I've been waiting for IKEA to nail the smart home hub game, and the DIRIGERA finally gets it right. At around $60, it's the cheapest Matter and Thread hub you can buy, and it doesn't cut corners where it matters. If you're building out an IKEA smart home—or starting one for the first time—this is the no-brainer choice.
What You're Getting
The DIRIGERA is IKEA's second-generation hub, replacing the older TRÅDFRI Gateway. It's a small, unobtrusive white cube with a single status light. You'll barely notice it sitting on a shelf.
Inside, there's a lot happening. The hub supports three wireless protocols: Zigbee for all IKEA devices, Wi-Fi for connection to your network, and Thread (with a built-in border router). This means it can coordinate IKEA bulbs, blinds, motion sensors, speakers, and air purifiers. But here's the kicker—it also acts as a Matter controller, so you can pair non-IKEA Matter devices alongside your TRÅDFRI ecosystem.
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The App Story
The old TRÅDFRI app was painful. Clunky UI, slow to respond, limited automation options. IKEA completely overhauled it with the new IKEA Home app, and the difference is night and day. The app is clean, intuitive, and actually fast. Scenes load instantly. Pairing devices takes about 30 seconds instead of the old five-minute guessing game.
Automations are still pretty basic—you're looking at time-based rules and sensor triggers, but not complex conditional logic. If you need "turn on lights if motion is detected AND it's between sunset and 10 PM," you'll need Home Assistant or another hub. But for "turn off all lights when I leave," the DIRIGERA handles it fine.
Matter and Thread
Here's why the DIRIGERA matters beyond IKEA devices. As more smart home products adopt Matter, having a Matter controller built into your hub means they work across Apple Home, Google Home, and Amazon Alexa simultaneously. I tested pairing a Matter light from another brand—it took about 20 seconds and showed up in all three ecosystems instantly.
The Thread border router is equally important. Thread is the future of battery-powered smart home devices. It's lower power than Zigbee and more standardized. The DIRIGERA extends your Thread mesh automatically, which helps if you've got Thread devices in distant rooms.
Where It Stumbles
There's a significant limitation here: the DIRIGERA only pairs with IKEA Zigbee devices. You can't connect third-party Zigbee gadgets like Philips Hue bulbs or Sonoff sensors. If you want a hub that controls a mix of brands, you need something else—the Aqara M3 or Hubitat are better choices.
The other issue is feature depth. Advanced users wanting complex automations, custom scripts, or integrations with other systems will feel boxed in. The DIRIGERA is locked to IKEA's ecosystem and Matter devices. If you want to get weird—like triggering actions based on weather data or coordinating with your security system—you're outgrowing this hub.
Also, the backside is a bit underwhelming. Just a power cable and ethernet port (Wi-Fi is default, ethernet is optional). No USB-C, no exposed APIs for tinkering.
The Real Verdict
For someone starting with IKEA smart home gear, the DIRIGERA is the obvious choice. It's cheap, it works great with TRÅDFRI products, and it's your entry point to Matter. The app has actually become something I enjoy using, which I never thought I'd say about IKEA.
But if you're a multi-brand household—mixing LIFX, Hue, Eve, and other brands—or if you want serious automation chops, pass. The DIRIGERA is a specialist, not a generalist. It does one job (IKEA + Matter + Thread) excellently.
At $60, though, it's genuinely hard to beat. You're getting Matter, Thread, and a rock-solid app for the price of a fancy smart bulb. If IKEA's smart home lineup appeals to you, grab one.
