HQ
HomeHQ vs Hearth

HomeHQ vs Hearth Display.

Hearth is the most beautiful family-calendar display on the market — and the most expensive. HomeHQ is the calm alternative — $12/month billed annually — for households that don't want to spend $699 to start.

Coming soon
iPad · iPhone · Built on Google Calendar · 30-day free trial
Our verdict

Choose Hearth if you have younger kids, want a child-development-led routines + rewards system, and the $699 price tag isn't a barrier.

Choose HomeHQ if $12/month billed annually and an iPad you already own get you to the same outcome — without spending $699 to start.

T
Tej Tandon · Founder, HomeHQ
Building HomeHQ from Vancouver — bootstrapped, no investors. I write these guides from running my own family on the same tools.
Verified June 2026
Side by side

HomeHQ vs Hearth Display: the rows that decide it.

The honest comparison — including where Hearth wins. Prices and features verified June 2026.

FeatureHomeHQHearth Display
Up-front cost$0$699
Monthly cost$14.99 ($12 annual)$9
3-year total$432$1,023
Scan a flyer into the calendarIncludedVia Hearth Helper (Membership)
Routines for kids✓Built around them
Dedicated touchscreenUse your own iPad✓
Free trial30 days30 days
See the full comparison (11 more rows)
TypeAppHardware (touchscreen) + app
AI dish photos & meal ideas✓
Flyer scanningYes — the photo never leaves your iPhoneVia Hearth Helper
Two-way Google Calendar✓✓
Family member limitWhole householdUnlimited
Per-member kid views✓✓
AI assistantFamily Insights + meal AI + dish photosHearth Helper (Membership)
Star-rewards systemCore feature
Works on phones too✓Companion app
Child-development-led design✓
Proven track recordNew in 2026Established brand
The yearly math

What you actually pay over 3 years.

HomeHQ
Hardware$0
Year 1$144
Year 2$144
Year 3$144
3-year total$432
Hearth Display
Hardware (Hearth Display)$699
Year 1 Membership$108
Year 2 Membership$108
Year 3 Membership$108
3-year total$1,023
Decide quickly

When Hearth wins, when HomeHQ wins.

Choose Hearth if…

  • →You have young kids (4–10) where routines and visual icons matter most.
  • →You want a screen that's genuinely beautiful as an object on the wall.
  • →Star-rewards motivation is meaningful for your kids.
  • →You don't mind paying $699 up front.

Choose HomeHQ if…

  • →You have an iPad you can mount in the kitchen instead.
  • →You'd rather spend that $663 on something else.
  • →You want chores with points, a weekly recap, and meal planning on the same screen.
  • →Your kids are older and don't need the gamified-routines layer.
  • →You'd rather have streaks and a leaderboard than a rewards economy — recognition, not bribes.
Keep the calendar you have

One calendar. Everyone sees it.

HomeHQ runs on the Google Calendar your family already uses. Connect it once and every change shows up everywhere — the kitchen iPad and every iPhone show the same plan. Nothing to migrate, nobody to convince.

  • ✓Change it on any phone — it's right everywhere, including Google Calendar itself.
  • ✓Color-coded per person, automatically.
  • ✓Add an event on your phone; the kitchen display updates in seconds.
  • ✓Or snap a paper flyer — the events land on the shared calendar without typing.
  • ✓It's your real Google calendar — your data stays in your own account.
The HomeHQ app runs on iPhone and iPad, with a native Android app coming soon. The calendar itself lives in your own Google account.
One source of truth
Add "Lina — judo, Wed 3:30" once. It's on every iPhone in the house.
Synced via Google Calendar
Kitchen iPad · Mom's iPhone · Dad's iPhone — all updated
Try HomeHQ free for 30 days — without buying Hearth.
$12/month billed annually after the trial, or $14.99 monthly. Cancel anytime through Apple.
HomeHQ vs Hearth Display

What people ask before they pick.

Yes. HomeHQ covers the same ground (shared family calendar, meals, chores, per-member kid views, color-coding) without the $699 upfront. Hearth is more polished as a hardware object and better at gamified kid routines; HomeHQ is much cheaper and built on the Google Calendar you already use.

It's a beautiful, purpose-built touchscreen with a custom OS, designed in collaboration with child-development specialists. The price reflects the hardware design and the small-batch nature of the product. The $9/month Membership on top unlocks the Hearth Helper AI assistant, meal planning, and the photo screensaver.

Yes, in a less gamified form. HomeHQ has per-member chores with flexible assignment — fixed, auto-rotating, or up for grabs — plus streaks, a weekly leaderboard, and a kid-friendly view. We deliberately don't do star-rewards (Hearth is better there specifically); we focus on recognition over rewards. Different philosophy; both get the chores done.

Both do two-way Google Calendar sync. HomeHQ is built on Google Calendar as its foundation, so connecting your family's Google accounts is the whole setup. The sync experience is comparable; HomeHQ leans harder on Google as the single source of truth.

Hearth Helper (part of the Membership) is a general organizing companion — it can digitize a photographed flyer or whiteboard and capture household to-dos. HomeHQ's AI is focused on three specific jobs: turning a photographed flyer into calendar events you approve (the photo never leaves your phone — only the text it reads is used), a parents-only Family Insights card that flags conflicts, busy days, and lopsided chore weeks with one-tap fixes, and a weekly meal plan that respects allergies and learns your family's taste (dish photos by Gemini). Hearth's is a companion you talk to; HomeHQ's does its chores and stays out of the way.

Researching Hearth Display? Visit their official site →
Keep reading

Related guides and comparisons.

Digital family calendar guide
Every display and app compared, Hearth included.
Family calendar display
Turn the iPad you own into the kitchen screen.
Best family calendar app
Skip the $699 hardware — the software-only options.
Ready when you are

Bring the calm home.

30 days free. Then $12/mo billed annually, or $14.99/mo. Your whole household, on the iPad and iPhone you already own.