Why Doesn't Matter Work With the Ring Doorbell, and Will it Ever?

The Matter smart home standard promises interoperability, compatibility, and an easier experience with your smart tech.

But one area where there is still work to be done is with doorbells, particularly Amazon’s smart Ring doorbell. Video doorbells have been one of the quickest-growing aspects of smart home tech, proving priceless during lockdown. Their usefulness has continued since that time, with video doorbells like Ring offering security and peace-of-mind for property dwellers.

So, does Matter work with Ring? If not, why doesn’t it? And will you ever be able to use a Ring doorbell on your Matter smart home?

What Is a Ring Doorbell?

If you want a smart doorbell mounted on your front door, a popular choice is Ring.

Ring is a subsidiary of Amazon, and along with doorbells produces home security cameras and alarm systems. These can be interconnected and controlled remotely or through Amazon Alexa.

Such doorbells typically offer a camera, motion sensor, chime, and two-way chat so you can converse with visitors. That’s a useful option if you’re not at home.

So, Ring offers security, along with monitoring of your property. The video doorbell (usually answered using a smartphone app or using an Echo Show) is the most well-known product range, and has inspired various copycats.

Does Matter Work With a Ring Doorbell?

Having a video doorbell that works with Matter seems like a useful option, and given Amazon is part of the Consumer Standards Alliance (the group that oversees Matter), you’d expect some compatibility.

However...

The most important element of this scenario is that as of November 2024, no Ring doorbell has compatibility with Matter.

This covers both Matter 1.2 and Matter 1.3 specifications, both of which are in use (the latter is slowly being adopted). It may be the case that Matter 1.4 adds support for Ring doorbells (and other video doorbells). However, at this time we can only guess at what the Matter 1.4 specification may include.

It isn’t just Ring, though. No video doorbell can work on a Matter smart home.

What Is Stopping Matter and Ring Compatibility?

Having a smart video doorbell that can be set up with useful automations – perhaps initiating lights or music in an empty house, or pausing entertainment when someone approaches – would seem useful.

So, what is the roadblock here? What is preventing Matter from using video doorbells like Ring?

It isn’t a definitive answer, as little information has been given. However, we suspect the main point of contention is Matter Casting. As outlined in the Matter 1.2 Core Specification document [PDF], Matter Casting is intended to relay information from endpoints – that is, smart home and Internet of Things devices on your network – to a suitable display.

Matter Casting is essentially a replacement for AirPlay and Chromecast’s wireless video casting technology, with more flexible applications. At the time of writing, the Amazon Echo Show 15 is the only Matter Casting-compatible smart display that can receive video over Matter.

If you bought a Matter-compatible Ring doorbell, you’d expect it to work. This would mean relying on Matter Casting, so you can see why Ring isn’t embracing Matter just yet. Matter Casting needs to be reliable in order for the video doorbell to be trusted by the user. Without this trust, the technology is useless.

Will Ring Doorbells Work With Matter One Day?

Looking forward, though, it all looks pretty positive. You’ve got the Matter Casting protocol, and the first of what we expect to be many compatible displays. All that is missing is an endpoint – a Ring video doorbell – that can provide a video stream over Matter.

Remember, Ring is owned by Amazon, and the tech giant is part of the CSA. It is also the first company to use Matter Casting, so it makes sense to assume that at some point, Ring doorbells (and other video doorbells) will work with Matter.

Several video doorbells with Matter compatibility are available, but at this time they are still to receive the necessary updates to use Matter. Similarly, some other doorbells with Matter compatibility are planned.

Ring Doorbells Will Matter One Day

As noted, Ring doorbells (and other video doorbells) don’t have Matter compatibility. They’re probably awaiting improvements in Matter Casting in order to offer a compelling Ring doorbell experience.

Until that happens, it’s likely most video doorbells – and almost certainly those from Ring – will hold back on working with Matter.