Overriding the schedule (Hold) and turning the schedule off are two different things. Hold pauses the schedule at whatever temperature you pick; the schedule is still running underneath and takes back over once you cancel the hold (or, for a temporary hold, at the next period change on its own). Turning the schedule off deletes the automatic behavior entirely: the thermostat just holds whatever temperature you last set, like a manual thermostat, until you turn scheduling back on. If you only need today to be different, use a hold. If you don’t want the schedule running at all anymore, turn it off.
Which buttons or menu screens do this depends on which Honeywell you have. Not sure which one? Check our Honeywell thermostat manuals hub to identify your model first.
Temporary override vs. permanent hold vs. turning the schedule off
| Action | What happens | How it ends |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary override | Adjusts the current period’s temperature only | Reverts automatically at the next scheduled period |
| Permanent hold | Locks in one temperature, ignoring the schedule | Stays until you manually press Run / Run Schedule |
| Schedule off | Disables the programmed schedule entirely | Stays off until you turn scheduling back on |
Basic digital thermostats (TH2000/TH4000 series, non-touchscreen)
These are the round-cornered, small-display Honeywell models with physical up/down arrows and a Hold button (no Wi-Fi, no touchscreen).
- Temporary override: press the up or down arrow to the temperature you want. The display shows “Temporary.” It holds until the next scheduled period, then the program resumes on its own.
- Permanent hold: press the up or down arrow to your target temperature, then press Hold. The display shows “Hold” and stays there until you cancel it.
- Cancel either override: press Run. “Hold” or “Temporary” disappears, and the thermostat returns to whatever temperature is programmed for the current period.
- Turn the schedule off entirely: press Menu, press + until the display shows “prog,” press Select, then set the program to OFF. The thermostat stops following the schedule until you set it back to a program type (5-2, 5-1-1, or 7-day).
Pro Series, non-Wi-Fi (T4 Pro, T6 Pro non-connected)
Physical buttons, small screen, no app.
- Temporary or permanent hold: press + or − to your target temperature. The screen shows “Hold Until” with the next scheduled change time. Leave it as-is for a temporary hold that expires at that time, or press Hold Until again to convert it into an indefinite hold.
- Cancel the hold: navigate to Run Schedule and select it. The thermostat drops the hold and resumes the program.
- Turn the schedule off: press Menu, scroll to Program (or PROG), and set it to Off. As with the basic digital models, this stops the automatic schedule rather than just pausing it for one hold cycle.
Wi-Fi touchscreen models (T5, T6 Pro Smart, T9, T10 Pro)
These have a full touchscreen and connect to the Honeywell Home or Resideo app. The schedule itself still lives on the thermostat; the app is a remote control and viewer, not a separate schedule.
- Override on the thermostat: tap the current temperature and adjust it. A “HOLD UNTIL” banner appears showing when the hold will end.
- Make it permanent: tap the HOLD UNTIL banner. Two options appear: PERMANENT HOLD and RUN SCHEDULE. Tap PERMANENT HOLD to hold indefinitely.
- Cancel and resume the program: tap RUN SCHEDULE from that same menu, either on the thermostat or in the app.
- Turn the schedule off in the app: open the Schedule screen in the Honeywell Home / Resideo app and use the Options menu. From there you can turn the schedule off, build a new time-based schedule, or switch to Geofencing / Auto-Away, which replaces time-based scheduling with location-based control instead of a fixed program.
Note on geofencing: if geofencing or Auto-Away is turned on, a manual temperature change holds until you cross the geofence boundary (arrive or leave), not until a scheduled time. That’s a different hold behavior than a time-based schedule. If your thermostat won’t seem to “return to schedule,” check whether geofencing is active before assuming Hold is stuck.
If the schedule won’t “stick” no matter what you do
Before assuming something is broken, check for these in order:
- An active permanent hold. This is the single most common reason a schedule “doesn’t work”: the schedule is fine, it’s just paused. Look for “Hold” (not “Temporary”) on the display and cancel it with Run or Run Schedule.
- Geofencing/Auto-Away enabled. If your model supports it and it’s on, the app’s location logic is deciding your setpoint, not the time-based schedule.
- The program itself set to Off. If you or a previous occupant turned scheduling off from the PROG or Schedule menu, no hold is active, but nothing will change automatically either. You have to turn the program back on and reprogram, or restore it from the app if your model syncs schedules there.
For how to build or edit the actual schedule once it’s back on, see how to program a Honeywell thermostat by model type. For what Hold specifically means and when to use it, see what Hold means on a Honeywell thermostat; for canceling a temporary hold specifically, see how to turn off temporary hold.
FAQ
What’s the difference between Hold and turning the schedule off? Hold pauses the schedule at one temperature; the program is still there and resumes as soon as you cancel the hold (or, for a temporary hold, at the next period automatically). Turning the schedule off disables the program itself: the thermostat won’t return to any schedule until you turn scheduling back on.
Does Run or Run Schedule delete my program? No. Run and Run Schedule only cancel the current hold. Your programmed times and temperatures stay saved.
Will a power outage or dead batteries erase my schedule? On most Honeywell models the schedule is stored in non-volatile memory and survives a battery change or brief power loss. A full factory reset, not a normal outage, is what clears it.
My thermostat has a “HOLD UNTIL” banner, not a Hold button. Is that a different feature? No. “Hold Until” is how Wi-Fi touchscreen models display the same temporary-vs-permanent choice that button models show as “Temporary” and “Hold.” Tap it to convert to a permanent hold or to run the schedule again.
Can I turn the schedule off from the app instead of the thermostat? On T9/T10 Wi-Fi models, yes: the Schedule screen’s Options menu can turn scheduling off from the app. On non-Wi-Fi models, the schedule only exists on the thermostat itself, so it has to be turned off there.
