ESPHome 2026.10 arrives today with less waiting when building and updating homemade devices. Its native ESP8266 build tools become the default, removing the need for Rosetta on Apple Silicon Macs. The first build after upgrading starts clean; the older PlatformIO path remains an opt-out until its planned removal in April 2027.
Wireless firmware updates add compression on ESP32, RP2040, LibreTiny and host systems. The official release notes report roughly a third fewer bytes to transfer, helping slow connections; compatible firmware and upload tools negotiate compression automatically. Older firmware continues to update through the existing path.
The bundled Device Builder also extends browser flashing beyond ESP32 and ESP8266 to Nordic, Raspberry Pi Pico and LibreTiny chips. Browser support still matters: Firefox users installing Pico firmware receive a file and instructions to copy it to the board.
Before updating, check lights with a configured initial state: a light set to start on now follows that setting instead of silently staying off. Speaker media players must remove the obsolete codec_support_enabled option; format: NONE preserves its former all-codecs setting. The release notes list the remaining configuration and upgrade changes.