Aqara Hub M3 vs SwitchBot Hub 3

The Aqara Hub M3 wins overall, carrying a higher owner rating and leading on connectivity and protocols with Zigbee, Thread, dual-band Wi-Fi and PoE. The SwitchBot Hub 3 is the more affordable pick and adds a screen, dial and motion sensing, but has no Zigbee or Thread.

The M3 is a multi-protocol radio hub; the Hub 3 is a control panel. The Aqara Hub M3 adds Zigbee, a Thread border router, dual-band Wi-Fi and PoE, while the SwitchBot Hub 3 offers a 2.4-inch screen, rotary dial, programmable buttons, a learning IR blaster and temperature, humidity, light and motion sensors.

The SwitchBot Hub 3, which includes temperature, humidity, light and motion sensors plus a screen, rotary dial and four programmable buttons for off-the-phone control. The Aqara Hub M3 has no built-in sensors or screen, but adds a 95dB speaker, Zigbee, Thread and PoE.

Buy the Aqara Hub M3 if you want a best-rated multi-protocol hub with Zigbee, Thread, Matter, Bluetooth, IR, dual-band Wi-Fi and PoE, plus a 95dB speaker and support for up to 127 devices, bridging an Aqara home into HomeKit, Google, Alexa, SmartThings and Home Assistant.

Choose the SwitchBot Hub 3 if you want an affordable, hands-on hub with a screen, dial and programmable buttons, a learning IR blaster, and built-in temperature, humidity, light and motion sensors, bridging up to 30 SwitchBot devices over Matter. Note it is 2.4GHz Wi-Fi only with no Ethernet.