Touchless faucets are a great feature in a kitchen. They offer convenience and cleanliness. Turning the water on without touching the faucet keeps the faucet clean. It also prevents the spread of germs. And now, companies like Moen and Kohler are taking the touchless faucet technology even further by making them smart. But which smart faucet should you choose?
Both Moen and Kohler have produced touchless faucets that can be voice-controlled. The Kohler range is more expensive but is also known for its durability. Moen offers more designs. Both allow you to use voice control to dispense a certain volume of water. But Moen also offers temperature control.
There are several other differences between the two brands. In this article, I consider the pros and cons of the smart touchless faucets from Moen (U by Moen) and Kohler. If you would like to install a voice-controlled faucet in your kitchen, keep reading!
Both Moen and Kohler produce many different types of faucets. Not all of these are smart, and not all of them have motion sensors.
Please note: I am comparing specifically the Voice-Controlled Faucets from both Moen (U by Moen) and Kohler in this article.
What Makes A Smart Faucet Different From A Dumb Faucet?
Both Moen and Kohler have been making faucets for a long time. And even before voice control, the technology was pretty great. Motion sensors in the faucets allowed for hands-free water control.
Both the Moen and the Kohler smart faucets can be controlled in four ways. You can use the hands-free wave sensor, the handle, voice control, or the app.
The voice control adds a whole new dimension to your kitchen.
You can connect your smart faucet to a smart speaker. (I included compatibilities later in this post). And then you can “talk to your faucet,” telling it to turn on or off.
Both brands even allow you to specify how much water the faucet should dispense.
This is a great feature if your hands are dirty and you don’t want to touch your faucet.
It also eliminates the need for measuring cups for the water.
Plus, you can create presets for water volumes that you fill up regularly. For example, you can create a preset for filling your kettle, your dog’s bowl, or your baby’s bottle.
The apps also let you track your water usage from the faucet. Ultimately, this might help you use less water. Which is great for your water bill and the environment.
But there are still differences between what the smart faucets of the two brands can do. It is worth investigating these differences before making a purchase.
The Moen Voice-Controlled Faucets Allow Temperature Control
The Moen smart faucets have a distinct advantage over the Kohler smart faucets. The Moen smart faucets allow for temperature control. The Kohler smart faucets do not.
So you can tell the Kohler smart faucet to dispense 2 cups of water. But the water will be at the temperature at which it was last used. You have to use the handle to set the water temperature.
With the Moen U, you can tell the faucet to dispense 2 cups of water at 100°F. It allows water temperatures up to 120°F.
Moen Vs Kohler Smart Touchless Faucets: Smart Assistants
Both Moen and Kohler smart faucets can connect to Google and Alexa.
Kohler can also connect to Apple Homekit. But Siri can only turn the faucet on or off. It cannot dispense a specific volume of water.
Both The Moen And The Kohler Apps Need Some Work
To use voice control for your smart faucet, you need to connect it to an app on your phone.
The Moen smart faucets need to be connected to the Moen Smart Water Network App. The Kohler smart faucets need to be connected to the Kohler Konnect app.
Both of these apps have not exactly received rave reviews. The Moen app has (at the time of writing) a rating of 2/5 on the Google Play Store and 3/5 on the Apple App Store.
The Kohler Konnect App has a rating of 1.7/5 on the Google Play Store. Although it has a rating of 5/5 on the Apple App store, this was based on only two submitted reviews. The written reviews were mostly terrible.
For both brands, customers complained that they had trouble pairing their phones with the faucets. And if they did manage it, they often had to re-pair because the connection was lost.
This seems to be the problem with many smart devices being released. The technology that the devices are based on is incredible, and the hardware works well. But the apps are not on par and lead to much frustration.
You don’t want to spend so much money on a smart faucet if the “smart” part isn’t working.
But the good news is that apps can be developed and updated. So even if they aren’t perfect (or even near-perfect based on some reviews) now, they can improve in the future!
The Moen Voice-Controlled Faucets Can Be Battery-Powered
Both the Moen and the Kohler smart faucets require a power source to function.
The Moen Smart Faucets come with a battery pack that takes 6 D batteries. According to the brand, these batteries should last for two years.
You can also buy an extra AC adapter to plug the faucet directly into a power outlet. Unfortunately, this adapter is relatively expensive. However, I would suggest purchasing the adapter and using a power outlet most of the time. The batteries can then serve as a backup if your power goes out.
The Moen faucets won’t function (even manually) when they are not connected to power. You don’t want to risk your batteries dying and not having a backup.
The Kohler cannot be powered by batteries. It comes with a standard AC adapter.
Moen Vs Kohler Smart Touchless Faucets: Durability and Warranty
First, I’d like to add here that reading customer reviews on Amazon about these faucets is not all that useful. Both brands produce many different types of faucets. Often, the names of the faucets are very similar.
People often don’t make sure that they are writing a review for the correct product. And you will find many reviews for dumb touchless faucets from Moen and Kohler under the smart product pages. Just keep this in mind when making your decision.
In terms of durability, Kohler products are generally better. The brand focuses on producing good quality products and it is evident.
Kohler offers a five-year limited warranty on electronic faucets.
There have been way more customer complaints about Moen faucets failing. Fortunately, their customer service is usually good. They mostly replace the parts that have failed.
Moen offers a limited lifetime warranty on its faucets. There is also a 5-year warranty on digital components.
You can find the full warranty conditions for Moen faucets here.
The fact that the Moen parts aren’t that durable, to begin with, counts against them in my opinion. Even though they will replace the parts, a leaky faucet can cause other damage. Your cabinets may start to warp. If the water leaks onto your floor, that might be damaged. And these costs are not included in a warranty.
So in terms of durability, Kohler definitely wins.
Moen Vs Kohler Touchless Faucets: Position Of The Motion Sensor
In the Moen smart faucets, the motion sensor is on top of the faucet. There is also an LED light that indicates the water temperature. Blue is cold and different shades of red indicated increasing water temperature.
You might accidentally trigger the Moen motion sensor if you have cabinets above your sink and reach towards them.
In the Kohler smart faucets, the motion sensor is on the underside of the faucet arch.
You might accidentally trigger the Kohler motion sensor if you put something into the sink.
Moen Vs Kohler Smart Touchless Faucets: Ease Of Installation
Both Moen and Kohler smart faucets have been reported to be relatively easy to install.
Keep in mind that if you don’t want to install the faucet yourself, you’ll have to pay a contractor. This cost is in addition to the already high price of your smart faucet.
Moen Vs Kohler Smart Touchless Faucets: Water Dispensing Volumes
The Moen smart faucets can dispense water amounts from one tablespoon to 15 gallons. They also allow fractional measurements.
The Kohler smart faucets only dispense water between 6 ounces and 8 gallons. They also don’t allow fractional measurements.
Moen Vs Kohler Smart Touchless Faucets: Price
Kohler smart faucets are more expensive than Moen smart faucets. But that doesn’t mean that Moen smart faucets are cheap.
On the Moen website, the cheapest smart faucet is just under $700.
The cheapest smart Kohler faucet is just over $800. This is the price range of the non-smart Kohler faucets as well. And they can get more than double this price!
The strange thing is, you can find these faucets for much cheaper on online stores like Amazon. Moen smart faucets are literally hundreds of dollars cheaper on Amazon than the Moen website indicates.
So I recommend shopping around!
It’s important to note that the colors or finishes of the faucets significantly impact the price. For example, the Kohler Sensate faucet in Vibrant Ombré costs almost $650 more than the same faucet in Polished Chrome.
Moen Vs Kohler Smart Touchless Faucets: Spray Patterns
Both Moen and Kohler smart faucets have a pull-down spray head.
The Moen lets you change between four spray settings. These are Aerated Stream, Boosted Stream, Cleaning Rinse, and Boosted Rinse.
The Kohler Sensate lets you change between a regular spray and Sweep® spray. According to the Kohler website, “Sweep spray features specially angled nozzles that form a wide, powerful blade of water to sweep your dishes and sink clean.”
Different Kohler smart faucet models have different spray options.
Both brands seem to be able to clean sufficiently with the spray patterns that they offer.
Moen Vs Kohler Touchless Faucets: Available Designs & Variety
The Moen Smart Kitchen Faucet (One-Handle High Arc Pulldown) is available in many different designs. The table below shows the colors in which each design is available. It also shows the spout height and reaches.
| Faucet Style | Color | Spout height (inches) | Spout reach (inches) | ||||||
| Oil rubbed bronze | Matt black | Chrome | Spot Resist Stainless | Black Stainless | Polished nickel | Brushed gold | |||
| Belfied | √ | √ | √ | √ | 15.62 | 7.70 | |||
| Sleek | √ | √ | √ | √ | 15.96 | 7.63 | |||
| Arbor | √ | √ | √ | √ | 15.50 | 7.88 | |||
| Sinema | √ | √ | √ | √ | 17.75 | 8.50 | |||
| Kurv | √ | √ | √ | √ | 16.38 | 8.75 | |||
| Paterson | √ | √ | √ | 17.00 | 8.0 | ||||
| Align | √ | √ | √ | √ | √ | 15.70 | 7.50 | ||
| Nio | √ | √ | √ | √ | 18.38 | 8.56 | |||
| STo | √ | √ | √ | √ | 17.25 | 9.05 | |||
| Weymouth | √ | √ | √ | √ | √ | √ | 17.0 | 7.95 | |
| Brantford | √ | √ | √ | 15.50 | 7.88 | ||||
| Belfield | √ | √ | √ | √ | 15.62 | 7.70 | |||
| Cadia | √ | 16.30 | 7.63 | ||||||
| Zyla | √ | 16.69 | 7.66 | ||||||
| Essie | √ | 15.75 | 7.88 | ||||||
| Sarai | √ | 16.30 | 7.88 |
There are fewer faucets from Kohler which can be used with Kohler Konnect:
- Graze Kitchen Sink Faucet
- Sensate Kitchen Sink Faucet
- Artifacts Kitchen Sink Faucet
- Riff Kitchen Sink Faucet
- Tone Kitchen Sink Faucet
- Crue Kitchen Sink Faucet
Although they are also quite sleek and have aesthetic finishes, Moen’s variety trumps Kohler’s.
Home Streamliner’s Take
If money is not an issue, I would recommend the Kohler smart faucet. The durability of a product that you use every single day is so important.
The fact that Moen can specify both temperature and volume when dispensing water does appeal to me. And goodness, it has so much “showing off” appeal!
But to be honest, until the apps of these brands are improved, I wouldn’t invest in a smart faucet. The price is too exorbitant if the smart capabilities cannot be guaranteed. And until the connectivity issues in the apps are resolved, I don’t think it’s worth it.
