Getting Started with Nest and Google Home: A Beginner's Smart Home Guide
Curious about smart home devices? Start here.
How to set up a connected, automated, and secure smart home.
17 June 2026
The biggest choice when setting up a smart home may be where to begin.
Turning your home into a connected space can have loads of benefits for most households – making the day run more smoothly, staying connected to one another, helping save energy, and keeping your home safe and secure. And most devices are easy to set up with Fast Pair for Matter devices, so creating a smart home is simpler than you might expect.
The Cook family’s smart home started with a gift. John Cook wanted his wife to have an easy way to listen to music when she was getting ready for the day. So he got her a , so she can use her voice to play music. Soon, the whole family was asking Google for the weather and news instead of reaching for their phones.
Shortly after, the Cooks bought a for the kitchen and then added more speakers throughout the house. They topped it off with a , and more.
“At the beginning, you go, ‘Wow, this is really cool.’ But then after a while it’s part of your daily life,” Cook says.
Here’s how to choose the Google devices that are right for you, connect them with other products – and automate your home with confidence.
“Turning your household into a smart home makes the day run more smoothly, keeps you connected to one another, helps save energy, and keeps your home safe and secure.”
Getting started: Is your wireless internet strong enough?
First things first: The foundation of any smart home is strong and secure that blankets the space and keeps smart home devices running smoothly. If you’re not sure whether your signal is sufficient, use this to find out whether you need to boost your Wi-Fi with . Routers placed around the house increase your network’s strength and decrease the number of dead zones. As you add devices, use the speed test to make sure your connection remains stable.
Choosing and setting up devices
Once you know your internet can support your smart home, building it out is easier than ever, thanks to Matter and Thread. Matter is a universal language for smart home devices that ensures they work better together, while Thread improves the connections between them.
See what’s going on inside and outside your home. The combination of
and a Nest Doorbell can let you know that everything is fine at home. The latest cameras and doorbells each have an ultra-wide, ultra-tall field of view, letting you see visitors from head to toe or packages left in stubborn blind spots. Nest Cam Indoor and Nest Cam Outdoor have you covered for any other areas of interest inside the home or out. Some popular spots are back and side doors, pathways, and hallways.- Hear alerts wherever you are. If you’re in another part of the house where it’s hard to hear the doorbell, the , Nest Mini, and other Nest speakers can be paired with the Nest Doorbell to play the chime throughout your home – so you never miss a visitor.
- Get more from your cameras and doorbells. Save, search, and understand the video from your devices with a subscription., With a Standard plan, you get 30 days of event-based video history and intelligent alerts like familiar face recognition – and with doorbells, package detection. For all that and more, choose the Advanced plan. It offers everything Standard does, plus 60 days of event-based history, 10 days of continuous video, detailed alerts, event descriptions, and daily summaries. Stay informed without scrolling through hours of footage by using Ask Home to search with natural language like, “When was my package delivered this week?” And get detailed alerts for events that matter, like activity at your front door, plus a daily Home Brief of everything that happened at home while you were away.
- Big improvements to the entire Home app. The Home app has been re-engineered to be faster and more dependable. You’re now able to seamlessly navigate through your camera history with simple gestures, crop your camera view so that you can keep an eye on exactly what you want, and view animated previews of your alerts close up, helping you quickly understand the event.
- Automate safety. Set up automated security actions in the Google Home app with the “Help me create” feature when you add a Standard or Advanced plan of . Create an automation that turns your porch lights on automatically each night at sunset and off at sunrise., And in the morning, set your shades and curtains to open when your outdoor lights turn off.,
- Keep an eye on your home at all times. Through the Google Home app, set so your Nest Cam can notify you if motion is detected when no one is home. Wired Nest Cams provide continuous video recording so you don’t miss any of the moments that matter. With a Standard plan of Google Home Premium subscription, you can review 30 days of recorded event history to find what you’re looking for, and the Advanced plan lets you easily search 60 days to pinpoint a specific moment. can pick up the camera’s live video stream for easy viewing right from your wrist. So you never miss a package delivery, try adding camera livestream tiles to your favorites.
Level up your entertainment
There are so many movies, TV shows, and songs to choose from. and smart speakers make it easier to find the ones you want, then watch or listen whenever from wherever you’d like.
While the Google Home Speaker makes it easy to play your dance party playlist when you want to celebrate your promotion, lets you stream videos like that dance tutorial you’ve been watching on repeat. You can also bring it all together for movies and more with the . Not only does the Google TV Streamer work seamlessly across Google products, it works with your other , too.,
The home panel brings you extra convenience, too. View cameras and control lighting and other smart home devices, right on your screen while you’re watching a show. You can also cast content from compatible Android or iOS apps, transfer media to your TV, and see your favorite memories from Google Photos.
- Find shows quickly and easily. Just ask your for the show or movie you want to watch. With the voice remote, you can say things like, “Show me some new sitcoms” or “Find a scary movie,” without scrolling or typing. It learns from your viewing habits, pulling content from your streaming subscriptions onto one screen, and then makes recommendations based on your subscriptions, viewing history, and content you own.,, Want to watch something from your phone? The Google TV Streamer allows you to stream content from other devices connected through Bluetooth.
Create an audio system for your entire home. Google speakers provide powerful sound that responds to the acoustics of the rooms they’re in. With the new Google Home Speaker’s refined 360-degree optimised acoustics, everything from a subtle piano track to spoken word sounds balanced and immersive. Link YouTube Music to play your favourite songs. Never miss a moment with speaker groups, which let you bring your music, podcast, or audiobook with you as you move around the house.
Enjoy a family movie night. By connecting smart lights to your Google Home app, you can build an immersive setting while watching a favourite flick. Select a specific colour palette, or just soften the intensity to create a cosy and comfortable scene. With “Help me create,” you can set up a family movie night to dim the den lights, start the TV, and send an announcement to your family through Google and Nest speakers and displays – no step-by-step setup required, and it can all be activated with one simple voice command.
Automations keep daily life on track
Automations set up through the Google Home app can work with thousands of compatible devices. Here are some ways automations can help you get more done and have fun:
- Set up a series of events. You can also set “device starters” that know what you plan to do when you turn on one smart home device. For example, with a voice command to turn on the TV, a set of actions can also include turning on the lights, setting them to yellow, and dimming the brightness to 50%.
- Maintain your lawn and garden so it’s always ready for guests. Whether you’re planning a summer cookout or hosting family and friends for a soiree, the Google Home app can ensure your yard is always ready to entertain. Set a weekly schedule for your smart sprinkler and set up an announcement on your speaker for when the sprinkler is done.,
Starting small versus doing it all
The best place to start setting up your smart home is wherever your need or interest is greatest. Over time, you’ll see how adding devices increases the benefits: A doorbell is a good way to keep tabs on the front door; when you pair it with a smart lock, you’ll also be able to let in someone at the door. A smart speaker provides help and entertainment on its own; pair it with smart lighting to create Google Assistant routines for the morning and evening that turn the lights on and off. And with Nest Hub Max, you get a central dashboard to manage and sync your devices.
When is a good time to start? Anytime. Some households have found that moving into a new home is a great opportunity to set up a smart home.
Getting started
Ready to get started? Snag the best deal with our Smart Home packages, curated to your needs
.Refer to this checklist to help you kickstart your smart home journey:
- Begin by considering which everyday challenges you’re trying to solve.
- Explore Google’s connected and select your connected devices.
- Download the Google Home app and sign in with your Google Account.
- Plug in your devices and follow the setup instructions in the Google Home app.
- Use the Google Home app or Nest Hub to manage compatible devices like lights, and more with your voice.
- Set up routines to automate your home and complete multiple actions at once
