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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesHome Assistant 2026.2, released February 4, 2026, is primarily a usability and onboarding release. New installations now start with the redesigned Overview dashboard, while Quick search, the new Apps terminology, a distribution card and six integrations improve everyday administration. Existing users should review the release’s Tractive, Tuya and VeSync changes before upgrading. The official announcement and patch history are available at Home Assistant’s 2026.2 release post.
Home Assistant 2026.2 at a glance
| Area | What changed |
|---|---|
| Dashboard | Redesigned Overview is the default for new installations |
| Search | Quick search combines navigation, commands, entities, devices and areas |
| Terminology | Add-ons are now called Apps |
| Automation | More purpose-specific triggers and conditions, still in Labs |
| Dashboards | New distribution card and several card and editor improvements |
| Integrations | Cloudflare R2, Green Planet Energy, HDFury, NRGkick, Prana and uHoo |
| Administration | Developer Tools moved into Settings |
| Data sharing | Optional anonymized device analytics for an Open Home Foundation database |
Home Assistant 2026.2.0 was followed by 2026.2.1 on February 6, 2026, 2026.2.2 on February 13 and 2026.2.3 on February 20. Those patch releases contain bug fixes and integration corrections, so production systems should use the latest available 2026.2 build rather than the original .0 release.
The new Overview dashboard
For a new Home Assistant instance, Overview replaces the older default dashboard template. It is designed to give a household a useful starting point without requiring immediate Lovelace configuration.
What Overview adds
- A For You section that surfaces discovered devices.
- Prompts to assign unassigned devices to areas.
- Quicker access to area configuration and primary sensors.
- Less empty space and cleaner navigation.
- A revised visual style without the former blue top bar.
- Theme controls in the user profile, making themes user-specific rather than simply a dashboard-wide choice.
What existing users will see
Home Assistant does not treat every installation as a blank new setup. Users with an unchanged default view may receive a suggestion to try the new Overview. A carefully customized default dashboard should not be assumed to be overwritten. Compare the new template before changing a tuned wall-tablet, room-control or security layout.
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#1 Best Overall
- Home Assistant provides a professional and reliable platform for home automation, designed to run continuously 24/7.
- Powered by a 64-bit Quad-Core Cortex-A53 processor, delivering smooth and efficient performance for smart home automations.
- Includes 4GB SDRAM for reliable multitasking and 64GB eMMC
- Features a Mali-450 MP2 GPU for responsive visual interfaces, housed in a compact 85 × 85 × 15mm (3.35" × 3.35" × 0.59") design that fits easily in any space.
- Typical power consumption is under 10W, with fanless operation for quiet performance suitable for any room in your home.
To try it manually, open Settings → Dashboards and create or select the new Overview template. To keep the previous design, choose Overview (legacy). Custom dashboards remain the better choice for highly specialized mobile layouts, room-by-room controls and advanced energy or security views.
Quick search replaces the old quick bar
The redesigned Quick search is more than a text box. It is a command palette that searches across five areas: Navigate, Commands, Entities, Devices and Areas.
- macOS: press
Command + K. - Windows or Linux: press
Ctrl + K. - Use the arrow keys to move through results,
Enterto select andEscto close. - On mobile, Quick search can be assigned to a gesture.
The familiar single-key shortcuts remain, but now open a filtered Quick search: e for Entities, d for Devices, c for Commands, a for Assist and m for the My link for the current page. Shortcuts can be ineffective when focus is inside another text field, and the exact interface can vary by browser, platform, permissions and later frontend updates. The sidebar remains easier for guests and new users who do not yet know an entity or page name.
“Add-ons” are now “Apps”
Home Assistant 2026.2 renames managed add-ons to Apps and refactors the Apps panel into the Home Assistant frontend. The terminology changes, but the underlying concepts do not merge.
Rank #2
- Custom fit design provides a snug and secure hold for your compatible with Home Assistant Green, ensuring stability and easy access at eye level.
- Space-saving wall installation helps declutter surfaces by moving your smart home hub off counters and onto the wall for a cleaner setup.
- Durable construction crafted for reliable long-term use with quick and straightforward mounting on various wall surfaces.
- Sleek minimalist style complements modern home aesthetics while keeping ports and displays accessible.
- This product is a third-party accessory designed to be compatible with Home Assistant. Our products are not affiliated with, authorized, or endorsed by it and are mentioned for compatibility purposes only.
- An App is a standalone service managed alongside Home Assistant, principally in the Home Assistant OS/Supervisor model.
- An Integration connects Home Assistant to a device or external service.
- They can work together: an MQTT broker App can provide the broker while the MQTT integration connects Home Assistant to it.
Older tutorials will continue to say “add-on,” so search for both terms when following them. Container and Core installations do not have the same managed-App experience as Home Assistant OS or Supervised installations.
The distribution card
The new distribution card displays related entities as proportional horizontal segments. It is useful when the question is “what share of the total comes from each item?” Examples include household consumption by circuit, or storage use by drive or folder.
- The legend is interactive: hide or show entities.
- Percentages recalculate as segments are changed.
- Selecting a segment can open that entity’s more-info dialog.
- Entities must use the same domain and device class; related units such as watts and kilowatts can be combined.
This is a relative snapshot, not a replacement for the Energy dashboard, long-term statistics or a time-series chart. Use those tools when the important question is how a value changed over time.
Automation improvements, with a Labs qualification
Purpose-specific automation building blocks gained triggers for calendar events starting or ending, people arriving home or leaving, and vacuums returning to their docks. Purpose-specific conditions expanded to more entity types, including media-player states such as on, off, playing, paused and not playing.
Rank #3
- [Multi-Protocol Hub with Matter Bridge] The Aqara Hub M200 is a versatile smart hub that supports multiple advanced features, acting as a Matter Controller, Thread Border Router, and Matter Bridge. It integrates third-party devices into the Aqara Home app. With advanced Matter bridging functionality, it syncs Aqara-exclusive features with ecosystems like Home Assistant, Apple HomeKit, Alexa, and Google Home for seamless integration. Supports up to 40 Aqara Zigbee devices and 40 Thread devices.
- [Smart IR Blaster with Feedback and Learning] The 360°IR blaster not only sends commands but also provides accurate status updates by detecting traditional remote use. It connects IR air conditioning units to Matter, functioning as an AC thermostat when paired with an Aqara Temperature and Humidity Sensor. (Note: Only one AC device can be exposed to Matter. Functionality may vary based on the Matter integration app. For Apple Home exposure, use Matter integration instead of HomeKit.)
- [Wired & Wireless Connectivity with PoE Support] Enjoy flexible setup with dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4/5 GHz) using advanced WPA3 security, and Power over Ethernet (PoE), making the M200 a versatile PoE Ethernet Smart Home Hub. The USB-C port supports mini-UPS or power bank connections for uninterrupted operation, ensuring your energy-saving and security automations stay online. (*2A USB power adapter is not included. )
- [Home Automation and Alarm System] Works with all Aqara devices to create a comprehensive, smart home automation system. The Aqara Hub M200 is equipped with a built-in speaker that can be used in a variety of ways: security alerts, doorbell, alarm clock, and custom audio messages. (** 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐝-𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐙𝐢𝐠𝐛𝐞𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬)
- [Local Automation for Reliable Performance] Supports local execution of automations for Zigbee and Matter devices, ensuring smooth operation even without Wi-Fi or cloud access. Enjoy millisecond response times for a more stable and reliable smart home experience. (Some automation, such as cloud push notifications, will still require the cloud connection to be executed.)
The feature was still being refined through Home Assistant Labs. It may not be enabled or complete on every installation. Experienced users may prefer conventional state, numeric-state, device, template or event triggers when they need maximum control, portability and predictable coverage.
Six new integrations
| Integration | What it does | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Cloudflare R2 | Stores Home Assistant backups in R2 object storage. | Requires an R2 bucket, Cloudflare credentials and API-token setup. Free allowances and no egress fees do not guarantee that every storage, request or retention pattern is free. Keep a local backup and test restoration. |
| Green Planet Energy | Provides real-time dynamic electricity pricing. | Primarily relevant to customers covered by this German provider and its pricing data, not a universal North American electricity integration. |
| HDFury | Controls and monitors HDMI processors such as VRROOM and Diva, including input selection, modes, muting and signal status. | Only useful with compatible HDFury hardware and firmware. |
| NRGkick | Locally monitors compatible NRGkick Gen2 mobile chargers, including charging state, energy, phase power and temperature. | “Local” capability is described in the release notes; confirm model and firmware compatibility. Later 2026.3 features must not be attributed to 2026.2. |
| Prana | Controls and monitors Prana heat-recovery ventilation systems. | Requires Prana equipment. |
| uHoo | Reports temperature, humidity, CO₂, PM2.5 and other air-quality data, plus uHoo health indices. | Those proprietary indices are not medical measurements or diagnoses. |
Existing integrations with notable changes
Several established integrations gained practical features. ESPHome added water-heater device support; Music Assistant added pre-announcement URLs; Spotify can play Liked Songs; Sonos exposes podcast favorites; Reolink added a pet-chime option; SmartThings supports audio notifications; Roborock exposes dock water-box status; Tibber added EV-charger, temperature, grid and charging settings; LG ThinQ gained humidifier and dehumidifier control; and Hikvision gained camera support.
Other changes include PM1 and PM10 sensors in VeSync, battery support for Bang & Olufsen, a prune-images button and state sensor in Portainer, gas meters in Powerfox, Indoor Air Quality Score in Ruuvi and sequence IDs plus dismiss/delete actions in ntfy.
Integrations that can now be configured in the UI
Namecheap DynamicDNS, OpenEVSE, Proxmox VE and WaterFurnace gained UI setup. This reduces manual YAML work, but does not remove vendor credentials, API keys, network access or device-side configuration requirements.
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- 💡 EASIEST WAY TO GET STARTED WITH HOME ASSISTANT - With Home Assistant already installed, it only requires plugging the included power supply and Ethernet cable to get started.
- ✅ OFFICIAL - This official Home Assistant hardware is built and supported by Nabu Casa, the team driving the development of Home Assistant.
- 🏡 DESIGNED FOR THE HOME - The small, fanless, and silent design packs a quad-core processor, 32GB of storage, and 4GB of RAM.
- 📱 ONE HUB TO CONTROL THE WHOLE HOME - Cut down hub and app clutter and control your whole home from Home Assistant Green.
- 🤖 AUTOMATE EVERYTHING - Make all the devices in your home work in harmony - have your lights dim when you start watching a movie, or turn off your heat when you’re away from home.
Smaller interface improvements
- Developer Tools moved to Settings.
- Calendar colors can be set per dashboard.
- The template editor provides live inline previews.
- Heading cards support buttons.
- Area cards offer more specific entity selection plus tap and image-tap actions.
- Entity cards support actions.
- The Energy dashboard accepts additional power-sensor formats.
Optional device analytics
Home Assistant added an opt-in device-analytics feature for an Open Home Foundation community device database. The release communication reported early coverage of more than 10,000 unique devices across more than 260 integrations, based on anonymized data from participating users.
To review it, open Settings → System → Labs, enable device analytics, and inspect the preview in Analytics. You can opt out at any time. Home Assistant describes the data as anonymized and says it contains no personal data; treat that as the project’s stated policy and review its data-use information before participating. The trade-off is straightforward: voluntary metadata sharing may improve public device information, while declining preserves a more private default.
Breaking changes to check before upgrading
Tractive sensors removed
The Tractive integration removed the Activity, Calories burned and Sleep sensors because the Tractive API no longer supported them. Search dashboards, templates, scripts and automations for those entity IDs and replace or remove the references.
Tuya climate modes changed
Duplicate HVAC modes were converted to presets. Service calls that use set_hvac_mode for those modes may need to use set_preset_mode instead. Search automation YAML and scripts before upgrading.
Best Value
- EASIEST WAY TO GET STARTED WITH HOME ASSISTANT: With Home Assistant already installed, it only requires plugging the included power supply and Ethernet cable to get started
- DESIGNED FOR THE HOME: The small, fanless, and silent design packs a quad-core processor, 32GB of storage, and 4GB of RAM
- ONE HUB TO CONTROL YOUR WHOLE HOME: Simplify your smart home with HA70. Built with official Home Assistant OS and a professional Zigbee coordinator, it brings local control, powerful automation, and seamless device management into one compact hub
- AUTOMATE EVERYTHING: Make all the devices in your home work in harmony - have your lights dim when you start watching a movie, or turn off your heat when you're away from home
- YOUR HOME, YOUR DATA: Your home's data will be kept in the home on your HomeAssistant. You can easily view, share, and export that data anywhere you want
VeSync sleep preset renamed
The advanced_sleep preset became sleep. Update service data and conditions that compare the old value.
The official release notes list additional backward-incompatible changes. Review the Home Assistant Core 2026.2 changelog and check custom integrations, including HACS components, against the target version.
Should you upgrade?
Good reasons to upgrade now
- You want a guided default dashboard for a new installation.
- You navigate Home Assistant frequently with a keyboard.
- You want easier device discovery and area assignment.
- You need one of the six new integrations or the distribution card.
- You want UI setup for OpenEVSE, Proxmox VE, Namecheap DynamicDNS or WaterFurnace.
- You want current integration fixes and improvements.
Reasons to prepare carefully or wait
- Your automations depend on the removed Tractive sensors or renamed Tuya and VeSync values.
- You rely on important custom integrations.
- Your default dashboard is heavily customized and cannot be reviewed during a maintenance window.
- Your installation cannot tolerate even a short interruption to automations.
Upgrade checklist
- Create and verify a full backup before changing versions.
- Record your current version and installation type: Home Assistant OS, Container, Core or Supervised.
- Check whether the default dashboard is customized, and note how to return to Overview (legacy).
- Search automations, scripts, templates and dashboards for Tractive entities, Tuya
set_hvac_modecalls and the VeSyncadvanced_sleeppreset. - Confirm that custom integrations and HACS components support 2026.2.
- Upgrade when a temporary interruption is acceptable, preferably to the latest 2026.2 patch.
- Check the dashboard, Apps panel, Developer Tools location, backup status and critical presence, climate, media, EV and camera automations.
- If something fails, identify whether it is a core regression, an integration change or a custom-component problem before restoring or rolling back.
Bottom line
Home Assistant 2026.2 is a worthwhile usability release rather than an architectural rewrite. The new Overview, Quick search and Apps terminology make a fresh installation easier to understand, while the distribution card and six integrations add useful capability for specific households. Existing users should upgrade with a backup and a targeted review of Tractive, Tuya, VeSync, custom components and dashboard behavior.
Quick Recap
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