Home security devices can take many forms, and a layered approach to keeping your house safe from unwanted intruders is absolutely the best bet, but a great first line of defence is to install security cameras.
Modern camera technology means you can not only monitor comings and goings, but you can be alerted if someone approaches or loiters, and your footage could even help with police investigations if a crime happens nearby.
And the best bit? WiFi enabled cameras have become very inexpensive in recent years. There's no longer a need to have a complex CCTV system installed. There's a lot to be said for a cheap camera sat in a window overlooking your outside space, monitoring your surroundings all day, every day.
From the bargain buys to the best in the business, we've rounded up a bumper selection of some of the best options on the market right now.
Best home security cameras 2023
1. TP-Link Tapo C100 Smart Wi-Fi Indoor Security Camera
Let's start with a bargain. TP-Link is a great manufacturer of household smart tech, and its cameras are hard to beat for the price.
The entry-level C100 packs in 1080p recording, two-way audio, Google and Alexa compatibility, and night vision. All for less than £20 if you can catch the current deals. It's usually £25.
Place one in a window and you'll be able to look out during the daytime on your driveway, or hook one up in your hallway and you'll be able to monitor your visitors.
It has SD card support, so there's no need to pay for subscriptions, and the Tapo app is very easy to use, allowing you to modify the alerts, or set up activity zones.
It's a marvellously inexpensive way of keeping a watchful eye.
2. Blink Mini Indoor plug-in smart security camera
Amazon's Blink range of cameras do a top job of keeping watch on your interior spaces, and there's quite a wide range of devices available under the brand, depending on whether you want an indoor or outdoor camera.
But the small and simple Blink Mini costs just £29.99 and ticks plenty of boxes. It has 1080p recording, customisable detection modes, night vision and two-way audio.
It's at its best when hooked up to an Alexa setup in your home, and you will need to sign up to a cloud service to save recordings - but the Blink Home Monitor app is free, and it's easy to set up.
Alexa integration is flawless, and we like the cute and compact styling. The Blink Mini is a minimalist's dream.
3. Imou Rex 3D 2K Indoor Pan Tilt Zoom Smart Security Camera
Imou's latest launch packs in a lot of features for a very tempting price. The Rex 3D's 3mp camera can deliver 2K recording, smart human and pet detection, and a 355-degree pan and 90-degree tilt capability.
It's very much an indoor camera, but there's a built-in spotlight and siren, and a built-in privacy mode for when you're at home and you don't need to be monitored.
Image quality is very good, especially given its keen price, and we particularly like the smart tracking function that enables the camera to follow a subject around the room when it detects motion.
As is often the case, to get the best out of it, you'd need to sign up for a cloud subscription, but the Imou Protect service is very comprehensive and even includes a security report.
Two-way communication, alarm-zone setups and sound detection complete the extensive feature set for this fab little camera.
4. Netatmo Smart Indoor Camera
Exquisite design isn't something we normally look for in a security camera. But it's important to some people, so Netatmo has it covered. Its latest indoor camera is gorgeous.
It doesn't really look like a camera, and that's no bad thing, but it does have plenty of premium features to justify its premium price.
For starters, it has one of the cleverest face-recognition systems we've used. This can be set up to instantly pick out your friends and family members, and you can tailor alerts. So your postman, for example, can ask you for a signature without triggering an alert, but if someone waltzes in that the camera doesn't recognise, you'll be informed straight away.
It has SD support, or you can link it up to a variety of cloud services, the app works really well, and you don't need any sort of subscription.
It integrates well with all your smart home devices, and the image quality is very good. Perhaps not the best on the market, but given how gloriously discreet the camera is, it's not really a problem.
Buy now from Amazon (£145), was £199.99
5. SwitchBot Outdoor Spotlight Cam
The first of our outdoor security cameras is one of our absolute favourites, if for no other reason than its sheer versatility.
Its uniquely spherical shape means it's a doddle to mount, or it can just sit on a windowsill or outside ledge.
The built-in battery goes on for weeks, and the image quality from its 1080p, night-vision-enabled sensor is superb.
SwitchBot offers a subscription service for cloud storage, but you could always use a MicroSD card, and this would give you up to 256gb of on-board storage.
It brings with it the full suite of usual features, too. There's motion detection, AI human and pet detection, and two-way communication.
Hook it up to one of SwitchBot's solar panels, and you might never need to charge it, either. It's a device that makes home security monitoring simple, and we love it for that.
6. Eufy S220 SoloCam
This new launch by Eufy could be all the camera you'll ever need. It's a traditionally-shaped camera, but very compact and it has a built-in solar panel. This means no wiring, no battery charging, and nothing to interrupt your round-the-clock security monitoring.
We've been using one for a few months now, and even on cloudy days, the battery stays strong. Eufy says it only needs an average of three hours of sunlight every day, which even us Brits should manage.
You can also expect Eufy's typical high-quality footage from its 2K sensor, and the alert system is driven by AI, so it can pick out familiar faces, distinguish pets from people, or alert you to strangers approaching.
The Eufy app is superb, it mounts to a wall with only one screw hole and it's compatible with voice assistants.
The best bit though is there's no monthly subscriptions required. Eufy stores everything for you.
To get the best out of its features, you will need Eufy's Homebase 3, which is an additional cost, but as a standalone camera is does a great job.
7. EZVIZ EB3 2K Standalone Smart Home Battery Camera
Affordable, smart and simple. That's the best way to sum up EZVIZ's compact new EB3. Packing 2K clarity into a neat bullet-style camera that mounts to a wall, the EB3 delivers superb quality video and decent sound quality.
It also has motion-sensing spotlights mounted in it, which is handy for driveways or steps, and the motion sensors can do everything from picking between types of moving objects, to setting off a defense siren with flashing lights.
Storage of your footage is either through an SD Card or by signing up to EZVIZ's cloud system, and you could also hook it up to an external solar panel, to help the battery along.
EZVIZ makes sure access to the video footage is secure by insisting on a password or biometric every time you log in, but it does link up to smart home products like Google and Alexa.
The accompanying app can be set up to give smart notifications, and you can pre-record voice messages while you're away to deter unwanted intruders. It's a great little device for those looking for something subtle but capable.
8. Ring Video Doorbell (2nd Gen)
The first of our video doorbells to feature in this line-up is one of the best-selling devices on the market, the Ring Video Doorbell. The second generation brings a series of enhancements, but the most important upgrade is in its battery.
With the first generation wireless Ring doorbell you'd need to charge it by removing it from the wall (assuming you hadn't hard-wired it for a trickle-charge) but with the new version there's a removable battery.
It also now sports 1080p definition, bringing it bang up to date with its competitors.
Out of the box, the doorbell itself will send alerts to your phone if someone approaches or rings the bell, but it's well worth adding a Ring Chime, which plugs into the wall and will send out a loud alert when the button is pressed.
Either way, it'll link up to Amazon's Show devices, which is handy, and you can also use the two-way talk function.
To do much more than that, you'll need a subscription, but they're not expensive compared to some and there is a month's free trial on offer.
It's one of the best-sellers for a reason, the Ring Video Doorbell has always performed consistently well in testing, and the new generation just makes it even better.
9. Eufy S330 Video Doorbell
Quite frankly, this is the best doorbell we've tested. It's a smart-looking thing, and boasts a feature that has yet to be copied in the mainstream - a second camera.
This downward-facing camera points at your doorstep, and AI cuts in if a package is left, to keep a constant watch on it. So if you're out and a courier drops off a parcel, you'll be notified as soon as anyone else comes near it or picks it up.
The Eufy Security app aggregates the footage from both of these cameras and can display them simultaneously, so you've got one of the best fields of view from its live feed.
The cameras give crisp, 2K video footage and you can set up motion zones and smart detection alerts from within the app very easily.
Eufy's security products are best when the device is paired with a Homebase, and this will also act as an internal chime - and it's included in the package.
The main benefit you'll receive though is you'll be given access to Eufy's free cloud storage. Yes, that's right, no monthly fees.
Pair this up with a Eufy camera like the 220 SoloCam above and you've got the perfect security package.
10. Imou 2K Wireless Battery Video Doorbell and Chime
Why not end on a bargain? Imou's new DB60 bundles in AI recognition, a 164-degree fisheye lens, 5MP 2K camera, an included plug-in chime, and a rolling 30 days of storage all for just over £100.
Its smart-looking, waterproof casing is completely wire-free, hosting a 6200mAh rechargeable battery, and the app makes it easy to access your footage, communicate with visitors, and set everything up.
We did find the chime needs to be quite close to the doorbell, but once up and running everything worked brilliantly.
It even has a smart night light built in, which helps to pick out faces in the dark, and it integrates well with Alexa and Google.
To have so much bundled in to the package at this price point makes the DB60 a very tempting proposition indeed.
