How to Use Your Smart Lock Better

Why it’s smart: Aside from letting you unlock and lock your door without using a key when you’re at home, most smart locks connect to the internet via your home Wi-Fi. So they can be controlled even when you aren’t home. That way you can let the sitter in, or your in-laws, or the plumber, or your neighbor Gary. With a smart lock, you literally may never need to use a key at home again.

And since you’ll never have to worry about making—and managing (and losing)—copies of keys, you’ll also never get locked out of your home again. Not needing to deal with keys is just one way that smart locks can provide better security than their “dumb” counterparts do. And you’ll be relieved of the drawerful of orphaned spare keys you likely have, as well as the nagging suspicion that at least one set is floating around (sigh, probably with that fink Gary). Should you ever want to restrict anyone from coming in your home, it’s as simple as clicking open the app and deleting their account.

How to do it: Depending on the smart lock you use, you may need an extra piece of gear in order for it to connect to the internet. Some smart locks, such as the Schlage Encore, have Wi-Fi built in, which means they can connect directly to your home network and be reached over the internet. But others, such as the Ultraloq U-Bolt, communicate using Bluetooth, and so they need a plug-in hub (usually costing another $40 to $100) that acts as a go-between for your lock and Wi-Fi. With that setup, you can view the status and control the lock from anywhere your smartphone connects to the internet.

Why it’s smart: When you set up a smart lock, you have the option to share control of it with other people: family members, renters, sitters, dog walkers, home health aids, or anyone who comes and goes a lot. Besides making it easier for them to get in and out of your home, this also keeps you aware of who is opening your front door by sending you a smartphone notification whenever the lock is triggered. You also have the option to limit people’s access, whether that’s restricting them to using the lock during specific hours or days only, or even within a custom time frame.

How to do it: Sharing access to your door doesn’t require any additional gear; it just takes a few minutes of fiddling with the smart lock’s app. There are a few ways to set up access, depending on the style and model of smart lock. In the case of a keypad lock, you can assign guests a unique PIN number that only they use. With deadbolt adapter-style models, which connect to your existing deadbolt (like an August lock), you’d share access to your lock by sending an invitation for someone to download an app and set up an account. It’s a bit tedious, but they have to do it only once, and then they have easy access, which you can still adjust—or cancel—as needed.

Why it’s smart: The Achilles’ heel of traditional locks is, well, you. As a species, humans have this tendency to forget to actually lock their doors—and we sometimes even leave them ajar. Smart locks provide armor against such pesky peccadilloes.

How to do it: Using the lock’s app or one of the various so-called smart platforms that integrate with smart devices—like Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Assistant, among others—you can tell most models to lock themselves a few seconds or minutes after you unlock your door, so you never accidentally leave it vulnerable again. Some models also come with either a built-in, or accessory, door sensor that tells the lock when the door is properly closed, so that it doesn’t trigger its deadbolt too early. Another fail-safe option is to put your smart locks on a schedule, so that they are triggered every night at bedtime—just make sure you’re inside before that happens. (As a fail-safe against your getting locked out, many locks have either a keypad or keyway or both. But some don’t, so it’s prudent to share access to your lock with at least one other person who could let you in in an emergency.)

Why it’s smart: The signature trait of smart devices is that they’re able to communicate with one another, and having a smart lock act as a trigger for other smart devices just makes sense. It’s a big reason the smart home is fun, but it also can bring peace of mind by making your home feel more secure. With a few minutes of fiddling, unlocking your door could tell your living room lights to come on, your thermostat to adjust, and even a sound system to kick on.

If you want to get all sci-fi, you can elevate things even more and have your door unlock automatically when you arrive home. (Note that having a door auto-unlock adds an element of risk, as we mention in our guide to smart locks. And so it may not be the best option for everyone, especially those in urban environments, where folks live closer together.)

How to do it: Almost all smart devices have a companion app that’s used to set them up and manage them. But most popular devices are also compatible with voice-controllable digital assistants, like Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Assistant (among others). All of them have a streamlined process for setting up these interactions in their apps: While writing this very post, I created a HomeKit automation that will turn a few lights on and kick the thermostat to 72 whenever my front door is unlocked and I’m home between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. The whole shebang took under a minute.

To go the full Monty and have your lock automatically trigger whenever you leave or arrive home, you can set up most locks to rely on what’s called geofencing—an imaginary border around your home that’s based on the various wireless signals used by your smartphone. When you (and your phone) cross the wireless fence in either direction, it tells your smart lock—and any other smart devices you set up—to activate.