Tuya powers more smart home devices than most people realize. Smart Life, Treatlife, Gosund, Nous, LSC, Moes, Aubess, Avatto... hundreds of brands, one platform underneath. The good news: they all work with Home Assistant. This guide covers every way to connect them, from quick cloud setup to full local control with no cloud dependency at all.
Jump to a section
Walk into any electronics store or browse Amazon for smart home gear, and you will find Tuya devices whether you know it or not. Tuya is not a consumer brand. It is the platform behind the brand. The company provides the chips, the cloud infrastructure, and the app framework. Device makers just pick a design, slap their logo on it, and ship.
This means your "Gosund smart plug" and your neighbor's "Nous smart plug" might be the exact same hardware inside. Same chip, same firmware, same cloud. Just different packaging. For Home Assistant users, this is actually great news: one integration covers hundreds of brands.
Plugs, bulbs, switches, sensors, curtain motors, IR blasters, garage openers. If it is a smart device category, Tuya probably has 50 options.
Smart plugs from $6, bulbs from $8, sensors from $10. Tuya devices are some of the cheapest smart home gear you can buy.
Many Tuya devices use ESP chips that can be flashed with ESPHome or Tasmota, giving you 100% local control with zero cloud dependency.
The Tuya brand zoo: Smart Life, Treatlife, Gosund, Nous, LSC (Action), Aubess, Moes, Avatto, Zemismart, Girier, Lonsonho, BlitzWolf, and many more. If the device uses the Smart Life or Tuya Smart app, it is a Tuya device.
Each method has different tradeoffs. Most people start with the cloud integration and upgrade to local control over time.
| Feature | Official Cloud | Tuya Local (HACS) | ESPHome / Tasmota |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium | Advanced |
| Local control | ❌ Cloud only | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Works offline | ❌ No | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Response time | 1-5 seconds | ~100ms | ~50ms |
| Cloud dependency | Full | Initial setup only | None |
| Device support | All Tuya devices | Most Wi-Fi devices | ESP-based only |
| Privacy | ⚠️ Data sent to Tuya | ✅ Local after setup | ✅ Fully private |
The built-in Tuya integration connects through Tuya's cloud API. Every command goes to Tuya's servers and back. It works with every Tuya device, but adds latency and stops working if your internet goes down or Tuya has an outage.
Setup steps:
Best for: Getting started quickly, devices that do not support local control, and situations where slight delay is acceptable (like curtain motors or irrigation timers).
Tuya Local (also known as LocalTuya) is a HACS integration that talks directly to your Tuya devices over your local network. After a one-time cloud setup to get device keys, everything runs locally. Fast response, no cloud dependency during normal operation.
Setup steps:
Best for: Users who want fast, reliable local control without flashing firmware. Works great with smart plugs, switches, lights, and sensors.
The nuclear option. Replace the Tuya firmware entirely with ESPHome or Tasmota. The device completely disconnects from Tuya's cloud and becomes a native Home Assistant device. Response times drop to milliseconds. No accounts, no API keys, no cloud dependency. Period.
What you need to know:
Best for: Users who want complete control, zero cloud, and the fastest possible response. Also the most fun if you enjoy tinkering.
Not all Tuya devices are created equal. Some have great Home Assistant support out of the box. Others are a headache. Here are the winners in each category.
From $6-15 each. Start here for energy monitoring.
From $8-20. See our smart lighting guide.
From $10-25. Budget alternative to Shelly switches.
From $8-30. Pair with Zigbee for best results.
From $25-60. Full guide: blinds and covers.
From $15-40. See our thermostat guide.
Cloud works fine for getting started, but most Home Assistant users eventually want local control. Here is the decision tree.
Go with Tuya Local if:
Go with ESPHome/Tasmota if:
Before flashing, you need to know what chip is inside. Tuya has been moving away from ESP chips since 2022, so newer devices might need different tools.
| Chip | Flash With | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| ESP8266 / ESP8285 | ESPHome, Tasmota | Easy (Tuya Convert OTA or serial) |
| ESP32 / ESP32-C3 | ESPHome | Easy (serial flash) |
| BK7231T / BK7231N (CBU/CB3S) | ESPHome (LibreTiny), OpenBeken | Medium (ltchiptool or Tuya Cloudcutter) |
| T2 / T3 (new Tuya chips) | ESPHome (LibreTiny), OpenBeken | Medium |
| RTL8720 (W2/W3) | Limited support | Hard (use Tuya Local instead) |
Tip: Check templates.blakadder.com before buying. It lists which chip each device uses and whether it is flashable.
Cloudcutter is an open-source tool that exploits Tuya's OTA update process to flash custom firmware wirelessly. No soldering, no opening the case. It works with many BK7231 and T2/T3 based devices.
Not every device is supported. Check the supported devices list first. When it works, it is the easiest way to go cloud-free on newer Tuya hardware.
Once your Tuya devices are in Home Assistant, here are the automations that make the biggest difference in daily life.
Use a Tuya smart plug with energy monitoring to track standby power. When a device like a washing machine or dryer draws under 5W for 5 minutes, it is done. Send a notification and optionally cut power.
automation:
- alias: "Washing machine done"
trigger:
- platform: numeric_state
entity_id: sensor.washing_machine_plug_power
below: 5
for: "00:05:00"
action:
- service: notify.mobile_app
data:
title: "Laundry done!"
message: "Washing machine finished. Go grab your clothes."Turn on Tuya bulbs at sunset with warm color temperature, then gradually dim them as bedtime approaches.
automation:
- alias: "Sunset living room lights"
trigger:
- platform: sun
event: sunset
offset: "-00:15:00"
condition:
- condition: state
entity_id: person.me
state: "home"
action:
- service: light.turn_on
target:
entity_id: light.living_room_tuya
data:
brightness_pct: 80
color_temp_kelvin: 2700Open Tuya curtain motors on workday mornings, keep them closed on weekends.
automation:
- alias: "Open curtains workday"
trigger:
- platform: time
at: "07:30:00"
condition:
- condition: time
weekday:
- mon
- tue
- wed
- thu
- fri
action:
- service: cover.open_cover
target:
entity_id: cover.bedroom_curtainUse a Tuya IR blaster to control your air conditioner based on room temperature from a Tuya sensor. No smart AC required.
automation:
- alias: "Cool room when hot"
trigger:
- platform: numeric_state
entity_id: sensor.bedroom_temperature
above: 26
condition:
- condition: state
entity_id: person.me
state: "home"
action:
- service: climate.turn_on
target:
entity_id: climate.bedroom_ac
- service: climate.set_temperature
target:
entity_id: climate.bedroom_ac
data:
temperature: 23Tuya Zigbee water leak sensors paired with a smart valve can shut off your water supply automatically. Saves thousands in damage.
automation:
- alias: "Water leak emergency shutoff"
trigger:
- platform: state
entity_id: binary_sensor.kitchen_water_leak
to: "on"
action:
- service: switch.turn_off
target:
entity_id: switch.water_valve
- service: notify.mobile_app
data:
title: "WATER LEAK DETECTED"
message: "Kitchen sensor triggered. Water valve shut off."
data:
push:
sound: "alarm.caf"Here is a practical plan for bringing Tuya devices into Home Assistant over a weekend.
SATURDAY MORNING
Create your Tuya IoT Platform account, link your Smart Life app, and add the Tuya integration in Home Assistant. Get all your existing devices showing up. Takes about 30 to 60 minutes.
SATURDAY AFTERNOON
Install HACS, add LocalTuya, and migrate your most-used devices to local control. Smart plugs and lights first. Test that they respond without internet.
SUNDAY
Set up the automations that matter most. Energy monitoring alerts, lighting schedules, and presence-based controls. Add devices to your dashboard.
Check Blakadder before buying. The site templates.blakadder.com catalogs thousands of Tuya devices with their chips, GPIO pinouts, and flash instructions. It is the single most useful resource for Tuya + HA users.
Give Tuya devices static IPs. Tuya Local and LocalTuya connect by IP address. If your router reassigns the IP, the connection breaks. Reserve static IPs in your router's DHCP settings for every Tuya device.
Block cloud access for flashed devices. After flashing with ESPHome or Tasmota, add a firewall rule to block the device from reaching the internet. It does not need it anymore, and you prevent accidental firmware updates or data leaks.
Use Athom for new purchases. If you are buying new devices specifically for Home Assistant, Athom sells pre-flashed ESPHome hardware (plugs, bulbs, LED strips, sensors). Zero setup pain. They just appear in Home Assistant.
Tuya Zigbee devices do not need the Tuya integration. If you have Tuya-branded Zigbee sensors or switches, pair them directly with your Zigbee coordinator using ZHA or Zigbee2MQTT. No Tuya account needed.
Separate your IoT network. Put all Tuya Wi-Fi devices on a dedicated VLAN or guest network. This limits what they can access on your main network and makes it easier to block their cloud access selectively.
Run our free compatibility scan. Tell us what smart devices you have, and we will show you exactly how each one connects to Home Assistant, including which Tuya devices can go local.
Scan Your Devices FreeYes. You have two options for local control. Tuya Local is a HACS integration that communicates directly with Tuya devices over your local network, no cloud needed after initial setup. For even deeper control, you can flash many Tuya devices with ESPHome or Tasmota firmware, which removes the Tuya cloud entirely and gives you 100% local operation.
Smart Life is just one of many apps built on the Tuya platform. Tuya provides the underlying IoT cloud and chipsets. Brands like Smart Life, Treatlife, Gosund, Nous, LSC, Moes, and hundreds of others all use Tuya hardware and cloud under different names. In Home Assistant, they all connect through the same Tuya integration regardless of which app you originally set them up with.
Smart plugs with energy monitoring (like the Nous A1T or Athom plugs) are the most popular starting point. Smart bulbs, LED strips, curtain motors, and temperature and humidity sensors also work well. For the smoothest experience, look for devices that are ESP32 or ESP8266 based, since those can be flashed with ESPHome for full local control.
The official cloud integration works but depends on Tuya's servers. Updates can be delayed by a few seconds, and if your internet goes down, cloud-connected devices stop responding in Home Assistant. Most experienced users start with the cloud integration and then move to Tuya Local or ESPHome once they want faster response times and offline reliability.
Many Tuya devices based on ESP8266 or ESP32 chips can be flashed with ESPHome or Tasmota. Some newer devices use Tuya CBU or BK7231 chips, which require different tools like OpenBeken or ltchiptool. The easiest path is buying pre-flashed devices from Athom, which come with ESPHome firmware already installed.