Matter
Matter is the smart home interoperability standard run by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) and backed by Apple, Google, Amazon, and Samsung. A Matter-certified device works with any Matter controller — Apple Home, Google Home, Alexa, SmartThings — over Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or Thread, with local control and no vendor-specific app required for basic functions.
Matter is an application-layer protocol: it defines what a light, lock, or thermostat is and how to talk to it, and rides on top of ordinary IP networking. Mains-powered devices typically use Wi-Fi or Ethernet; battery devices use Thread, a low-power mesh that needs a Thread border router to reach your network. Certification is recorded in the CSA’s public Distributed Compliance Ledger, which is where our count of 1,824 Matter-certified device records comes from.
The standard ships point releases roughly twice a year, and the 1.x line now covers lights, plugs, locks, thermostats, sensors, blinds, appliances, robot vacuums, and energy devices such as EV chargers and water heaters. The practical caveat as of mid-2026: controllers lag the spec, so a device type being in Matter 1.x does not guarantee your particular ecosystem exposes it, and advanced features often still need the maker’s own app.
| Specification 1.0 released | 4 October 2022, by the Connectivity Standards Alliance |
|---|---|
| Release cadence | Roughly two point releases a year — 1.2 (2023), 1.3 (2024), 1.4 (late 2024), 1.5 (late 2025) |
| Transports | Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and Thread — all IPv6. Bluetooth LE is used for setup only |
| Fabrics per device | At least 5 required by the specification (see multi-admin) |
| Setup code | QR code plus an 11-digit numeric fallback printed on the device |
| Certified devices in this dataset | 1,824, from the CSA Distributed Compliance Ledger |
What Matter actually standardises
Matter is a data model plus a security model, not a radio. The data model borrows its structure from the Zigbee Cluster Library: a device is a node, a node has endpoints, and each endpoint carries a device type (Dimmable Light, Door Lock, Occupancy Sensor) built from clusters of attributes and commands. A controller that understands the On/Off and Level Control clusters can dim any certified dimmable light from any brand, because the wire format is identical.
That is the whole reason a Matter light needs no vendor integration. Before Matter, Apple Home talked to a Wi-Fi bulb through HomeKit, Alexa through a cloud-to-cloud skill, and Google through yet another cloud connection — three integrations the manufacturer had to build and keep alive. Matter replaces all of them with one certified implementation the manufacturer ships in firmware.
The security model matters just as much. Every certified device carries a Device Attestation Certificate signed by its manufacturer, chained to a root the CSA publishes in the Distributed Compliance Ledger. During setup the controller checks that chain before trusting the device, which is what stops a counterfeit from claiming to be a certified lock.
Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or Thread — and why it decides what you buy
Matter runs over IPv6 on three transports. Mains-powered devices — plugs, bulbs, wired thermostats, appliances — almost always use Wi-Fi, because a device with permanent power can afford a Wi-Fi radio and the network is already there. Ethernet appears mostly on bridges and hubs. Battery devices use Thread, because a Wi-Fi radio would flatten a coin cell in weeks.
The buying consequence is concrete: “Matter over Thread” on the box means you need a Thread border router in the house before the device can even be commissioned, while “Matter over Wi-Fi” needs nothing beyond a controller. If your household already runs an Apple TV 4K, a HomePod, a Nest Hub, an Echo (4th gen), or a SmartThings Station, the border router is already there and this is a non-issue.
One requirement catches people out: Matter needs working IPv6 on your LAN, and mDNS traffic has to cross between the devices and the controller. Router firmware that disables IPv6, aggressive client isolation, or a guest network that blocks multicast will all break commissioning in ways that look like a broken device. Separate 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz SSIDs cause the same symptom, because most Matter devices are 2.4 GHz-only and the phone doing the setup is usually on 5 GHz.
What the version numbers actually buy you
Matter 1.0 shipped a deliberately narrow set of device types: lights, plugs, switches, locks, thermostats, blinds, media devices, and basic sensors. Each release since has widened it — 1.2 added appliances, robot vacuums, air quality sensors and smoke/CO alarms; 1.3 and 1.4 added energy management, EV charging, water heaters, heat pumps, solar and battery storage; 1.5 added cameras, the category that had held out longest.
The number on the specification is not the number that governs your house. Three things must line up: the device must implement the type, your controller must expose it, and — for Thread devices — the border router must be current. Controller support has typically trailed the spec by six to eighteen months, and it trails unevenly, so a device type can be fully usable in Home Assistant and invisible in one of the big-three apps for a year.
This is the honest limit of a Matter badge. It guarantees the baseline works everywhere; it does not guarantee that the specific feature you bought the device for is exposed in the specific app you use. Our per-hub compatibility pages exist because that second question cannot be answered from the device box.
What Matter does not do
It does not reach Zigbee or Z-Wave devices. There is no path from a Zigbee sensor to a Matter controller except through a hub acting as a Matter bridge, and no path at all from Z-Wave except through a platform like Home Assistant, Hubitat, or SmartThings re-exporting the device. A Matter-only household simply cannot buy from the 5,405 Zigbee and 2,311 Z-Wave devices in this dataset without a bridging hub.
It also does not carry manufacturer features that have no place in the data model. Hue’s entertainment sync, a robot vacuum’s map editing, a lock’s full user-code management, a camera’s event history — these live in the maker’s app, and Matter certification says nothing about them. Treat Matter as the guarantee that the basics will still work in ten years, not as a replacement for the vendor app.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a hub for Matter devices?
You need a Matter controller, which for Apple, Google, and Amazon means a device that stays home and online — an Apple TV or HomePod, a Nest hub or speaker, an Echo. Phones alone are not controllers. Home Assistant, Hubitat, and Homey run the controller on the hub itself. On top of that, Matter-over-Thread devices need a Thread border router, which is built into most of those same speakers and streamers.
Does Matter replace Zigbee and Z-Wave?
No. Matter is an application layer that runs over Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and Thread; Zigbee and Z-Wave are separate radios with their own device catalogues, and both are still much larger than Matter’s. Matter only reaches them through a bridge. In practice most well-built 2026 smart homes run Matter alongside a Zigbee or Z-Wave mesh rather than instead of one.
Is Matter local or cloud?
Matter control is local by design — commands travel across your LAN or Thread mesh directly to the device, with no vendor server in the path. What is not guaranteed is where your automations run: a Matter plug in Alexa or Google Home still waits on their cloud to fire a routine, while the same plug in Apple Home, Home Assistant, or Hubitat runs locally. The protocol is local; the controller decides the rest.
How do I check that a device is really Matter certified?
Look it up in the CSA Distributed Compliance Ledger, which is public and lists every certified model with its vendor ID, product ID, and certification date. Marketing phrases like “Matter ready”, “Matter compatible”, or “Matter via firmware update” are not certifications. Our device pages carry the ledger record for each of the 1,824 certified models we track.
Can one Matter device work with Apple Home and Google Home at the same time?
Yes — that is multi-admin, and it is a certification requirement rather than a bonus feature. Pair the device in one ecosystem, generate a share code from that app, and add it in the second. Both control it directly and locally. Automations and room names stay separate per ecosystem, and most devices hold about five fabrics.