Access control system for small business doors
For a small office or shop, an access control system usually means keyless entry on 1 to 10 doors: a keypad, card reader or phone app on the front and back doors, managed from an app instead of a server.
An access control system lets your small business swap keys for cards, phones or codes, so you decide who gets in and can cancel one person's access without changing the locks. Most doors cost $500 to $3,000 installed, with keys-only doors costing more and fire-rated stair doors running up to $6,000. Start now: tell us what is on your doors now, your building type and how many doors you have, and we'll turn your answers into a written brief for a local installer who can quote from it.
What you pay per door, with installation included:
- If your doors currently use nothing but keys, expect $1,200 to $2,500
- If electric locks or card readers are already working, expect $500 to $1,500
- If you are unsure what is on the door, plan on a range of $1,000 to $3,000
Keyless entry for an office: cards, phones and PINs
For most offices, encrypted cards or phone credentials work well for staff, while a keypad with personal PINs covers cleaners and vendors. That combination is what one Florida installer puts into the majority of small offices. Give each cleaner or vendor a separate PIN so you can cancel their access without changing everyone else's code.
A keypad alone is cheaper, at $500 to $1,200 per door with hardware and wiring included, per Ackerman Security. The catch, as Kisi notes, is that keypads keep no log of which individual opened the door.
Answer three quick questions and you'll see your price straight away, written up as a clear brief a local installer can quote from.
What drives the cost per door
The door itself drives most of the cost, since pulling wire through walls and running conduit is where the money goes. Here are the installed prices one Florida installer quotes:
| Kind of door | What installation costs |
|---|---|
| Office door inside, power already there | $1,400 to $2,800 |
| Door to the outside, conduit and power close by | $1,800 to $3,200 |
| Storefront door made of glass | $2,200 to $3,500 |
| Stair door with a fire rating | $3,500 to $6,000 |
When your suite is leased, wire that is already in place is generally worth holding onto. Four doors that only have keys total roughly $4,800 to $10,000, compared with about $2,000 to $6,000 for four doors that already have working electric locks. A 10-door office building lands at $15,000 to $35,000 installed, per Safe and Sound Security.
Tell us what each door has on it and the brief spells out the work for the installer.
Cloud or on-site software, and your lease
Door software comes in two forms: cloud-based or hosted on equipment you own. Cloud lets you handle people through a website or app with no server sitting in your building, as Avigilon explains. It costs about $10 to $25 per door each month, and the installer says it fits most businesses running 1 to 10 doors. With 2 to 4 doors, cloud tends to come out ahead, since the true long-term expense is adding and removing people.
Some systems have no monthly fee. UniFi Access is one example for small offices with 1 to 5 doors, and its one-door controller costs $129. Kisi, a cloud service, starts at $99 a month plus hardware, so ask your installer which option fits you.
Look at your lease before any work starts. Sample commercial leases put a tenant's security system under written approval from the landlord, and one may ask that it align with the building's base systems. An Ohio security firm notes that tenants typically need permission before installing a system. Insurers also frequently give discounts to businesses that have adequate security, according to Security 101.
Start with three quick questions about your doors to see an installed price range and get a written brief we can pass to a local installer for a quote.
Common questions
What does an access control setup usually cost?
Most doors cost $500 to $3,000 installed, depending on what is on them now. If you don't yet know what's on your doors, ten doors comes to about $10,000 to $30,000, and telling us what you have narrows that range.
Is it possible to put a keypad lock on a commercial office door?
Yes, and keypad systems begin at $500 per door. If you rent your space, secure your landlord's written approval before anything else.
How does a smart lock's price compare to a full system?
Fixr puts an installed smart lock at $250 to $400. Once you have staff, cleaners and several doors to manage, a full system lets you add and remove people easily, so answer three questions to see what yours would cost.