Best Home Security Systems for 2026

Across the monitored plans we have on file, monitoring runs from about $30 to $63 a month, and where you land depends on how much equipment and home automation the plan includes rather than on the monitoring itself. Equipment and installation are usually a separate up-front cost. Prices and promotions change, so confirm the current figure with us or with the provider before you order.

They pull in different directions rather than one being better. Vivint leads on integrated home automation, with the whole system built around one app and its own hardware. ADT, which we place through SafeStreets, leads on longevity and monitoring reputation, with a wider range of tiers to step through. Choose on which matters more to you — automation depth or an established monitoring operation — and on the equipment each includes at the price you are quoted.

A DIY system alerts you. A monitored system means someone is watching when you cannot be — asleep, abroad, or with your phone face-down in a meeting — and can dispatch emergency services on your behalf. DIY costs less and has no monthly fee; monitoring costs more and is the thing that actually gets a response. If nobody would reliably act on a phone notification at 3am, monitoring is the point of the system.

Many insurers do offer a discount for a professionally monitored system, and some offer more for one that includes fire or water detection. The size of the discount varies a lot by insurer, by policy and by what your system includes, so treat it as a genuine saving worth asking about rather than a fixed number. Ask your insurer what they would credit before you choose a tier — sometimes it changes which plan makes sense. Providers can usually supply the monitoring certificate insurers ask for.