SONOFF ZBMINIR2 Extreme Review: A Tiny Zigbee Relay That Shines in Home Assistant and Stumbles Elsewhere
The SONOFF ZBMINIR2 Extreme is a one-channel Zigbee relay for making an existing light or outlet smart without replacing the wall switch. Owners love how small it is, how easily it fits behind a switch or in a ceiling box, and how quickly it pairs and responds with Home Assistant, where it also adds a router to the Zigbee mesh. It is not a plug-and-play Wi-Fi switch: it needs a neutral wire and a Zigbee hub, and results with third-party hubs and the Hue Bridge are uneven. A noticeable minority of owners also report units that stopped working after six to twelve months.
- Home Assistant and Zigbee2MQTT setups
- Tight switch boxes and ceiling boxes
- Keeping the existing wall switch
- Extending a Zigbee mesh
Pros
- Tiny at 39.5 x 33 x 16.8 mm, fits tight switch and ceiling boxes
- Quick, local pairing and control with Home Assistant over ZHA or Zigbee2MQTT
- Mains-powered Zigbee router with Turbo Mode that strengthens the mesh
- 10 A and 2400 W resistive load across 100-240 V
- Keeps the existing wall switch working, with power-off memory and an on/off button
- Works with Alexa, Google Home and SmartThings through a Zigbee hub, and OTA updates
Cons
- Needs a Zigbee hub and a neutral wire, and will not pair straight to a phone
- Mixed behavior with third-party hubs and the Hue Bridge, including scenes that cannot switch it off
- A sizeable minority of owners report failures after six to twelve months
- Thin documentation, no direct binding and small terminals
- No energy monitoring
- Apple Home and Matter only through a SONOFF hub
Who is the SONOFF ZBMINIR2 Extreme for?
It suits anyone who already runs a Zigbee hub, most often Home Assistant, and wants to automate lights, ceiling outlets or other resistive loads while keeping the existing wall switch. At 39.5 x 33 x 16.8 mm and 26.7 g it fits in boxes where bigger relays do not, and owners use it behind standard wall switches and in ceiling outlet boxes alike, sometimes with a motion sensor driving several lights at once. It is a poor first buy for someone with no Zigbee hub, no neutral in the box, or an expectation of a standalone Wi-Fi switch.
What do owners like about the SONOFF ZBMINIR2 Extreme?
The recurring praise is the size and the easy install: owners say it slides behind a switch with room left for the wiring. Pairing to Home Assistant, whether through ZHA or Zigbee2MQTT, is described as quick and responsive, with each unit showing up with the entities needed, and control stays local with no cloud account. Because it is mains-powered it also acts as a Zigbee router, with Turbo Mode, which helps garages and other far corners of a mesh. It supports power-off memory, OTA updates and a manual on/off button, and it controls up to 10 A and 2400 W of resistive load across 100-240 V. Owners who use it to turn a dumb switch smart, or to pair it with a pack for several rooms, call it reliable and good value, especially on sale. It works with Alexa and Google Home, and with SmartThings and Home Assistant.
What to know before you buy
Three requirements catch buyers out. It needs a Zigbee hub, so it will not pair straight to a phone and does not run on Wi-Fi; several owners returned it for that reason. It needs a neutral wire, so a two-wire switch box is not enough. And the terminals are small, with one owner finding them too tight for 14 gauge wire. Beyond that, results depend on your hub. Owners report mixed experience with third-party Zigbee hubs and ecosystems, including a Hue Bridge that could not switch the relay off from scenes, slow state updates when the switch inputs are used, an Eero setup that needed workarounds and a hub that never recognized it. Its own firmware has no direct binding, so a bound lamp cannot be controlled without a hub, and the documentation is thin, with a few owners failing to get the external switch inputs to register. The state change of a load-less relay may not be reported, and LED or smart bulb loads can glow or flicker when off. Longevity is the other caveat: a sizeable minority report units failing within six to twelve months, in some cases several in a batch. There is no energy monitoring, and Apple Home and Matter only come through a SONOFF hub.
Is the SONOFF ZBMINIR2 Extreme worth it?
For a Home Assistant or Zigbee2MQTT user converting several light switches, it is one of the smallest and most affordable ways to do it, and the routing is a useful bonus. Buy a pack when you have the neutral wire and a hub you trust, and check your box for fit and wire gauge first. If you want Wi-Fi, no hub, energy readings or flawless behavior with a Hue Bridge or a locked-down ecosystem, look elsewhere.
Frequently asked questions
Does the SONOFF ZBMINIR2 Extreme need a neutral wire?
Yes. The relay needs a neutral wire in the box, so a two-wire switch box will not work. Owners who found out too late returned it.
Does it need a Zigbee hub?
Yes. It is a Zigbee device with no Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, so it needs a Zigbee hub or coordinator such as the SONOFF Zigbee Bridge Ultra, SONOFF iHost or Zigbee2MQTT. Several owners returned it because they expected it to connect straight to a phone.
How well does it work with Home Assistant?
Very well by most accounts. Owners pair it with ZHA or Zigbee2MQTT in moments and describe fast, reliable, local control, and it joins the Zigbee mesh as a router.
Does it work with Apple Home, Alexa and Google Home?
Alexa and Google Home work through a compatible Zigbee hub. Apple Home and Matter only work through a SONOFF hub that bridges it. Owners using third-party hubs, including the Hue Bridge, report mixed results.
Can it measure power or switch a motor?
No. It has no energy monitoring and it is rated for resistive loads up to 10 A and 2400 W, with no inductive or capacitive load rating.
How reliable is it?
Most owners find it reliable and quick, but a noticeable minority report units that stopped switching after six to twelve months. Test it early while the return window is open.













