LifeShield Home Security Review

LifeShield Home Security, a pioneer in do-it-yourself (DIY) home security, merged with ADT in 2020 to launch Blue by ADT. This system blends a flexible DIY setup with the backing of professional-grade monitoring. The result is a customizable home security solution with 24/7 professional monitoring, no long-term contracts, and smart home compatibility.

In this review, we break down LifeShield’s plans, pricing, and features to help you decide if it is the best home security system for your home.

Our Take on LifeShield Reviews

We rated LifeShield Home Security 4.9 out of 5 stars. LifeShield reviews suggest that the equipment is high quality, plus the company has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). However, it doesn’t provider 24/7 customer support.

Pros and Cons of LifeShield Home Security

Compare the pros and cons of LifeShield below:

LifeShield Home Security Packages & Equipment

LifeShield offers four home security packages: the Build Your Own System, 11-Piece Camera System, 15-Piece Camera System, and Blue Doorbell Camera System.

1. “Build Your Own System” Package

The Build Your Own System starts customers out with a base level of products, allowing them to select additional security items to fit their needs.

Here’s the equipment that’s included in the “Build Your Own System” package:

• Base station
• Entry keypad
• Yard sign
• Free month of professional monitoring

You can choose 4+ optional add-ons to your system. You can choose to add a camera, door and window sensor, motion sensor, glass break sensor, fire safety sensor, temperature and flood sensor, or a keychain remote.

2. “11-Piece System” Package

The 11-Piece Camera System is LifeShield’s most basic pre-packaged system, providing homeowners with essential security equipment like door and window sensors, a fire safety sensor, and an entry keypad. This package is best suited for those who want basic home security coverage.

Here’s the equipment that’s included in the 11-Piece package:

• Base station
• Entry keypad
• Door and window sensors (x4)
• Motion sensor
• Fire safety sensor
• Keychain remote
• Yard sign
• Free month of pro monitoring

3. “15-Piece Camera System” Package

This package includes everything in the 11-Piece system, plus two extra window and door sensors, an extra motion sensor, and an indoor camera. This package expands the coverage of your LifeShield Home Security kit and gives you the ability to monitor the inside of your home via the indoor camera.

In a This Old House segment on DIY security installation, smart home technology expert Mike explained the advantage of including an indoor camera over a standard motion sensor: “It also has motion sensing… So we can mount it here and it has facial recognition software. So it’s gonna recognize your face… It’s gonna learn the system over time. So it’s only gonna detect you when it sees motion from someone it doesn’t recognize.” That intelligence means fewer false alarms and more meaningful alerts sent straight to your phone.

Here’s the equipment that’s included in the 15-Piece package:

• Base station
• Entry keypad
• Indoor camera
• Door and window sensors (x6)
• Motion sensors (x2)
• Fire safety sensor
• Keychain remote
• Yard sign
• Free month of professional monitoring

4. “Blue Doorbell Camera System” Package

The Blue Doorbell Camera package contains the least amount of door and window sensors but adds the benefit of a Blue doorbell camera. The camera gives homeowners direct video access to the outside of their home, allowing you to talk remotely with your home’s visitors.

Wi-Fi Check Before You Install: Since doorbell cameras like the Blue are Wi-Fi connected—the wired connection is just for power—it’s critical to verify your signal strength at the planned install location before mounting. As demonstrated in a This Old House segment on doorbell cameras, you should take your phone outside to the exact spot where the camera will go and run a speed test app. A connection of only two or three megabytes per second won’t cut it; you’ll need a significantly stronger signal to get reliable video and two-way audio.

Worth Knowing: As This Old House smart-home coverage by Sal Vaglica explains, out of the box, video doorbells provide a live feed of the front door, but unless you plan to watch it all day, you’ll need features—often subscription-based—that make living with the device easier. Rich notifications, for instance, can distinguish between a delivered package and a person waiting at the door, rather than simply alerting you that motion was detected.

Here’s the equipment that’s included in the Blue Doorbell Camera package:

• Base station
• Entry keypad
• Mobile app
• Blue doorbell camera
• Door and window sensors (x2)
• Motion sensor
• Yard sign
• Free month of professional monitoring

Note: While each package comes with a free month of professional monitoring, customers must cancel within the 30-day trial period to prevent the monthly auto-renew of the service. Customers can cancel anytime by clicking the cancellation link in their order confirmation email.

Equipment Details

The pre-packaged home security bundles from LifeShield provide your home with the essentials to start your security system, like a control panel, key fob, window and door sensors, and motion sensors. For additional protection, LifeShield offers system compatible products available for purchase online. Here’s a look at the security equipment offered through Blue by ADT.

• Entry keypad: The Entry Keypad is your primary control panel, allowing you to arm and disarm your system from inside your home. The keypad is plugged directly into your wall but can be used temporarily with batteries.
• Mobile app: The Blue by ADT mobile app gives you remote access to your system. Through the app, you can arm and disarm your system, monitor cameras and saved media, and receive system alerts.
• Security cameras: LifeShield gives customers access to indoor, outdoor, and doorbell cameras, giving you video access to all areas of your home. Through the doorbell security camera, you can talk directly with visitors at your door.
• Door and window sensors: These sensors are mounted directly onto any door or window, letting you know if someone enters or leaves your home.
• Motion sensor: The motion sensor detects movement inside any room, triggering the alarm and sending alerts directly to your phone.
• Fire safety sensor: This smoke detector notifies you of smoke or carbon monoxide inside your home.
• Temperature and flood sensor: The temperature and flood sensor is used to detect unusual changes in temperature within your home, signifying a broken HVAC unit or serious flooding.

Package Comparison

LifeShield Home Security Pricing

Here’s an overview of LifeShield package pricing:

Package Pricing Breakdown

Each system comes with 30-day professional monitoring. After the 30-day free trial, the professional monitoring will automatically be renewed at $19.99 per month, unless cancelled.

LifeShield Customer Service

To help customers navigate their new system, Blue by ADT has a designated support center where customers can troubleshoot specific issues, learn about the mobile app, and access their account. Additionally, LifeShield provides support via their web and app portals.

If customers are still unable to solve their issue, LifeShield technical support is available at 877-464-7437.

LifeShield Home Security Reviews

Blue by ADT is accredited by the BBB and holds an A+ rating. This rating stems from BBB’s understanding of how LifeShield handles complaints and other customer interactions.

Here’s a sample of customer reviews from LifeShield below.

“LifeShield alerted police and contacted us when our back door got busted in by someone. The siren was loud enough to scare them off before the police arrived. Glad that LifeShield was reliable in that situation.” —Greg S.

“Amazing home security system! I have been a customer since 2012 and have never had a single problem or false alarm. LifeShield equipment is excellent quality and good looking—very modern and sleek in appearance. I love the app and getting text and email alerts that let me know when my kids get home from school and the dog walker has come and gone (because each has different security codes, I know who is coming and going and when). It’s so easy to set with the keychain remote or from your phone app—simple and quick. Best of all, the monthly monitoring prices were the lowest I could find. I’ve barely [needed] customer service in 6 years, but when I call, they are always very helpful. Highly recommend.” —Doug G.

LifeShield vs. Competitors

If you’re still unsure if LifeShield is right for you, compare it to other top-rated security companies in the industry.

Top-Rated Alternatives to LifeShield

Our Conclusion

We gave LifeShield Home Security 4.9 out of 5 stars. The company’s professional-grade equipment allows customers to monitor their own system or opt for professional monitoring, giving you the choice in how you want to monitor your home.

FAQs About LifeShield Home Security

Our Rating Methodology

We back up our home security recommendations with a detailed rating methodology that we use to objectively score each provider. Our research includes analyzing product specifications, reviewing service and plan information, speaking with customer service representatives, and analyzing customer reviews. We then score the provider against our review standards for system options, special features, installation options, connectivity and smart-home automation features, pricing, contract terms, warranty, usability, availability of a trial period, and trustworthiness to arrive at a final score out of 5 stars.