Presence detection uses the Minut sensor's motion data combined with your booking schedule to automatically alert you when something unexpected happens at your property. You don't need to watch the app manually: Minut compares actual motion against when a stay is or isn't scheduled and notifies you when something doesn't match.
Presence detection is a Pro Plan feature. It requires an active booking schedule either connected via the Airbnb integration, a PMS, or manually added stays. Without a booking schedule, Minut cannot determine whether motion is expected or unexpected.
Motion detection does not work in outdoor mode. The sensor must be placed indoors in a location where it can reliably detect movement: a hallway, living room, or entryway works best.
Presence detection alerts
There are five alert types. Two are enabled by default for your entire organisation; the others must be turned on manually.
Arrival
On by default
Motion is detected for the first time after a new stay has started confirming the guest has checked in.
No motion since stay start
On by default
No motion is detected for 5 hours after a new stay has started indicating a possible delayed check-in or no-show.
Early departure
Off by default
No motion is detected for an entire night and morning- from 9pm to 11am - on a day that is neither the arrival nor departure day. Suggests the guest may have left early.
Early check-out
Off by default
No motion is detected for 2 hours after initial morning movement (after 6am) on the departure day suggesting the guest has already left.
Motion during vacancy
Off by default
Motion is detected at night in a unit where no stay is currently scheduled. Alerts to unexpected access useful for detecting unauthorised entry or short-notice sub-letting. See section 2 below for details.
Motion during vacancy
When enabled, Minut sends an alert when motion is detected in a vacant unit during nighttime hours even if the sensor temporarily lost Wi-Fi during the event.
Alert window | Motion events only trigger vacancy alerts between 18:00 and 06:00 in the property's local timezone. Daytime movement- cleaning crews, maintenance visits- does not trigger an alert. |
Repeat alert frequency | Motion alerts trigger at most once every 10 hours. If motion has already been detected recently, a second alert will not fire. This prevents duplicate notifications from a single event. |
Notification delay | Vacancy alerts can take up to 1 hour to arrive after motion is detected. |
Motion during Wi-Fi loss | If the sensor temporarily loses Wi-Fi, it continues tracking motion locally. Once reconnected, missed motion events appear in the event log with the timestamp of when they occurred. If the motion was within the last 10 hours, you will receive a push notification and email. If more than 10 hours ago, you will receive an email only, no push notification, to avoid confusing old alerts with live ones. |
How motion alerts behave
Who is notified | The organisation owner receives email notifications. All team members with access to the unit receive push notifications. Each member can customise their own notification preferences. |
Where alerts appear | Every alert appears in the unit's event log in the app, regardless of notification settings. |
Sensor placement matters | For reliable presence detection, the sensor must be placed indoors in a location where full-body human movement is regularly detectable; a hallway or living room is ideal. A sensor mounted in a corner, behind furniture, or in a low-traffic area may miss motion events. |
Presence detection works best with an up-to-date booking schedule. All alerts - including arrival and vacancy are calculated against your stay calendar. If a stay is added late or a checkout is extended without updating Minut, alerts may not fire correctly. Keep your booking integration synced or manually update stays when needed.
Enable presence detection
Presence detection is configured at the organisation level - settings apply across your entire portfolio. Individual alert types can be toggled on or off independently.
Web app
Go to web.minut.com → click Settings in the left-hand menu
Click Presence detection
Toggle each alert type on or off as needed - changes apply immediately across all properties in your organisation
Settings apply to all units: there is no per-unit toggle for individual alert types
Mobile app
Tap More (...) at the bottom of the screen → tap Monitoring under Settings
Tap Presence detection
Toggle each alert type on or off — changes apply to your whole portfolio
Managing notifications
Each team member can independently control how they receive presence detection notifications without affecting the alert settings for the rest of the organisation.
Web app
Click your organisation name in the top left → click Notifications
Adjust your preferences under the Presence detection section: push, email, or both
Mobile app
Tap your profile icon → tap your name in the top left → tap Notifications
Adjust your preferences under the Presence detection section
Turning off notifications does not disable the feature. Alerts will still appear in the event log even if you disable push and email notifications. If you want to stop receiving a particular alert entirely, disable the alert type in the Presence detection settings not in your notification preferences.