Good news, Ecobee users: you no longer need to hand out your password to give your spouse, kids, or roommates app access to your Ecobee smart thermostats and other devices.
Ecobee just announced a new update to its mobile app that will let you invite family members or anyone else to join your Ecobee Home account. The new Family Accounts feature will allow up to 15 people to join a single Ecobee Home.
The “Family Members” under your main Ecobee account will be able to control and view information about the Ecobee smart devices registered to your Home account, including thermostats (such as the Ecobee SmartThermostat), motion sensors, and switches. They’ll also be able to invite more family members to join up.
Ecobee
“Family Members” under a main Ecobee Home account will be able to monitor and control any registered Ecobee devices, but they won’t be able to change account settings, delete devices or add new ones.
Family members of an Ecobee home, however, won’t have unfettered access to the account. They won’t be able to make any changes to the account itself, for example, nor will they be able to delete smart devices or register new ones.
Family members also won’t be able to enroll in Ecobee services such as eco+, a free upgrade for Ecobee thermostats that allow for energy monitoring while intelligently tweaking your settings based on your schedule and whether you’re home or away.
Ecobee says that the new Family Accounts feature should roll out as an app update starting today, with the feature available in version 7.26.1 of the Ecobee iOS app and version 7.26 of the Android app.
To enable Family Accounts, just open the app, tap Account > Manage Homes, select your home, then tap Home Members > Invite New Member.
Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices. You can follow Ben on Twitter.