The Arduino Nano Matter can now run Zigbee. In a blog post published on 15 October 2026, Arduino said sketches on the board's Silicon Labs MGM240S module can be compiled with the Zigbee 3.0 stack, as an alternative to the Matter over Thread and Bluetooth LE stacks it already supported. The feature arrived in version 5.0.0 of the Arduino core for Silicon Labs, released on GitHub on 15 September 2026 and currently marked as the latest release. Arduino's announcement came 30 days after the code shipped. Version 5.0.0 is a stable release, not a pre-release.
The Zigbee library is not limited to Arduino's board. The 5.0.0 release notes list four supported boards: the Arduino Nano Matter, the Seeed Studio XIAO MG24, the SparkFun Thing Plus Matter and the Silicon Labs xG24 Explorer Kit. Matter Alpha reported that the "all-new Zigbee library" was led by Silicon Labs developer Tamas Jozsi.
How the Zigbee option works
Zigbee is a separate build option, not something that runs alongside Matter in the same program: one stack runs per sketch, and you switch by picking another and uploading again. To use Zigbee, you install core 5.0.0, select the Nano Matter as the board and set Tools › Protocol stack to Zigbee. On a new board, or on one moving over from Matter or BLE, you also set Tools › Programmer to OpenOCD and run Tools › Burn Bootloader once. Arduino warns that this step erases the board, including any saved network.
A Nano Matter running Zigbee joins a network as a router, which is the default and relays traffic for the mesh, or as an end device. The Zigbee section of the Nano Matter user manual names these coordinators as working with the board:
- Amazon Echo and SmartThings models
- Hubitat Elevation (C-8)
- IKEA DIRIGERA hub
- Home Assistant with a Zigbee radio
- Another Nano Matter running the prebuilt Zigbee EZSP coordinator firmware
The coordinator firmware is not new in 5.0. It has been included since core 4.0, which was released on 24 April 2026 and added Zigbee EZSP firmware with a flasher script, alongside an OpenThread RCP flasher. A Python script in the core turns a second Nano Matter into the Zigbee radio for Home Assistant's ZHA integration. Core 5.0.0 adds an erase step before flashing to that script. A board that has joined a network stores it in non-volatile memory (NVM), so it stays on the network after a reset or a new upload.
Examples and device types
The library comes with 14 examples covering 11 device types and wraps Silicon Labs' EmberZNet stack in Arduino-style classes. Once a switch is bound to a light, it controls the light directly without a hub automation. The light and plug-in classes can also act as Find-and-Bind targets: a sketch calls start_find_and_bind(), and Zigbee remotes that support Find-and-Bind can bind to them without the hub. The release notes list these Zigbee device types:
- Lightbulbs: on/off, dimmable, color
- Sensors: contact, humidity, light, temperature
- On/Off plug-in unit
- Switch
- Power source
- Time synchronization
Some sensor examples do not measure what their names suggest. Arduino wrote that "out of the box, the humidity and light level examples send made-up values, and the temperature example measures the MG24 chip itself, not the room." The examples show how to report those values over Zigbee, but they are not ready-made environmental sensors until a real sensor is read in their place.
Matter changes in the same release
Core 5.0.0 also updates the Matter side of the core. The release notes list:
- Support for the Matter Water Valve and Water Heater device types
- Binding support in Matter Switch
- A UniqueID attribute in the BridgedDeviceBasicInformation cluster
- Matter Time Synchronization support
The release also fixes an SPI driver reinitialization issue, the Matter Thermostat initial setpoint and clamping logic, and a bit iteration issue in ezWS2812. Matter Alpha credits the Water Valve and Water Heater types to community developer Ludovic Boué. It also notes that the changelog does not mention a Matter specification upgrade, "so it should still be on Matter 1.4".
Where it fits
Until this release, sketches on the Nano Matter had two ways into the smart home: Matter over Thread and Bluetooth LE. Zigbee gives the same hardware a third. The Arduino library covers common device types; for projects that need more, such as a custom cluster or a different endpoint layout, Arduino points to Silicon Labs' full Zigbee SDK in Simplicity Studio, which runs on the same hardware.
What It Means for Makers
- Who it is for: people adding Arduino-programmed lights, switches and sensors to an existing Zigbee network run by one of the listed hubs or by Home Assistant.
- All-Arduino networks: with one Nano Matter as the ZHA coordinator radio and others as devices, every radio in a Home Assistant Zigbee network can be an Arduino-programmable board.
- Before you switch: plan for the bootloader reburn and its erase when moving an existing Matter or BLE board over, and expect to re-pair it afterwards.
- Beyond the library: custom clusters and unusual device types need Silicon Labs' Zigbee SDK in Simplicity Studio rather than the Arduino library.
- Getting it: install version 5.0.0 of the Silicon Labs core from the Arduino IDE Boards Manager. The changelog is on the project's GitHub releases page, and step-by-step setup is in the Zigbee section of the Nano Matter user manual.
