What’s the BEST Sprinkler Controller? Rachio vs Orbit

Two of the top-selling smart sprinkler controllers are Rachio and Orbit B-Hyve. Let's compare their features and apps to figure out which one is best.
Both can automatically delay watering due to weather, but their app interfaces and onboard controls really differ. I'll walk you through the biggest differences you need to know.
LINKS (affiliate):
Orbit B-Hyve: amzn.to/2HMV5kk
Rachio gen 2: amzn.to/2U7wRrJ
Rachio gen 3: amzn.to/2HLs3l5
Rachio outdoor enclosure: amzn.to/2FLoycc
Rachio outdoor compatible plug amzn.to/2HLy7dl
Rachio outdoor cable protector amzn.to/2WyGrRa
FULL ARTICLE
Orbit B-Hyve vs Rachio:
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MY SET UP & GEAR
See the list of everything I use in my smart home and other favorites:
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READ MORE
Rachio vs RainMachine vs SkyDrop:
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Rachio Gen 1 vs Gen 2:
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Rachio Gen 2 Review:
smarthomesolve...
Is Rachio Weatherproof?
smarthomesolve...
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Writer/Editor/Director: Reed Kleinman
Producer: Alysa Kleinman
Song titled Absolute Terror by Nihilore and used under Creative Commons. Check out his website here: www.nihilore.com/
Disclaimer: Smart Home Solver was sent both the Rachio gen 2 and Orbit B-hyve for unbiased reviews. As always, our opinions are 100% our own and not influenced.

[@SmartHomeSolver]

Thanks for watching! One smart home integration I've heard about for smart sprinkler controllers is to have Rachio turn on your sprinklers when Nest Protect senses smoke inside. This can prevent a house fire from spreading. Pretty much you have to burn down your house to use the integration so that’s unfortunate. Any other ideas for integrating Orbit/Rachio with the rest of your smart home?

[@ClassicTim]

My initial thought with connecting them to other devices is if you have a smart lock to turn the sprinklers off in the front of the house when the front door opens, so that way you won't have to walk through sprinklers if you're leaving early in the morning. This could connect to the garage too.

[@petermcsharry]

If you have a connected shower (do these exist?) then you could have your sprinklers turn off so that you have decent water pressure while showering.

[@censoredonlineonly5571]

👍🏿Smart main relay to fuse box. Power off to home, aside from well. Controller and router on backup and a cellular phone. It’s illegal & hazardous to go beyond that.😅 technically you can turn on off-grid showers and sinks. Bluetooth as your home wires may be a little toasty.

[@censoredonlineonly5571]

@peter mcsharry Alexa google assistant turn off irrigation. Alexa call nearest plumber (my pressure regulation is either bad at the main or irrigation needs throttling)

[@spyderstyle]

i just found two rachio gen 2 at a yard sale. lady said" you need sprinkler controllers?" Me" only if they are wifi", her" I think they are. they were too complicated for us so we took them off". One even came with the outdoor box. Cost me a whole 2 dollars!!!!

[@SmartHomeSolver]

Wow great find!

[@Waldo1982]

I'm a landlord and I use Bhyve. Something not mentioned in the video is it has a backup battery so if the power goes out. I love being on the other side of the state and having the ability to run the sprinkler.

[@cwf182]

One thing not mentioned is that you can calibrate the B-Hyve using catch cups. This allows you to calibrate the system so that you KNOW how many inches of water you are applying.

[@drrobertreinhardt3454]

Great review. Exactly what I needed to make the decision. Going with orbit because I like hands on control as well as wireless. In Texas we need all the control we can get.

[@SmartHomeSolver]

Thanks! I used to live in Texas so I get what you’re saying!

[@mariobeans]

exactly! removing controls on a timer is a terrible idea! -irrigation tech

[@TexasEmperor]

My fellow Texan...much respect & love. Yes, we love control...hahaha

[@eKalb33]

The Rachio 3 has controls on the panel.

[@mariobeans]

@@eKalb33 its still overpriced crap. too many variables in the app. If you need an app to decide how much water your lawn should get you should just xeroscape

[@Agromenon]

i had the orbit b-hyve for a year and now i bought the rachio 3 16 zone and i love it way more than the orbit. there are a lot of things that i like more.

[@dennypalso2545]

Details?

[@daedalos5132]

Like what please? Your words are meaningless without explaining..

[@mattdegooyer5870]

Great Review. I have a Rachio now for several years. I changed up my WiFi and I can’t for the life of me get it to connect. I just bought a BeeHive based on the ability to work it like a traditional controller when I want to. That’s a feature that the Rachio does not have. I have not ran my Beehive unit yet. Wanted to see some vids before I installed it. Thanks!

[@luisogushi6651]

Hard to find professional objectivity plus coolness in presenting 2 similar products from different brands; nicely done! And thanks for a thorough and detailed review!

[@webbxpert]

Idea for not watering, but for cooling... We have a hose bib hooked up to a mister that surrounds a covered porch. On hot days, the mister really lowers the temperature. Being able to toggle it on and off on demand is a nice feature. With HA, could setup an automation to turn on the zone when its over a certain temp under the covered porch and when there is motion

[@justincloud3870]

I have had to factory reset my Orbit B Hyve system 3x now. It randomly likes to do rain delay even if the feature isn't toggled on AND there's no rain! It randomly ignores my programming and waters when it feels like. Most recently it shut off and didn't notify me, even though my notifications are toggled on for those alerts. When I turned it back on, I ran it and got the notification that it shut off, but it actually didn't shut off. This thing has been more labor intensive than manual hose watering. I am definitely looking for a different option and don't recommend.

[@danger450]

When I see a dog peeing in my yard "Alexa, Tell Rachio to start zone 1 for 5 minutes". I installed the Rachio 2 last year. I love it. -An IT Geek.

[@gmans7859]

Yes!! This is exactly what I NEED to do. Stray Cats and Loose Dogs. I would like to say 'Alexa RED ALERT' and have specific stations activate. Also, Cats seem to find my backyard attractive as well because we do not have pets. I need to redo Motion Sensors that again activate a Sprinkler Station.

[@jhost0311]

Hey what controller would be good to connect to a garden hose spigot that you could control to turn on anytime the temp gets below 34deg? I want to use it as freeze protection in Florida for my tropical fruit trees.

[@ckfritts]

It would be fun to set up a Wyze motion sensor to turn on the sprinklers when someone is on the lawn lol

[@abigrunner209]

cheyne fritts‼️ is that seriously possible with an Orbit unit? That my friend would keep the deer 🦌 out of our yard. Please explain....

[@jeffzest8393]

With all the negative comments regarding not being able to connect via wi-fi or wi-fi dropping, do you really want Rachio when dependent on wi-fi?

[@alanbradfish8651]

You mentioned you were interested in possible uses for smart home devices. I'm curious if it would connec to a motion sensor (day/night) that would activate a zone based on motion for a limited time. Repell deer at night around landscaping.

[@censoredonlineonly5571]

Definitely possible with programmable aux output carmara, motion sensor, can be wireless as well. Problem will be burning out your solenoids and water usage. Maybe fishing wire attached to a noise maker(bones,bamboo,shells, change it up) with a motion sensor. Simply a motion sensor with alarm or flashing light.

[@jason8507]

Not a fan of my orbit, it skips watering for no reason. I live in Phoenix thinking of the rachio. Should I go 2 or 3?

[@scottc9630]

Arizona and grass? cmon be like the rest of us, water rock, lol. By the way loving living here. Great video I ended up going with Rachio 3 for $116 for the unit and enclosure.

[@robert4112]

Another very good and informative video, thanks. Peace and Blessings 🕊️

[@SmartHomeSolver]

@Rober thanks!

[@jaidenkappu2370]

I love these tips of videos

[@edwarddejesus9487]

Sorry for the question but what kind of sprinkler you have? The rotation one

[@stevehess7818]

I'm curious if there are new updates with either of these since the video was made over a year ago? I am looking at buying one of these....probably the B-Hive......for a few reasons. One is price. There is nothing that Rachio can do that makes it worth almost 3X the price fro a 12+ zone timer. The other reason is that in the reviews I've seen it mentioned the fact the B-Hive can be completely controlled from the box itself. You really need the app to do anything with the Rachio other than manually running a zone. I think that superior functionality of the B-Hive alone is a clincher. I was just thinking that perhaps Orbit has improved the app via upgrades or anything like that? Thanks for the nice head to head!

[@eKalb33]

I can't speak about the Orbit, but the Rachio can do more than it could in this review. And I am talking about Rachio 3. You can set it to an interval of X days between watering. You can control it from the panel easier. You can connect it to a flow meter for precise water monitoring, and leak/broken head alerts. You can connect it to a rain sensor. The WeatherIQ system analyzes many weather stations around you for better weather accuracy than just a single station. It has IFTTT, Alexa, and Google Home integration.

[@stevehess7818]

@@eKalb33 Since I posted this I did pick up the B-Hyve and I'm pretty happy with it! I haven't done a head to head, but so far so good.

[@ScottLilien]

I'm being blow away. Beautiful Professionally done videos. Great Job! Wow!!!!. ....I'm subscribed!!!!.....

[@SmartHomeSolver]

I really appreciate that! Also thanks for subscribing and welcome to the channel!

[@senthilm7195]

After watching the comparison went with Orbit. It is cheaper in Canada, the onboard control is a big deal for me. Not everyone at home will have an app access to control. So far happy with Orbit.

[@SmartHomeSolver]

I'm glad you're liking Orbit! It's a great price and I agree about onboard controls.

[@agapolanskachung3866]

Hi, do you have a recommendation on choosing between bhyve xr or rachio 3gen?

[@censoredonlineonly5571]

Thank you for the review. If the owner is going from non smart controller to smart controller, Bluetooth(brownout control)!!! and/or internet is a big deal. The extra features are an added bonus. No interface on the ranchio was a deal breaker for me. The orbit issues I’ve had are rain sensor+smart water and if power brownouts occur internet connection will fail. The orbit unit appears to try to establish A connection only once. It appears to not have a delay of 15min for main router to connect, nor appears to internally software self diagnose although I have not tried putting the unit on backup power my router is on backup(assumed the WiFi cue from the router “is what it is” during brownouts as I cannot control the ISP). A not so simple fix, place a timer on the AC power for the controller. Have it turn off and on multiple times. Important if you want remote control (out of area). Else unplug and replug, problem fixed. Maybe the google assistant or Alexa have the ability to reboot the unit remotely (definitely a bonus in this case).

[@censoredonlineonly5571]

That internet connection was flashing during failure 4:50

[@chrisc8207]

Can either of these be used with wired ethernet connection and wifi disabled?

[@JasonPennell]

What is the switch with echo in it you showed?

[@rapidreview5509]

2:24 - Can you please tell me what kind of sprinkler head that is? I appreciate your answer. Thanks also 2:34 the middle sprinkler.

[@censoredonlineonly5571]

Pop up impact assembly and 359 variable* Fan with fixed* output flow (my guess on the varying, this type is more flexible and guess on no flow reduction)

[@rebemedlife]

HiI would like to ask you a question, I need to install a Rachio 3 but I would like to add a rain sensor and two moisture sensor (1 per zone), can you help I do not find compatible sensors. Thank You.

[@davidrayman3576]

Awesome video good sir!!! And if you don’t mind my asking what style and brand sprinklers are you using?

[@mdoyle1981]

Those are Rainbird Maxi-Paws also known as AG-5 depending on retail or wholesale branding. I've used them for years with good results but they occasionally won't retract fully and any grass that grows around the head can jam the mechanism. We moved and this house has Hunter rotors, specifically the PGP-ADJ line and they're rock solid with zero issues.

[@jason8507]

Great video

[@protector7886]

Have you looked at the Rain Machine brand?

[@imperfectst]

I have used RainMachine since it first came out; tech support bad was, sometimes rude. They told me how to set up watering and my water usage went way up. Had to cut back about 40-50% to get it right and RM was supposed to use the current weather data. I used to be able to see and control everything from my laptop, but I can't log on anymore and no one at RM could help me. I am about to chuck RM and choose Orbit or Rachio. It does seem that the Orbit has the reliability issue. I called them today to ask some questions, but couldn't get anyone to talk to or call me back, not a good sign. To get the Rachio thru my water dept., it'd only cost only $75 (not sure how many zones). But I don't think it has the feature to adjust the suggest watering by a certain percentage, which I really would like to have. It seems that the Budget setting on Orbit can do just that. (BTW, I looked into Hunter; it'd take a pro to complete the setup process, so it's not for me.)

[@Caseylawton]

I Rachio had sepperate smart garden timers to feed raised bed and other drip systems. I don't want to buy two separate systems even though I would prefer Rachio

[@Honda1k]

I heard wyze maybe coming out with a sprinkler system

[@MusicMonkey5555]

I Would be interested in a spicket attachment for garden watering. I know orbi has one, but not sure how well it works for that (reviews didn't look great). And if there is a decent alternative.

[@MusicMonkey5555]

@@mariobeans just a timer that would go from the side valve you would turn on to a drip hose before it got hot during the day. Not sure how it doesn't make sense. If you don't want something that goes to an entire sprinkler system. Here is one, but not a smart one smile.amazon.com/dp/B004INGS8S/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_i_d7kVEbHB3H23F

[@dfmayes]

I just gave up on my B-Hyve. It would randomly stop watering zones. It "knew" the zones were dry (0% soil moisture), but didn't water. Go figure.

[@princevegeta08]

Can't you just use a water sensor to sense if it rained that day to make the sprinkler to skip a day?

[@InTheLab3d]

Automation - Blink cameras around my fenced in yard... any motion is detected after 11pm turn on sprinkler nearest motion. Scares away either animals or criminals (or at the very least assists).

[@iamjakex]

Hmm what about deterring Ninjas?

[@Adi-S]

I am on my second B-Hyve controller, but I still get random pump faults! It is frustrating!

[@RicardoWagner]

Just bought a new house and have everything under Home control (Smart Things, etc) except for my garden watering system. I have no idea as to how set it up... how to select sprinkles ( are they smart themselves ?) , controllers etc. Watering tubes are all setup in different garden zones ready for the system .. Where do I start ?

[@mariobeans]

as an irrigation tech do not buy one of these and if you dont understand an irrigation system by now just hire a professional... I see so much DIY stuff and it drives me crazy the dumb designs people come up with.

[@Dhovin]

Smartthings and motion sensor. I'm thinking you could trigger sprinklers at 3 am if an intruder came into you yard! Can't verify but it would be cool!

[@BeeBombard]

Is this relevant today at this time or is there one that’s better?

[@robbol848]

Do you have any idea how these compare to Hunter Controllers? Been looking at the Pro HC

[@Cagedrage4]

To be fair, you can't really compare Hunter/K-Rain/Jain/Rainbird to Orbit. They're not really in the same realm of quality. I have never heard of Rachio, so I can't speak on it. Hunter controllers will probably be a few dollars more because the Pro-C is a modular clock that will expand to 15 or 16 zones depending on how old the clock is. Also, it has a port for the WiFi module, but doesn't come with. However if you have less than 8 zones, I would recommend the Rainbird ESPTM2 series. Non expanding, WiFi ready, simple to program, and more cost effective.

[@NateBraska]

Me: I should get a WiFi sprinkler controller, especially with today's Amazon sale on the rachio systems. I wonder if there are any good KZbin videos... Of course you have a good comparison of the two I was looking at! Great summary, sounds like they are both good. What was the max number of days the rachio allowed? 5?

[@SmartHomeSolver]

Thanks for the nice comment! What do you mean by the max number of days?

[@NateBraska]

@@SmartHomeSolver i may just not have understood the comparison of number of days between watering for the two options. I'll give it another view. It looked like you could only set the rachio for every 5 days max, but could set the orbit 14 days. In Texas we have a limit of only once a week with watering during water restrictions, so wanted to make sure the rachio could adhere to that

[@SmartHomeSolver]

Oh sorry I didn't understand at first. I just opened up the Rachio app and it looks like I can make a schedule every day up to 21 days and everything in between. They must have updated it since I made the video. Looks like you would be good to go in the app at once a week.

[@saltyroe3179]

I bought orbit because of lower price, full control on front panel, and locking box. Also if your close enough phone controls by blue tooth or on wifi wit a web page. The lock is joke as pliers will turn and open lock. There isn't enough room to mount a real cabinet lock. What days you water on is by 1 of 4 programs and I had 6 different watering day schedules on 20 year old controller.

[@daedalos5132]

6 programs? What the heck do you need that many programs for?

[@saltyroe3179]

@@daedalos5132 -drip irrigation that needs long watering time -nasty draught regulations limit hours of day that can water. So if I had all zones watered on same day would be in violation -dont want to water lawns when likely to use them -winter freeze during night

[@daedalos5132]

@@saltyroe3179 i see how you can need more than 4.. I wonder if they can add more programs with an update.. ever call their support to ask if it's in the works?

[@saltyroe3179]

@@daedalos5132 they said they were working on Apple Home Kit integration. In other words no.

[@paul_vlad]

Warning to everyone, orbit has discontinued support for the controller. Would not recommend!

[@eltigrechino3390]

Scorpions. The worst. Unless we’re talking about the German rock band, then they rock me like a hurricane.

[@mariobeans]

As a professional get ORBIT, don't buy their sprinkler parts though, they are junk. I also rarely see good results using smart watering. If you can't figure out how much water your lawn needs you should hire a professional or xeroscape

[@TheCrystalCort]

Heres a scenario... Turn on sprinklers if Arlo detects someone on your property at night or if there are deer eating your plants!

[@georgenoren2174]

I have been intrigued by these smart sprinkler systems, but am handicapped by my water utility (City of Austin, TX). They will allow you to water on one specified day a week (Thursday for me), excluding high-sun hours. This seems to negate any savings that might be gleaned through the use of a smart sprinkler. You just dump as much water as you can during those hours and hope for the best... So far, my lawn hasn't suffered too much, but it does seem inefficient. Do you see how one of these systems could be useful in such an environment?

[@danger450]

Yes. I have Rachio 2, and I can pick the days (Or pretend I don't know my cities days, for even numbered houses ...!). I think he mentioned in the video the other system does that too.

[@James-iu9gy]

DO NOT BUY FROM ORBIT. They could not provide a gasket for their anti-siphon valve and did not offer an estimated availability date. Ace Hardware and Home Depot did not have this gasket. I had to purchase 2 new anti-siphon valves for the gaskets.

[@Kathy0118]

Hi, do you accept business cooperation? We can send you a sample, and you can test it and make a video for us.

[@dansg20]

Home Depot is selling them for 99 bucks with a 80 mail in rebate and at the end of the day you will only pay 19 bucks just saying

[@SmartHomeSolver]

Wow that's a great deal!

[@tavyfavorite1149]

Hunter pro-c is way easier than both product .

[@mariobeans]

As an irrigation technician these timers are THE WORST! You want smart features? That's fine, but at least put controls on the timer! Everytime I show up to a job and they have one of these overpriced pieces of shit I have to follow the owner around like a jackass as he fumbles around switching zones while wasting a ton of time. Having pressure data is great an all but holy shit add controls to the front of the timer. I feel so bad for technicians that have to deal with these and the bonehead owner

[@tomszabo7350]

Takes about 10 seconds to set up access sharing on either one.

[@mariobeans]

@@tomszabo7350 care to explain what that is?

[@tomszabo7350]

The Orbit has front controls but still easier just to share access, simple passcode generated via the app. For Rachio the best option is "limited access" and requires login via web page A bit of a pain but you can make a customer do it by simple refusing to do anything until they give you the app access.

[@AidanSkoyles]

Both of these seem awful

[@daedalos5132]

Your a true asset to the youtube community.

[@billparsons7732]

A manual valve may be easier for you to understand but you have to remember, lefty lucy, righty righty. In such case, "lucy" would most likely be "off"