The Best Smart Locks of 2023

Update, 05/11/2023: We’ve reviewed our recommendations and have replaced our best for Airbnb pick with the Yale Assure Lock 2.

What to Look for in a Smart Lock in 2023

Installing smart locks on your doors can remove the need to carry a key around. It adds convenience to your life and helps to secure your home. Smart locks come in all shapes, sizes, and features, so how do you choose the right one? Let’s discuss what you should look for.

First, you need to prioritize how well the lock works in terms of safety. It should never unlock when you try to lock it and vice versa. So, go for a quality lock that works as intended every time, including strength and durability. You want a lock that won’t break easily since locks are designed to prevent unwanted guests from entering your home.

The most common way of installing a smart lock is by replacing your front door’s deadbolt. The other more uncommon way is installing a combined lock and a lever that opens a door. Make sure to get the smart lock that works best for your situation, especially if you live in a rented apartment or home.

On top of this, there are different ways to unlock your smart lock. Some come with keypads that open using a code, while others use your fingerprint. Almost every smart lock allows you to unlock it using an app, but some leave the keyhole in case you need to get in the traditional way.

More advanced smart locks have built-in Wi-Fi, allowing you to control them from anywhere. Others require you to install a hub for the same effect. Otherwise, you’ll need to be in Bluetooth range. If you want to use voice commands to control your smart lock, you’ll need to find one that’s compatible with your voice assistant, such as Alexa or Google Assistant.

Smart locks can also come with a wide variety of features. Some automatically unlock when you get home and lock when you leave your home. Others have a built-in siren. Some even allow you to assign different codes for multiple people and grant them temporary access.

Think carefully about what you’re looking for and see which of the smart locks below does what you need it to do!

Best Smart Lock Overall: August Wi-Fi Smart Lock

If you’re looking for a compact smart lock that’s highly functional, then opt for the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock. It costs $230 and has several premium features you’ll love.

This smart lock works with your existing deadbolt and keys, and you can install it within 10 minutes. You can enter your home without a key by unlocking the lock through the August App. You can set the smart lock to automatically unlock when you get home and lock once you close your door.

If something happens to the lock or the app settings, you can still use your keys to get in. Knowing that if something with the smart lock fails, you can still easily get inside your home is handy.

The August Smart Lock uses DoorSense technology, allowing it to know the status of your door. You can easily see whether it’s open, closed, locked, or unlocked from your phone.

There’s also built-in Wi-Fi to control the lock from anywhere. You just need to ensure your phone is also connected to the internet. The lock’s compatible with many voice assistants, including Alexa, Google Assistant, Apple HomeKit, Samsung SmartThings, and more.

You’re able to grant temporary access for others to enter your home, either once or regularly. This is perfect if you want to let in the dog sitter while you’re away from home. If you’d like, you can install an August Keypad to get in using a code. You can create unique codes for multiple people, so you can make sure security is tight.

All in all, this smart lock does practically everything you’d need it to, and does it well.

Best Budget Smart Lock: Hornbill 7-in-1 Smart Door Lock

The Hornbill 7-in-1 Smart Lock is a great choice for a reliable and feature-rich smart locking solution. It isn’t exactly dirt cheap at $149 but, when buying any home security device, extremely cheap products can be a false economy. You generally don’t want to entrust the security of your home to a $40 lock.

The Hornbill smart lock replaces your deadbolt and can be used alongside your door latch. The deadbolt can be engaged and disengaged with a key, fingerprint, pin code, access cards, or remotely through the app.

The final method of controlling the lock is remotely through an Alexa or Google speaker. However, if this is the route you’d like to go, you need to purchase the Hornbill Wi-Fi Gateway, which will shoot up the price a bit.

The lock housing is made from brushed nickel. This makes it both strong and resilient to the effects of weather. It is IP65 waterproof rated and designed to work in temperatures from -22F to 158F, so you don’t need to worry about it not working when the snow starts to fall.

Also, for additional security and peace of mind, you can set it to lock automatically after anything from 5 to 120 seconds.

The only real downside is that no internal plate allows you to manually engage or disengage the deadbolt from inside your house. If you prefer to have that option and don’t mind sacrificing some features, this even cheaper smart lock from Hornbill makes a great alternative.

Best Smart Lock for Airbnb: Yale Assure Lock 2

If you’re looking for a better way to manage the front door of your rental property, the Yale Assure Lock 2 needs to be on your radar. In fact, the Assure Lock 2 was practically designed for your Airbnb, with the ability to create temporary profiles and remotely manage the lock using its accompanying smartphone app.

Best of all, various configurations are available, including the option for touchscreen, keypad, and keyless designs. Airbnb hosts will probably want to choose the Key-Free Touchscreen option, which looks upscale and allows guests to enter the property with just a password. You’ll also be able to see the history of the door—and you can even check to see if the door was accidentally left unlocked after checkout.

Yale products are top-of-the-line, and as you’d expect, the Assure Lock 2 carries a top-of-the-line price tag. You can reduce your price by opting for less appealing models, but springing for this Key-Free Touchscreen option is bound to make a great first impression on your guests.

You’ll need to swap out batteries more often than you may expect, but that’s a minor inconvenience for such a well-rounded product.

Best Smart Lock for Alexa: August Smart Lock

This is the second August Smart Lock we recommend, but this model is excellent for Alexa users. It’s a $150 lock that will work flawlessly with your Alexa products.

Now, it does require an August hub to connect to Alexa. However, the hub allows you to control the lock from anywhere. If you’re not home often or need to let others into your home, the hub is worth it.

With Alexa, you can use voice commands to check the lock’s status. You can also lock or unlock it by asking Alexa to do it for you.

This August Smart Lock works with your existing lock and keys. You just need to replace the thumb turn of your deadbolt, which you can do within minutes using a screwdriver. Then you can leave your keys at home since you can quickly get in by going to the August App or commanding Alexa to unlock the door.

You also have the option to automatically unlock the door when you get home and lock it once your door’s closed. The lock uses DoorSense technology to let you know what activity is happening, whether your door’s open, closed, locked, or unlocked. Don’t worry about the lock running out of batteries either, as you’ll receive a notification informing you when the batteries are low.

You can grant temporary access to anyone entering your home once or regularly. For more accessibility, you can purchase an August lock to open the lock using codes.

Best Smart Lock for HomeKit: Kwikset Premis Smart Lock

For Apple HomeKit users, you’ll want to go with the Kwikset Premis Smart Lock. It’s a $229 lock that integrates perfectly with Apple’s smart home ecosystem.

To be clear, though, the lock only works with Apple HomeKit and no other voice assistants. The Premis was exclusively designed to work with HomeKit, and you can use Siri for more hands-free capabilities. However, this requires a HomeKit hub such as Apple HomePod or an Apple TV as a smart home hub Kwikset smart lock to work.

You must have the Kwikset Premis App to use Siri, allowing you to use voice commands to monitor the lock’s status and control it from anywhere. Otherwise, you’ll need to open the app within Bluetooth range to lock or unlock the Premis.

The Kwikset Premis is ANSI/BHMA Grade 2 certified, a highly rated residential security rating—in other words, it’s incredibly durable. The Premis replaces your lock, but you can get it installed within minutes using a screwdriver. It has a Kwikset SecureScreen so you can’t see fingerprints, preventing thieves from copying entry codes.

You have the option to auto-lock your door whenever it’s closed, as well as set off the alarm whenever codes are input incorrectly. You can also create customizable codes for up to 30 people and get notified whenever somebody enters or leaves your home.

Best Smart Lock for Google Home: Google Nest x Yale Smart Lock

Google and Nest teamed up to create one of the best smart locks, the Google Nest x Yale Smart Lock. This $279 lock is just what you need if you use Google Home.

Since Google helped design the lock, it will work seamlessly with Google Home, especially with Nest products such as Nest video doorbells and Nest cams. Setting up the Nest x Yale is simple as you only need to swap it with your existing deadbolt.

This smart lock connects to Wi-Fi using the included Nest Connect. You’re required to set up the Connect to control the lock from anywhere from the Nest app (on iPhone or Android). It does automatically lock when you’re away from home, though. On the Nest app, you can check the lock’s status and control it, too.

The Nest x Yale is secure and tamper-proof, so don’t worry about somebody breaking into your home. You’ll receive alerts whenever someone tampers or uses the lock. If you’re at home, you can turn on Privacy Mode which disables the keypad altogether—in other words, nobody can enter your home using the keypad then.

If numerous people come and go from your home, you can assign multiple passcodes and set schedules to let them in. There’s no key slot, so you don’t have to worry about someone using your key to get inside.

Frequently Asked Questions