Eufy Camera Not Picking Up Motion? (Fixes to Try)
If you’re having trouble getting your Eufy camera to detect motion, this post is your go-to resource.
In the following paragraphs, we explain why this is happening and what you can do to fix it. Let’s get started.
Why is my Eufy Camera Not Picking Up Motion?
Here are some common reasons your Eufy camera isn’t picking up motion:
- No motion within the camera’s viewing area.
- The motion detection feature isn’t enabled.
- Low battery power.
- Your Wi-Fi connection is unstable.
That said, let’s dive into the troubleshooting steps for this problem.
Eufy Camera Not Picking Up Motion: Try These Troubleshooting Tips
1. Re-install Your Eufy Camera in a New Location
Your Eufy camera won’t pick up motion if no one is moving around its viewing area. The viewing area of a Eufy camera is about 26 feet from where it is installed.
If your Eufy camera isn’t picking up motion, the location might be the reason for this. Check and remove it from the inactive area and reinstall it in a new location. The new site should be close to where motion occurs.
If this fix doesn’t help, continue to the next step.
2. Move the Camera Closer to Your Wi-Fi Router
Your Eufy camera needs a Wi-Fi connection to pick up motion. So, if the camera is not detecting motion, it may have disconnected from Wi-Fi.
Eufy cameras may disconnect from Wi-Fi because of low Wi-Fi signal strength. And this usually happens if the camera is positioned too far from the router.
To fix this issue, you’ll need to bring your router closer to your Eufy camera. We recommend placing the router within 30 feet of the Eufy camera.
Your Eufy camera should reconnect to Wi-Fi and pick up motion once you’ve moved the router closer to the device.
3. Charge Your Eufy Camera’s Battery
Without sufficient power, your Eufy camera won’t pick up motion. As you probably know, Eufy security cameras are battery-powered. So, if your Eufy camera isn’t picking up motion, the device’s battery may be low.
To fix this issue, charge your camera’s battery.
Here is how to charge the battery in your Eufy camera:
- Connect one end of a micro-USB cable to the charging port of your Eufy camera. You’ll find the micro-USB cable in your Eufy camera package.
- Insert the other end of the cable into a 5V power adapter.
- Now, plug the adapter into a power outlet. A red light will appear when your Eufy camera starts charging. This light will turn off when the battery is full.
4. Activate Motion Detection Settings for your Eufy Camera
Your Eufy camera won’t pick up motion if you haven’t enabled motion detection for the camera.
If you’re still unable to get your Eufy camera to pick up motion, check whether motion detection is active. If not, enable it to fix the problem.
If you’re not sure how to activate motion detection for your Eufy camera, follow the steps below:
- Tap the eufySecurity app on your phone to open it.
- Click on the Devices tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Select your Eufy camera from the list of devices on the Devices tab.
- Next, tap Camera Settings.
- Now, select Motion Detection and toggle the switch under Motion Detection to the ON position.
5. Increase Motion Sensor Sensitivity
You may have activated motion detection in your Eufy camera, but the camera may still not pick up motion. This might be because the camera’s motion sensitivity is too low.
If your camera has low motion sensitivity, it will only pick up large motions like running or jumping. In contrast, cameras with high motion sensitivity can detect small motions like walking. Since large motions rarely occur around the home, your Eufy camera may not pick up any motion.
You can fix this issue by increasing your Eufy camera’s motion sensitivity.
Follow the steps below to increase your Eufy camera’s motion sensitivity:
- Open your eufySecurity app.
- Click on the Device tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Select your Eufy camera.
- Tap Camera Settings.
- Next, click on Motion Detection.
- Now, select Sensor Sensitivity and increase your motion sensitivity.
While boosting your motion sensitivity, ensure you don’t raise it too high. If your Motion Sensitivity is too high, you may receive too many motion detection alerts within a short period.
If your Eufy camera model is a eufyCam or eufyCam E, do not raise your motion sensitivity level above 95. For eufyCam 2 users, the best motion sensitivity range is 3-6.
6. Set up Activity Zones
If your Eufy Camera still doesn’t pick up motion after you’ve increased its motion sensitivity, add activity zones to it. Activity Zones increase the camera’s focus on selected areas, thus helping the device detect motion easily in those areas.
However, the downside to using the Activity Zone feature is that your Eufy Camera won’t pick up motion happening outside the Activity Zones. The best way to use the Activity Zone feature is to highlight only the areas you want your camera to detect motion.
The following guide will show you how to add an activity zone to your Eufy camera:
- Tap the Device tab on the home screen of the eufySecurity app.
- Choose your Eufy camera.
- Next, select Camera Settings and tap Motion Detection.
- Now, click on the Activity Zone.
- On the Activity Zone page, tap the Set up an Activity Zone button.
- You’ll now see a new activity zone on your screen. Drag the sides of the activity zone to increase its shape. You can also move the zone around to change its location.
- When you are satisfied with the Activity Zone that you’ve mapped out, click on the checkmark on the page to save the zone.
- Exit your eufySecurity app and restart it.
7. Activate Push Notifications in the EufySecurity App
Your Eufy camera may already be picking up motion, but you might not know this because you aren’t logged into the app.
If you’ve activated motion detection in your eufySecurity app, you will only receive motion detection notifications when you are in the app.
Once you exit your eufySecurity app, you won’t get alerts when your camera picks up motion. Because of this, you may think that your camera isn’t picking up motion.
If you want to receive motion detection notifications even when you are not on the eufySecurity app, enable Push Notifications for the app.
Here’s how to activate Push Notifications for your eufySecurity app:
- Open your eufySecurity app.
- Tap Security Mode.
- Next, click on your Eufy camera name.
- Tap Home/Away and select Security Mode Settings.
- Now, tap Push Notification to enable push notifications for your Eufy camera.
Final Thoughts
So that’s how to troubleshoot motion detection issues in your Eufy outdoor security cameras. Try to apply all the fixes until you get a solution.
However, if none of the fixes help, contact Eufy Support and report your issue.
You may also like to see how to troubleshoot motion detection issues in Eufy Doorbell, Ring, and Vivint doorbells.