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Having an automatic garage door opener isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. In bad weather or if you have lots to carry into your home, you need to be able to pull into your garage without having to get out of the car. Today, we will look at the LiftMaster 8500 vs 8550.
We will cover their size, functions, compatibility, and value for money. We will go into the differences and similarities and put them in a comparison chart for a quick view. We will finish off with some pros and cons of the two LiftMaster garage door openers before the final verdict. Let’s start with what the LiftMaster 8500 and the LiftMaster 8550 have in common.
LiftMaster 8500 vs 8550 – Similarities
Mounting
Both of these are wall-mounted rather than ceiling mounted. This saves ceiling space. It is recommended that a professional installs either one, as you are dealing with heavy garage doors and important mechanisms.
Features
The LiftMaster 8500 and LiftMaster 8550 come with audio and visual warnings. This makes both of them suitable for people who are hard of hearing or visually impaired. It’s also a nice little extra to have for those with children.
There is a motion detector light installed in both the Liftmaster. This will prevent you from tripping or knocking into things when the garage is dark. As soon as you enter the garage, the light will come on. This is both convenient and safe.
There is a light projector-beam that goes across the door with the LiftMaster 8500 and Liftmaster 8550. If the light beam is broken or interrupted, the door will stop closing.
Noise
Some may not find this important, but if your garage is next to the living room or the bedroom, this feature might be a top priority. Both of these garage door openers are ultra-quiet and eliminate sounds and vibrations.
Video Comparison
Now let’s take a closer look at the differences between LiftMaster 8500 and LiftMaster 8550.
Differences Between LiftMaster 8500 and LiftMaster 8550
LiftMaster 8500 vs 8550 – Appearance
It’s difficult to describe the average garage door opener. They come in all shapes and sizes and the design will often depend on the style of the door.
Liftmaster 8500
It’s a sleek black and burgundy opener. The product dimensions are 24 x 10 x 12 inches. It weighs 28 pounds.
Liftmaster 8550
It’s white with a burgundy strip around the middle. It weighs 22.1 pounds but the dimensions are not specified.
The Winner Is- A Tie
Read next: LiftMaster 3900 vs 8500: Which Garage Door Opener is Better?
LiftMaster 8500 vs 8550- Power
A garage door opener is going to need sufficient power to lift a large amount of weight. It is recommended that garage door openers have a minimum horsepower of 1/2HP.
Liftmaster 8500
This LiftMaster comes with p3 motors. These motors are specially designed to open and close garage doors. It has a maximum weight capacity of 650 pounds.
Liftmaster 8550
The LiftMaster 8550 has 1.07 horsepower, so well above the recommendations. The great thing is that it also has a battery backup. If for any reason your home is out of power, you will still be able to get into your garage.
The Winner Is- Liftmaster 8550
Read next: LiftMaster 3800 vs 8500: Which Garage Door Opener is Better?
LiftMaster 8500 vs 8550 – Security and Controls
Logically, your garage door opener must be safe and only permit entrance to those you decide. You also need to make sure that the controls work quickly and smoothly, rather than having to spend 5 minutes waving it in the air trying to get the right angle.
Liftmaster 8500
It comes with Security 2.0. This means each time you click the control, a new code is sent allowing only you to open the door. It has a MyQ. This means there is the option to open, close, and monitor the garage door from your mobile but you will need to buy an extra Internet Gateway or MyQ Home Bridge.
Liftmaster 8550
The security feature is the same; it will send new codes with each click. It comes with Security 2+, we aren’t sure if it’s the same as the 2.0 or a newer version. On the other hand, this has a built-in Internet gateway so you can control the garage door via the MyQ app without having to buy extra equipment.
The Winner Is- Liftmaster 8550
Read next: Liftmaster 8355 vs 8550: Which Garage Door Opener is Better?
LiftMaster 8500 vs 8550 – Compatibility
It is important that you check carefully the current door opener you have and whether it is compatible with the LiftMaster models.
Liftmaster 8500
This is compatible with doors with a front mount torsion bar system. It can’t be used with roll-up doors, low headroom track doors, and Wayne Dalton torque master doors.
Liftmaster 8550
It is compatible with all other LiftMaster door openers made after January 1993.
The Winner Is- A Tie
Value for Money
The main difference between the prices depends on whether you have a chain-drive opener, which can cost around $150, or a belt-driven opener. Belt-driven openers have an average cost of around $300.
Liftmaster 8500
It’s a belt-driven opener and sits quietly a bit over the average price. It comes with a 5-year warranty.
Liftmaster 8550
Again, it’s also belt-driven but is cheaper than the LiftMaster 8500 and much closer to the average price. It also has a 5-year warranty.
The Winner Is- Liftmaster 8550
Pros and Cons
Now we will look at a few of the pros and cons of these LiftMaster garage door openers.
Liftmaster 8500
Pros:
- It has auto-locking when the door is closed
- Looks great, nice and compact design
- The movement is smooth and there is hardly any noise
Cons:
- It’s a shame that for the price, you have to buy an Internet gateway
Liftmaster 8550
Pros:
- It’s whisper-quiet
- Can be set up with Google Home for voice activation
- Slows down slightly towards the end so the door doesn’t bang
Cons:
- It may not have the longest lifespan
The Final Verdict
There is a clear winner for us. The Liftmaster 8550 outshines LiftMaster 8500 in a couple of ways. First of all, we loved the battery back up; this is a really useful feature. It is also good that it comes with everything you need to set it straight up with your Wi-Fi. It has excellent power and many of the great features the LiftMaster 8500 has but for a better price.
Last update on 2024-04-03 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
