How to reset Philips Hue Bridges and smart lights
3 min read
The Philips Hue lights are among the most intuitive and reliable we’ve used. However, you may need to reset your Philips Hue lights at times.
You may want to restart your smart home configuration from scratch if something is wrong with the chain.
It doesn’t matter if you have a Philips Hue bridge or a Philips Hue bluetooth bulb. Resetting Philips Hue intelligent bulbs should not take long.
Here’s what you need to do if you want to reset a single light bulb or an entire system.
Philips Hue: Learn more about it
- Learn How Philips Hue can be connected and configured
- Do more: Philips Hue sync explained
- Go further: Best Philips Hue apps
How to reset a Philips Hue Bulb
You can reset a Philips Hue lamp or bulb by using the Hue App for Android or iOS. This is how you probably set it up in the first instance.
Tap the light that you wish to reset and then tap “Delete”. The app will forget the device and it is ready to add again or be used in another system.
Check the app that you use to see if you have the Hue Bridge app.
You can remove Hue bulbs from an Echo Plus or other Zigbee enabled Echo smart speakers and reset them by tapping ‘Devices” in the Alexa App; select the room group first, then the bulb. Then, choose the settings cog at the top-right, followed by the trash icon.
If you own a Philips Hue Dimmer switch, it is possible to reset the bulbs. Hold the Dimmer Switch near the light and press the On/Off buttons for about 10 seconds.
The bulb is reset when the light blinks, then stops blinking.
How to reset a Philips Hue Bridge
You can reset your Hue Bridge back to factory settings. This will reset all your lamps and bulbs at once. Hue Bridges and lights must be set up from scratch the same as when they were first purchased.
The process is simple: flip your Hue Bridge upside down and you’ll see a button that says’restore factory setting’, as shown above. You can hold this button down for a couple of seconds to reset your system. A paper clip or other thin, small object will be needed to poke through the hole near the label.
- The essential guide: Setting up Hue without a Bridge
It’s important to note that Philips Hue’s official support documents recommend only resetting the system when instructed to by a Philips customer service representative. This is not something you should do lightly. You may have to enter your serial number to add your Hue lights again depending on how you set up your system.
Resetting the Hue Bridge will erase all of your lights, accessories and scenes from the network. You will lose all your settings, such as light groups, scenes, widgets and routines. This is only a last resort.
Reconfigure your Philips Hue network
It’s best not to reset your Philips Hue bulb or the Philips Hue Bridge.
Before you delete lights or press the Hue Bridge’s factory reset button, make sure that all other troubleshooting methods have been exhausted.
Hue makes it easy to re-configure your bulbs, or to assign them to a different room. You can add or rename lights by tapping the menu button in the top-right corner of the room.
You can rearrange your scenes and lights by selecting ‘Edit Room.’ The app will let you change the lights in the room. Bulb and lamp can be added or removed, and the name can also be changed. This is how you can change the Hue setup if you have moved your Hue go upstairs or downstairs.
You can also use third-party platforms and apps, but you may need to consult the official documentation for more details.
You can unlink Philips Hue from a Google Home Network by going to the Google Home App on your smartphone. Tap the bulb and then the cog icon.
