Comparison

Mysa vs Defender Empower

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Mysa

Control your home's heating and cooling remotely, set schedules, and monitor energy usage to save money and energy. Integrates with smart home platforms for seamless control.

Highlights
  • Remote access from anywhere
  • Customizable heating/cooling schedules
  • Geofencing for occupancy detection
  • Energy usage monitoring
  • Smart home platform integration
  • Shared access control
  • Vacation mode
Features
Read full description

With Mysa's regularly-updated, feature-packed mobile app, you get seriously smart control and home energy savings — all you need is a WiFi connection. Remote access from anywhere via the Mysa app means you can easily set heating or cooling schedules, use geofencing, see your heating and cooling usage, and much more. Stay energy-efficient and save money (and the planet!) with a few simple taps from your smartphone or tablet. Mysa works with your favourite smart home platforms and home assistants, so you stay conveniently connected and in control. Compatibility: Mysa for Electric Baseboard Heaters works with high voltage baseboard, convector (short cycle), fan-forced convector (long cycle), and radiant ceiling heating systems. Mysa for Electric In-Floor Heating works with most high voltage electric in-floor heating systems and flooring types. Mysa for Air Conditioners replaces remotes with displays for most ductless mini-split heat pump, window, or portable air conditioners. Energy-Saving App Features: Remote Control: Get out there. Use your smartphone or tablet to control your home heating or cooling from wherever you are. Scheduling: Life's busy. Create the flexible heating or cooling schedule that works best for you in less than a minute. Bye-bye, buttons! Geolocation: Boundaries are important. Mysa uses your location to detect if anyone is home, so that you're not paying to heat or cool an empty house. Shared Access: Teamwork works. Share access to your account easily so others can control your Mysas through the Mysa app. Vacation Mode: Take a well-deserved break. Away from home for a while? No worries! Mysa will keep helping you save energy while you're away. Energy Insights (Baseboard, In-Floor, AC): Track and monitor your humidity, setpoint, and temperature to create efficient heating or cooling schedules. Energy Spending (Baseboard & In-Floor): See your spending. Track your real-time energy use in kWh cost to find ways to reduce your electricity bill. Energy Runtime (AC): Get cool insights. Know your AC's runtime history and use it for help with making smart decisions about your cooling or heating schedules.

About

Defender Empower

Stay connected with your home or business from anywhere. This app allows you to view live feeds, review recorded footage, and receive instant motion detection alerts. You can also easily share important clips and customize recording schedules.

Highlights
  • Live video streaming
  • Recorded footage playback
  • Motion detection alerts
  • Footage sharing
  • Customizable recording schedules
Features
Read full description

Join the community of families and businesses that choose Defender to stay connected, anywhere, anytime. With the Defender Empower App: - LIVE: Check-in on what’s happening, anytime - PLAYBACK: Easily watch recorded footage - NOTIFICATIONS: Receive instant alerts when motion is detected - SHARE: Save and share footage, whether it’s funny or suspicious - SCHEDULE: Customize your recording schedule to fit your lifestyle and needs

Screenshots

Mysa4 screens
Defender Empower3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Defender Empower at 4.6 against Mysa's 3.8. Defender Empower also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and review sentiment (40% vs 30%). Mysa's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 7 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Defender Empower holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 575 and 1.8K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of Mysa's written reviews are positive against 40% of Defender Empower's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mysa ships an update every 4 weeks, Defender Empower every 7 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Mysa versus Defender Empower: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMysaDefender Empower
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (575 ratings)4.6 (1.8K ratings) — better
Positive reviews30.0% of reviews39.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings5751.8K — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeks — betterEvery 7 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.113.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size58 MB186 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEmpowered Homes Inc.Empowerment Technologies Inc.

Customer experience

Mysa

All ratings574 ratings
Positive66.4%
Neutral8.4%
Negative25.3%
Written reviews227 reviews
Positive30.0%
Neutral18.5%
Negative51.5%

Defender Empower

All ratings1,679 ratings
Positive90.9%
Neutral2.6%
Negative6.6%
Written reviews111 reviews
Positive39.6%
Neutral8.1%
Negative52.3%

User reviews

Mysa

From 575 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great product
  • 🚀 Excellent thermostats
  • 🚀 Allows more metrics than Nest
  • 🚀 Excellent HomeKit integration
  • 👍 Easy to use

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy app
  • 🐛 Crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Unreliable connectivity
  • 🐛 Inconsistent user experience
  • 🔋 Drains battery

Defender Empower

From 1.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great camera quality
  • 🔒 Reliable security system
  • 👍 Easy to set up and use
  • 👍 Useful app features

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent app crashes
  • 🔋 Battery life issues
  • 👎 Poor customer service
  • 👎 Unreliable camera connectivity
  • 👎 Difficult to navigate app

Bugs and requests

Mysa

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes when changing schedules
  • Thermostat settings not syncing properly
  • Geofencing not working as expected
  • Incompatibility with newer iOS versions
  • Inability to add new devices

Requested features

6 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Brightness control scheduling
  • Improved HomeKit integration
  • Ability to disable display
  • Geofencing improvements
Show 1 more
  • More scheduling flexibility

Defender Empower

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Cameras randomly going offline
  • App not showing all camera feeds
  • Playback not working as expected
  • Notifications not triggering consistently

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add two-way audio capability
  • Improve playback and recording functionality
  • Provide PC/desktop app support
  • Enhance motion detection and alerts

In-app purchases

None

Mysa

No in-app purchases

None

Defender Empower

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Mysa free?
Mysa is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Defender Empower free?
Defender Empower is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Mysa or Defender Empower?
Defender Empower is rated higher. Mysa averages 3.8 out of 5 from 575 ratings, while Defender Empower averages 4.6 from 1.8K ratings.
Do Mysa or Defender Empower have ads?
Neither Mysa nor Defender Empower shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mysa or Defender Empower?
Mysa ships an update every 4 weeks, and Defender Empower every 7 months. Most recently, Mysa was updated on October 24, 2026 and Defender Empower on October 24, 2026.

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