Of all the rooms in the home, the kitchen still reigns as one of the most valuable. According to a 2023 Journal of Light Construction report, a kitchen remodel can have a return on investment (ROI) ranging from 31.7% to 85.7%. Whether you decide to stay in or sell your home, an updated kitchen can reap tremendous rewards either in terms of functionality or resale value. Imagine how much more efficient your kitchen could be if you add smart kitchen appliances and other technology—even a few small upgrades can make a big difference. Here’s how to get started.
What Makes a Kitchen a Smart Kitchen?
According to EnergyStar, “smart home systems help you simplify, reduce, and manage your energy consumption” and “can be programmed to perform actions automatically” via the system’s tools or a smartphone.
Essentially, smart home technology and appliances in a smart kitchen are controlled via a smartphone app or voice activation using Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, helping you optimally store and prepare food and operate everything from the lighting and dishwasher to the coffee maker without wasting unnecessary energy so you can save money on energy bills. And because many appliances in a smart kitchen can be pre-programmed to automate everyday tasks, they offer “set it and forget it” convenience so you’ll have more time to focus on other things.
Pros and Cons of a Smart Kitchen
The kitchen is one of the most used rooms in the house so making it more user-friendly is in your best interest. That said, there are some challenges that come with upgrading to a smart kitchen. Consider these advantages and disadvantages first.
Pros
- Convenience: One big selling point of a smart kitchen is that it can take on the mental load of tasks related to cooking, preparing, and cleaning, making your job less time-consuming.
- Accuracy: Smart appliances will guide you so that you achieve the best results every time. A smart oven, for instance, will help prevent over- or undercooking dishes by recommending optimal times and temperatures to cook specific types of foods.
- Energy Efficiency: Many smart appliances, water faucets, and lights are designed to optimize energy use as well as power off once you’re finished, which can help reduce energy costs.
- Remote Control: You don’t even have to be in the same room, much less in your house, to activate the smart features—you can start the dishwasher or the coffee maker via your smartphone. And if your hands are full carrying groceries or busy chopping vegetables, you can use voice commands, which is also a beneficial feature for those with disabilities or mobility issues.
Cons
- High Cost: One considerable drawback of a smart kitchen is that smart appliances, devices, and fixtures are often more expensive, with major appliances like refrigerators going for several hundred or several thousand more than traditional units.
- Learning Curve: It may take some time to get oriented with how the smart home technology works. This can be a concern particularly if you have much older or much younger people in your household who will use these devices.
- Dependency on Wi-Fi Connectivity: Smart home technology relies heavily on Wi-Fi, which means your appliances and electronics may not work as they should when the Wi-Fi goes out. If you live in an area where the Wi-Fi isn’t reliable or power outages are frequent, this could interfere with your smart appliances’ functionality.
- High Maintenance: In some cases, smart appliances and fixtures may require professional installation which could be expensive. Smart technology may require software upgrades and more costly maintainance and may even become outdated faster than traditional appliances.
- Security and Privacy Risks: Any internet-connected technology may be vulnerable to hacks and data breaches.
On a recent This Old House project, host Kevin O’Connor got a firsthand look at how smart features can improve accessibility. Contractor John demonstrated ovens with a touch-button feature that automatically pops the door open, and side-swing doors instead of the traditional pull-down—design choices that make the kitchen more usable for people with mobility challenges. The project also included a convection steam oven that replaces a traditional microwave for quicker, fresher cooking results.
Ways to Achieve a Smart Kitchen
If you’re ready to transform your cooking space, here are some of the best smart home products to consider equipping your kitchen with.
Refrigerator
A smart refrigerator is one of the most important appliances you’ll want to upgrade to smart technology to achieve a smart kitchen. While most traditional refrigerators serve as storage for food, a smart fridge has much more enhanced capabilities including a camera within the fridge to examine the contents inside through your smartphone while you’re at the grocery store so you can shop more efficiently. Another function is regulating the temperature to ensure food won’t spoil easily. A feature that may also come in handy is the ability to store and display recipes as well as create a family calendar and write reminders on the door of the fridge.
Oven
Smart ovens can be controlled remotely through an app, allowing users to preheat or adjust settings from anywhere. They often feature advanced cooking modes like air frying, convection baking, and steaming, with sensors that monitor food for perfect results come with features that help you cook food perfectly every time. Some smart ovens are equipped with an internal camera so you can view the dish without opening the door or even from another room.
Dishwasher
Although no dishwasher on the market can load itself for you, a smart dishwasher still has plenty of other perks. It often features sensors that adjust water usage, temperature, and cycle time based on the load size and dirtiness of dishes. This improves energy efficiency. As with most other smart devices, you can also control the dishwasher by voice command or program it remotely using a smartphone.
Lighting
Got a family member who always seems to leave the room without turning off the light? Installing smart lighting in the kitchen will save you plenty of nagging—and money too. Smart light technology uses motion sensors to detect when someone’s no longer in the kitchen and power off, or you can opt to set a schedule. You’ll also be able to control the illumination and the tone of the lights based on your activity—bright task lights for chopping and preparing or dimmed ambient lights for dining.
Pro Tip: Smart lighting also adds a layer of home security. As explained on This Old House, if you’re away on vacation, you can set your kitchen and other lights to turn on and off in a random pattern, changing the times so no one can figure out that you’re not home.
Faucets and Soap Dispenser
A touchless smart faucet and soap dispenser are incredibly handy to have in the kitchen. When you’re handling raw meat, instead of having to touch the faucet to turn it on, having a faucet that’s motion-activated prevents you from spreading any bacteria. Same goes for a smart soap dispenser.
Using a voice command, you can even control the water flow and temperature. The faucet can track water usage, helping to conserve water by providing real-time data or making automatic adjustments. And, say, you need two cups of water, some smart faucets can measure out specific amounts of water.
Other Smart Kitchen Appliances and Devices
Besides the core items necessary to make a smart kitchen, here are a few extras you may want to add to enhance your cooking and cleaning experience.
Coffee Maker
One of the most significant features of this appliance is that you can activate it via voice command or smartphone so that it can start a brew while you’re sleeping or doing other tasks, such as getting ready for work. It can save your go-to brew settings (and everyone else’s in the house too) and some have presets to automatically make fancy café drinks. You can also get notified when the machine needs cleaning, or you need to restock beans
Next-Level Automation: Smart coffee makers become even more powerful when paired with a service like IFTTT (If This, Then That), which lets you script conditional triggers between connected devices. For example, as This Old House Magazine has noted, if you wear a fitness band like a Fitbit and own a connected coffeemaker, the exercise band can start the java brewing the instant it senses you’re awake — no voice command or phone tap required.
Meat Thermometer
If you love preparing roasts, a meat thermometer is probably a mainstay in your kitchen. Upgrading to a smart one is helpful because it allows you to wirelessly monitor the status of your cooking and send you an alert when it’s done to keep from overcooking or undercooking your meat (no more getting up from the sofa a million times!). Some models will provide an estimate of how long it will take for the meat to reach a specific temperature.
Multi-Cooker
This countertop appliance offers multiple functionalities like pressure cooking, slow cooking, air frying, steaming, sauteeing, and more. It can prepare various meals and sides, from stews and rice to French fries and yogurt, sometimes much more conveniently and quicker than the stove. Pre-programmed settings take the guesswork out of preparing many dishes.
Trash Can
Not only does a smart trash can mean you don’t have to touch any germy surfaces to open and close the lid, but it can also provide odor control and some even replace the bag for you.
Vacuum and Mop
When you’re in a hurry and don’t have time to sweep and mop before guests arrive, this nifty gadget can save time and effort. An AI robot vacuum and mop autonomously vacuums and mops floors (simultaneously!) using sensors and mapping technology, navigating around obstacles and even adjusts its cleaning modes based on the floor type. Many smart models offer self-emptying and self-cleaning functions too. You can program a cleaning schedule so you don’t even need to think about it.
Smart Control Hub
Think of this as command central where you can easily control all the smart appliances and devices in your kitchen and throughout the home. Whether you need to adjust the temperature on the smart oven, turn on your favorite podcast, or prepare a cup of coffee, you can do it all remotely from this one device. The smart hub can be useful for integrating smart devices from different brands that might not otherwise be able to communicate with each other.
