The 5 Best Doorbell Cameras for Keeping Eyes on Your Front Door

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By Sal Vaglica

From Amazon packages left near the welcome mat to kids returning from school, there can be a lot happening at your front door. You’re likely not home to see all of it, which is why a doorbell camera is handy. At its most basic level, a smart doorbell notifies your phone when someone rings and sends motion-based notifications if it detects someone approaching, whether you’re home or across town. How well, quickly and consistently it does all of those things varies. With the right one you can add a layer of security that is easy to live with without going full Fort Knox.

Our initial research turned up more than 50 different models on the market. We focused on doorbells from manufacturers with a track record of making smart-home devices and dismissed those that required professional installation. Our field includes some hard-wired models, some powered by a rechargeable battery and a few hybrid versions that install either way.

After screwing 11 devices to our door, we found the Eufy Security S330 Video Doorbell to be the overall top pick that will meet the needs of most people. The Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell is a good hard-wired alternative that's less expensive and better for wider porches. If speed is the most important aspect, the Ring Battery Doorbell Plus sends notifications quickly and gives you the option of being part of Ring's Neighbors social network. We also like the second-generation Google Nest Doorbell as a great choice for Google-based smart-home setups, and the Ring Video Doorbell Wired is a lower-price model if you want basic functionality.

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$260 at Eufy

Easy to install and great at seeing people and packages, this smart video doorbell did well in all our tests.

Of the two cameras built into the Eufy Security S330 Video Doorbell, it's the lower one, which is angled toward the floor at about 37 degrees, that separates this version from the crowd. This camera captures the entire welcome mat, which is usually where deliveries happen, and it was the best at showing delivered packages on a smartphone in addition to all its other strengths.

The specs on the Eufy are impressive: The top, forward-facing camera shoots in 2K (2560 x 1920 pixels) resolution with a 160-degree field of view, while the package camera is 1080p (1600 x ️1200) with a 97-degree field of view. In our tests, which included measuring how close we could stand in front of the camera and still see our feet, the Eufy captured the floor in front of the door starting at 4 inches away, extending out about 7 feet and with about 6 feet of width. If the area around your doormat is where you receive deliveries, you’ll not only get a notification of someone approaching to drop them off, but you can see them on the ground afterward. While a lot of manufacturers claim a 4:3 aspect ratio that's more of a portrait-mode style designed to fill a smartphone screen, only a few cameras shot wide enough to see a portion of a package on the ground—and the Eufy was the best at seeing the whole box.

The forward-facing camera is no slouch either. Of the versions tested with a printed eye chart test held 4 feet away, the 2K camera was the best at reading the smallest text when zoomed in. On the app the interface showing two screens is easy to understand—sort of like a TV's picture-in-picture with a black bar separating the two views.

Sensors inside the S330 reliably detected packages and people. It took about 10 seconds from the press of a doorbell to get a smartphone notification, click on it and then get a live feed (it was a slightly longer wait over a cellular connection), which was the middle of the pack among the models we tested. If you’re curious about what's going on outside, it takes about eight seconds to get a live feed when you start the app. The app is well-designed with an easy user experience that lets you adjust detection sensitivity and customize activity zones (options that on other doorbells come with a fee) so the camera can focus on the walkway and reduce alerts when cars drive by. There is a "Delivery Guard" setting that will automatically send you a notification, reminding you to retrieve the delivery. The photos taken at night were just as clear as those during the day, though only in black and white.

The kit includes two main parts: the old-school-TV-remote-size, battery-powered video doorbell and the HomeBase 2, which stores the content and functions as the interior chime (there is an option in the settings to use your existing chime). The camera is mounted by your door; its size and two-tone black styling might not aesthetically fit every decor. You have the option to use the doorbell wirelessly on battery power, or wire it to replace an existing bell.

Initially, you have to connect the hub to a router, but you have the option to sync wirelessly to your network later, which allows for relocating the chime to a more central location. The installation was DIY-friendly and, refreshingly, it was mostly based on a printed manual and not an app on the phone.

Keep in mind when evaluating a location for just about any battery-powered video doorbell that you will need room above or below the device to press a release pin, or back out a screw, which allows the battery pack or the entire doorbell to come off the wall. Our house is clad in shingles, meaning the row of wood above the camera prevented easy access to the top of the Eufy where its release pin is. Luckily, the Eufy kit includes a beefy metal pin-style key you use when it's time to recharge the camera every three to six months. Bonus: The back of this key is magnetic so you can stick it to your refrigerator to avoid losing it.

The Eufy system works without a subscription and can store about 25 recordings per day, each up to 15 seconds. It keeps those on the HomeBase 2 for up to 90 days before recording over them, though you can plug a flash drive into the back of the hub to upload them for longer-term storage. You can upgrade to Eufy's protection plan with priority response for $5 per month or $50 per year, or a premium plan that includes 24/7 security monitoring and emergency dispatch for twice as much.

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This wired video doorbell skips having to recharge batteries and it reliably sends notifications.

While the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell didn't capture as much of the floor as the Eufy, this is a great camera if your Amazon deliveries don't accumulate immediately around the doormat. The 180-degree field of view helps deliver the most consistent motion detection we tested—and it was the only one that captured a cat creeping by at 1:30 in the morning (another doorbell running simultaneously missed the movement). Expect to pay for smarter features through a subscription to get the most out of this camera, though.

The Arlo was very consistent with motion notifications when we approached the camera from straight on and from 90 degrees perpendicular to the lens (even on the side partially obscured by the storm door's handle, which we speak to below), day or night. Tried as we did to fool it, we couldn't walk up to the camera without initiating a notification. Arlo's cloud stores event alerts for up to 30 days, and you can see them easily through the app. The camera comes with a 30-day trial of Arlo Secure, the entry-level priced plan that distinguishes people from pets and packages and allows you to draw activity zones on your phone to focus the doorbell's attention. If you want to keep those features, and cloud storage, that subscription starts at $5 per month (or $4 if paid annually) before the notifications become generic motion alerts, which we think could become a nuisance rather quickly.

In our testing, when the bell rang, we received notifications over Wi-Fi and saw a live feed in about 10 seconds, and a little bit longer over cellular. It takes about that long to open the app and spot-check the front of your house, too. The Arlo's downward firing speaker allows you to activate a built-in siren from your phone if you receive a notification of someone grabbing a package; it also does this automatically if it senses someone is tampering with the device. You can even push out prerecorded voice messages to tell someone to leave a package for you.

Along with the Google Nest, which also comes in black and white, the Arlo might be the best-looking doorbell of the bunch with its clean, minimalist lines. If you want a wired doorbell but are intimidated by the idea of dealing with the chime, the Arlo requires little more than connecting two terminal screws with a bridging wire—it's easy, we promise. Once that's done, and the camera is wired to the door, it and the chime rings loud, clear and nearly instantly while your smartphone receives intuitive incoming notifications that look like a FaceTime call so you can see the person you’re chatting with. While the Arlo works with most assistants out of the box, you’ll need to purchase a hub to link to Apple HomeKit.

This video doorbell shoots up to 1536 x 1536 resolution in a 1:1 ratio, whereas many competitors rely on landscape mode of 16:9—although that trend is changing as manufacturers realize how important it is to see heads and toes. The high dynamic range lens keeps the footage very clear while managing things like shadows and glare, so while it wasn't quite 2K resolution, it is still very crisp. The 12x-magnification pinch-to-zoom feature was among the best we tested. At night, with the porch light off, we were able to read the eye chart with the same clarity as we did during the day. It's worth noting that if you have a storm door with a handle on the same side as the doorbell, the camera's field of view is so wide that it might be obscured by the handle.

Our only criticism of the camera's ratio is that you can only see the floor about 27 inches away from the door, which missed almost all of our staged Amazon deliveries. This is less of a concern if your packages are set down 30 inches or more away from the door. Still, we feel confident in recommending it based on the reliability of the notifications.

$180 at Amazon

This Ring sends notifications fast and has a 1:1 aspect ratio that does a great job of seeing packages.

As one of the first smart doorbell makers, Ring has cemented itself as a go-to brand in this category, with a range of video doorbells—nine at the time of publication—so it's not surprising that some people, and possibly you, limit their search to Ring-brand products. The Battery Doorbell Plus stands out from the Ring crowd in part because of its speed.

When it comes to how fast you can interact with someone at the door when they press the buzzer, the Battery Doorbell Plus was quickest across all of our tests. Ring doorbells come with a social app experience called Neighbors that leverages the popularity of the brand; we received a few notifications about missing pets, suspicious activity and questions about ambulance sirens from other Ring users in the neighborhood. But the biggest upgrade to this 2023 model is the 1:1 aspect ratio with a 150-degree field of view, which made this the third-best camera at seeing the doormat area.

At 5 inches by 2½ inches, the Ring either runs off a battery, which is how we tested it, or you can hardwire it. Installation was straightforward, but the Ring does require undoing a Torx screw to secure the cover that protects the battery from underneath, which can be a bit of a pain to access. Ring provides a screwdriver for the task. Once installed, the doorbell rings and your phone receives a notification, but if you want a traditional chime it runs about $35.

From the press of the bell to seeing a live feed on our smartphone, the average wait was about six seconds over Wi-Fi and cellular, faster than any other doorbell camera we tested. This was also one of the fastest models when spot-checking the door from the closed app. In the doormat test, the Ring captured the floor from 18 inches out from the camera, which was enough to show a good portion of the package sitting near the door.

That better camera lens is a powerful tool when paired with one of the most user-friendly companion apps and a broad social network element. Ring users can communicate through the Neighbors app and report suspicious activity in real time, while a map gives you an idea of where the action is taking place (you can opt out of this feature altogether in the app if you choose). No other doorbell camera we tested offers this kind of community aspect—even if said community is confused as to why teens are running through PVC fence panels as part of a "Kool-Aid Man challenge."

The Battery Doorbell Plus comes with a 30-day trial of Ring Protect, which then starts at $4 a month. That plan allows you to save footage for up to 180 days, does package detection and serves more detailed alerts. Without it, you get standard alerts that notify you that motion was detected, but without specifics. Like the Arlo, you can also push out prerecorded voice messages to tell someone to leave a package for you so the doorbell functions like an answering machine.

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With the most color options of any doorbell we tested, the Nest was the second- best doorbell for seeing packages.

There is a lot to like about the Google Nest Doorbell: It sends alerts quickly, is easy to install and use, and offers a camera perspective that caught almost everything around the doormat. A few small missed notifications kept this doorbell from ranking higher in our tests.

The 3:4 aspect ratio from the 145-degree field of view lens was good enough to catch packages and activity around the doormat starting at 12 inches from the door, which was enough to make this the best head-to-toe camera that did not rely on a second lens. The 960 x 1280 resolution wasn't as sharp as that of some other cameras, but it did offer a very good zoom and enough clarity 4 feet away so you could make out branding on a delivery person's hat or shirt.

The Nest's four colors and simple, attractive styling likely make it a suitable match for a lot of entryways—especially if you think a black doorbell will stand out too much. As wired doorbells go, this one was very easy to install, and the app was great at helping us decipher what kind of chime we have and how to navigate the wiring. We appreciated the jumper cables that clip onto the existing doorbell wires and then slip under the screw terminals in the back very easily.

If you have other smart-home elements within the Google ecosystem, such as the Nest Learning Thermostat or Nest Hub, adding the Nest Doorbell makes sense as you’re already familiar with the app. While we did not test Nest's slightly taller battery-powered doorbell, it looks nearly identical, costs the same and shares a lot of the same specs, except for the ability to record 24/7.

Out of the box, the Nest gives you three hours of event history, but with a subscription (starting at $6 monthly/$60 annually) you get up to 60 days of cloud storage and facial recognition. You’ll need the premium Nest Aware Plus ($12 monthly/$120 annually) to record 24/7.

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Small, easy to install and very responsive, this Ring is a reliable, basic model that is ideal if deliveries don’'t accumulate right near the door.

The Ring Video Doorbell Wired's camera has very good clarity. While the 90-degree field of view didn't capture the doormat area in our tests—we were nearly 5 feet away before we saw our feet in the shot—it does reliably and quickly send notifications.

At about 4 by 2 inches this Ring is on the smaller side, which should make it easier to work with narrow door trim. And it comes with the robust Ring community through the app. The brand is also one of the few that offers an aftermarket vertical wedge kit—essentially a triangle of black plastic—that will tip the camera forward by about 20 degrees, providing a better shot of the floor. Still, you’ll need a subscription to get the most out of this camera, but for basic needs and motion notifications, it's a great choice.

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While it can be hard-wired, the Aqara Smart Video Doorbell G4 is noteworthy because it's the first battery-powered option that works with HomeKit, Apple's smart-home system. The lower-price doorbell includes a bunch of features—free cloud video storage, facial recognition and round-the-clock video if you wire it—that are hard to find for free in the industry. We haven't tested it yet, but on paper, it's appealing for Apple-based smart-home systems.

We had high hopes for the 1⅓ inch by 3¼ inch Wyze Video Doorbell and its long list of features, including color night vision and a 3:4 aspect ratio that did a very good job on the doormat test. While it was very fast to send notifications, they were too infrequent to recommend.

Like its wired cousin, Wyze Wireless Video Doorbell Pro has a great camera that does a good job of capturing the area where packages are likely to be left near the door. But it was slow to send notifications and it was inconsistent.

The Logitech Circle View Doorbell takes aim at Apple HomeKit users but this wired model was, hands down, the most difficult to install with a complex wiring process at the chime. The app requires more of your attention to click and swipe than the wiring task. Once it was wired up, it was relatively fast and reasonably consistent. But in the evening, the color night vision's clarity was subpar.

With better motion detection the TP-Link Kasa Smart Doorbell could be a solid camera. It was fast to deliver a live feed during spot checks and when someone rang the bell, but it was slow to send notifications of movement and it failed to send some during testing. But you can store the footage on an SD card without subscribing to a plan, which is a nice option.

Like the wired version, the Arlo Essential Wireless Video Doorbell is a very capable camera, but for the price, the Eufy's dual lenses are a smarter choice that does not require a subscription for next-level features. Still, the Arlo did a decent job at the doormat test, catching everything from 30 inches away from the camera.

The Abode Wireless Video Doorbell requires a plan for person and package detection, has a noticeable delay in ringing the included interior chime and was inconsistent in the ability to get live feed over cellular. You have to connect the chime to your router at first, and you’re supposed to be able to go wireless later, but that never worked for us.

I’ve been covering smart-home technology since the first color-changing LED smart lightbulbs came to market in 2012. Over the years I’ve tested several categories of connected devices, from assistant-enabled speakers to valves that shut the water off when they detect a leak. Along the way, I pay particular attention to how well these devices work with companion apps. To get a better understanding of the privacy issues surrounding doorbell cameras and what to look for when sifting through the specs, we spoke to a few experts. Professor Rahul Telang is the Ph.D. program chair of the Information Systems program at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College; Bill Budington is the senior staff technologist at Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit specializing in defending civil liberties in digital environments; Merlin Guilbeau is the executive director of the Electronic Security Association, a trade association made up of companies that install video surveillance equipment; and Eric Widner is the general manager of Loud Security, a residential and commercial security firm.

The takeaway from conversations with experts we spoke with is that your home's a little different than ours, and the one down the street from you. Your entryway, its lighting, how someone approaches the door, street traffic and even shrubs that provide cover can all play a role in how effectively a video doorbell functions. This category of smart-home tech is about 10 years old and has mushroomed beyond doorbells to security cameras that can cover just about every angle inside a home and out. This generation of doorbell cameras is much better at detecting motion than models were even a few years ago, and smart enough to distinguish between a tree moving in the breeze and a person.

With so much competition in this category, the chances of you finding a device you’ll be happy with are pretty high—if you can just find one that fits your needs. Spec for spec, a lot of these cameras look the same. For example, it was hard to find a camera that didn't shoot in 1080p or higher, so simply looking at the quality of the lens won't really help you while shopping. When you dig into the service plans that each brand offers, the lines blur further. Here are the areas we focused our testing on.