Best Smart Locks of 2025: Tests and Reviews
A smart lock is a very visible part of your home that you use almost every day, so it’s important to find a reliable pick that meshes well with your smart home. Here are some factors you should consider when shopping:
A retrofit smart lock like the August lock replaces the interior of the current lock, but not with foreign keyholes or deadbolts.
Full dead bolt or retrofit
Most smart locks replace the entire existing lock, including the internal thumb, external keyhole, and middle deadbolt. Locks like those also come with their own keys that replace the keys you are currently using.
Others, such as the August Smart Lock and Lockle Fingerprint model, are designed to work with at least some of the existing lock hardware. With such a retrofit lock, you probably don’t need a new key at all. You may not even need to replace the dead bolts. Such locks may be suitable for apartments where the owner of the building may not allow the entire lock to be replaced.
Access Mode
Different smart locks take different approaches to let you in. At the basic level, most smart locks allow you to use apps to wirelessly lock and unlock doors from your phone. Others add keypads for coded entries. This allows you to rely on keys a little less and make it easier to access with others. Some of the latest smart locks can be added to touch sensitivity or fingerprint scans and put inside with just a tap. Apple adds a home key feature to iOS15, allowing you to store your digital house keys in your Apple wallet. This allows you to open a compatible smart lock using your iPhone or Apple Watch NFC radio.
It’s okay to dial in to the mode of access that interests you most, as it’s overkill to pay for the smart lock that offers all of that. These days, a variety of options are combined.
Platform compatibility and issues
The Schlage Encode Plus is the first smart lock to support the Apple Home key. You can unlock the door using your iPhone or Apple Watch.
If your home includes multiple types of smart home devices, the best bet is to control them all from a single smart home platform. That way you don’t need to juggle multiple apps to automate everything. The most popular picks are the Google Assistant Voice controls that come with Amazon Alexa, the Google Home app, and Google Assistant Voice Controls, and the Apple Homekit, which plays Siri. Samsung SmartThings is another option for a hub-centric smart home.
It brings us the problem: Matter (and its Tagallon protocol thread) is an important smart home protocol designed in conjunction with major brands including Google, Amazon, Apple, and others. It guarantees compatibility between different platforms and adds additional security and data transfer benefits. This is something that buyers should monitor.
Today, Smart Lock Companies still adopts problem standards. Our top picks use it and are one of the best options we have found. Some Schlage Encode Locks use it, but the same goes for Yale’s guarantees as they haven’t yet advanced to Schlage Smart level picks. August also announced it was working to bring the substance into the smart lock, so in some cases it’s just a “problem” waiting for a proper firmware update.
Security and Privacy
Smart locks are less data sensitive than devices with built-in cameras and microphones, but you need to make sure they keep things safe. In most cases, all, if not all, options use some form of encryption to keep wireless transmissions between your lock and your mobile or home network secure. You also need to use two-factor authentication to look for locks that keep your account secure from malicious logins. Just like with connected devices at home, you need to make sure you update your lock to the latest firmware and set a strong password for your app.
For lock picking and other physical concerns, you can search for locks ANSI grade To get that sense of durability and how well it stands up against brute force entry attacks. ANSI Grade 3 is the most basic rating, but more and more smart locks offer ANSI Grade 2 or Grade 1 ratings. If you are worried about forced entry, such a lock might be a good investment.
Design Considerations
Your smart lock sits in front of the exterior of your home, so it’s worth aiming for something you don’t like to see. Some smart locks go out of the way to show off gadget features with light-up touchscreens, color-coded LED indicator lights and technology-oriented designs. Others take the opposite approach and try their best to fuse at least from the outside and blend in like a standard lock and see. Select your preferences between the two approaches to narrow down your options.
You’ll also want to consider how the lock maintains power. Most smart locks drain four AA batteries, but some take a different approach. For example, level locking is performed from a single CR2 battery inside the deadbolt itself. Meanwhile, Eufy’s touchscreen smart lock is running out of a rechargeable battery pack.
Wifi
Wi-Fi support has become common with smart locks, but it’s important to look into the details. Some locks do not have built-in Wi-Fi, but only support should be supported if you purchase additional hubs.