Ring Stick Up Cam Wired vs. Nest Cam Outdoor: Which should you buy?

We trust smart cameras with our property, our families, and our own safety, and that's why we demand the very best we can buy. Finding the right security camera for your home is about finding the right hardware, but you also need to consider the subscription services that make cameras stand out.

Stick Up Cam Wired by Ring

Flexible and affordable

$180 at Amazon

Pros

• Works indoors and outdoors
• Flexibility in power and internet
• Wider field of vision
• Built-in siren to ward off intruders
• Works with Alexa

Cons

• No video recordings without subscription
• No 24/7 recording option
• Doesn't play well with Google anymore

The one, true Ring Stick Up Cam has returned, a powerful indoor/outdoor camera that's flexible to power and place. It also integrates with the entire Ring line of home security products for a premium experience.

Nest Cam Outdoor

Ever-vigilant, ever-expensive

$200 at Best Buy

Pros

• Dustproof and splashproof
• 24/7 recording available with Nest Aware
• Better smart detection algorithms
• Great Google Assistant integration
• Works with a wider range of smart home devices

Cons

• Nest Aware is basically required
• Both camera and subscription are more expensive
• Alexa support is purposefully subpar
• No Ethernet or power options

Nest makes one of the most popular smart home security systems around, and the Nest Cam Outdoor can watch your front yard, backyard, or any other outdoor area. It's a premium camera, but it comes at a premium price, today and into the future with Nest Aware.

When trying to pick between these two cameras, Ring has a major advantage thanks for more affordable subscription and hardware costs and a more feature-rich camera, but three key decisions could sway buyers back towards the Nest: which AI assistant does your house use, do you need 24/7 recording, and does your camera need the reliability of an Ethernet connection?

Flexibility versus raw recording power

Both the Nest Cam Outdoor and Ring Stick Up Cam are 1080p internet-enabled security cameras with a 1080p picture, Infrared night vision, two-way audio, and the option for customized sensor zones. Both also work with AI assistants to quickly pull up live feeds on a variety of devices — Google-owned Nest works with Google Assistant while Amazon-owned Ring plays best with Alexa, which might make the decision for you right there. There is a Ring skill for Google Assistant, but it can't stream your video feed to Chromecasts or Google Assistant dispalys like the Google Home Hub.

Your choice in cameras might also be made for you if you're trying to mount your camera in an area with no outlets or with spotty Wi-Fi — like a stone entryway. The Nest Cam Outdoor only supports one source of power — a microUSB cable — while the Ring Stick Up Cam can run off of Power over Ethernet (PoE), giving you the flexibility to run as long or as short of a cable as you need, as well as only running one cable for both power and data instead of two. Very few smart home security cameras have PoE, and most of those are indoor-only, making the Ring Stick Up Cam a rarity.

	Ring Stick Up Cam Wired	Nest Cam Outdoor
IP rating	IPX5	IP65
Power options	microUSB PoE	microUSB
Internet options	Wi-Fi Ethernet	Wi-Fi
Camera field of view	150° horizontal 85° vertical	130° diagonal
Video quality	1080p	1080p
24/7 recording	❌	✔️
IR night vision	✔️	✔️
Sirens	✔️	❌
Two-way audio	✔️	✔️
Assistant integration	Google Assistant (limited) Amazon Alexa	Google Assistant

While both are resistant to the rain, the Nest Cam is IP65 dustproof and splashproof and the Ring Stick Up Cam is IPX5 — meaning it has not been properly tested against dust ingress and might not be a great choice for those who see dust storms or wildfires in their area semi-regularly. Nest Cam Outdoor also has an advantage by supporting 24/7 recording, but you have to subscribe to Nest Aware to see more than the last three hours.

Speaking of, yes, you do need a subscription when it comes to the Ring Stick Up Cam. Without it, the Ring won't record video at all, only show you the live feed, and the Nest will only show you the last three hours. You also miss out on the more advanced detection modes. At that point, why spend $200 on a camera in the first place?

Feature	Ring Free	Ring Protect	Nest Free	Nest Protect
Yearly Price	Free	Basic: $30 Plus: $100	Free	5-day: $50 10-day: $100 30-day: $300
Device Limit	—	Basic: 1 cam Plus: All cams at one residence	—	$3/month per additional cam
Custom zones	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️
Days recorded	❌	Basic: 60 days Plus: 60	3 hours	5-day: 5 days 10-day: 10 days 30-day: 30 days
24/7 recording	❌	❌	❌	✔️

Ring's most expensive plan tops out at $100/year and covers every Ring device on your account at a single address. Even its single-cam Basic plan stores the last 60 days of recordings. Nest Aware can go up to $30/month or $300/year for a single camera — it's an extra $3/month for every additional camera — and even the most expensive plan only stores 30 days of video feeds. That said, Nest Aware comes with 24/7 recording, which obviously takes up more space than just motion-triggered clips, but Ring still provides a longer time period of recordings for less money, whether you have one camera or 10.

Ring Stick Up Cam Wired

Flexible and affordable

$180 at Amazon

Better value in both the camera and the subscription

This camera works with Ethernet — including the under-appreciated Power over Ethernet — can see more and scare off intruders with its loud built-in siren. All of its subscriptions are more affordable, adding up to long-term benefits for your home security and your wallet.

Nest Cam Outdoor

Ever-vigilant, ever-expensive

Nest's brand demands a premium price, but this camera doesn't quite justify it.

$200 at Best Buy

If you don't intend to use many cameras — or if you absolutely need 24/7 recording — the Nest Cam Outdoor can make sense, but Nest Aware can get expensive, especially once you start paying for it on multiple cameras.