Sensi thermostat says "Limit"
Someone has set Temperature Limits on the thermostat in the Sensi app or in Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager. Sensi shows "Limit" when you try to set a temperature past that range. You cannot change or remove the limits at the thermostat; the person who manages the Sensi account has to change them in the app.
What does "Limit" mean on a Sensi thermostat?
It means you reached the edge of a temperature range someone set on purpose. Sensi calls the feature Temperature Limits. It caps how far the setpoint can go: how warm you can set the heat and how cool you can set the cooling. Inside that range the thermostat works normally. When you press past it, Sensi says the thermostat, the Sensi app and Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager all show "Limit".
Nothing is wrong with the thermostat or the equipment. The heating or cooling still runs to whatever setpoint is allowed. The message only tells you that the number you wanted is outside the range.
Who sets Temperature Limits, and why?
Sensi describes Temperature Limits as a way for building and facility managers to set a range that occupants can adjust within, to balance comfort and energy use. In practice that is a landlord, a property manager, an office manager, or a homeowner who wants to stop someone from setting the house very warm or very cool.
Sensi's own example: if you do not want an occupant to cool the home below 71°F, you set the Cooling Minimum Setpoint to 71. Anyone at the thermostat can then choose 71°F or warmer for cooling, and pressing lower brings up "Limit".
Where are Temperature Limits set?
Only in the app or the web manager, never at the wall. Sensi gives two places:
| Tool | Path Sensi gives | What you adjust |
|---|---|---|
| Sensi app | Thermostat name, settings gear, System settings, Temperature Limits | Cooling Minimum Setpoint and Heating Maximum Setpoint, with the + and - buttons |
| Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager (web browser) | Thermostat tile, "More settings", then save with "Save changes" | Heat and Cool Temperature Limits |
| The thermostat itself | Not available | Sensi says limits cannot be adjusted at the thermostat |
If the thermostat is not in your Sensi app, you cannot change the limits yourself. Ask whoever installed or manages it.
Why did the schedule change by itself?
Temperature Limits also apply to the schedule. Sensi says any scheduled setpoint above or below the limit is adjusted automatically to stay within it. So if a schedule period asks for a cooling temperature below the Cooling Minimum Setpoint, the thermostat cools only to the limit instead. That can look like the thermostat ignoring its schedule. Our page on schedule periods explains how periods work in general, and thermostat not following schedule covers other reasons the times or temperatures drift.
If you manage several thermostats in Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager and change their setpoints together in one batch, Sensi says the most restrictive limit among them applies to the whole batch.
Is "Limit" the same as a locked thermostat?
No. A Sensi can be restricted in two separate ways, and they show different things on the screen. Temperature Limits show the word "Limit" and only stop the setpoint. Keypad lockout shows a small lock icon and disables the buttons. The Sensi Smart manual says that with lockout on, no changes can be made at the thermostat. Both are switched on in the same System settings screen of the app, so a thermostat can have one, the other, or both. How each lock works across brands is on thermostat keypad lock, and thermostat screen locked helps if the buttons do nothing at all.
What can you do at the thermostat?
Choose a setpoint inside the allowed range, and check that the mode is right. If the heat is off because the thermostat is in Cool, or the reverse, no setpoint will help; thermostat Auto mode explains what happens when the thermostat picks heating or cooling for you.
Is the thermostat in your own Sensi app?
- Yes
Open the thermostat, tap the settings gear, then System settings, and change the Cooling Minimum Setpoint or Heating Maximum Setpoint under Temperature Limits.
- No
Can you get the temperature you need inside the allowed range?
- Yes
Set the closest allowed temperature. The heating or cooling runs normally up to the limit.
- No
Ask the landlord, manager or account owner to change the limits in the Sensi app or Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager.
- Yes
If the setpoint is inside the range and the heating or cooling still does not run, the limit is not the cause. Check the signs at the bottom of this page. More Sensi pages are on the Emerson Sensi hub.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I turn off "Limit" from the Sensi thermostat itself?
- No. Sensi says Temperature Limits can only be changed in the Sensi app or in Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager. The buttons on the wall will keep stopping at the limit until someone with access to the account changes it.
- Why did my Sensi schedule temperature change on its own?
- If a scheduled setpoint falls outside the Temperature Limits, Sensi adjusts it automatically so it stays inside the range. Check the limits in the app before you edit the schedule again, or the same thing will happen.
- Is "Limit" the same as keypad lockout on a Sensi?
- No. Keypad lockout disables the thermostat buttons and shows a small lock icon. Temperature Limits leave the buttons working and only stop the setpoint at the edge of the allowed range, which is when "Limit" appears.
- Who can change Temperature Limits on a Sensi thermostat?
- Whoever has the thermostat in their Sensi app, or manages it in Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager. Sensi describes the feature as a tool for building and facility managers, so in a rental or an office that is usually the owner or manager.