Nest thermostat temperature modes

Depending on your system type and thermostat model, your Google Nest thermostat can have up to five available modes: Heat, Cool, Heat • Cool, Off and Eco. This article covers what each mode does and how to manually switch between them.

Adjust the temperature and mode on your thermostat

Important things to know:

• Your thermostat can automatically switch between modes, but you can also manually set the mode that you want.
• Both your thermostat and system behave differently, depending on what mode your thermostat is set to.
• Heat, Cool and Heat • Cool modes each have their own temperature schedule.

Switch to Heat, Cool, Heat • Cool or Off mode

Important: Heat, Cool and Heat • Cool modes each have their own temperature schedule. When you switch modes, your thermostat might turn your system on and off at different times, depending on the mode's schedule.

Home app

1. Open the Google Home app .
2. Tap Home   Climate   your thermostat.
3. Tap the temperature mode icon. The icon is different, depending on what mode your thermostat is currently in.
4. Choose the mode that you want to use.

Nest app

Note: The Nest app is only compatible with the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen or earlier).

1. On the home screen, select your thermostat.
2. Tap Mode .
3. Choose the mode that you want.

On the thermostat

	Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen): Set to Heat, Cool, Heat • Cool or Off mode Press the thermostat towards the wall to access the menu. Turn the dial to highlight Mode and press the thermostat towards the wall to select it. Turn the dial to highlight the mode that you want to set, and press the thermostat towards the wall to select it. If you set your thermostat to heat or cool, turn the dial to select your preferred temperature.
	Nest Thermostat: Set to Heat, Cool, Heat • Cool or Eco mode Tap the touch bar to access the menu. Slide your finger to Temperature mode, then tap to select. Slide your finger to the mode that you want, then tap to set it. Set to Off mode Press and hold the touch bar until 'Turn off' appears on the screen. Slide the touch bar to highlight Turn off tap the touch bar to select.
	Nest Thermostat E: Press the thermostat ring to display the Quick View menu. Turn the ring to the mode that you want, then press to select it.
	Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen or earlier): Press the thermostat ring to display the Quick View menu. Turn the ring to Mode and press to select. Turn the ring to choose a mode, then press to activate it. Press again to confirm.

Switch to Eco Temperatures

You can quickly switch your thermostat to Eco Temperatures much like you switch to other modes. Learn about Eco Temperatures and how to change settings.

Google Home app

	Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen): Open the Google Home app . Tap Home   Climate   your thermostat. Tap Hold Eco. Select the duration that Eco mode should stay active for, then tap Start hold. Your thermostat display shows 'Eco Hold' on the screen when this mode is active.
	Nest Thermostat: Open the Google Home app . Tap Home   Climate   your thermostat. Tap Temperature preset   Eco.
	Nest Thermostat E or Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen or earlier): Open the Google Home app . Tap Home   Climate   your thermostat. Tap the temperature mode icon on the lower left. The icon changes depending on which mode your thermostat is currently in. Tap Eco.

Nest app

Note: The Nest app is only compatible with the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen or earlier).

1. On the home screen, select your thermostat.
2. Select Eco .
3. Tap Start Eco. If you have more than one thermostat, select whether you want to start Eco Temperatures only on the thermostat that you’ve chosen or all thermostats.

On the thermostat

Note: You can switch to Eco directly on the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat only. The Nest Thermostat doesn't have Eco mode. Instead, you can use the Eco preset in the Home app as your Nest Thermostat heats or cools your home.

Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen)

1. Press the thermostat display towards the wall to access the menu.
2. Rotate the dial to highlight Eco and press the thermostat towards the wall to select it.
3. Press the thermostat towards the wall to confirm your selection.

Note: If you turn on Eco hold, it overrides your other scheduled temps until the hold ends.

To end an Eco hold:

1. Press the thermostat display towards the wall to access the menu.
2. Rotate the dial to highlight Eco and press the thermostat towards the wall to select it.
3. Press the thermostat towards the wall to confirm that you want to turn off Eco Hold.

Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen or earlier) and Nest Thermostat E

1. Press the thermostat ring to display the Quick View menu.
2. Turn to Eco and press to select.
3. Select Start Eco.

Note: If your thermostat is already set to Eco, select Stop Eco and your thermostat returns to its regular temperature schedule.

What each mode does

Important things to know

• Your thermostat can automatically switch between modes, but you can manually set the mode that you want too.
• Both your thermostat and system behave differently depending on what mode your thermostat is set to.
• You may not find all five modes in the app or on your thermostat. For instance, if your home only has a heating system, you won't find Cool or Heat • Cool.

Home app	Nest app
Heat
		Your system only heats your home. It won't start cooling unless your safety temperatures are reached. Your thermostat starts heating to try to maintain any scheduled temperatures or a temperature that you've manually selected.
Cool
		Your system only cools your home. It won't start heating unless your safety temperatures are reached. Your thermostat starts cooling to try to maintain any scheduled temperatures or a temperature that you've manually selected.
Heat • Cool
		Your system either heats or cools to try to keep your home within the temperature range that you've manually set. Your thermostat automatically switches your system between heating and cooling as needed to meet any scheduled temperatures or a temperature that you've manually selected. This mode is useful for climates that consistently require both heating and cooling on the same day. For example, you might need this mode if you live in a desert climate and require cooling during the day and heating at night.
Off
		When your thermostat is set to Off, it’ll only heat or cool to try to maintain your safety temperatures. All other heating, cooling and fan control are disabled. Your system won’t turn on to meet any scheduled temperatures, and you won’t be able to manually change the temperature until you switch your thermostat to another mode. Learn more about off mode
Eco
		Your system either heats or cools to try to keep your home within the Eco Temperatures range. Only the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat have Eco mode. For the Nest Thermostat, use the Eco preset to quickly adjust to energy-saving temperatures manually or in its temperature schedule. Refer to the Eco Temperatures section to learn more. The high and low Eco Temperatures are set during thermostat installation, but you can change them at any time.
Preset
		For Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen) and Nest Thermostat, you can quickly switch to your custom temperature presets: Comfort, Eco, Sleep or your custom presets. To adjust your preset temperatures, go to Thermostat settings Temperature preferences Temperature presets.

Note: Heat, Cool and Heat • Cool modes each have their own temperature schedule. If you want to make changes to the schedule, make sure that you choose the right one.

How Eco Temperatures work

For the Nest Thermostat, use the Eco preset to quickly adjust to energy-saving temperatures manually or in its temperature schedule.

• When you set the Eco preset manually, it'll be overridden by the next temperature set in the schedule.
• If you want to use Eco Temperatures for longer without changing the temperature schedule, hold the Eco preset temperature.

For the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat, switch to Eco the same way as other temperature modes. However, there are some key differences in how your thermostat behaves in Eco compared to other modes:

• When you manually switch to Eco, your thermostat ignores all scheduled temperatures until you manually switch it back to heating or cooling.
• If your thermostat switched to Eco Temperature automatically because everyone was away, it'll switch back to your normal temperatures when someone comes home.

Learn about Eco Temperatures and how to change settings.

Advanced configuration settings

To stop your system from switching on and off too much, the thermostat sets a minimum amount of time that the system remains off between cycles. It also sets a minimum amount of time that the compressor and heater stay on during a cycle. To change these durations, go to the advanced configuration settings.

1. Open the Home app .
2. Tap Home   Climate   your thermostat.
3. Tap Settings Thermostat.
4. Tap Advanced configuration.
5. From this screen, you can adjust the following:
   • Compressor lockout time: Minimum time between cycles.
   • Minimum compressor on time: Minimum duration for a compressor heat or cool cycle.
   • Minimum heat on time: Minimum duration for a conventional heat cycle.
6. Select your desired settings and tap Back to save your changes.