Home Assistant: the complete guide to getting started
By Andrea R. · Published November 6, 2026
Key takeaways
- Home Assistant is free, open-source software that runs your whole home locally, without depending on each brand's cloud.
- To start, a Raspberry Pi 5 with an SSD is enough; a Home Assistant Green or a mini PC are the no-tinkering alternatives.
- The protocol you pick (Zigbee, Thread/Matter, local Wi-Fi) matters more than the brand of each device.
- Monthly releases bring a lot: read the release notes and take a backup before every update.
- Everything marked "tested at home" below comes from my real setup; the rest is documentation analysis, labeled as such.
Home Assistant has been the heart of my smart home for years. This guide brings together what you need to get started, choose hardware and protocols, and keep a reliable setup. Each section links to our detailed articles and to reviews done on my own installation.
What is Home Assistant and who is it for?
Home Assistant is an open-source home automation platform. It runs on a small machine at home and makes devices from different brands work together: bulbs, plugs, sensors, thermostats, your car, a home battery, a robot vacuum. Automations run locally, so most keep working if the internet goes down.
It's for you if:
- you own devices from several ecosystems (Google, Apple, Amazon, Chinese brands) and want one app;
- you want finer automations than consumer apps allow (real presence, energy, multiple conditions);
- privacy and cloud-free operation matter to you.
It's less suited if you don't want to configure anything: a turnkey hub like the Homey Pro 2026 (our review) is simpler, with a more closed ecosystem. Our 2026 Matter hub comparison covers the other options.
What hardware should run Home Assistant?
| Option | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Raspberry Pi 5 | Hands-on beginners, small budget | Use an NVMe SSD rather than the SD card for reliability |
| Home Assistant Green | Beginners who want plug-and-play | No built-in radio: add a Zigbee/Thread dongle |
| x86 mini PC | Large setups, local AI, cameras | Slightly higher power draw |
Tested at home: the db-tronic Raspberry Pi 5 kit runs Home Assistant and Jellyfin reliably; our only advice is to replace the 64 GB SD card with an NVMe SSD for heavy use.
For radio, a USB Zigbee dongle is enough to start. We use ThirdReality's dongle with ZHA: see our ThirdReality Home Assistant review (4 products).
Curious about local AI? Our analysis of LFM2.5-24B-A2B as a local Home Assistant agent lists the hardware you need.
Zigbee, Thread, Matter, Wi-Fi: which protocol?
In short: Zigbee is still the cheapest way to cover a home with sensors, Thread is the modern IP mesh network, and Matter is the common language that travels over Thread or Wi-Fi. It's all explained in our pillar Matter, Thread and Zigbee: the complete guide, and the lab study is decoded in Zigbee vs Matter over Thread for Home Assistant.
Practical guides by category:
- Presence: mmWave and Thread presence sensors (Aqara FP400, Shelly Presence Gen4)
- Heating: Matter thermostats and radiator valves
- Energy: Matter smart plug energy monitoring
- Outdoor: Aqara Outdoor Plug H2
- Shades: Matter smart shades
- Cameras: Matter cameras in Home Assistant 2026.11
- Plants: Matter soil sensors
Integrations that matter
Tesla and Powerwall
Teslemetry now lets you control a Powerwall locally from Home Assistant: see Powerwall in Home Assistant 2026.11. Everything Tesla is gathered in our Tesla guide.
Google Nest
If you use Nest devices, a Pub/Sub topic migration is required before November 30, 2026: how to do it.
Voice
An old Google Home Mini or Echo Dot can become a local voice speaker: the projects and their risks. See also the Echo Dot 2026 and its built-in hub.
Robot vacuums
Not every robot integrates the same way (local, cloud, Matter, HACS). See our robot vacuum and Home Assistant guide.
Keeping up with 2026 releases
Home Assistant ships a major release every month. Our complete guide from 2026.9 to 2026.11 sums up the important changes (built-in HACS, MCP, Home Assistant Link) and the update checklist. Version 2026.10 also changed the map: OpenStreetMap and location history.
Security, backups and updates
- Turn on automatic backups and keep a copy off the machine.
- Read the release notes before updating, especially breaking changes.
- Avoid exposing Home Assistant directly to the internet; use encrypted remote access instead.
- Follow OS fixes: our update on Home Assistant OS 18.4 and the eMudhra breach.
Our Home Assistant reviews
These products were installed and used in my home, with our own photos:
- Flashed smart switch for Home Assistant: a Wi-Fi module at about €14, flashed over USB-TTL for 100% local control.
- ThirdReality Zigbee: dongle, R3 presence sensor, temperature/humidity and air quality.
- db-tronic Raspberry Pi 5 kit: the hardware base.
- Homey Pro 2026: the turnkey alternative.
Our method is described in How we test.
FAQ
Is Home Assistant free?
Yes, the software is free and open source. Only the hardware and the optional Home Assistant Cloud subscription (remote access and voice assistants) cost money.
Do I need to code?
No. The interface handles most automations without code. YAML remains useful for advanced cases such as ESPHome configs.
Does Home Assistant work without internet?
Yes for everything local (Zigbee, Thread, Matter, local Wi-Fi, ESPHome). A manufacturer's cloud integration does need internet.
Which dongle should I start with?
A USB Zigbee dongle supported by ZHA or Zigbee2MQTT, on a USB extension cable to keep it away from interference. We use ThirdReality's.