ADT vs Ring vs SimpliSafe — An Honest Comparison
ADT vs Ring vs SimpliSafe
And The Thing Nobody Compares
Every comparison you have read was written by someone paid per click. This one was written by the people who install these systems for a living — including the parts where the other three beat us.
We are not a review site. Rivas Technology Group is a custom technology integrator in Kent, Washington — Control4 Gold Dealer, Ajax Systems Certified, licensed electrical contractor. We design and install security systems in real houses, and we sell Ajax because it is what we would put in our own.
That is a bias, and you should know about it. It is also why this page will tell you to buy someone else when someone else is the right answer. We got tired of telling people to buy the good stuff somewhere else — so we opened a shop. That does not mean the good stuff is right for everyone.
The Short Answer
Buy The One That Fits
Buy Ring
If you are already in the Amazon and Alexa world, if cameras are the point and the alarm is a bonus, or if you want the cheapest honest way into a real system. It is the best value in the category and we are not going to pretend otherwise.
Buy SimpliSafe
If you want the most forgiving purchase in home security. Sixty days, full refund, they pay the shipping. Nobody beats that, us included. If "I might hate this" is the thing stopping you, they have solved it better than anyone.
Buy ADT
If you want a technician to handle all of it and you genuinely do not mind a three-year contract. Some people want a phone number and a truck roll and no decisions. That is a real preference and ADT serves it. Read the term before you sign it.
Buy Ajax From Us
If the alarm is one of several things you want the system to do — and if you want it configured by someone who installs them. We are three to four times the price of Ring. Keep reading and decide whether the reason is worth it to you.
Prices are each company's published entry point as of July 2026. Monitoring rates are starting rates and vary by plan.
Side By Side
The Terms, From Their Own Pages
| ADT | Ring | SimpliSafe | Ajax / Rivas | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contract | 36 months | None | None | None |
| Early termination | 75% of balance | None | None | None |
| You own the equipment | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Return window | n/a | 30 days | 60 days | 30 days |
| Returns accepted installed | n/a | Not published | Yes | Yes |
| Return shipping paid | n/a | Not published | Yes | Yes |
| Refund processing | n/a | Not published | 5–7 business days | 5 business days |
| Entry hardware price | Bundled in fee | $199.99 | $250.96 | $899 |
| Monitoring, starting | $34.99/mo | ~$19.99/mo | ~$19.99/mo | $44.99/mo WA |
| Self-monitor free | No | Yes | Yes | Yes — $0 |
| Hardware warranty | — | 1 year | 1 year | Manufacturer |
| EN 50131 Grade 3 | Not claimed | Not claimed | Not claimed | Yes |
| Water shut-off valve | No | No | No | Yes |
| Relays & light switches | No | No | No | Yes |
| Control4 integration | No | No | No | Yes |
| Configured before shipping | n/a | No | No | Yes — by hand, in Kent |
"Not published" means we could not find the term stated on the company's own pages and we are not going to guess at it.
Where They Beat Us
Read This Part Twice
Price — they win, and it is not close
Ring starts at $199.99. SimpliSafe at $250.96. Our Starter Kit is $899. That is roughly four times the money for the entry point. If the honest answer for your situation is "I want a door sensor and a siren for under $300," we are the wrong company and you should stop reading.
Monitoring — they win in Washington
Ring and SimpliSafe both start around $19.99/mo. Our professional monitoring in Washington is $44.99/mo. Outside Washington we are $0 because you self-monitor through the Ajax app — but so can they. On monitoring economics we do not have an argument, we have a bill.
Returns — SimpliSafe wins
Sixty days beats our thirty. Both of us pay return shipping, both accept an installed system, and our refund clears in five business days against their five to seven — but sixty is sixty. One caveat worth knowing: per SimpliSafe's own Terms of Sale, the guarantee applies to the initial purchaser buying direct, and is non-transferable. Buy at a retail partner and the retailer's policy governs instead.
Where nobody has an argument — the contract
Ring and SimpliSafe both state no contract, no cancellation fee, and you keep the equipment. So do we. The "no contract" pitch is not a differentiator between the three of us — it is only a differentiator against ADT, whose published terms run 36 months with 75% of the remaining balance due if you leave early. Anyone selling you "no contract" as their big idea is comparing themselves to one company.
The Thing Nobody Compares
Detection Versus Action
Ours closes the valve.
SimpliSafe's own product page describes a water sensor that detects a leak near pipes, water heaters, and washing machines and sends you an alert. That is a good product. It is also the entire extent of what it can do — because there is nothing in their catalog to shut the water off with.
This is not a specification argument. It is a catalog fact, and you can check it in ten minutes on their own websites. Ring sells an alarm, cameras, and doorbells. SimpliSafe sells an alarm, cameras, a doorbell, a smart lock, and environmental sensors. Both detect. Both notify. Neither does anything.
The Other Real Difference
Grade 3
Ajax devices comply with EN 50131 Grade 2 and Grade 3 — the European standard for professional intrusion systems, rated to resist skilled, well-equipped intruders. It is the specification a commercial installer works to.
Neither Ring nor SimpliSafe claims it. That is not an accusation — it is a standard they have not sought, because it is not what their product is for. Whether that matters to you depends entirely on what you are protecting and from whom. For most homes, most of the time, it does not. We would rather say that than pretend a certification is a reason to spend four times more.
Be Honest With Yourself
When We Are The Wrong Answer
You want an alarm. Just an alarm.
Then buy Ring. Sensors on the doors, a siren, an app, $199.99, done. Everything on this page above is us explaining why a platform costs more than a product — and if you do not want the platform, you are paying for scope you will never open.
You are renting for six months.
Ring or SimpliSafe. Cheaper to walk away from, and both go up with adhesive. Our Starter Kit is portable too, but not $700 worth of portable.
Budget is the constraint, full stop.
Buy the cheaper system. A $199 alarm that exists beats a $899 system you did not buy. We would rather you were protected by a competitor than unprotected by us.
If You Read All That And Still Want It
One Price. Paid Once. Owned Forever.
Every kit is configured by hand at our Kent facility before it ships — hub set up, firmware updated, sensors paired. 30-day returns, installed or not, full refund, we pay the shipping. See Store Policy or the full pricing breakdown.
Sources, July 2026. ADT: contract term, early termination, rate increases and equipment ownership cited from ADT's published Residential Terms & Conditions and Monitoring Terms & Conditions. SimpliSafe: 60-day guarantee, return shipping, 5–7 day processing and direct-purchase condition cited from SimpliSafe's published Return Policy and Terms of Sale; product line and pricing from simplisafe.com. Ring: plan structure, monitoring and warranty from ring.com/plans; pricing from ring.com. Promotional rates, terms and product lines change — verify current details directly with each company before purchasing. ADT is a registered trademark of ADT LLC. Ring is a trademark of Ring LLC. SimpliSafe is a registered trademark of SimpliSafe, Inc. Rivas Technology Group is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by ADT, Ring, or SimpliSafe. Comparative statements reflect each company's own published terms and catalog as of the date above.
Still Not Sure?
Ask Us. We Will Tell You.
Describe the space and what you are trying to protect. If the answer is a smaller kit — or a competitor — that is what you will hear. It costs nothing and we would rather spend ten minutes than process a return.
Ask A Real Integrator