Quick Answer: Choose Vivint if you want lower monthly monitoring ($24.99-$49.99 vs ADT’s $49.99-$59.99) and camera hardware Vivint designs itself, including 4K RADAR-based detection — and you’re able to pay equipment costs upfront to skip the 42-60 month finance contract. Choose ADT if you’d rather put little or no money down today; its equipment is typically bundled into the monthly bill with a shorter, more predictable 36-month contract, according to SafeHome.org. Both require professional installation and neither is a self-install option.
Last updated August 7, 2026.
ADT and Vivint are the two biggest names in professionally installed, professionally monitored home security — and unlike Ring or Arlo, neither is designed for a self-install buyer. Both send a technician, both lock most customers into a multi-year contract, and both dispatch real monitoring agents when an alarm or camera confirms a threat. The differences show up in how you pay: ADT bundles equipment into the monthly bill with a shorter contract, while Vivint asks for more upfront but typically charges less per month once you’re in. Here’s how the two actually compare.
ADT vs Vivint: at a glance
| Factor | ADT | Vivint |
|---|---|---|
| Core product | Professionally installed system, equipment typically bundled into monthly bill | Professionally installed system, equipment paid upfront or financed |
| Starting equipment cost | Packages start ~$599, can exceed $1,500 for larger builds | $600-$700, often $1,000+ with cameras/smart-home devices |
| Installation fee | $99-$199 depending on package size | Starts at $99 |
| Contract | 36 months, nearly always required | Month-to-month if paid in full; 42-60 months if financed |
| Early termination fee | Remainder of 36-month balance | Up to 75% of remaining balance on financed contracts |
| Professional monitoring | $49.99-$59.99/mo | $24.99-$49.99/mo (most real systems ~$39.99/mo) |
| Camera hardware | Rebadged Google Nest (Pro Install) or ADT-branded Blu | Vivint's own in-house designed cameras |
| Indoor camera price | Nest Cam Indoor (wired) — $99.99 | Indoor Camera — $199.99 |
| Outdoor camera price | Nest Cam Outdoor / Floodlight — $149.99-$279.99 | Outdoor Camera Pro (Gen 3) 4K, RADAR AI — $399.99 |
| Best for | $0-down buyers who want a shorter, predictable contract | Buyers who can pay cash upfront and want cheaper long-term monitoring |
ADT vs Vivint by the numbers
- $599-$1,500+ vs $600-$1,000+: ADT’s packages start around $599 and can exceed $1,500 for larger builds, according to SafeHome.org, but that cost is typically bundled into the monthly bill rather than charged upfront. Vivint’s equipment starts at $600-$700 and often tops $1,000 once cameras and smart-home devices are added — and buyers who want to avoid financing pay that amount in full at setup.
- 36 months vs 42-60 months: ADT requires a 36-month monitoring contract in nearly every case. Vivint’s contract runs 42-60 months if the equipment is financed — the more common path — but drops to month-to-month if equipment is paid in full, according to SafeHome.org.
- $49.99-$59.99/mo vs $24.99-$49.99/mo: ADT’s monitoring floor sits above Vivint’s ceiling in most scenarios. Vivint’s monitoring starts at $24.99/month, though SafeHome.org notes most real-world systems land closer to $39.99/month once video monitoring is added — still cheaper than ADT’s $49.99 starting point.
Price & equipment: ADT bundles the cost, Vivint asks for more upfront
ADT’s packages start around $599 and can climb past $1,500 for larger builds with more sensors and cameras, according to SafeHome.org — but that equipment cost is typically bundled into the monthly bill, so most ADT customers pay little or nothing out of pocket on day one. Vivint takes the opposite approach: equipment starts at $600-$700 and often exceeds $1,000 once cameras and smart-home sensors are added, and buyers who want to skip financing pay that full amount upfront. On cameras specifically, Vivint’s Outdoor Camera Pro runs $399.99 against ADT’s Nest-sourced Nest Cam Outdoor at $149.99. Comparing standalone cameras or accessories while you shop? Try Prime free for 30 days for fast, free shipping on whatever you add alongside either system.
Winner: ADT, for $0-down buyers who’d rather not front equipment costs; Vivint, for buyers willing to pay cash upfront to unlock a lower total cost over time.
Installation & contract: ADT is shorter, Vivint is avoidable
Both companies require a technician — ADT’s installation fee runs $99-$199 depending on package size, and Vivint’s starts at $99, according to SafeHome.org. Where they diverge is contract length. ADT locks nearly every customer into a 36-month monitoring contract regardless of payment method. Vivint’s contract depends entirely on how you pay: finance the equipment — the more common path given Vivint’s higher upfront cost — and you’re committed to 42-60 months, with early termination fees reaching 75% of the remaining balance. Pay Vivint’s equipment cost in full, though, and monitoring drops to month-to-month with no long-term commitment at all.
Winner: ADT, for a shorter and more predictable contract term; Vivint, for buyers who can pay cash and avoid a contract entirely.
Monitoring: Vivint costs less at every tier
ADT’s professional monitoring ranges $49.99-$59.99/month, topping out with facial-recognition detection at the higher tier, according to SafeHome.org. Vivint’s monitoring starts at $24.99/month, though SafeHome.org notes most real-world Vivint systems land closer to $39.99/month once video monitoring and smart-home control are layered in — still under ADT’s $49.99 floor. Both route confirmed alarms and camera-verified events to real monitoring agents who can dispatch police, fire, or medical responders.
Winner: Vivint, for a lower monthly monitoring cost at every realistic tier, even after accounting for the fact that most systems don’t stay at Vivint’s advertised $24.99 entry price.
Camera hardware: Vivint designs its own, ADT resells Nest
ADT’s Pro Install camera lineup isn’t ADT hardware at all — it’s rebadged Google Nest cameras, the same Indoor ($99.99), Outdoor ($149.99), battery ($179.99), and Floodlight ($279.99) models Nest sells directly, according to SafeHome.org. ADT’s separate Blu line swaps in ADT-branded, self-setup equipment for buyers who want ADT’s monitoring without the Nest hardware or the 36-month contract. Vivint, by contrast, designs its cameras in-house: the Outdoor Camera Pro (Gen 3) packs a 4K sensor, RADAR-based motion detection, and facial recognition for $399.99 — features built specifically around Vivint’s own monitoring platform rather than licensed from a third party. Buyers who want the Nest ecosystem specifically, without ADT’s contract, can compare it directly in our best Nest camera guide.
Winner: Vivint, for camera hardware it engineers and controls end-to-end, with deeper AI detection than ADT’s off-the-shelf Nest cameras.
Which should you buy?
- Choose ADT if you want $0-down setup, a predictable 36-month contract, and don’t mind that its cameras are the same Nest hardware Nest sells directly, just bundled behind a monitoring plan.
- Choose Vivint if you can pay equipment costs upfront to unlock month-to-month monitoring, and you want camera hardware Vivint designed itself with deeper motion and facial-recognition AI.
- Skip financing on either system if price-sensitive. ADT’s cost is baked into its monthly bill either way, but Vivint’s 42-60 month financed contract and 75% early-termination fee are the biggest long-term cost risk in this comparison — paying cash avoids both.
The bottom line
ADT wins on upfront cost and contract predictability — little or no money down, a package that starts around $599, and a fixed 36-month term. Vivint wins on long-term monitoring cost and camera hardware — monitoring that runs $10-20 cheaper per month at every tier, and cameras Vivint designs and controls itself rather than reselling. Buyers who’d rather spread cost into a monthly bill and want a shorter contract get more from ADT; buyers who can pay cash upfront and want cheaper monitoring plus more advanced camera AI should budget for Vivint. Still comparing options? Our ADT vs Ring comparison weighs ADT against a camera-first, no-contract alternative, our Vivint vs SimpliSafe comparison does the same for Vivint, our best Vivint camera guide ranks Vivint’s full four-device lineup on its own, and our best security camera system guide covers monitored and DIY kits across every major brand.