Meet the new Hubitat Elevation C8 Smart Home Hub (2023)

March 19, 2023

The latest product from Hubitat, the Hubitat Elevation C-8 Smart Home Hub, was released in March of 2023 with significant improvements over the prior C-7 version (read our review of the Hubitat C-7).

The Hubitat Elevation C-8 has a similar form factor as it’s C-7 predecessor, but the C-8 features new external antennas for improved wireless range, built-in WiFi and Ethernet, upgraded Z-Wave Plus 800, and support for the latest Zigbee 3.0 protocol. Apple HomeKit users will be happy to hear that both the C-7 and C-8 Hubs have full HomeKit integrations and compatibility.

Compare the Hubitat C-7 and C-8 features:

Hubitat Elevation C-7 Hub (2021)	Hubitat Elevation C-8 Hub (2023)
Z-Wave Plus 700 Chip	Z-Wave Plus 800 Chip
Z-Wave Plus V2 Certified	Z-Wave Plus V2 Certified
S2 wireless security	S2 wireless security
Micro USB Power supply	USB-C Power supply
Ethernet port (optional add-on dongle for Wifi)	Built-in WiFi and Ethernet port
Internal wireless antennas	2x External Antennas
SmartStart device inclusion	SmartStart device inclusion
No subscription required	No subscription required
$120 on Amazon	$170 on Amazon

Migrating from C-7 to the New C-8 Hub

Hubitat has made it simple to migrate from the C-7 hub to the new Elevation C-8 Hub – no additional cost to use migration assistant. Follow these simple steps to migrate in about 5 minutes:

Before you plug in your C-8 hub, update your C-7 hub to the latest firmware
1. Settings > Check for Updates
Next, on your C-7 hub, create a FREE Cloud Backup
1. Settings > Backup and Restore > Cloud Backup for C8 Migration
After successful Cloud Backup, shut down your C7 hub
Plug in your C8 hub, connect to Ethernet, and allow 2-3 minutes to boot. Wait until the status LED turn green
In a browser connected to the same network as your C8 hub, navigate to http://go.hubitat.com/ and follow the steps
If you complete the guided steps but didn’t see the option to Restore from Backup, once you login to your C8 hub, go to Settings > Backup and Restore > View Restore Backups Only > click the icon under “Actions” to restore your new C8 hub with the settings from your C7 cloud backup. Be sure to check all the checkbox options prompted – yes, migrate Z-Wave radio, migrate Zigbee radio, delete existing files.
You’re done! Your C8 hub is now identical to your C7 hub. You may need to reboot the C8 to activate any custom network settings like Static IP or DNS Server Overrides

Hubitat Work with Most Major IoT Device Brands

The list of compatible devices for Hubitat hubs is extensive – but the folks at Hubitat maintain a comprehensive list of Hubitat-compatible devices you can reference before buying your next IoT device.

Some of the major brands that are natively compatible (meaning no special drivers needed) include: