Restart or reset a Nest thermostat

A thermostat restart can fix some common issues. Reset your thermostat to clear your personal settings.

If you need further help, or find a restart doesn’t fix the issue, go to our thermostat troubleshooter.

Differences between restart and reset

When you restart your thermostat:

Your thermostat maintains all your settings, similar to restarting a computer or phone.
This is a useful troubleshooting step if your thermostat is stuck or frozen, has trouble connecting to the internet, or is not working normally.

When you reset your thermostat

Your thermostat erases some or all of its information depending on the option you choose. The thermostat will restore its factory default settings.
This is useful if you're moving out and need to install your thermostat in a new location, or want to leave your thermostat behind and you want to remove all your personal information.

Reset or restart your thermostat

Important: Before you reset your thermostat, write down the wiring information so you can easily enter your thermostat's wiring if needed. On your thermostat, go to Settings Nest settings icon Equipment. You might want to do this for other settings, such as system heating type and Safety Temperature as well.

Nest Thermostat and Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen)

Nest Thermostat 3/4ths view

Go to Settings Nest settings icon Restart or Factory Reset .

Your thermostat will ask you to confirm your choice. Once you've confirmed, your thermostat will take a few moments to restart or reset.

Factory reset removes all your personal settings and restores the thermostat to factory default settings. After you reset your thermostat, you'll need to set it up and add it to your home in the app again, just like you did when you first installed it.

To disconnect your thermostat from your account, go to Settings Nest settings icon Account Disconnect. This account disconnection also removes the thermostat from the Home app, so you won't be able to access any control features or settings there.

Nest Thermostat E or Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen or earlier)

Nest thermostat heating with silver ring

Go to Settings Nest settings icon Reset, then choose one of the following options:

To restart your thermostat
Restart	If you restart, your thermostat won't lose any of your information or settings, similar to a computer or phone. Once your thermostat boots back up, you can continue to use it. If a restart doesn't fix the issue, try our thermostat troubleshooter for more detailed help.
To reset all or some of your thermostat's information
Schedule	This option will clear your entire temperature schedule. Use this option if you want your thermostat to start learning a new schedule. Any setpoints that your thermostat has learned, or that you've created, will be erased. You'll need to create a brand new schedule from scratch, or wait while your thermostat learns your new schedule. Note: If you're using a Nest Thermostat E and have Auto-Schedule disabled, you'll have the option to reset to either a blank schedule as described above or Basic Schedule. A Basic Schedule is a pre-filled schedule based on a national average that balances energy savings and comfort.
Home/Away	Your thermostat learns how often you walk by to help it know when to automatically switch to and from Eco Temperatures as you leave and come home. If you reset Home/Away on your thermostat, everything it has learned about when you're home or away will be reset. Use this reset option if you move your thermostat to a new location in your home, or you've had your home remodeled. Your thermostat will learn about its new location in a few days. Tip: Turn on your phone location to help improve automatic switching between Home and Away modes.
Account connection	Note: You might not get this option depending on your thermostat's software version. This option will remove your account connection from the thermostat. After you reset the account connection, you'll still find your thermostat in the app. However, your thermostat will be listed as "offline" and you'll no longer be able to control it with the app. To remove it from your account and app, you'll need to go to your thermostat's settings. Tip: If you're moving and leaving your thermostat behind and want to use this option, you might also want to reset the temperature schedule as well. This will let the new owners control the system from day one, while the thermostat learns a schedule for them.
Network	Note: You might not get this option depending on your thermostat's software version. This option will remove any network information from your thermostat. Your thermostat will no longer be connected to the internet and it'll forget the WI-Fi credentials. To connect your thermostat back to the internet, select Settings Network your Wi-Fi network.
All Settings	This option will remove all your personal settings and restore your thermostat to factory default settings. Important: Remove your thermostat from your account in the app before you reset it to factory default. Remove a product from your account After you reset your thermostat, you'll need to set it up and add it to your home in the app again just like you did when you first installed it. How to set up your Nest thermostat Add your Nest thermostat to the Nest app Your thermostat will need time to learn about you and your home before it creates your schedule and activates its energy saving features. How Nest thermostats learn Note: Nest Temperature Sensors linked to your account will remain linked after the thermostat reset.

Manual restart

We only recommend this method if your thermostat is stuck or frozen, and you can't reach the menu to restart your thermostat as described in the previous section.

Important: If you manually restart your thermostat, it could lose any unsaved information.

Nest Thermostat