, the central hub and a keypad. The only thing that needs to be plugged up is the central hub and it even has battery backup that will last about an hour should it lose power. Once you get everything added and the keypad connected, you are pretty much done. You can use the app for managing most things or the keypad with PIN. You can quickly arm it for home, which does not use the motion sensor and has different delay times, or away which does include the motion sensor. You can adjust the delay times from the app, for instance if you live alone, you can drop the entry delay way down for the home setting and after 10 seconds the alarm will sound. Or, if you have multiple family members and you know it might take them more than 30 seconds to get to the PIN pad, you can increase it. There is also the ability to set reminders or schedule it to auto arm itself. For instance, you know you will be at work at 9am every weekday, you can have it arm away whether you remembered to do it or not. The added feature of the two outdoor cameras is nice. You can have 2 way communications from practically anywhere around your residence. I put one about 60 ft from the front of my house and it still shows as a good connection. However, as with most wireless security cameras, there is a slight delay. Depending on the placement and when something comes into frame, you might be 2 seconds too late to see what it was. Image quality is pretty decent and has a really wide angle to it. The biggest issue I have with it, and the reason for the title, is that the cameras are practically useless unless you have the monthly protection plan for $29.99 a month. They have no local storage, so anything that is detected, you can’t go back and look at unless you have the monthly plan. You can still access them live and still use two-way communications, but the only other way you can record is while you are watching it live and recording to your phone. There is no way to manage your subscription through the app or site without calling them. Cancellation is on the day of cancellation and not post dated to the end of your trial or paid subscription. When you cancel, there is no more recording, no text notifications but push notifications only and your system becomes fully reliant on your Wi-Fi. Should your Wi-Fi go out and your alarm goes off, even in a power outage, you will not know unless you have an active subscription. Also, it removes the system completely from your account and you have to set it all back up and decline the subscription to go basic. If you have the cameras and want to drop from the Pro to Basic plan, remove them from your account first, then call and cancel your plan as they end up in a strange state of still being on the pro account but not working with your now basic account as you try and add everything to your account, again. Overall, this is a good system, so long as you pay for the monthly Pro plan. There is no contract needed, but if you want the 30 days access to the camera recordings and text notifications, you have to have the plan. With everything being minimally installed they are great for people that don’t want to damage a rental property from drilling holes.

A few years ago I bought a SimpliSafe kit which included the base, keypad, multiple door and window open/close sensors and motion sensors which I have liked it all for the most part. There are a few quirks with the system but overall I was pretty happy. When I went through some business & family financial problems I contacted SimpleSafe and they worked with me to allow me to have a few months of the service without having to cancel and that let me know the type of company SimpleSafe was. And so when I got the opportunity to add some more SimpleSafe equipment to my current setup I knew I wanted to do so as a way to say thank you to the company for helping me during a really trying time. Opening up the boxes of this system I could see a little lack of care with putting the products in the boxes and the rest of the packaging, it didn’t have that same level of commitment and care that the call center agent I spoke with when I had originally called to cancel months ago (due to the previously mentioned business and family struggles I discussed above). Just what do I mean? Well, check out the photos I will attach. The boxes for the batteries were already dog-eared, the battery pull tab was crinkled and things appeared to be just haphazardly thrown in the box in a few small ways that just appeared to be boxed on a Monday after a long weekend or on a Friday near quitting time after a trying work week. Not the kind of look you want to give a new customer or even a returning customer. It is these small things that people notice and combine to equate into a good customer experience or a bad customer experience with the customer ultimately staying or going after these small, seemingly innocuous, things pile up. Like the old saying “the straw that broke the camels back” it isn’t the small, lightweight piece that did it, it’s the thousands of straws that came before it…you get it. Now, despite the packaging issues, how do I feel about the equipment? Well, everything is the same solid quality I have come to expect from SimpleSafe. I have numerous competing security camera systems and I can say that the SimpleSafe system works just as well. I wish they hadn’t gone with a proprietary battery and instead went with 18650 batteries since it seems high end flashlights, large vape boxes and other equipment (including competitors security camera systems) going to these type batteries. Proprietary batteries are not a good look as we as a society are becoming more aware of the pitfalls of such proprietary pieces and how they are impacting our environment. So if I could offer a few suggestions to SimpliSafe it would be to a) take more care with packaging the hardware and b) move away from proprietary batteries and go with more universal options like a dual, triple or quad 18650 battery setup in the cameras. All in all I am happy with the system and glad I have it but wish they’d make a few minor tweaks in future systems and think long-term when it comes to their batteries and other potentially proprietary components that shouldn’t be proprietary.

We've only had this security system for about a month and so far it's pretty good. The set up was easy. The only complaint is the batteries do not last long and it has to be charged frequently.

Great product, easy install. Only thing kept it from being 5 stars is wired camera connectivity. Sales staff at best buy was five star

Very good working security system easy and fast setup

Super easy to install, setup on the app, and setup the monitoring plan. The only complaint is that i wish they had more hardware componets like a flood light with camera.

Great product great service. The outside cameras are ok I wish the had a litter wider view

The purchase was easy enough when “I called in” I couldn’t get the purchase to work online. Plus it said you get a free door lock. Even when I called, the person said I’d get the free door lock. Package arrived, no door lock

Great security system! Batteries last a long time! I only dislike i have to pay to keep my video stored and dont have an option to add a storage decice to record directly to local

Growing up, I have always had an alarm system in my home. It was one of those hardwired systems. When thinking about an security system for my home now, which I rent, the best solution is a wireless setup. This 9 piece set from Simplisafe is pretty nice. It has all the things that a hardwired system would have but it's wireless and doesn't require and difficult installation or running of wires. That makes my life easier. The design of everything is pretty nice. Simple and I love the soft white color. The keypad feels good to the touch and doesn't require much effort to input my code. The main base station is nice and sits next to me router. It fits in well and isn't an eyesore. All the sensors I setup on my windows work as they should and send an alarm quickly without delay. The motion sensors and cameras are great. They pick up important things and not just an animal running around or wind blowing something around. The picture quality is okay. It could definitely be better but it does the job. I like the two way audio. I don't have to open my door to deal with people. This works especially well for solicitors and such. The sirens also work well and are pretty loud. The app on my phone is excellent and I am easily able to do everything I need from there. All in all, I enjoy this security system and feel a little bit safer knowing I can depend on it doing what it's supposed top do.

I love it no issues does what it’s supposed to like

Ive been a simplisafe user for a while now because I haven’t found another system that can do everything they do with the ease of use and thats whats really important to me. No ridiculous wiring to get done, up to date products and apps for your smartphone and web browser along with excellent customer support. So this kit comes with 2 outdoor cameras, a base station thats like your own personal assistant (it talks), motion sensor for human detection, keypad and 3 window sensors and a key fob to arm or disarm your system. Once you get your feet wet into the simplisafe security system you realize quickly that you can add even more cameras, additional accessories and many available items which make it the perfect system to expand upon at a later date if needed. I find that the 2 cameras in the kit provide a great 1080p HD picture and the phone app connects fast to let you see what the alert is letting you know is going on within its view. There is of course night vision on these and its all extremely easy to install (2 screws included for the camera base and the camera itself sticks with extremely strong magnets which is great for when you need to charge your cameras in the case you do not purchase the optional solar power kit for them. Regardless no wires is no problem and this all works in the best possible way without the pains involved in other systems. If you’re on the fence on one of these security systems I highly suggest going simplisafe for the easiest setup and protection money can buy.

I was looking around for a DIY home security system and was investigating this system for a bit due to the high prices of ADT. I cancelled ADT and ended up going with this system due to ease of set up and ease of use. Its a snap to install, and its wireless sensors and easy to set up outdoor cameras make this a great system to use. It syncs easily with an app and is easy to monitor your home on your phone when away from the home. The cameras are clear and provide clear line of sight around the property and alerts show any intruders trying to access the home and better, it works like ADT but is less pricy than the outrageous fees that ADT charges. The one thing I liked was setting up the sensors on my windows and doors and sync them with the home base and keypad very easily and this looked like it would be a pain but it was easy. The keypad can be installed anywhere and I put it by my front door so I could easily turn it on and off when I walk in and out of the door. This is a great system to use and set up to get away from the high fees charged by other security services.

I recently was afforded the chance to try out the new SimpliSafe 9pc Outdoor Security Kit, and the results are I am a fan and honestly kind of not a fan. The system delivers as promised with great innovation, easy installation, and simple monitoring. However, the pay per use aspect is a turn off when there are other out of the box competitors that do not require that to utilize all the features. Out of the box, each piece feels well designed and well built. Each piece is state of the art in appearance and offers noticeable flare. The system comes with a one year manufacturer's limited warranty, with extensions available. My first setup was easy, and installation was quick and painless, with no drilling required. The setup only comes with four entry sensors, which is not nearly enough, and I will be purchasing more. I will note this is my third SimpliSafe system, and the sad part is that I am fairly sure that my existing window sensors are not compatible with the newer base stations. SimpliSafe integrated innovative technology and real time monitoring to make sure that the user has complete coverage. The camera operates in 720 and 1080p high definition resolutions, along with a form of night vision and 2-way audio. The tangible results are decent, but the delays are a bit silly at times. The system is Google Assistant, and Amazon Alexa enables it to provide additional user convenience. I updated my yard sign and window decals as well. My biggest gripe with the unit is that I view SimpliSafe as a leader in the home security industry. However, this system at this price point is already on the verge of being antiquated compared to rivals in the market space. The system has bugs that it took calling SimpliSafe to work out, which they absolutely did help me fix. The app is less stellar again compared to the field. Overall impressions are that I am a user and fan of SimpliSafe, so I will continue with this one because I trust their products, quality, and reliability.

The SimpliSafe 9 piece outdoor system consists of the base station, keypad, two outdoor cameras, four door/window open/ closed sensors, and a motion.They're nice looking with a premium finish with white as the primary color on everything except the camera. Also, everything is wireless running on batteries with the exception of the base station. Installation is pretty straightforward and does not depend on an app to get the basic system up and running, yay! After plugging in the base station, you'd want to install the keypad near your primary entry door. The keypad takes 4 AA batteries should you need to change them in the future and comes with double sided tape for easy install to a wall. The keypad has a screen, regular, not touch, which will guide you through setting a pin number to disarm alarms, then have you add sensors. Adding sensors is pretty simple. You'd remove the battery tab, press the sensor test button which "pairs" it to the system, then you'll be prompted to name it, then go install it in the desired location. All sensors except the camera will get installed via the keypad. The camera does require using the app to install. At this point, if you didn't use the app with initial setup of the base station, you will need to add it and have it paired to your wifi network before you can install the cameras. The base station is pretty straightforward, you'd scan the QrCode or enter its serial number. The cameras install the same way as the other sensors, they too have a test button you'd press which causes the base station to discover and announce them. You'd need to charge the batteries first. The battery install is pretty neat. It goes into the camera body then the lens cover with the camera itself screw on, kinda like a flashlight. The cameras have a magnetic base that you screw to a wall, then after setting up inside near the base, you place the camera on its mount and adjust the view. Once everything is setup, you can use the app to check status, make some configuration changes, and get a live feed from the camera, and remotely arm or disarm the system. There's more features available with a subscription. One of the biggest is that without a subscription, if your wifi/internet goes out, you lose remote access to the system whereas with a subscription, it can fall back to giving you access over cellular. Anyway, with everything setup, you can run through a test mode to verify things are working (testing the cameras is presumably just checking their feed). For the alarm, the camera is not just to give you a feed of what's going on, it also doubles as a configurable motion sensor. The cameras also support two way audio. So could be great to use as a front door/doorbell camera though as there's no way to generate an event with the alarm disabled, you'd still need a normal audible doorbell so there could be a delay in responding to someone. With just two cameras, I chose to cover the front and main back door. Theres two additional entrances to my house, one in the basement and onr upstairs which happens to be at the top of the basement stairs. The motion sensor is placed there giving me coverage as I still placed door sensors on the front and rear door and a couple easily accessible windows. Whats cool is that the SimpliSafe system is very expandable. You can add any supported sensor, you're not stuck with just this "outdoor" set. The alarm system operates in three modes. Off, where the alarm is disabled. You're at home, up and about doing your normal routine. Don't want people moving around or opening doors or windows to trigger things. Home mode is for arming the alarm when you're at home (everyone in bed). I was a bit worried at first with this mode as the kiddos often are up early and may be running around downstairs. But as the motion sensor is disabled, they won't trigger it unless they open an armed window or door. As we generally don't want them going outside before an adult is up and aware they could be outdoors, this has the added benefit as we all discovered that if an entry door is in fact opened, everyone will know in about 30 seconds. And if you've not had the pleasure of using an alarm siren as your wake up call, let's just say there's no concern here about missing it or snoozing. The base station contains the siren but it is plenty audible inside the house and somewhat outside, especially with a nearby door or window open. The final mode is Away in which every sensor is enabled and camera active and recording (if you have a subscription). The system worked pretty well… mostly. I'm happy with the video and audio quality of the cameras. I really like being able to get alerts in the app and use it to disarm the system or arm it in the minivan after getting everyone out the door. It kinda eases you into the routine of using it so you're not forced to develop the habit immediately of using the keypad, though the keypad is definitely more convenient when disarming upon entering the house with kids. I didn't like the audio volume on 2-way. In our area, particularly fall, it's often windy or rainy. Forget having a 2-way conversation. SimpliSafe has an actual video doorbell so maybe I can try that. Motion detection with the cameras was also not very consistent. While my cat never triggered them, some other things, like me, also sometimes didn't trigger them at times. I spent time tweaking the angles and even locations but haven't yet found a configuration I'm fully happy with. A big thing for me is system reliance on subscriptions or company servers. The good news here, everything works without a subscription and while there's a lot of functionality you don't get, all you have is very useful and covers most of what you'd want if your security threshold is not too worried but wanting some piece of mind. The bad is the system still relies on SimplifySafe servers for the remote access functionality. While it seems the traditional sensors, keypad, and base station would work even if their servers are down (or they go out of business), it's unclear whether the cameras will be accessible even if you're just at home connected to the same wifi. By itself, this literal system is a solid 3, borderline 4 stars. The camera issues cause it to take a hit and the seeming inability for everything to work truly independently bothers me. But the expandability and wide array of other available sensors make me confident that I can get a better tool for the 2-way front door videobell coverage job and the support forums show promise that the remaining camera issue is addressable. So that boosted my overall rating to 4 stars.

The Simply safe outdoor security system is not just for outdoor use. In fact, most of this kit is for inside. This has been a nice little set up for an Airbnb that I own. I'm able to set it when I don't have guests at my house. The cameras have a crisp view. And the door chimes work great. I don't use it very often since I'm booked out a lot. But it gives me ease of mind when I don't have guests. One of the negatives is that you have to have a subscription to simply safe to record video. Without the subscription. You can only watch live video. This is a little disappointing considering the price of the subscription. The ease of use of the app has been really great. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it in my Airbnb once my 30-day trial is over. I have not used the keypad to set everything. My walls are adobe and I haven't found the right place for it without ruining my walls. All in all, I'm not sure I would get this one again, but it does what it says it would. If this is what you need, do it!

The most important thing I want anyone who reads this review to know is just how EASY it was to setup the SimpliSafe system. It was effortlessly simple. I blocked out a whole day but had all devices paired in about an hour. The SimpliSafe mobile app is fantastic and it's the first time ever that things have just worked, paired, connected to my WiFi, etc. without an issue. I say all of this because I know the trepidation I had and I am surprised and happy with the setup experience, that on that alone, I would recommend the SimpliSafe system. What's in the box (SimpliSafe 9pc Outdoor Security Kit) - 1x Base Station, Connects Wirelessly, 24 hour battery backup, No Ethernet Required (or supported) - 2x Cameras (Wireless) - 4x Entry Sensors (Door/Window Open Sensors) - 1x Motion Sensor - 1x Keypad Mounting tape, screws, USB cables, etc. There's also a yard sign and stickers for your windows. Rechargeable devices (not including base station, which has it's own batter) charge via microUSB. The sensors use Lithium 2032 batteries, the Keypad uses AA batteries. In terms of the build quality, everything feels well made, quality and not cheap. The SimpliSafe system feels and looks professional. The cameras are bigger and chunkier than I expected, but using them outdoors in all weather, I am guessing it's a trade off. I can't comment on battery life, SimplifSafe rate them for at least 3 months - so we'll see. Video quality is very good (1080p). The base sttaion looks good, it's also the alarm (95db) and they encourage you to put it in the center of your home. I had no issues with WiFi connectivity and I run a mesh network. What is important to know is that to get full features you need to have a SimpliSafe subscription to get all app features. There's free 30 day pro monitoring included (it's about $1 a day). The system works without pro monitoring but you lose features (cloud recording storage, which is important, cellular backup). The plus is that you can cancel anytime, which is what I think I'll do after 30 days - paying for a subscription when we're on vacation as my partner works from home most days. Overall, I'm impressed. Easier to setup than expected, looks great and the kit has everything you need for the average small-medium home. There are add on products you can buy like video doorbells and water, smoke, glass breakage sensors - so you can literally do everything you need with one app and kit. Which is pretty cool and I checked out the prices and they're reasonable. So you can have the SimpliSafe ecosystem for everything. If I have one criticism, maybe two... I wish the used USB C for the camera charging and the cameras are large. I'll give SimpliSafe a pass on the large cameras, as they also make a good visual deterrent. Definitely recommended, great app, easy to setup, and that extra peace of mind you need.

Good system with a stellar app. My PoE system never arrived so I went with this as a backup. The base station is annoying and I wish it could be more discreet. The signal quality is mediocre, but still I can connect to the lower-connectivity camera about 90% of the time