TP-Link’s Kasa Smart Plug EP10 is a compact, affordable way to add app control, schedules, and voice control to almost any lamp or small appliance. It’s basic, but that’s exactly why it works so well for most homes.
Smart Plug Review
Smart plugs are one of the easiest ways to dip your toes into home automation, and TP-Link’s Kasa Smart Plug EP10 is the classic “first step” for a reason. It’s inexpensive, compact enough not to block other outlets, and the Kasa app is simple enough that anyone in the house can use it without a learning curve.
You don’t get extras like energy monitoring, Matter support, or Apple HomeKit, but if your goal is simply to turn lamps, fans, or coffee makers on and off from your phone or with Alexa/Google Assistant, the EP10 is an easy recommendation—especially at its typical sub-$15 price.
The Kasa Smart Plug EP10 is best for people who want the fastest, cheapest way to make “dumb” devices smarter without thinking too hard about ecosystems or advanced automation. It’s not the most powerful smart plug on the market, but its mix of price, reliability, and simplicity is tough to beat.
Out of the box, the EP10 looks unremarkable—which is exactly what you want from a smart plug. It’s a small white rectangle that doesn’t draw attention, and more importantly, it usually doesn’t block the second outlet on a standard wall receptacle. You can stack several of these around a room without feeling like you’ve cluttered the wall.
Setup is straightforward: plug it in, open the Kasa app, add a new device, and connect it to your 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. From there, you can assign a name like “Living Room Lamp” or “Coffee Maker,” group it with other Kasa devices, and start building simple schedules. It feels like the right balance between “smart” and “doesn’t require a manual.”
The EP10’s design is all about staying out of the way. In a standard horizontal wall outlet, you can usually plug a second device above or below without issue, which isn’t always true of chunkier competitors. There’s a single physical power button on the plug itself, so you can still toggle it by hand if your phone isn’t nearby.
Setup in the Kasa app typically takes a few minutes. The app walks you through connecting to your home Wi-Fi, naming the plug, and choosing an icon. Once connected, you can create schedules (for example, turning lights on at sunset and off at midnight), set timers, or enable an “away mode” that randomizes on/off events to simulate activity while you’re not home.
For a first smart-home device—or for someone who just wants a simpler way to control a lamp—the combination of compact hardware and low-friction setup is a big win.
In day-to-day use, the EP10 behaves exactly how you’d hope a basic smart plug would. Commands sent from the Kasa app usually take effect in a second or two, and scheduled automations trigger on time without requiring constant babysitting.
As with any Wi-Fi smart plug, overall reliability depends partly on your network. In a home with reasonable 2.4 GHz coverage, the EP10 stays online and responsive. If you have weak coverage near a particular outlet, you may see occasional “device offline” messages, but that’s a Wi-Fi issue rather than a plug-specific problem.
For most households using it with lamps, fans, or similar loads, the EP10 is more than stable enough to set it, forget it, and trust that the lights will be on when you expect them to be.
On the feature front, the EP10 focuses on core functionality instead of trying to do everything. You get:
That’s enough for the vast majority of “make this outlet smarter” use cases: floor lamps, holiday lights, window fans, coffee makers, and more. It’s also easy enough to hand off to other people in the household via the app, so you don’t become the default “smart home admin.”
The trade-offs are clear, though. There is no native Apple HomeKit support, and no support for Matter as of this review. You also don’t get energy monitoring—if you want detailed consumption data and long-term usage graphs, you’ll need to step up to a more advanced Kasa model or a competitor with monitoring capabilities.
Where the EP10 really shines is value. It’s often available individually or in multipacks for well under US $15 per plug, and deals can bring the per-plug price even lower. At that price point, it’s easy to justify picking up a few and sprinkling them around key rooms.
Some alternatives worth considering (all with live Amazon links):
For most readers, the EP10 still hits the best balance of price, reliability, and simplicity. If you’re okay paying a bit more for better data or future-proofing, the KP115 or KP125M are the logical upgrades.
VoltVerdict Score context: For this review, we weighted reliability and everyday usability heavily, with extra credit for long-term value. The EP10 scores strongly on reliability and price, while missing some points on ecosystem breadth and advanced features.
The TP-Link Kasa Smart Plug EP10 isn’t the flashiest smart device you can buy, but it might be one of the most practical. It’s cheap, compact, and easy enough to recommend to anyone—even relatives who’ve never touched a smart-home app before.
If you’re deep into Apple HomeKit or planning a fully Matter-based setup, you’ll want to look elsewhere. But if your home leans toward Alexa or Google Assistant and you simply want lamps and small appliances to follow a smarter schedule, the EP10 is a great place to start.
For most people building a budget-friendly smart home, this is an easy “buy two or three” device that quietly makes everyday life more convenient.
8.7 / 10 — Excellent budget smart plug
Compact, affordable, and reliable, the Kasa Smart Plug EP10 gets the basics right and stays out of your way. You give up energy monitoring and broader ecosystem support, but for the price, it’s hard to argue with the value.
Performance & Reliability · Design & Usability · Features & Ecosystem · Value for Money · Build, Privacy & Support
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