Let’s dive into a more detailed comparison. If you need to save money, SimpliSafe is for you, while if you’ve got the cash, Brinks’s monitoring service is more than worth it. Just know that with Brinks, you have to sign up for a 3-year commitment. Brinks also has a duress code feature in case someone forces you to disarm your system, and it has an instant emergency contact feature known as ASAPer, too. Typically, proprietary equipment costs more (just ask Vivint customers), but strangely, SimpliSafe actually charges less than Brinks does for literally everything. The indoor camera is a little expensive, but it’s balanced out by the video doorbell, which has a lower price for that type of camera. With video verification, SimpliSafe will visually confirm the presence of an intruder before alerting the authorities. Some locales require verification before the police will come out, so it’s an excellent feature to have. And even if video verification isn’t required in your area, it’s nice knowing that SimpliSafe will look at your camera feed if you’re unavailable to check it. The indoor camera also comes with a privacy shutter that allows you to physically cover the lens when you don’t want to be videoed. Oh, and in keeping with the “simple” part of SimpliSafe, these babies only use cloud storage. You’ll never need to buy extra hardware or grapple with SD cards, but you won’t have the security of a physical backup. Overall, though, unless you specifically want an outdoor camera, it’s hard to think of a situation where we’d pick these over SimpliSafe cameras. SimpliSafe smart home integrations: For being a leading home security brand, SimpliSafe has surprisingly little integration. Sure, it sells its own locks and smoke detectors, and it’s also compatible with August locks, but it works with almost none of the leading smart home products. You can create an indirect smart ecosystem by connecting everything through Alexa or Google Assistant, but you won’t be able to access those products from your SimpliSafe app. Brinks smart home integrations: As discussed in the Equipment section, Brinks offers locks, thermostats, garage door openers, smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors, and other smart home connectivity devices. But beyond that, it’s also compatible with many smart home products through its use of Z-Wave, a popular smart home protocol. Either way, it seems people like SimpliSafe a whole lot more than they like Brinks. If you need to contact either of these services, Brinks allows customers to call or email between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. (CST). Likewise, you can call or email SimpliSafe. The customer response hours are between 8 a.m. and midnight (ET) (which is an impressive window).
SimpliSafe customer service number: 888-910-1215 Brinks customer service number: 800-447-9239 (469-513-8685 for text)
Prices and monitoring plans: Draw. SimpliSafe is more affordable, though Brinks offers an excellent bang for its buck. Security equipment: While Brinks sells expensive, generic items, SimpliSafe is known for affordable yet innovative equipment. Cameras: Brinks offers all three camera subtypes, free cloud storage, and local storage—but the cameras just aren’t as good as SimpliSafe’s. Smart home integrations: SimpliSafe has very little home automation outside of Alexa and Google, but Brinks works with a ton of devices through the Z-Wave protocol. Customer service: SimpliSafe has no major customer service issues that we know of, while Brinks is surrounded by irate users.
Price Equipment Home automation Cameras Customer service
In a versus piece like this, we pit each category head to head to determine which service is truly the best. The highest star rating doesn’t always win. The service with the lower star rating may have a category in which it’s spectacularly strong, while the higher-rated service may be average across the board. But usually, the star ratings are a strong indicator of the versus piece winner. With the discontinuation of Google Nest Secure in 2020, Brinks no longer offers its $19 and $29 Nest monitoring packages. So if you’ve obtained a legacy system and want it monitored, you’re out of luck. If you already have a Google home security system and an existing agreement with Brinks, though, it sounds like your current monitoring support may continue for the foreseeable future.¹ ADT has a highly traditional alarm setup with steep prices. Both SimpliSafe and Brinks home security are more innovative systems with lower costs and full or partial DIY installation. These newer, less traditional systems tend to be more convenient, easier to use, and appealing to many homeowners. But some people really like the traditional setup or need to connect their system to a landline. In those cases, ADT is a better choice. To learn more, check out SimpliSafe vs. ADT and ADT vs. Brinks.
