In the field of smart home, competition in protocol standards has always been the focus of the industry.
From the early ZigBee protocol to today’s Matter standard, the smart home industry is undergoing a profound change.
1. ZigBee: The “Cornerstone” of Smart Home
The ZigBee protocol is a low-power, short-distance wireless communication technology. Since its birth in 2004, it has become one of the mainstream protocols in the smart home field.
It is like the “cornerstone” of smart home, providing stable and reliable technical support for device interconnection.
The technical advantages are obvious.
The ZigBee protocol has the advantages of low power consumption, self-organizing network, and high reliability.
Its standby power consumption is extremely low, and a button battery can support the operation of the device for several years; using Mesh network topology, each device can be used as a signal repeater to expand network coverage; in complex electromagnetic environments, ZigBee can still maintain a high message delivery rate.
Wide range of application scenarios.
In the field of smart home, ZigBee protocol is widely used in smart light bulbs, motion sensors, door and window sensors, smart switches and other devices.
These devices are interconnected through the ZigBee network, providing users with a convenient smart home experience.
In the industrial field, the ZigBee protocol is also widely used.
CATL’s lithium battery factory reduced downtime by 52% by deploying 1,274 ZigBee detection nodes.
2. Matter: the “unified language” of smart home
With the rapid development of the smart home market, compatibility issues between devices of different brands have become increasingly prominent.
In order to solve this problem, technology giants such as Apple, Google, and Amazon jointly launched the Matter protocol.
Cross-brand compatibility is the core.
The Matter protocol is based on IPv6 and can run on multiple technologies such as Wi-Fi, Thread, and Bluetooth low energy.
Regardless of whether the user is using an Apple, Google or Samsung device, as long as it supports the Matter protocol, seamless interconnection can be achieved.
Security and ease of use are both important.
Matter protocol uses end-to-end encryption technology to ensure the security of user data.
At the same time, Matter also supports security mechanisms such as device identity authentication and certificate chain management to prevent devices from being illegally invaded.
In terms of ease of use, the Matter protocol supports NFC “bumping connection” and batch scanning and pairing of multiple devices. Users can complete device configuration in just a few simple steps.
In addition, Matter also supports voice control, remote control and other functions, making users’ smart home experience more convenient.
Current market application.
As of the end of 2025, there are more than 3,000 smart home device models supporting the Matter protocol globally, a 4-fold increase from 2023, covering all categories such as lighting, security, and kitchen appliances.
Domestic enterprises have actively followed up. Lihewei launched the world’s first Matter-certified PLC Bridge solution to achieve cross-brand interconnection of “communication with power”; Shanghai Keeyis Lighting’s gateway passed Matter certification, opening up seamless integration with Apple, Samsung and other ecosystems.
3. Coordinated development of ZigBee and Matter
Although the Matter protocol has many advantages, the ZigBee protocol will not be eliminated because of this.
On the contrary, the two can achieve coordinated development and provide users with more complete smart home solutions.
The complementary advantages are significant.
The low power consumption and self-organizing network capabilities of the ZigBee protocol make it very suitable for use in scenarios such as sensor networks; while the cross-brand compatibility advantage of the Matter protocol enables the interconnection of different ecosystems.
Through bridging devices, ZigBee devices can be connected to the Matter ecosystem to protect users’ existing investments.
Future trend outlook.
As the Matter protocol continues to develop and improve, its share in the smart home market will continue to expand.
At the same time, the ZigBee protocol will continue to play an important role in sensor networks, industrial automation and other fields.
The coordinated development of the two will push the smart home industry into a new stage of development.
4. Opportunities and challenges in the Chinese market
The market size is growing rapidly.
In recent years, China’s smart home market has developed rapidly and the market size has continued to expand.
According to relevant data, China’s smart home market will exceed 850 billion yuan in 2025, with an increasing proportion of devices supporting the Matter protocol.
The rise of local companies.
Chinese local companies occupy an important position in the Matter ecosystem, and about two-thirds of Matter-certified equipment comes from China.
Huawei, Xiaomi, Haier and other companies actively participate in the formulation and application of Matter standards to promote the development of China’s smart home market.
Policy support is strong.
The country has issued a series of policies to support the development of the smart home industry, such as the “14th Five-Year Plan for Digital Economic Development” and the “Three-Year Action Plan for the Construction of New Infrastructure for the Internet of Things”, etc., which provide a good policy environment for the application of ZigBee and Matter protocols.
Conclusion: ZigBee and Matter protocols represent different development stages in the smart home field.
The ZigBee protocol laid the foundation for the popularization of smart homes, while the Matter protocol pushed smart homes into a new era of interconnection.
As consumers, we can choose products that support different protocols according to our own needs; and as enterprises, only by actively embracing standards and promoting technological innovation can we remain invincible in the fierce market competition.
