Away Mode gets your home ready when you leave for the day. It turns things off, locks up, sets back the thermostat, and can keep an eye on the house while you are gone.
How it starts and stops
Away Mode can start when:
- No one has been home for 1 hour (geolocation), or
- A schedule you set (days and times), or
- You turn it on manually from the app or a Control.
It ends when someone returns home, on your schedule, or when you turn it off.
- After Away Mode is triggered, there is a 60-second delay before actions run, so you can get out the door.
- Turning it off from a Control requires your Brilliant PIN.
- Everyone in the home gets a notification on their mobile app when Away Mode starts and ends.
See "Modes: how they work" for geolocation setup and how schedules and triggers behave.
What it does
When Away Mode starts:
- All lights off
- All locks locked
- All shades closed
- All garage doors closed
- Thermostats set to off
- All music off
- Plugs set to off
- Arms your security system, or turns on Presence Alerts
When Away Mode ends:
- All lights on
- Doors unlocked
- Garage doors open
- Thermostats set to Heat/Cool 68 to 72
A note on the thermostat action
The thermostat action is a conservative default. Away and Vacation set thermostats off, then back to a comfortable Heat/Cool 68 to 72 when the Mode ends. It is not meant to replace your thermostat's own schedules or smart features. If you would rather manage the thermostat yourself, edit the set points or remove the thermostat action from the Mode.
Security: panel or Presence Alerts
Away Mode can protect your home two ways. You choose one when you set it up.
- Arm a connected security panel. If you have a connected security panel (such as Resideo or Ring), Brilliant's recommended setup includes your panels and sets them to Arm Away when the Mode starts. You can remove any panel you do not want included. Within a Mode, panels are set to Arm Away only (Disarm and Arm Home are not options here). Brilliant arms the panel but does not disarm it when the Mode ends, so you disarm it yourself with your alarm PIN.
- Presence Alerts. If you do not arm a panel, you can turn on Presence Alerts, which uses your Brilliant Controls, switches, and Shelly sensors to alert you to activity while you are away. See "Presence Alerts."
Editing Away Mode
Set up and edit Away Mode in the Brilliant app. Brilliant recommends actions based on your devices and rooms, and you can change any of them: remove a full action, remove specific devices from an action, or adjust the triggers. If an action needs a device you do not have, it is turned off with a note on what to add.