# Starling Home Hub — user reviews > 92 indexed App Store user reviews of Starling Home Hub by Starling LLC, rated 4.85/5 from 1,870 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/starling-home-hub/id1617003623/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/starling-home-hub/id1617003623.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 1,736 · 4★ 65 · 3★ 21 · 2★ 15 · 1★ 33 ## What do users think of Starling Home Hub? Overall sentiment: positive **Pros** - 🚀 Simple and easy setup - 👍 Great integration between Google and Apple - 👍 Excellent for Nest products - 👍 Best Google Nest bridge for HomeKit - 👍 Seamless integration with Apple Home - 👍 Reliable and stable performance - 👍 Fantastic customer support **Cons** - 🐛 Firmware updates causing issues - 🐛 Connectivity problems and disconnections - 🐛 Limited to Nest/Google Home devices only - 🐛 Compatibility issues with iOS updates **Commonly reported bugs** - Firmware updates deleting connected devices - Inability to downgrade firmware - Automatic updates causing issues - Connectivity problems after iOS updates **Most requested features** - Dark mode option - Expanded device compatibility ## Newest reviews (13 of 92) ### 5/5 — Set it and forget it *2025-05-29, version 1.4.1* I’ve had it for a few months and it’s great. Almost forget I have it. ### 5/5 — Didn’t think it could get better. *2025-03-22, version 1.4.1* This device has been the product that just keeps on giving. Its latest update has essentially turned it into a plug and play HomeBridge with the added benefit of being insanely easy to use and straightforward. ### 5/5 — Must have for making IOT devices play nice *2025-03-10, version 1.4.1* It’s a crucial piece of kit if you like some features of Google home stuff but mostly live in the Apple Ecosystem. ### 5/5 — Great integration between Google & Apple *2025-02-09, version 1.4.1* I’ve been using the Starling Home Hub at my house for 5 years - I wanted to be able to control my Nest Thermostat within Apple Home. With the recent Firmware updates and the ability to control other Google Home only devices in Apple Home the Starling Home Hub has become even better than it was. I love it so much that I bought a unit for my parents place for Christmas to integrate their home into their Apple ecosystem. ### 5/5 — Great product *2025-01-19, version 1.4.1* I didn’t realize how well this thing works because you forget about it.. if you ever wanna be reminded, just try some of these other integrations.. that will wipe the smile off your face quick!! ### 5/5 — Excellent for Nest *2024-12-24, version 1.4.1* I bought it to integrate my nest thermostat to my homekit. It made it easier than to buy a new thermostat compatible with homekit. ### 5/5 — Best app and Device *2024-12-07, version 1.4.1* This is so far the best Google Nest bridge for HomeKit. All my accessories work great on the Apple ecosystem. The Starling team works so hard to make this device the best on the market. I wish I could rate them with more than just 5 stars. ### 5/5 — Starling not connecting to Apple HomeKit *2024-10-04, version 1.4.1* I was able to control my nest cameras, lights and others when I wasn’t home. Now after the last IOS update I cannot connect anymore. What’s going on??? ### 5/5 — Fantastic! *2024-09-12, version 1.4.1* It works great. So great that I have largely forgotten about it, and just use my Nest products seamlessly in HomeKit. ### 5/5 — Exceptional *2024-08-02, version 1.4.1* Works like a charm. Connects all Nest products seamlessly to work with Apple HomeKit. What these major corporations fail to do, these companies do and they have my gratitude. ### 5/5 — Amazing *2024-07-15, version 1.4.1* Starling continues to exceed my expectations especially with the new Google Home integration. ### 5/5 — An excellent app and product *2024-07-06, version 1.4.1* I have had exceptional support with this product but almost always it just works ### 4/5 — Useful but not the prettiest app. *2024-06-28, version 1.4.1* This app was written by a genius developer…and designed by a genius developer. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Can’t recommend unfortunately *2026-02-06, version 1.4.1* We’ve had this product and for a while. It worked great for a while. Now we have an error message us telling us to contact Starling support. Which we have done. With no response. While I understand there can be issues I’m less forgiving of a company doesn’t contact you back. Bummer, I’d suggest another solution other than Starting. ### 1/5 — Stopped working *2025-12-07, version 1.4.1* Stopped working ### 1/5 — No dark mode icon, no updates *2025-08-22, version 1.4.1* No dark mode icon, no updates ### 1/5 — Bad timing or common occurrence? *2024-11-28, version 1.4.1* I received my hub yesterday and proceeded to get it setup. Last night, I received the email and Starling having issues with staying connected to Google Home account. The whole reason I got the hub was to incorporate my Nest products into HomeKit. If only there were a way to downgrade since it isn’t being investigated on Thanksgiving weekend. ### 1/5 — DO NOT UPGRADE FIRMWARE if you have a Nest account *2024-11-02, version 1.4.1* I have been a longtime loyal user of Starling Home Hubs. I have 6 of them. And never have I experienced a problem like today. When the app opened, it asked me to do an upgrade, and I thoughtlessly confirmed. AFTER the upgrade installed, the app told me that NEST ACCOUNTS were no longer supported!!! OUTRAGEOUS. I was able to turn off automatic updates on all but one of the other Starling Hubs. I am VERY VERY UPSET about this. Without informing me in advance, starling updated and turned a $100 dollar box into a brick. And the app gave me an option to send an email asking for a downgrade, which I did. I have had no response and it’s been an hour already. I am so upset!!!!! And there is one starling hub that is at a vacation home 1600 miles away from here and I am unable to turn off automatic updates, so that hub will probably go offline soon, and there is nothing that I can do to stop it. This is the WORST KIND OF PROGRAMMING — and a TERRIBLE UPDATE. SHAME ON STARLING!!!! Until today, I had a very high opinion of starling, but this is a fatal error on their part. Starling has no phone number to reach anyone to resolve the problem that they caused, and apparently no way to prevent the automatic updates at a house that is 1600 miles away — I suppose that starling will force me to travel to that location to resolve the problem. This is VERY upsetting!!!! ### 1/5 — iOS 18 *2024-10-27, version 1.4.1* Dark mode icon please! ### 1/5 — Not working on spouses phone *2023-04-01, version 1.4* Only seems to work on one phone. I get notifications but cameras don’t work on my phone but work perfectly on my husbands phone ### 1/5 — Keeps crashing *2023-02-09, version 1.3* Just very frustrated that these Google speakers crash every time I play something on the HomePods. Great concept with poor real life experiences. ### 1/5 — Never finds my starling hub *2022-05-09, version 1.2* But when I use safari, it finds it immediately. ### 2/5 — Simple to set up hub; Complicated in HomeKit *2025-02-22, version 1.4.1* Feb 2025 update: Update has caused everything to be deleted despite a modal displayed after update was complete explaining that everything would remain connected. 2022: Setting up the Starling hub was super simple and very easy and fast. Setting up my nest, protect smoke detectors was also super simple, fast and easy in the nest app. Getting my Nest devices to show up in a controllable way inside the HomeKit app failed three times in a row (they showed up in HomeKit, but were displayed as “not responding”) … but I finally got it to work after 2 necessary factory resets, and the two more because I wanted to change the way they appeared in HomeKit. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Heartbroken *2026-08-23, version 1.4.1* Excellent company and it’s heartbreaking to read that they’re shutting their doors. Thank you guys, I really hope you can release something open source so it’s maintained for life. ### 5/5 — So powerful and easy to use *2026-05-14, version 1.4.1* The app and home hub are amazing. The hub itself is easy to setup with the app. The app makes it even easier to setup your home devices to easily talk to each other. Five stars ### 5/5 — Best Hub! *2026-03-23, version 1.4.1* I have used this for years and it works flawlessly. ### 5/5 — Highly Recommend *2026-02-15, version 1.4.1* Best way to incorporate Google Home with HomeKit. EXTREMELY EASY ### 5/5 — Buy this! *2026-02-07, version 1.4.1* Links everything Google/Nest with Apple Home flawlessly and easily. The best little box in the business. 100% reliable and constantly updated. Keeps getting better and better. ### 5/5 — OPEN SURVEILLANCE MARKETS FOR NEST CUSTOMERS! *2026-01-28, version 1.4.1* I am super excited I’ll soon get out of my google home premium subscription. I hate devices with apps that don’t deliver what the device promises. I get to “unlock” google’s fancy cam and pair it as I please! ### 5/5 — A godsend *2025-11-13, version 1.4.1* Why society permits the major providers of smart home technology to lock each other out is a mystery. Especially, when you consider that someone sets up their home with a broadly compatible platform like Nest that ends up being swallowed by one of the giants whose ecosystem is then forced upon them. Starling fixes this for apple home users. It’s rock solid doing its thing in the background 24/7 without fail at a nominal cost. Which is amazing. But also telling: those greedy behemoths could easily fix things if only they were half willing. ### 5/5 — Easy to use *2025-10-13, version 1.4.1* Quick and easy access, review, make changes e.g. firmware updates, restart hub, etc. on your iPhone to the Starling hub. Sad to see, the announcement that Starling will no longer sell their product to cost conditioned caused by Tariffs. Hopefully, Starling is rebranded since the hubs works with many other devices other than Google Nest. I'd pay a premium for the device, much like Hoobs and/or a reasonable annual fee. ### 5/5 — Best Purchase I’ve Made for My Home *2025-08-19, version 1.4.1* Starling Home Hub has been a fantastic product that I’ve now used for over a year and never had an issue with. Even when I added a second Home to Nest for my parents, I was able to get it all working with a second Starling Hub at the parents house and properly segregate everything so they only have access in HomeKit to their home Nest cameras. Hats off to the team for really putting a great product together and an app that allows for the proper customization for different scenarios. EDIT (Aug 2025): Recently my 2022 Starling Home Hub experienced a hub hardware failure and after reaching out to support I received a replacement that fixed the issue for free. This really has been the best purchase for my home as my wife has found having a Nest Doorbell attached to our HomeKit so helpful as she can check hear the chimes and check the camera through all our HomePods and Apple devices (TV, iPads, iPhone). Kudos to the team and the company for doing right on both product and support! ### 5/5 — Just works. *2025-07-23, version 1.4.1* Seamless and unobtrusive. Couldn’t ask for more from a bridge that links google home devices to Apple Home. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-02.*