The short version: Ecobee is a Toronto-based company, and the SmartThermostat Premium is its flagship — a bundled room sensor, built-in air quality monitor, and native Apple HomeKit support at $329.99 CAD. For a Canadian forced-air home, it’s one of the most complete smart thermostats you can buy, and it shows up on more provincial rebate lists than most competitors.

It’s not automatically the right call for every home. If you don’t need the extra sensor or air monitor, the Enhanced covers most of the same ground for less.

Who It’s For

The Premium is designed for central forced-air heating and cooling: gas, oil, or electric furnaces, heat pumps (including dual-fuel setups common in Canadian retrofits), central AC, and hydronic-adjacent forced-air systems. It does not work with electric baseboard heaters — for that, look at Canadian-made options like Mysa or Sinopé.

Being a Canadian company matters here beyond marketing: it means Canadian warranty support, pricing quoted in CAD from the start, and a product that shows up reliably on utility rebate qualifying lists across the country. It’s the strongest pick for:
– Larger homes where the bedroom or living room runs a different temperature than the hallway where the thermostat lives
– Households in the Apple ecosystem, since Ecobee is the only major brand with native HomeKit support
– Anyone who wants air quality tracking (VOC and CO₂) alongside temperature control
– Buyers who want Alexa or Siri built into the thermostat rather than adding a separate smart speaker

Design & Build

The Premium has a 3.5-inch color touchscreen in a white housing, roughly deck-of-cards sized. The current generation added radar-based motion and occupancy sensing directly in the thermostat, in addition to the included SmartSensor puck. The display is bright and legible from across a room; navigation is swipe-and-tap, which takes a few days to feel natural if you’re used to a dial thermostat.

The mounting plate attaches to the wall first, and the thermostat snaps on magnetically — easy to pull for wiring checks later.

Setup & Compatibility

C-wire situation: A Power Extender Kit (PEK) ships in the box for homes without a C-wire, installing at the furnace in about 20–30 minutes. The app’s wiring guide matches diagrams to your actual terminal labels, which is why Ecobee has a strong DIY-install reputation across Canadian homes with varying furnace ages.

System compatibility: Works with single- and multi-stage gas furnaces, heat pumps (standard and dual-fuel — relevant for cold-climate retrofits), central AC, and most zoned systems. Use Ecobee’s online compatibility checker before buying if your system is non-standard.

App setup: The guided install flags likely wiring problems as you go, which is part of why most first-time installers finish without calling a technician.

App & Ecosystem

The Ecobee app is regularly rated the strongest in the category for schedule building and energy reporting, showing actual usage rather than vague efficiency scores.

eco+ is Ecobee’s background optimization layer: it uses weather forecasts to pre-heat or pre-cool, factors in occupancy, and can opt into demand-response programs where your utility participates — relevant for Ontario, Quebec, and BC programs in particular. It runs in the background; you notice it in the bill more than day to day.

Ecosystem support:
– Apple HomeKit: Full native support, Ecobee’s clearest edge over Nest
– Google Assistant: Supported
– Amazon Alexa: Built into the thermostat with a physical speaker and mic
– Samsung SmartThings: Supported

Room Sensors and Air Quality: The Premium’s Real Differentiators

A SmartSensor reads temperature and occupancy in whichever room you place it, letting Ecobee prioritize comfort in the bedroom at night rather than chasing the hallway reading where the thermostat itself sits. One ships in the box; extras run roughly $89 CAD each, and multi-zone homes benefit from placing two or three in rooms you actually use.

The built-in air quality monitor tracks VOCs and CO₂, useful for households managing allergies, asthma, or wildfire smoke season. It’s a monitoring feature, not a control feature — it reports trends in the app but doesn’t change HVAC behavior on its own. Buyer feedback on the built-in speaker is mixed: functional for Alexa and Siri Shortcuts, but the audio quality reads as basic compared to a dedicated smart speaker.

Price & Value

Ecobee SmartThermostat Premium
Price (CAD) $329.99
Included sensors 1 SmartSensor
Warranty 3 years
Subscription required No

Retailer ratings for the Premium typically land in the mid-4-star range with review counts in the hundreds — check current numbers before buying since they shift over time. Sold through Best Buy, Home Depot, Lowe’s, ecobee.com, and Amazon.ca.

Ecobee’s ENERGY STAR certification and Canadian manufacturing base mean it appears on more provincial utility rebate lists than most competitors — Ontario, Quebec (Hydro-Québec/Énergir), BC Hydro/FortisBC, and others. See Smart Thermostat Rebates in Canada by Province for what applies to your utility; specific dollar amounts vary too much to state generally here.

Pros & Cons

Pros:
– Best-in-class scheduling app and energy reporting
– Native Apple HomeKit support, unmatched by Nest
– PEK included, so most homes skip a separate C-wire install
– Canadian company with strong provincial rebate-list presence
– Included SmartSensor addresses the classic hallway-thermostat mismatch
– 3-year warranty, longer than Nest’s 2-year

Cons:
– $329.99 CAD is a real step up from the Enhanced ($188–249) for features some households won’t use
– Built-in speaker’s audio quality draws mixed feedback
– Air quality monitor is informational only
– Doesn’t support electric baseboard heat — Mysa or Sinopé cover that instead

Ecobee models compared: Premium, Enhanced, and Ecobee3 Lite, with features, price, and Canadian rebate eligibility

The Recommendation

Buy the Ecobee SmartThermostat Premium if you want the most complete smart thermostat sold in Canada, you’re in the Apple ecosystem, or you’ll use the air quality monitor and built-in speaker.

Consider the Enhanced instead if you want Ecobee’s core comfort features — HomeKit, PEK, strong scheduling — without paying for the bundled sensor, air monitor, and speaker.

For comparisons: Ecobee Premium vs Nest Learning Thermostat and Ecobee Premium vs Enhanced: Which Should You Buy?

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Ecobee SmartThermostat Premium worth the extra cost over the Enhanced in Canada?
Depends on whether you’d buy a SmartSensor separately anyway — the price gap between the two models is close to the cost of one sensor. If you need one, the Premium effectively bundles it in; if you don’t, the Enhanced is better value.

Does the Premium qualify for Canadian utility rebates?
Ecobee’s ENERGY STAR certification puts it on most major provincial qualifying lists, but eligibility and amounts vary by utility. Check your specific program before buying. See Smart Thermostat Rebates in Canada by Province.

Does the Premium require a C-wire?
No. The included Power Extender Kit handles power in homes without one, with step-by-step in-app installation.

Does it work with Apple HomeKit?
Yes, natively, on both the Premium and Enhanced — Ecobee’s main advantage over Google Nest.

Does the Premium handle cold-climate heat pumps and dual-fuel systems well?
Yes. You set the outdoor balance point for auxiliary heat in the app, and Ecobee manages the furnace/heat pump switchover, which matters for Canadian winters.

Is there a monthly subscription fee?
No. Scheduling, the included sensor, eco+, and remote access are all included with no subscription required.