Aqara Motion and Presence Sensors: All Models Compared

Aqara makes more motion and presence sensors than any other smart home brand we carry, and the range keeps growing. If you’re staring at the product list wondering whether you need a P1, a P2, an FP1E, or an FP2, you’re not alone.

This guide organises every sensor by category, compares all models within each category side by side, and tells you plainly which one to buy for your situation.

All Sensors at a Glance

Sensor	Type	Range	Angle	Power	Protocol	Best For
Motion Sensor P1	PIR	7m	150°–170°	Battery	Zigbee 3.0	Corridors, toilets, entryways
Motion and Light Sensor P2	PIR	7m	120°	Battery	Zigbee	Ceiling-mount rooms
Presence Sensor FP1E	mmWave	5m	120°	USB-C	Zigbee	Bedroom / study, single zone
Presence Sensor FP2	mmWave	8m	120°	USB-C	Wi-Fi	Living room, multi-zone
Presence Sensor FP300	mmWave	4m	60°	USB-C	Zigbee	Small rooms, Zigbee setups
Multi-State Sensor P100	mmWave	4m	Downward	USB-C	Zigbee	Fall detection, toilet occupancy
Climate Sensor W100	PIR + Temp/Humidity	—	—	Battery	Zigbee	Climate + motion combined
Door and Window Sensor T1	Contact	—	—	Battery	Zigbee	Entry / exit detection
Door and Window Sensor P2	Contact	—	—	Battery	Zigbee	Entry / exit, longer range
Water Leak Sensor T1	Flood contact	—	—	Battery	Zigbee	Kitchen, bathroom flooding
Vibration Sensor T1	Vibration	—	—	Battery	Zigbee	Tapping, tilt, movement
Temperature and Humidity Sensor T1	Temp / Humidity	—	—	Battery	Zigbee	Climate monitoring
Smart Smoke Detector	Smoke	—	—	Wired	Zigbee	Fire detection
Smart Gas Detector	Gas	—	—	Wired	Zigbee	Kitchen gas leak

First: Motion vs Presence — What’s the Difference?

Before picking a sensor, you need to understand the two fundamentally different technologies behind them. Getting this wrong is the most common and most expensive mistake.

The Quick Decision

If your question is “will the lights turn off while I’m sitting still?” then you want a presence sensor. For everything else, a PIR motion sensor is usually the right and more affordable call.

Comparing Between Sensors

PIR Motion Sensors Compared: P1 vs P2

These two sensors are not competing models. They solve different mounting scenarios.

Choose the P1 if you’re wall-mounting. The adjustable stand lets you aim it precisely at a doorway or entry zone. The 5-year battery life means you’ll rarely think about it after installation.

Choose the P2 if you want a ceiling-mounted look or your room layout benefits from overhead coverage. A 120° cone from the ceiling covers a room evenly without furniture blocking the field of view. It’s the cleaner, more discreet option.

The key limitation of both: no PIR sensor will keep your lights on while you’re sitting still. For a living room, bedroom, or study, read the section below.

Category	Motion Sensor P1	Motion and Light Sensor P2
Mount	Wall / shelf	Ceiling
Detection range	7m (high) / 2m (low)	7m
Detection angle	150°–170° (adjustable)	120°
Sensitivity	Configurable (Low / Med / High)	Standard
Timeout	Configurable (1–200 sec)	Configurable
Light sensor	Yes	Yes
Battery	2× CR2450 (~5 years)	1× CR2450
Protocol	Zigbee 3.0	Zigbee
Hub required	Yes	Yes
Price	$39	$55

mmWave Presence Sensors Compared: FP1E vs FP2 vs FP300 vs P100

All four sensors here use millimetre-wave radar and detect presence rather than just movement. The differences come down to range, coverage angle, zone capabilities, and whether they connect via Zigbee or Wi-Fi.

Category	Presence Sensor FP1E	Presence Sensor FP2	Presence Sensor FP300	Multi-State Sensor P100
Mount	Wall / shelf	Ceiling / wall	Wall	Ceiling (downward-facing)
Detection range	5m	8m	4m	4m
Coverage angle	120°	120°	60°	Focused downward beam
Zone mapping	No	Yes (up to 30 zones)	Limited	No (single zone)
Multi-person detection	No	Yes (up to 5 persons)	No	No
Position tracking	No	Yes	No	No
State detection	No	No	No	Sit / lie / stand / fall
Protocol	Zigbee	Wi-Fi	Zigbee	Zigbee
Hub required	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Power	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C
Price	$79	$139	$99	$69

FP1E vs FP300: The Two Zigbee Presence Sensors

Both use Zigbee, both require a hub, both are USB-C wired. The FP1E has a wider angle (120° vs 60°), longer range (5m vs 4m), and costs less ($79 vs $99).

The FP300’s narrower 60° beam is genuinely useful in targeted scenarios (a bed, a desk, a specific sofa) where you want detection in a defined zone rather than anywhere in the room. For a small toilet or study, this precision works well. For a larger or irregularly shaped room, it becomes a limitation.

For most bedroom and study installations, the FP1E is the better value. The FP300 makes sense when you want a newer hardware generation, limited zone support, or specifically want the narrow beam for a targeted spot.

FP1E vs FP2: Simplicity vs Power

The FP2 is Aqara’s flagship presence sensor. It maps up to 30 zones in a room, tracks up to 5 people simultaneously, and reports precise positions, enabling genuinely sophisticated automation like adjusting different lights depending on which part of the living room someone is in.

The FP1E does one thing: detects whether someone is in the room or not. No zones, no positions, no multi-person tracking. For the majority of use cases (a bedroom, a study, a single-occupancy room) that’s enough.

The FP2 connects via Wi-Fi and needs no Aqara hub, which is convenient if you’re starting fresh. But Wi-Fi dependency is also a real trade-off: if your router restarts, the FP2 is offline until it reconnects. The FP1E on Zigbee is more robust once you have a hub set up.

Choose the FP1E if you want reliable presence detection for a bedroom or study and don’t need zone mapping.

Choose the FP2 if you’re automating a living room or open-plan space where knowing where in the room someone is actually changes what your automation does.

FP2 vs FP300: Flagship vs Compact Zigbee

The FP300 is not a cheaper FP2. It lacks zone mapping, multi-person detection, and position tracking. It’s a simpler, smaller sensor that integrates into a Zigbee ecosystem more cleanly.

If you have an Aqara hub and want room-level presence detection without Wi-Fi dependency in a smaller room, the FP300 is a clean fit. For larger rooms, complex automations, or anything requiring zone awareness, the FP2 is the correct sensor regardless of the price difference.

The P100: Presence Detection for a Specific Spot

The Multi-State Sensor P100 operates differently from the other three. It mounts on the ceiling directly above a specific spot (a bed, toilet, or chair) and uses a downward-facing beam to detect not just presence but state: sitting, lying, standing, or fallen.

It is not designed to cover a whole room. Its value is in precisely targeted automations:

• Turn the toilet light on when occupied, off when not
• Detect if someone has fallen and not moved (useful for elderly residents)
• Adjust aircon or lighting based on whether someone is actually in bed

At $69 with Zigbee, it’s a specialist tool. Don’t buy it as a substitute for general presence detection. Buy it when you specifically need state awareness or fall monitoring at a defined spot.

Conclusion

Aqara’s sensor lineup covers more use cases than most people realise, but the core decision tree is straightforward once you understand it. PIR sensors for spaces where movement triggers are enough; mmWave presence sensors for rooms where someone needs to be detected even when still. Within each category, the differences come down to mounting position, range, and how much automation complexity you actually need.

For most homes, the practical answer is: P1 sensors in the toilets and corridors, FP1E or FP2 in the bedrooms and living room. The FP300, P100, and W100 solve specific problems worth addressing if you have them.

If you know what you need, browse the full sensor range on our products page. If you’re still deciding or want a recommendation for your specific layout, drop us a message on WhatsApp and we’re happy to help you get it right.