Are Smart Home Products Effective at Saving Energy Over Winter?

Winter is when energy bills hit hardest — and it’s also when smart home technology proves its real value. While no single device is a magic fix, the latest research shows that well-designed smart heating systems consistently help households cut waste, improve comfort, and make heating far more efficient during the coldest months.

One of the most compelling pieces of evidence comes from a study by Tuomela and colleagues, who tested full Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) in approximately 30 real homes. These systems automatically adjusted heating based on actual usage patterns, and during winter they achieved up to 30% reductions in electricity consumption. Importantly, homeowners didn’t need to change their habits — the system moved and changed around the day in accordance to them. 

While this shows smart home setups can be very effective on a large scale, most people will not be unable to implement or afford such an advanced system therefore if we look at more realistic approaches to savings energy, now we know the approach is valid and effective. 

A large review by Lomas et al. also found clear advantages to smarter heating control, particularly when compared to traditional “whole-house” heating. Their research showed that features like zonal heating — only warming rooms that are actually being used — can significantly cut unnecessary energy consumption. Smart thermostats and smart radiator valves make this easy, letting homes stay warm and comfortable without wasting heat on empty spaces.

Their review also confirmed that when smart controls are set up correctly, they outperform older manual systems, especially during long winter heating periods. This provides some compelling evidence that being smart with your smart home is the most effective way to save energy during the winter. You could set up a system like this with a hub and radiator valves, such as the Shelly TRV's or a Tado system. 

More advanced IoT-based systems show even stronger benefits. In a 2025 study by de la Puente-Gil and his team, heating controlled by real-time data (like occupancy and energy pricing) delivered meaningful energy savings with a payback period of around three years. Instead of relying on users to adjust the heating, the system automatically responded to changing conditions — perfect for winter when heating demand fluctuates throughout the day.

This could be setup with any of the aforementioned devices with software such as Home Assistant. If you were to setup device tracking, it could monitor if you were in the house and the rooms of the temperature to create a very controlled environment. Here you can see how I have managed to setup Home Assistant for my family during the Winter Months and ideas for automations we couldn't implement. 

However the biggest problem to do with smart home's and energy savings is behaviour and Bremer et al. noted that rebound effects were very common. This is where people use extra energy because their system feels "efficient", and can occur with any heating upgrade. This will reduce the savings and possible negate the entire effect but as long as you are smart with your devices they can reduce this risk by providing clearer information on power/energy usage and lead to better decision making. Not only this but you can automate to lower defaults than you would usually have, making it easier to enjoy comfort while still keeping a low household energy bill. 

All together, the evidence paints a consistent picture:
✔ Smart heating systems reduce wasted energy
✔ Zonal and occupancy-based controls deliver real winter savings
✔ Automation removes the guesswork for users
✔ Comfort improves while energy bills go down

All this evidence clearly shows that implementing smart home products into your smart home will save money especially during the winter. And while the return may not be instant with the rising energy cost and high cost of living, this is a great time to invest. 

If you are interested in any of the papers I have linked them down below. 

Credits
This article draws on academic research, including:

• Tuomela et al. – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261921007224
• Lomas et al. – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032118303381
• de la Puente-Gil et al. – https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1702/13/8/643
• Bremer et al. – https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.14653