About Porchlight

Porchlight reviews modern home-security gear — smart locks, cameras, video doorbells, alarm systems, and sensors — and publishes honest verdicts on what's worth trusting your home to. Honest reviews for a safer home.

How products are scored

Every product gets two numbers. The star rating (0–5) reflects overall quality for its price. The Verdict score (0–10) — the red stamp — is the editorial bottom line, tiered from Editor's Choice down to Skip It. Scores are set before monetization is ever considered: whether a product earns us a commission has no bearing on its number.

What we evaluate

For security products the criteria are consistent: does it work reliably every day, what happens when the power or internet fails, which features hide behind a subscription, how it handles your data, and whether it's still a good buy at full price. Pros and cons list what actually matters, not spec-sheet filler.

Who writes Porchlight

Reviews carry the byline Porchlight Test Desk. That's our editorial review process: each piece is produced with AI assistance against the fixed methodology and scoring rubric described above, then reviewed and signed off by a named human editor who is accountable for its accuracy. We're transparent about this on purpose — we'd rather tell you how the sausage is made than pretend a person you can't verify wrote every word. Questions or corrections go to a real inbox: hello@porchlighthomesecurity.com.

How the site makes money

Through affiliate commissions on outbound retailer links, disclosed on every page — the full picture is in our Affiliate Disclosure. We don't run ads or accept payment for coverage or scores.

Corrections

If a product changes materially — a firmware update, a subscription change, a price shift that alters the value verdict — reviews get revisited and re-dated. Spotted something wrong or outdated? Tell us: hello@porchlighthomesecurity.com. We'd rather fix it than defend it.