Ring cameras are a great way to see who is around your property and home when you are not around. ADT is a home security system designed to make your home extremely secure and can be fully customized. If you have both technologies, or are planning to get both, you might be wondering if they can work together.

Unfortunately, Ring cameras do not work with ADT at this time. However, some users have claimed that it is possible to link certain Ring devices, although it is not ideal.

Below, we’ll discuss why Ring cameras don’t work with ADT and the partial workarounds users have discovered to pair the two.

Can I Add a Ring Camera to My ADT System?

At this time, Ring cameras and the ADT security system cannot be completely paired or connected.

Many smart home users are surprised when they hear this because both devices use Z-wave protocols. Usually, Z-wave devices can sync together and work in unity.

Ring Doorbells used to even work with ADT, but recently people have found that they can no longer find the Ring Doorbell on the ADT app. So what happened?

Why Don’t Ring Cameras Work with ADT?

There are a few reasons why Ring cameras don’t work with ADT:

Although the two systems could work together, the companies have made their devices and services very different to keep business going individually.

Do Other Ring Devices Work with ADT?

Some people have found that they can successfully pair their Ring Doorbells with ADT, but not the Ring cameras. According to ADT, you can pair the two devices together, but the Ring Doorbell won’t show in the ADT Command & Control center.

This makes using the Ring Doorbell pretty useless because you will still have to control it from the Ring app. You will get alerts from the doorbell but won’t be able to see what they are from the ADT app.

If you use a third-party system or device to pair Ring cameras to ADT, you will experience the same issues. This makes the hassle of finding ways to pair the systems not worth it for most people.

What Are Workarounds to Connect Ring to ADT?

With the use of a Ring Retrofit Alarm Kit and a Ring Alarm Base Station, you can connect Ring devices to ADT. However, it is a pretty hard DIY project, and you will need to have some previous tech experience to make it work efficiently and correctly.

Professional installation will be a better option if you haven’t completed a process like this before. For a full instructional guide, you can check Ring’s support website. Make sure to follow the instructions exactly and connect all the wires in the correct places.

Some things to keep in mind before getting started:

  • The base station is for connecting existing wired systems, so make sure to have the cameras and ADT system already set up.All sensors need to be installed and working.This process won’t put the ADT sensors and Ring cameras into one easy-to-use app. It will only make notifications and controls appear in both the Ring app and ADT app.You will still have to use each system’s individual apps to change settings, solve network issues, or reset the system.

Since connecting the two devices is quite a bit of work and still doesn’t put all the information into one convenient app, you might want to check other third-party options that are better.

Third-Party Devices Compatible with ADT

Even though Ring doesn’t work, other smart home automation tools do. You will need the ADT Command Smart Pad to use the following devices:

Third-Party Devices Compatible with Ring

The following device brands work with the Ring Alarm Base Station:

  • DomeGeneral ElectricLevitonEcoLinkFirst AlertYaleSchlageKwikset

Final Thoughts

Ring cameras and the ADT system do not work together without a separate system of hubs and base stations. Connecting the ADT system with Ring cameras takes extensive tech knowledge and is a complex DIY project.

With that said, for most people, the time and effort are not worth it because everything is still in separate apps. You might benefit more from using a device from a third party directly compatible with Ring or ADT.