Frequently
Asked Questions
Browse below to learn more about Donate Your Data.
If you have a question that isn’t answered here, just email us at mydata@ecobee.com.
- Do I need an ecobee thermostat to participate?
- What data will be shared?
- How will my data be shared?
- How does my data help?
- Who will my data be shared with?
- How do partners access the data from this program?
- How do I opt in?
- What happens when I opt in?
- How do I opt out?
- Can I see the data that is shared?
Do I need an ecobee thermostat to participate?
Yes, to participate in Donate Your Data, you need to have an ecobee installed. If you don't have an ecobee yet, click here or on the ecobee logo in the top left corner of this page to learn more about us.
What data will be shared?
When you opt in to Donate Your Data, the data shared is the same as what is reported in your ecobee Home IQ, except that we remove all personally-identifiable information to ensure everything is completely anonymous.
The specific data fields shared are:
- The city and state or province
- House size, number of floors, estimated home age and number of occupants
- Heat/Cool temperature settings and overrides
- Occupancy schedules and overrides
- Indoor and outdoor temperature and humidity
- HVAC runtimes
If we ever consider changing the data and information shared, we will let you know first.
How will my data be shared?
Once you opt in to Donate Your Data, we'll add your ecobee thermostat serial number into the program. We then anonymize the records, meaning we remove any personally-identifiable information (such as your name, address, what you named your ecobee and room sensors, etc.) and prepare two kinds of reports: one that gives an overview of home characteristics (size, age, etc.) and a second file that shows how heating and cooling patterns change over time. We share the reports directly with research partners through a secure download. ecobee does not receive any payment from our partners, so it’s truly a donation. In turn, they will share their findings publicly for everyone’s benefit.
How does my data help?
When scientists working on energy efficiency solutions approach their studies today it is often difficult, time consuming, and expensive for them to access the data they need. As a result, their studies are often limited in size and scope, slowing the pace of scientific discovery.
Donate Your Data helps solve this problem. By leveraging the ecobee technology already in your home to proactively create datasets for scientists to use, it will directly advance innovation. And because ecobee does not charge for the data, we help alleviate costs, too.
Heating and cooling accounts for a large portion of energy usage in North America, producing an estimated 384 million MT (megatonnes) of greenhouse gas emissions per year. By opting in to Donate Your Data, you can help scientists find answers faster so we can bring that number down.
Who will my data be shared with?
You can check out all of our research partners here. They come from government, universities and the NGO sector and are all studying how we use energy in our daily lives, to improve how we use it in the future.
Each of our research partners has signed a Donate Your Data Partnership Agreement with ecobee that requires them to uphold the same Privacy Agreement we hold with all of our customers today. ecobee does not receive any payment from our partners.
How do partners access the data from this program?
This program is designed to support the work of NGOs, universities and government agencies working to advance energy efficiency. Once they are a partner in the program, they are granted free access to the data provided by participating ecobee customers. It’s truly a donation of customer data. ecobee does not receive any payment from our partners. The only thing we require of our partners in return is to make their findings publicly available so that everyone can benefit.
How do I opt in?
All it takes is one click from your ecobee portal, or from your ecobee mobile app. (If you don’t remember your login or password, click here.)
- Find and click “Donate Your Data” in the main menu (icon in the top corner).
- Click the check box to give your consent and join Donate Your Data.
It’s that easy! Once you opt in, you’ll receive a confirmation email from us and then we will keep you updated on the progress of the program. Feel free to email us anytime at mydata@ecobee.com.
What happens when I opt in?
When you volunteer to be part of Donate Your Data, you are giving us your consent to share non-personal and totally anonymous home heating and cooling data from your ecobee thermostat, with our science and research partners. ecobee does not receive any payment from our partners. It’s voluntary and you can opt out anytime.
How do I opt out?
If you decide that you no longer want to share your data, just log in to your ecobee portal using your internet browser, or open your ecobee mobile app, find Donate Your Data in the main menu and click to opt out. You’ll receive a confirmation email and will be removed from any future data-sharing.
Can I see the data that is shared?
Absolutely. When you login to your ecobee portal and download your Home IQ report, you’ll see the exact type of data being shared. The only difference is that we format it a little differently and remove all personally-identifiable information (your name, address, ecobee thermostat name and room sensor names, etc.) to protect your privacy and ensure your complete anonymity.
