Home Assistant's device database goes public — a straight answer on what actually works
Every smart-home conversation starts the same way: will this thing work with what I've already got?
Until now the answer came from forum posts, a three-year-old Reddit thread, and hope. Home Assistant has put a device database into public preview — a community-maintained record of what actually works, contributed by the people running it.
Why this is a bigger deal than it sounds
Manufacturer compatibility claims are marketing. "Works with Home Assistant" on a box can mean anything from full local control to a cloud integration that breaks when the vendor changes an API.
A database built from real installations reports the thing you actually need: not whether it connects, but whether it connects properly — local or cloud, which features are exposed, what breaks.
That's the gap between a device that technically works and one you'd put in charge of your heating.
How we'd use it
Two ways, both before spending money:
- Check before you buy. Obvious, but the discipline is worth it. Five minutes here saves a return.
- Check the integration type, not just the tick. Local control is what keeps the house running when the NBN drops out. A cloud-only device is a device that stops working during an outage — which is exactly when you notice.
The caveat
It's a public preview and community-sourced, so coverage is uneven. Popular gear is well documented; anything niche may have one entry from someone with a different firmware version. Treat it as strong evidence, not a guarantee, and weight recent entries over old ones.
Still — it's the first straight answer to the first question everyone asks, and it's a good sign for the ecosystem that it exists.
If you'd rather skip the research, that's the part we do. We specify hardware that's local-first and known-good, so your house keeps working when the internet doesn't. See what that looks like.
Source: Home Assistant — Announcements