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How to set up a presence sensor

Updated: 23 October 2026

The sensor is on the table, three apps are open, and the leaflet assumes you already know whether this box is Zigbee, Tuya Wi-Fi, Matter over Wi-Fi or Thread. This is how to set up a presence sensor from the ten rows on the [presence detector comparison](/hub/electronic-surveillance/presence-detector): power, the controller you named, a mount aimed at the chair, and one lamp with a vacancy delay you have timed by walking out. Protocol choice stays on the [buying guide](/hub/electronic-surveillance/presence-detector/sub/presence-detector-buying-guide). Peter F., editor for DIY & tools, did not install these units. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

The sensor is on the table, three apps are open, and the leaflet assumes you already know whether this box is Zigbee, Tuya Wi-Fi, Matter over Wi-Fi or Thread.

Our top picks

SONOFF SONOFF SNZB-06P24

Best overall

SONOFF SONOFF SNZB-06P24
8.1/10about £21.85
View offer
Meross Meross MS605

Alternative

Meross Meross MS605
6.9/10about £33.98
View offer
Meross Meross MS600

Best value

Meross Meross MS600
6.6/10about £29.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Before you open an app
  2. 2.Pair the one you bought
  3. 3.Mount it on the seat, not the door
  4. 4.Set the vacancy delay on one light
  5. 5.When this is no longer a plug-in job

Before you open an app

Name the controller before you peel a pad. Zigbee joins a coordinator, not your Wi-Fi password. Thread joins a border router already on the network. The MS600 joins 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. Tuya Wi-Fi joins Smart Life. If that controller is not in the house, stop. Plan a USB socket for the SNZB-06P: reviews say it is USB-C even though the table says 9 V. Fit the cells the box contains. Pick one lamp.

Pair the one you bought

For a SONOFF SNZB-06P, hold the button about five seconds until the LED flashes slowly, and give the hub about 180 seconds. In eWeLink, add Zigbee from the gateway screen, not the plus button. The SNZB-06P24 can clear a bad join with the 10-second reset. The hub is not in the box. Tuya Wi-Fi, including Pinafresa: phone on 2.4 GHz, then add a Wi-Fi device in Smart Life. Smallterm needs a Tuya Zigbee gateway that is not included. The MS600 is Matter over 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, with no Thread router and no Meross hub. If the button never flashes, treat that as a return. The MS605 and Lafaer need the border router online first, then the Matter QR. Update MS605 firmware in the Meross app before Alexa. SwitchBot starts in its own app, and Apple Home needs a hub sold separately.
SONOFF SONOFF SNZB-06P24

Testsieger

SONOFF SONOFF SNZB-06P24
8.1/10about £21.85
View offer

Mount it on the seat, not the door

Aim at the chair, not the door. A sensor over the frame sees you arrive and then watches an empty hall. The SNZB-06P manual puts height at or below 2 metres, for that model only. Keep fans, curtains, plants and the party wall out of the first aim, and do not point two sensors at each other. Stand in the chair and confirm occupied. Step out and wait for clear. If it never clears, or it clears while you sit, that is the false triggers page.

Set the vacancy delay on one light

The delay is how long the lamp stays on after the sensor says empty. Tuya offers 0 to 1,500 seconds. Zero is fast, and it also kills the lamp on a brief clear. On the SNZB-06P, stay at 30 seconds or more below firmware 1.0.5, or the sensor can stick on detected. From 1.0.5, Zigbee2MQTT’s floor is 15 seconds. If the sit fails, the best presence sensor page separates the rows by hub.

When this is no longer a plug-in job

Stop if the work opens a ceiling rose, a consumer unit, or any cable in the fixed installation. In England and Wales, altering a bath or shower room installation is still a building-regulations job. Part P is that regime. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules. These ten rows are not hard-wired 230 V sensors.

Common questions

What do I do first, the app or the mount?
The controller and the power come first, then pairing, then the mount. A pad on the ceiling before the hub exists is how sensors get returned as dead. You can rest the unit on a shelf, facing the chair, until the app shows occupied and clear. Stick it only after that test.
How do I pair a SONOFF Zigbee sensor?
On the SNZB-06P, hold the button about five seconds for a slow flash, and let the hub search for about 180 seconds, using a coordinator SONOFF actually lists. Put the phone in the gateway’s Zigbee screen in eWeLink, not on the plus button that adds Wi-Fi devices. The 06P24 can clear a bad join with the 10-second reset SONOFF describes, and it still needs the hub.
How do I add a Thread sensor in Home Assistant?
Bring the Thread border router online, then use the Matter QR flow. That order is for the MS605 and the Lafaer, not for the MS600, which is Matter over Wi-Fi, and not for a Tuya Wi-Fi sensor. Update MS605 firmware in the Meross app before Alexa if you are following Meross’s own bullet.
How long should the light stay on after I leave?
Long enough to leave and fetch something without the room going dark, and short enough that an empty room does not sit lit all evening. On an SNZB-06P below firmware 1.0.5, stay at 30 seconds or more so the sensor does not stick on detected. From 1.0.5, Zigbee2MQTT’s floor is 15 seconds. Tuya’s 0 to 1,500 second hold is a range, not an instruction to pick zero.
When do I stop and call an electrician?
Stop when the job cuts into fixed wiring, especially in a bath or shower room in England or Wales, or when you do not know the circuit. A plug-in adapter or a battery lid is still your job. A ceiling rose, a new spur or a fitting that runs hot is not. Scotland and Northern Ireland are not covered by an England-and-Wales Part P sentence.

Related pages

Presence sensor vs PIR

Presence detector

Best presence sensor UK for the hub you already have

Presence sensor buying guide: hub before gigahertz

Presence sensor false triggers: stuck on or stuck clear

Sources

Public UK sources from the digest first, then the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Prices and stars were taken on 21 October 2026.

  1. ICO, Home CCTV systems (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK, Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  3. SI 2016/1101, Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  4. Ofcom IR 2030 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  5. GOV.UK, When you do not need building regulations approval (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  6. IET, Part P frequently asked questions (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  7. Texas Instruments SSZT759, mmWave and PIR on their board (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  8. amazon.co.uk, smart presence sensor (retrieved 21 October 2026)