The 7 Best Smart Alarm Clocks of 2023, Tested and Reviewed

Best Overall

Hatch Restore

4.8

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Setup
  4.8/5
• Audio
  5/5
• Performance
  4.8/5
• Design
  4.9/5
• Value
  4/5

It's not often a small bedside table accessory can embody attractive design, advanced technology, and potentially healthier sleep the way the Hatch Restore does. After separate experiences using the product, both our in-home tester and an editor for The Spruce reported falling asleep better at night and feeling more rested in the morning. 

Thanks to the Hatch Restore's gentle glowing light, you can ease into wakefulness in imitation of the rising sun. Plus, it serves as a night light for reading or visibility. Through the mobile app and a Bluetooth connection, you can set which of the light's 22 color options you want and how and when it should dim or brighten. The other aspect you can personalize is sound. Instead of just buzzing, you can wake up to subtle, natural sounds like chirping birds or fall asleep to ocean waves or other calming white noise in the background. 

Hatch additionally offers playlists of music, sleep stories, guided exercises, and other restful audio from the Restore, but this requires an optional subscription. While our reviewers found the device's $130 base price worth it for the benefits to their sleep routines, an extra monthly cost may not be necessary for most. (At the time of writing, a new Hatch Restore 2 model was available for pre-order, with upgraded features and a list price around $200.) 

Price at time of publish: $130

_{Dimensions: 2.75 x 7.5 x 5.75 inches | Display Features: Adjustable brightness/color, sunrise/sunset alarm | Power Source: Power cord | Battery Backup: No}

Best Budget

Lenovo Smart Clock Essential

4.9

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Setup
  5/5
• Audio
  5/5
• Performance
  5/5
• Design
  4.8/5
• Value
  4.5/5

It's not easy to find a quality alarm clock with true smart features at a bargain price, but Lenovo's Smart Clock Essential is an excellent value—and is often on sale. With no sunrise lamp or collection of sleep-assisting audio, the device is more of a straightforward alarm clock than its more decked-out competitors. A clear and easy-to-read LED display on the front shows the time, temperature, and a weather icon (we would've liked to see the date as well). The display is dimmable and automatically adjusts to the room's brightness. In the back is a night light with adjustable brightness. 

What we found most convenient was the built-in virtual assistant; Google Assistant in the model we tested. (A variation with Amazon Alexa is also available, but not both in one.) In addition to having the clock answer questions, set reminders, play your music, and tackle other standard functions of the Google Home smart platform, you can issue voice commands to control the alarm clock itself. 

In a true trial of its dependability, our family testing the device used it as an alarm to wake up and feed their newborn every three hours throughout the night. Voice controls, night light, and soothing alarm and white noise helped make a challenging process a little smoother for the family. 

Price at time of publish: $71

_{Dimensions: 3.67 x 4.46 x 2.8 inches | Display Features: Adjustable brightness, temperature display | Power Source: USB power cord | Battery Backup: No} 

Best Design

Loftie Clock

4.5

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Setup
  3.5/5
• Audio
  4.8/5
• Performance
  5/5
• Design
  5/5
• Value
  4/5

The Loftie Clock packs an advanced suite of smart functions within a minimalist, elegant frame. The primary display shows the time in plain white numbers, with the brightness dimmable all the way down to a full "blackout" mode for a completely dark bedroom environment while you sleep. Just three small buttons run across the top, but we found them intuitive and easy to use for navigating and controlling all the settings. You can also control things from the mobile app, but using it is optional. 

Not optional, however, is a Wi-Fi connection, and the clock's initial setup includes a lengthy download of previous updates. But once you're connected, the Loftie Clock is loaded with a huge selection of soothing sounds to suit your sleeping and waking preferences. 

Unlike the Hatch Restore, Loftie's wellness content—meditation and breathing exercises, sound baths, etc.—comes included for free. The alarm itself is a unique two-phase process designed to wake you in a more gentle, natural way using calming sounds of your choosing. We rated the audio 4.8 stars out of 5, because for heavier sleepers, the alarm may actually be too gentle. There's also no sunrise alarm, just a soft night light at the bottom for some visibility. 

As one tester explains, "If you can sleep through a firetruck or ambulance, you will 10,000 percent sleep through this clock. But if you're a fairly light sleeper who likes to wake up with a gentle nudge as opposed to a kick in the butt, this is a great option. It's also just a nice accessory for your bedroom."

Price at time of publish: $149

_{Dimensions: 2.75 x 6.5 x 2.75 inches | Display Features: Adjustable brightness (with blackout mode) | Power Source: USB power cord | Battery Backup: Yes (rechargeable)}

Best Sunrise

Amazon Halo Rise

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Perhaps the most beneficial alarm clock feature in terms of getting more restful sleep is a sunrise and sunset light, emulating nature by gradually brightening with your morning alarm and dimming as you drift to sleep. The Halo Rise from Amazon provides that sunrise/sunset function through the curved light it draws its name from, but it also incorporates other advanced tech like sleep tracking to help improve your sleep health. 

Unlike other sleep trackers you have to wear overnight, the Halo Rise faces you from your nightstand and uses radar-based sensors to monitor your overnight movements and breathing. It collects and displays the data for you on the Halo app, giving you a sleep score and visualizations of your sleep stages. You can then use the information to, for example, sync the sunrise alarm with the ideal wake-up time for your sleep cycle, or address potential issues with light or temperature in your room. Unfortunately, the full set of wellness bonuses and features to help improve your habits in practice requires an additional $4 monthly Halo membership. And, even though the device is Alexa-ready and works smoothly with that ecosystem, you'll need a separate microphone-equipped Alexa device like an Echo smart speaker to control the Halo Rise with voice commands. 

Price at time of publish: $140

_{Dimensions: 1.45 x 5.2 x 6.7 inches | Display Features: Adjustable brightness, sunrise/sunset alarm | Power Source: Power cord | Battery Backup: No}

Best for Alexa

Amazon Echo Dot 5th Gen with Clock

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The latest iterations of Amazon's Alexa-powered Echo Dot smart speaker entered alarm clock territory, with an LED time display incorporated into the front of the sphere. With the 5th-generation model released in 2022, that display can now also show weather icons, song titles, and other short scrolling bits of text. It lets the device provide more info without becoming a full smart display with a screen next to your bed. The LED area is slightly larger and brighter than previous models and includes adjustable brightness settings, but the dimmest option may still be too bright for some. 

Alarm functionality is always available in the Alexa environment, but a clock-displaying Echo Dot serves as a bedside alarm that you can see, tap to snooze, and talk to. You can use voice commands to set alarms and start timers, as well as ask questions, play music, and more. The small speaker size limits the sound quality, but Amazon has improved the audio to be clear and deeper than past versions. By default, the device plugs into a wall outlet with no battery backup, though a separate battery base accessory is available if you prefer to charge the Echo Dot and move it around cord-free. 

Price at time of publish: $60

Dimensions: 3.9 x 3.9 x 3.5 inches | Display Features: Adjustable brightness | Power Source: Power cord | Battery Backup: No

Best for Google Assistant

Google Nest Hub

5

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Google's Nest Hub smart display may not seem particularly conducive to sleep, putting a 7-inch touchscreen by your bed when you're supposed to be winding down. What makes the second-generation model uniquely equipped as a smart alarm clock is its Sleep Sensing technology, which represents new territory for a bedside display. Without any cameras or anything to wear on your body, it senses your motions and sounds to track how you slept, including snoring and coughs to changes in temperature and light. In the morning, you can ask for a summary and see a detailed breakdown of your sleep patterns on the display, with some insights on your habits and what you might adjust. (Sleep Sensing is currently free, but Google notes they plan to integrate the service into the $10 per month Fitbit Premium subscription.) 

Even without a true sunrise lamp, the Nest Hub can help ease you into the day by gradually brightening the display and upping your alarm volume. At night, you can set calming sounds to lull you to sleep. This is all in addition to the product's other functions as a smart hub, including integrated Google Assistant, hands-free music and video playback, and serving as a visual control panel for all the smart home devices you've synced together. 

Price at time of publish: $45

_{Dimensions: 2.7 x 7.0 x 4.7 inches | Display Features: 7-inch touchscreen, adjustable brightness, sunrise alarm | Power Source: Power cord | Battery Backup: No}