Which hardware to run Home Assistant on?
Will it be an N100, Raspberry Pi, HP T630 thin client, or anything else…
Introduction
Maybe you have one or more vendor-locked hubs with their own smart sensors, and each hub has its own app. And ALL your data is stored in the big guys’ cloud. And there is no way to let them work nicely together or combine them in one app.
“Home automations with Home Assistant” you heard about it, you read about it, and it all sounds like the holy grail! You’ve made the choice to dive into the rabbit hole called “Home Assistant” (aka HA).
Or if you’re already running Home Assistant on a Raspberry Pi, but it will now become a bit slower, and you want to upgrade to something more powerful but don’t want to spend a fortune on it. Then you’re here at the right place to find out which hardware could be the best for you.
I started also with a Raspberry 4 and worked for year very well with a large network but if you also want to do more power-consuming processing, like local camera processing, you need something bigger.
Then comes the question: On which hardware should I run it? It can be installed on a whole range of hardware: like a Mini PC, Home Assistant Green, Raspberry Pi, old laptop/desktop, thin client, etc…
I split it up into two sections: new hardware, and older hardware, because refurbished PCs can also be powerful enough! I explain on this page which one of these systems fits the best for your situation and what the differences between the hardware are.
I don’t mention ALL possible options here, just in my opinion, the most popular ones.
In the hardware tables, I added the row CPU benchmark. This is a raw multi-thread CPU speed indicator that gives you an indication of how it performs compared to other hardware. Know that the total performance also depends on the speed of the memory and hard disk etc.!
After reading this page, if you still have questions about the choice you need to make, don’t contact me personally, but use the social media channels or forums. There are also a lot of other smart and experienced people who can help you further.
There are also links on this page which are affiliate links, you pay the same price, AND you support this blog.
Table of Contents
Terminology
First, I want to explain some terms that are used here, and frequently used in discussions about this topic.
| Term | Explanation |
|---|---|
| 12th Gen | The version of Intel Core processors. The name for it is ‘Alder Lake’ and is used in the popular N100 mini PCs. |
| Bare metal | It refers to a physical computer system running without (an operating system or) virtualization layer (like Docker, Proxmox), directly utilizing the hardware. |
| Beelink | It’s a brand which makes Mini PCs |
| Docker | It is an application that lets you package a fully configured app in a single file and run it directly on a machine by only configuring some (optional) parameters. |
| Form factor | A common design for a PC group. |
| HA | Abbreviation for Home Assistant |
| HAOS | Abbreviation for Home Assistant Operating System |
| Home lab | It’s another name for a PC used as a server in your home, running (home automation) applications 24/7. |
| Mini PC | This refers to the size of popular small PC cases. |
| NAS | Abbreviation for Network-Attached Storage, a network computer which can contain multiple hard disks that can be accessed by all devices in the network. |
| NUC | Abbreviation for Next Unit of Computing, a small (4”x4”) but complete desktop PC series, originally from Intel and now taken over by Asus. |
| N100 | It’s a popular, low power consuming, but powerful Intel processor number, mostly used in mini PCs. Others N-series processors are N95, N150, N200, N305. |
| Proxmox | Is a Debian Linux Operating System where applications can be ‘installed’ via virtual machines and (Docker) containers. |
| Synology | A brand name which makes NAS computers. |
| T630/T620 | A small, compact and energy-efficient thin client PC model (like a NUC) by HP. A cheap, second-hand opportunity to run HA on. |
| Thin client | An energy-efficient PC with just enough power to connect to a central system where the heavy tasks run. |
| Virtual machine | Also known as VM, is a software-based simulation of a physical computer that runs on top of another operating system. |
New hardware
If you always want the best experience with Home Assistant, you’d better choose new hardware. If you want to run it for the upcoming years without any performance issues and want to try new (machine learning) features, then you’d better choose a new powerful device. Nothing is so frustrating as automations that react slowly.
The currently most popular hardware to run Home Assistant on is an all-in-one mini PC.
Target group: If you want to run Home Assistant (and more) on a brand new and fast device.
All-in-one mini PCs
It’s a kind of mini desktop PC with laptop components and features.
Intel started with the all-in-one NUC mini PCs.
They have a small nice-looking and silent square form factor which you also can place ON your desk.
They contain all required hardware in it and with many external ports (USB, network, display).
After this success, many other manufacturers followed with their own versions of this form factor.
They have enough power to run Home Assistant, together with a lot of other applications.
Without having to worry about latency or any other performance issues for the best experience.
Target group: More advanced and demanding users
Basic
As of 2025, the most popular entry-level hardware for Home Assistant is a mini PC with an N100 processor. This option offers more than enough power to run Home Assistant smoothly, along with several add-ons, making it the best value for your money.
The N95 and N97 models deliver similar performance, while the newer N150 features a higher turbo clock speed, providing even greater speed. If you want higher performance, it may be worth spending a bit more on the N150.
Prices for these models can fluctuate based on supply and demand, so I’ve included links to help you compare current offers.
| Model | N150 | N100 | N97 | N95 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | EQ 14 | Mini S12 Pro | G5 | Mini S12 |
| Brand | Beelink | Beelink | GMKtec | Beelink |
| Processor | 14th Gen Twin Lake Intel-N150 | 12th Gen Alder Lake Intel-N100 | 12th Gen Intel Alder Lake-N97 | 12th Gen Intel Alder Lake-N95 |
| CPU benchmark | 5.542 | 5.407 | 5.643 | 5.358 |
| CPU basic | 0.8 GHz | 0.7 GHz | - | 1.7 GHz |
| CPU Turbo | 3.6 GHz | 3.4 GHz | 3.6 GHz | 3.4 GHz |
| Memory | 16 GB | 16 GB | 12 GB | 8 GB |
| Hard disk | 512 GB | 500 GB | 512 GB | 256 GB |
| Cores / Threads | 4 / 4 | 4 / 4 | 4 / 4 | 4 / 4 |
| Price indication | € 170 - 500 | € 300 - 450 | € 500 | € 200 |
| AliExpress | AliExpress / 2* | - | - | N/A |
| Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
| Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL |
| Beelink | Beelink | n/a | n/a | n/a |
* Make sure you select the right product and check the shipping costs; these can sometimes be high to keep the product price low!
High end
If you want to run heavy processes, like local machine learning functionality on the server, you’d better choose a high-end
model with more memory, a faster CPU, GPU and more cores.
| Model | SER9 | 185H | 12650H |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photo |  |
 |
 |
| Model | SER9 Pro AI | GTi14 AI | EQi12 |
| Brand | Beelink | Beelink | Beelink |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 9 HX 370 | Intel Core Ultra 9 185H | Intel Core i7-12650H |
| CPU benchmark | 35.215 | 29.430 | 22.161 |
| CPU | 5.1 GHz | 5.1 GHz | 4.7 GHz |
| GPU | AMD Radeon 890M | Intel Arc graphics 2.35 GHz | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Memory | 32 GB (also with 64 GB) | 32 GB (also with 64, 96 GB) | 24 GB |
| Hard disk | 1024 GB (also with 2 TB) | 1024 GB (also with 2 TB) | 512 GB |
| Cores / Threads | 12 / 24 | 16 / 22 | 10 / 16 |
| Price indication | € 1200 - 2700 | € 900 - 2000 | € 500 - 800 |
| AliExpress | - | N/A | N/A |
| Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
| Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL |
| Beelink | Beelink | Beelink | Beelink |
Home Assistant Green
Nabu Casa, the company behind Home Assistant, provides an official hardware device to run Home Assistant on: the Home Assistant Green. The Green is the all-in-one entry-level device.
The Home Assistant Yellow is not in production anymore.
| Home Assistant Green | |
|---|---|
| Photo |  |
| Website | https://www.home-assistant.io/green/ |
| Brand | Nabu Casa |
| Operating system | Home Assistant Operating System |
| Processor | 1.8 GHz Quad core Rockchip RK3566 Arm Cortex-A55 CPU |
| CPU benchmark | 798 |
| Working memory (RAM) | 4 GB |
| Hard disk | 32 GB external flash drive |
| Local protocols | Only WiFi |
| Power consumption on load | 3 W |
| Target group | beginner |
| Price range | $ 99 / € 110 |
| Pros | * Cheap * Plug-and-play |
| Cons | By default no Zigbee or Matter support, extra stick needed. Slow hard disk. |
| Buy links | NL US |
Raspberry Pi
The Raspberry Pi models were for a long time very popular to run Home Assistant on, because of the all-in-one board, low energy consumption and cost-efficiency.
Nowadays, they are less popular due to new all-in-one mini PCs like the N100 which are in the same price range. They are more powerful (check the CPU benchmark stats!) and have all required components (like memory and storage) already built in.
See this Facebook poll for how popular mini PCs are. Click on the image to go to the original post:
Check the Raspberry Pi website for even more details about the boards if you want to know more about them.
Be aware that the price here is without a hard disk, power supply and a case!
| Raspberry Pi 5 - 8 GB | Raspberry Pi 4B - 8 GB | Raspberry Pi 3B+ - 1 GB | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photo |  |
 |
 |
| Model | Pi 5 | Pi 4B | Pi 3B+ |
| Releases | 10 - 2023 | 05 - 2020 | 03 - 2018 |
| Remarks | Latest model | A very good device to run HA | Multiple upgrades: A+, B, B+ |
| Performance remarks | About 1.5x faster than the Pi 3 | Less resources, only 1 GB mem | |
| Processor | Cortex-A76 ARM quad-core | Cortex-A72 (ARM v8) quad-core | Cortex-A53 quad-core |
| CPU benchmark | 3.118 | 1.071 | 739 |
| Working memory (RAM) | 8 GB (also available in 2, 4, 16 GB) |
8 GB (also available in 2, 4 GB) |
1 GB |
| CPU | 2.4 GHz | 1.5 GHz | 1.4 GHz |
| Cores / Threads | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Power consumption idle / load | 3 W / 6 W | 3 W / 6 W | 2 W / 5 W |
| Price range | € 60 - 110 | € 90 | € 45 |
| AliExpress | AliExpress | AliExpress | AliExpress |
| Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
| Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL | Amazon NL |
Older hardware
Target group: If you still have some unused hardware available. Or buy it inexpensively second-hand if you want to find out whether this is something for you.
Make sure the hardware has at least 8 GB RAM and 64 GB SSD hard disk space to install Home Assistant on and have enough space for related applications as well.
Computer stores or online sites, like eBay, sell refurbished computers. Mostly they get them in bulk from companies. They clean them, upgrade the memory and/or hard disk and sell them. These computers aren’t the newest but have enough power and with the small upgrade can run for another few years without any problem. This is an affordable way to buy/upgrade hardware to test HA on.
Desktop
If you still have a desktop PC lying around, you can use it to run Home Assistant on.
The advantage is that you can easily upgrade hardware elements like memory, processor or extra video card power if needed.
The disadvantage is they use more power than a laptop or mini PC.
Laptop
A spare laptop can also be used as a server to run Home Assistant on.
The advantage is it’s energy-efficient and compact.
The disadvantage can be the battery being constantly on power or needing to charge daily. Some laptops also run without a battery, which is the best solution.
Thin client
A thin client is compact, energy-efficient, silent and not expensive.
HP has the T630 or T620 which are often mentioned as good hardware. Dell also has thin clients: the Wyse 5060 or 7020.
They were used in offices and are now widely available on second-hand sites like eBay. Even with HA already installed on it.
NAS
A NAS, is a Network-Attached Storage mostly used as shared network storage,
but there are models that have enough power to also install your own Docker applications, like Home Assistant, on.
A Synology or QNAP NAS is an example of that.
Need help?
If you need help in your choice, use these social media communities or forums. There are also many other people who can help you further.
- Home Assistant forum
- Reddit - Home Assistant
- Reddit - MiniPCs
- Facebook - Home Assistant worldwide
- Facebook - Home Assistant Dutch
- Discord Chat Server
Remarks
I hope this page helps you to choose the best hardware for you to run Home Assistant on.
Do you have any other remarks, suggestions, spelling errors found after reading this page? Please let me know, you can reach me in one of my social media posts or create a GitHub issue.
Related articles
Why Zigbee is my protocol of choice for a smart home network.
The dongle that connects all your Zigbee devices to Home Assistant.
The Zigbee sensors and actuators I use and recommend for your smart home.
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