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How to Share SmartThings Devices and Control a Home With Family

Invite family members to a SmartThings location by Samsung account email or QR code, and understand the location-wide access they receive.
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To share SmartThings devices, invite each family member to the location that contains the home’s devices. The person needs the SmartThings app, a Samsung account, and must accept the invitation. Membership applies to the whole location—not a selected room—so invite only people who should have access across that home.

Choose how to invite a family member

SmartThings offers two ways to invite someone: send an invitation to the email address associated with their Samsung account, or have them scan a QR code. Both methods add the person to the selected location; neither creates room-only access.

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Method Use it when What the invitee needs to do
Samsung account email You know the email address associated with the invitee’s Samsung account. Sign in to SmartThings with that account and accept the invitation from the app’s notification.
QR code You can show the invitee the code in person, or otherwise let them scan it with their phone. Install SmartThings, sign in to a Samsung account, scan the code, and follow the app prompts.

Samsung’s Canada instructions for inviting SmartThings members, updated September 1, 2026, document both options. They do not specify how long a QR code remains valid or whether it can be reused, so do not assume either.

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Invite someone by Samsung account email

First select the location that contains the devices you intend to share. SmartThings supports multiple locations, so inviting someone while the wrong home is selected grants access to the wrong set of devices.

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  1. Open SmartThings and select the intended location.
  2. Open the location’s member-management area. In Samsung Canada’s current documented route, open More options, then Manage My Home, and go to Members or Invite member.
  3. Choose Send an invitation and enter the email address associated with the invitee’s Samsung account.
  4. Ask the invitee to open the SmartThings invitation notification and accept it while signed in to that Samsung account.

Menu names and navigation can vary by region or app version. Samsung’s US invitation instructions describe a different route through Favorites, the location selector, and location or member management. If the Canada labels do not match your app, look for the selected location’s member-management screen rather than assuming every version uses the same path.

Invite by QR code

  1. In SmartThings, select the location you want to share and open its member-management area.
  2. Choose Invite member, then Use a QR code.
  3. Have the invitee scan the displayed code with their phone and follow the on-screen instructions.

The invitee still needs SmartThings installed and must be signed in to a Samsung account. Samsung’s Canada guide and SmartThings Support’s sharing guidance describe QR invitations as an alternative to entering an account email.

Understand what location membership allows

SmartThings sharing is location-wide. Samsung says a member cannot be added directly to a room, so putting devices in separate rooms does not restrict that person’s access to those devices. If you need to keep someone from accessing part of a location, the official sharing guidance does not document a room-level permission setting.

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SmartThings Support describes member permissions as almost the same as the owner’s, with important limits: members cannot add or remove other members or delete the location. A member can leave the location. Avoid treating this as documentation about unrelated account, billing, or security settings; those details are not established by the sharing guidance.

Members can view and control devices, and SmartThings’ sharing guidance also describes access to the location’s routines and scenes. The controls available for a particular device depend on that device and its manufacturer, so shared membership does not guarantee identical features for every product. See SmartThings Support’s device-sharing explanation and its device guidance.

Check members or remove someone’s access

The location owner manages other members. In Samsung Canada’s documented flow, open the location’s member-management area, select Members, open More options, choose Remove members, select the person, and confirm. Labels or navigation may vary by app version or region.

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A member who wants to end their own access can choose Leave Location. SmartThings Support says only the owner can remove another member; its sharing guidance documents both options.

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Keep the shared home organized

A SmartThings location groups devices, services, and routines. Rooms help organize devices within that location, while location modes can provide context for routines; SmartThings gives Away, Home, and Night as examples. These are organization and automation features, not separate access controls. For background, see SmartThings Support’s explanation of locations.

If your family wants routines based on someone arriving or leaving, SmartThings mobile presence uses that person’s phone location services. The app requests permission, and presence can be enabled or disabled for that phone. Each person’s phone and location settings affect this optional feature; it is not required for sharing device access. See SmartThings Support’s app guidance.

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Do you need a hub to share devices?

No hub is required just to invite someone to a location that already has its devices connected. SmartThings says certain connection types—Zigbee, Z-Wave, and LAN-connected devices—require a SmartThings-enabled hub. That is a device-connection requirement, not a family-sharing requirement.

Compatibility and connection options depend on the specific product. Check SmartThings in the app under Menu → Supported devices for the model you want to connect. SmartThings’ device guidance covers device capabilities and hub context.

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