Smart locks for vacation rentals: what to buy, and how codes follow your bookings.

What a rental needs from a lock

• A keypad. Guests type a code. No app to install, no phone battery to worry about.
• A connection. Codes are created and deleted remotely, so the lock needs Wi-Fi, built in or through a bridge. Bluetooth-only locks can’t be managed from afar.
• Time-limited codes. Each guest’s code should work only during their stay. Software sets the start and end; the lock enforces them.
• Enough code slots. Your own code, the cleaner’s, and one per upcoming stay. Schlage Encode holds up to 100 codes; Yale Assure Lock 2 up to 250 in its app.
• Batteries you check. Most use four AA batteries; Schlage quotes up to six months with typical use. Good software warns you before an arrival.

Which brands work, and with what

Two cautions from the integration guides: Seam doesn’t support Schlage Sense, and in Europe it doesn’t support Yale locks run from the Yale Smart Living or Yale Connect apps. If you are buying, buy the Wi-Fi version of a lock in the table.

Airbnb already makes codes. Why add anything?

For Airbnb stays in the US and Canada, Airbnb’s own integration connects one compatible Schlage, Yale or August lock per listing and generates a unique code for each guest, active only for the stay and deactivated after checkout. If the reservation changes, the code follows. Guests’ codes can’t be customized.

That covers Airbnb bookings. It doesn’t cover guests who book on your own website, or Booking.com stays. That is the gap Smart Stay fills.

What Smart Stay does

• For every confirmed booking on your site, it creates a 6-digit door code that works from check-in to checkout, local time.
• It emails the code to the guest three days before arrival, from your site, under your name.
• It moves or removes the code when the booking is changed or canceled, and the code stops working at checkout.
• It tells you before the next arrival if a lock is offline or its battery is low.
• For Airbnb and Booking.com stays it can also make codes from the synced calendar, if you turn it on per property; you then send the code through the platform’s chat, because calendars don’t carry guest contacts.

It also schedules a Honeywell Home thermostat around each stay and emails you when a noise sensor crosses your limit. Smart Stay is in early access: tell us your lock model and we check it before you buy anything. One known limit today: codes are 6 digits, so a lock that accepts only 4-digit codes won’t work.

Rules to respect

Airbnb doesn’t allow security cameras or recording devices that monitor indoor spaces, even if they are off, a rule in force since April 30, 2024. Doorbell cameras count as recording devices. Exterior cameras are allowed if their location is disclosed in the listing. Noise monitors that measure sound levels without recording audio are allowed indoors if disclosed and not in bedrooms, bathrooms or sleeping areas.

For smart devices such as locks, Airbnb encourages, but doesn’t require, hosts to mention them in the listing. Local rules may ask for more: check yours.

Mistakes that leave guests outside

1. Buying the Bluetooth version. Without Wi-Fi or a bridge, nothing can send codes to the lock.
2. No backup. Keep a key in a lockbox or a spare code for emergencies; Airbnb’s integration also keeps a backup code for lock problems.
3. Ignoring batteries. A low battery is the most common failure. Check before every arrival, or let software check for you.
4. Two systems making codes for the same stay. If Airbnb’s integration handles Airbnb stays, don’t also generate codes for them elsewhere.
5. Apple HomeKit in the middle. Airbnb notes that platforms such as HomeKit may interfere with its ability to discover your lock.

Questions hosts ask