Vivint Home Security Review

Vivint offers a month-to-month plan with no contract required and contract lengths up to 60 months.

Vivint Inc. is one of the largest home security companies in North America and currently provides services to over one million customers. The security company is known for “smart home” products and advanced alarm technology.

Unlike most companies that offer restrictive, pre-packaged plans, Vivint focuses on a customized approach. With Vivint’s base security package, customers receive a touchscreen control panel, a smoke detector, a door/window sensor, a motion detector, and a key fob. The key fob can be used to arm or disarm the system without having to enter the home. Additional equipment is also available, including recessed door sensors, glass break detectors, flood/freeze sensors, carbon monoxide detectors, tilt sensors, small appliance controls, doorbell cameras, smart thermostats, panic pendants, and more.

The Vivint Smart Home service packages smart home products across different brands, professional installation and monthly security monitoring. In June 2018, Vivint added two Google Home Minis to each starter kit. At CES, Vivint introduced Streety, a new neighborhood watch app.

Vivint equipment and monitoring are a bit pricey. There are two service plans. The Smart Protect plan is $39.99 per month and gives you 24/7 professional monitoring and full use of the mobile app, including alert notifications. If you add things like door locks, doorbell cams, and thermostats, you'll need the $49.99 per month Smart Home plan, which lets you control home automation devices using the app and Amazon's Alexa voice commands. Again, a service plan is not mandatory, but without one, you have to monitor your home yourself, and you don't get remote access to the system. Regardless of the payment plan you choose, Vivint simplified its three packages down to just two. The Smart Home package gets you home security and home automation only, and the Smart Home Video package adds video surveillance.

Rather than employing a third-party distributor, Vivint designs most of the equipment that’s included in each company package. Also, all devices function using Z-Wave and are wireless (including cameras and smart thermostats), so you don’t have to fumble through a problematic installation.

While Vivint’s systems are tailored to fit your needs, reviewers stated that Vivint struggles with delivering dependable customer service—both for user questions and in emergency situations. On the other hand, Vivint is highly receptive to customer feedback and works hard to implement recommended changes. Sales practices in the past damaged the company’s reputation, but it remains a leader in innovative home protection.