# Multifamily Access Control for Property Managers

> What multifamily access control covers, who buys it, how to evaluate SmartRent, ButterflyMX, DOOR and nine others, pricing shapes, and PMS integrations.

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Last verified: 2026-09-04

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Methodology guide

Property Management Software · Multifamily Access Control

# Multifamily Access Control for Property Managers

By Ryan York · last verified 2026-09-04

Multifamily access control is the set of locks, intercoms, gate and amenity readers, and the credential software that decides who can open which door at an apartment community, and when. Buyers rarely search for the category name. They arrive with a specific problem. The buzzer on an 8-unit stopped working and the parts are discontinued. A 6-unit rehab needs separate codes for maintenance, cleaners, and showings. A 3,000-unit portfolio wants a move-out to revoke access without a staffer driving over with a key. This guide covers what the category includes, who buys it, how to evaluate it, what the pricing looks like, which property management systems the vendors connect to, and what the AI Shortlist Index has observed so far. It sits inside the [full property management software stack](/property-management-software/).

## What the category covers

The Index defines the category as keyless entry, smart locks, video intercoms, gate and amenity-door access, and the credential platform that ties them to move-ins, move-outs, vendors, and self-guided tours across a community. The platform part is what separates it from a hardware purchase. A lock is a lock. The category is the software that issues a resident a credential the day the lease starts, hands a plumber a code that expires at 5 p.m., lets a prospect tour a vacant unit on a Sunday, and revokes all of it the day the lease ends.

Several adjacent products get conflated with it. Intercom-only devices, telephone-entry gate boxes, self-guided touring apps, package lockers, key cabinets, and smart-home hubs that manage thermostats and leak sensors all touch a door at some point. Some of the vendors in this category started in one of those niches and grew into the platform. ButterflyMX began as a cloud video intercom. SmartRent and PointCentral are smart-home hub platforms that include locks and common-area access. Gatewise started at the gate. Knowing where a vendor came from tells you which door it handles best and which door it added later.

## Who buys it

The buyer, in the Index’s definition, is a multifamily operator, regional manager, or facilities and asset-management lead. In practice the range is wide.

At the small end, an owner-operator rehabbing a quadplex or a 6-unit wants keyless entry so they stop replacing locks at every turnover and can give the cleaner a different code from the showing agent. That buyer often runs AppFolio or Rent Manager, or a spreadsheet, and asks the same first question every time: does the front door need internet. Condo and HOA boards show up in the same tier, usually replacing an intercom the original installer no longer supports.

In the middle, a regional manager with a few thousand doors across garden-style and mid-rise assets wants one credential system across the portfolio. The NAA’s research on this category found that standardization is the second most common reason operators buy, behind lockout resolution. That buyer runs Yardi, RealPage, or Entrata and will not consider a vendor that does not connect to it.

At the top, institutional owners of Class A urban high-rise and new-build product, student housing operators with an August turn of every bed, and build-to-rent operators with hundreds of detached homes each have their own version of the problem. High-rise wants the intercom and the elevator to agree. Student housing wants a thousand credentials issued in one weekend. Build-to-rent wants a hub that works without a hallway to run Wi-Fi through.

The segment pages go deeper: [small multifamily](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/for-small-multifamily/), [institutional multifamily](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/for-institutional-multifamily/), [student housing](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/for-student-housing/), and [commercial facilities](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/for-commercial-facilities/) for mixed-use assets where the retail and the residential share a lobby.

## How to evaluate it

The research behind this guide collected buyer questions from BiggerPockets, Trustpilot, an installer forum, the NAA, and vendor buyer’s guides. The questions below are those, arranged as criteria. Ask every one of them in the demo.

### Connectivity

Does the front door need internet, and what kind. Three architectures exist. Wi-Fi locks talk to the router directly. Z-Wave locks talk to a hub in the unit, which talks to the internet. Cellular hubs skip the building’s network entirely and carry their own data connection. RemoteLock’s own writing on the subject says Wi-Fi fails at scale in garden-style properties and that the real debate is Z-Wave against cellular. In the vendor rows, SmartRent runs a Z-Wave hub, while PointCentral and Gatewise are cellular-first. Ask what happens at a 300-unit garden property with no hallway Wi-Fi, because that is the case the demo will not show you.

### Outage behavior

Swiftlane’s intercom buyer’s guide puts it as one question: which PMS integrations are included, what are the recurring fees, and what still works during an outage. Ask separately about power loss and internet loss. A lock with a local code list keeps working through an internet outage. An intercom that routes every call through the cloud does not. Get the answer per door type.

### Keys, turnover, and rekeying

The NAA’s research on access control found that operators buy to solve lockout resolution first, standardization second, and rekeying third, and that security was never given as a reason. Ask how a resident locked out at 11 p.m. gets back in, who answers, and whether that involves your staff. Ask what a turn costs in credential work once the system is in. Dead batteries are the most common operational complaint in the research, so ask how the platform reports low batteries and how far in advance.

### Credential mix

The NAA’s framing question is whether residents prefer key, app, code, or fob, and the honest answer at most properties is all four. Fobs cost real money. Gatewise’s own blog puts the range at $50 to $100 per fob, and that is a vendor writing about hardware it competes with, so treat it as a ceiling and get your own quote. App-only is no longer a legal option everywhere. Washington’s ESSB 5937, effective January 2027, requires a non-app key on request. New York City has Local Law 63, and the research notes a New York case where a landlord blocked the key cylinder with a smart lock and older tenants without smartphones sued. Ask every vendor how a resident with no phone gets in.

### Proprietary or agnostic

DOOR, which was Latch until September 2025, sells its own locks and intercoms with an operating system on top. RemoteLock is lock-agnostic by design. SmartRent and PointCentral stacks run Yale locks under their hubs. The difference matters when the vendor has a bad year. Latch’s restatement and 2024 Nasdaq delisting sent operators looking for alternatives, and the lock-in worry that followed is documented in the research. Ask what happens to the hardware on the door if you cancel the software. The [DOOR and SmartRent comparison](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/door-vs-smartrent/) is built around this question.

### One system or two

A management company reviewing ButterflyMX on Trustpilot wrote that it felt like two separate systems, not in sync. Whatever the vendor, ask what data syncs, in which direction, and whether it is real-time or scheduled. A move-out that revokes access on a nightly batch is a move-out that leaves the door open for a day.

### Setup and support ownership

Ask who owns installation and support, the vendor or a local integrator. Installers on a Low Voltage Nation thread complained about how one intercom vendor shares recurring revenue with them. That is the installer’s grievance until the integrator stops answering your calls.

### Retrofit constraints

DOOR’s own article on retrofitting older buildings covers the usual obstacles: two-wire intercom wiring, mortise versus cylindrical lock preps, and no Wi-Fi in the hallways. Walk the building with the vendor’s installer before signing, and get in writing which doors need new wiring.

### The right door

One reviewer summed up a mismatch as a product built for a condo or office, not for a gatehouse. A vendor strong on unit doors may be weak at the perimeter, and the reverse. Match the vendor to the door you are trying to control.

## Pricing models

None of the twelve vendors in the category publishes a price. Every row in our vendor data carries a source URL for its description and integrations, and none carries a pricing figure, because none is public. When you see a number on a review site, it came from a quote someone pasted.

The shapes are predictable. Hardware is priced per door or per unit up front, sometimes folded into a financed subscription. Software is priced per unit per month, or per building per month for an intercom. Fobs and cards are extra. Installation goes to the vendor or a certified integrator and is quoted separately. Cellular hubs may carry a data fee. Contract terms run one to five years.

Pricing is not published for any vendor here, so ask for the per-unit and minimum figures, the hardware cost per door type, the fob price, the installation quote, the term, and the exit terms for hardware you own on a platform you leave.

## Integrations

The property management system is the system of record for who lives where. An access-control integration reads that record to issue a credential at move-in and revoke it at move-out, and sometimes writes back events like a vendor entry. Without it, someone at the leasing desk retypes every move.

From our vendor data, the counts by PMS look like this. Yardi and RealPage each appear in eight vendor rows: SmartRent, ButterflyMX, DOOR, Brivo, Gatewise, Swiftlane, PointCentral, and RemoteLock. Entrata appears in seven, everyone above except RemoteLock. AppFolio appears in four: ButterflyMX, DOOR, PointCentral, and RemoteLock. Rent Manager appears in four: ButterflyMX, Brivo, Gatewise, and RemoteLock. ResMan appears in three: SmartRent, Gatewise, and PointCentral. No vendor in the category publishes a Buildium, Propertyware, MRI, or Rentvine integration. RemoteLock says Buildium is a feature request.

Four vendors publish no PMS list at all. Avigilon Alta reaches multifamily through partners. Zentra and Salto do not publish one. dormakaba offers web services. If you run one of those, the integration is a project, not a checkbox.

There is no built-in module to compare against in this category. A PMS records the lease; it does not open the door. The per-system pages cover what each platform’s marketplace carries: [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/), [Entrata](/property-management-software/integrations/entrata/), [AppFolio](/property-management-software/integrations/appfolio/), [Rent Manager](/property-management-software/integrations/rent-manager/), and [ResMan](/property-management-software/integrations/resman/).

Read “integration” carefully in the demo. Ask what data moves, which direction, real-time or scheduled, and whether the vendor or the PMS owns the connector. A logo on a partner page is not a nightly sync, and a nightly sync is not a move-out that revokes at noon.

## The vendors

Twelve vendors meet the inclusion criteria today. The table below is rendered from the vendor data with a source and verification date on every fact, and the [full vendor comparison](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/vendors/) sorts them by segment and PMS.

They group into five shapes. Smart-home platforms with locks and common-area access: [SmartRent](/vendors/smartrent/) and [PointCentral](/vendors/pointcentral/). Intercom-first platforms: [ButterflyMX](/vendors/butterflymx/) and [Swiftlane](/vendors/swiftlane/). A proprietary lock-and-software stack: [DOOR](/vendors/door/). Commercial access control with a multifamily edition or a partner route: [Brivo](/vendors/brivo/) and [Avigilon Alta](/vendors/avigilon-alta/). Lock makers with their own software: [Zentra](/vendors/zentra/) from Allegion, [Salto](/vendors/salto/), and [dormakaba](/vendors/dormakaba/). Two fit no group. [Gatewise](/vendors/gatewise/) is cellular-first at the gate and has been part of Allegion since July 2025. [RemoteLock](/vendors/remotelock/) runs other makers’ locks.

The comparison and alternatives pages are where the trade-offs get specific: [ButterflyMX against Swiftlane](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/butterflymx-vs-swiftlane/) for the intercom decision, [Brivo against Avigilon Alta](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/brivo-vs-avigilon-alta/) for the commercial platforms, [SmartRent against PointCentral](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/smartrent-vs-pointcentral/) for the hub platforms, and the alternatives pages for [DOOR](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/door-alternatives/), [ButterflyMX](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/butterflymx-alternatives/), and [SmartRent](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/smartrent-alternatives/). Terms like Z-Wave, cellular hub, and mortise prep are defined in the [glossary](/property-management-software/glossary/).

## What the Index shows

The AI Shortlist Index puts a fixed set of 25 prompts per category to four engines every month and records which vendors appear in the answers. For this category the 2026-09 export records zero runs, so no engine has yet been observed naming, citing, or ranking any access-control vendor. The 25 prompts are written and published in the [prompt library](/ai-shortlist-index/prompt-library/) under the mac- prefix, and the snapshot on this page fills in when the first edition runs. Our expectation, stated as a hypothesis and not a finding, is that the four vendors operators name first in the research, SmartRent, ButterflyMX, DOOR, and Brivo, will also be the ones ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini name first, because the sources those engines read are the same trade press and forum threads the research drew on. The [Index category page](/ai-shortlist-index/multifamily-access-control/) carries the ranking, the source map, and the per-vendor rows once there is data.

## Inclusion criteria

The criteria below are the ones the Index applies to every category, published so a vendor can see why it is or is not on the list. If you sell into this category and want to know where you stand before the first edition publishes, [AI visibility for proptech companies](/ai-visibility-for-proptech-companies/) explains the measurement and the practice behind it.

## Where to go next

Start with the [vendor comparison](/property-management-software/multifamily-access-control/vendors/) if you are shortlisting, or with the DOOR and SmartRent page if the proprietary question is the one holding up the decision. The Index tracks two other categories, and their guides follow the same shape: [maintenance and vendor network software](/property-management-software/maintenance-vendor-network-software/) and [resident benefits platforms](/property-management-software/resident-benefits-platforms/).

Every Multifamily Access Control vendor in the shared database (9), with what it is, pricing model, PMS integrations and segments, each fact sourced and dated.
| Vendor | What it is | Pricing model | PMS integrations | Segments | Verified |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [SmartRent](/vendors/smartrent/) | Smart-home hub, locks, common-area access, and self-guided tours platform for multifamily; 890k units across 3,700 communities. [source](https://investors.smartrent.com/news/news-details/2026/SmartRent-Reports-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-2025-Financial-Results/default.aspx) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/), [Entrata](/property-management-software/integrations/entrata/), [ResMan](/property-management-software/integrations/resman/) [source](https://smartrent.com/news/smartrent-integrates-pms-yardi-realpage-entrata-resman/) | Institutional Multifamily, Student Housing, Single-Family Rental | 2026-09-02 |
| [ButterflyMX](/vendors/butterflymx/) | Cloud video intercom grown into a full access-control platform; 20,000+ buildings and 1.5M units. [source](https://butterflymx.com/blog/butterflymx-2025-year-in-review/) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | [AppFolio](/property-management-software/integrations/appfolio/), [Entrata](/property-management-software/integrations/entrata/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/), [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [Rent Manager](/property-management-software/integrations/rent-manager/) [source](https://butterflymx.com/blog/property-management-system-integrations/) | Institutional Multifamily, Small Multifamily, HOA Communities, Student Housing | 2026-09-02 |
| [Brivo](/vendors/brivo/) | Cloud access control with a Multifamily Edition for apartment communities and mixed-use. [source](https://www.brivo.com/industry/multifamily-security-systems/) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/), [Rent Manager](/property-management-software/integrations/rent-manager/), [Entrata](/property-management-software/integrations/entrata/) [source](https://www.brivo.com/industry/multifamily-security-systems/) | Institutional Multifamily, Commercial Facilities | 2026-09-02 |
| [Swiftlane](/vendors/swiftlane/) | Video intercom and face-recognition access for small to mid-size apartment buildings. [source](https://swiftlane.com/solutions-residential/) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [Entrata](/property-management-software/integrations/entrata/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/) [source](https://swiftlane.com/solutions-residential/) | Small Multifamily, Institutional Multifamily | 2026-09-02 |
| [PointCentral](/vendors/pointcentral/) | Cellular-hub smart-property platform from Alarm.com for multifamily, BTR, and SFR. [source](https://prweb.com/releases/pointcentral_smart_property_automation_solution_now_integrated_with_all_major_multifamily_property_management_systems/prweb17137363.htm) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/), [ResMan](/property-management-software/integrations/resman/), [AppFolio](/property-management-software/integrations/appfolio/), [Entrata](/property-management-software/integrations/entrata/) [source](https://prweb.com/releases/pointcentral_smart_property_automation_solution_now_integrated_with_all_major_multifamily_property_management_systems/prweb17137363.htm) | Single-Family Rental, Institutional Multifamily | 2026-09-02 |
| [RemoteLock](/vendors/remotelock/) | Lock-agnostic cloud access control; ButterflyMX partner. [source](https://remotelock.com/access-basics/unlocking-the-power-of-remotelock-with-software-integrations/) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | [AppFolio](/property-management-software/integrations/appfolio/), [Yardi](/property-management-software/integrations/yardi/), [RealPage](/property-management-software/integrations/realpage/), [Rent Manager](/property-management-software/integrations/rent-manager/) [source](https://remotelock.com/access-basics/unlocking-the-power-of-remotelock-with-software-integrations/) | Small Multifamily, Single-Family Rental | 2026-09-02 |
| [Zentra](/vendors/zentra/) | Allegion's multifamily access software paired with Schlage locks; Apple and Google Wallet keys. [source](https://zentra.co/2025/11/12/allegion-announces-expanded-wallet-based-access-control-solutions-with-zentra-and-gatewise-at-optech-2025/) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | Not published | Institutional Multifamily | 2026-09-02 |
| [Salto](/vendors/salto/) | Enterprise electronic locks and access for multifamily and student housing. [source](https://saltosystems.com/en/industries/residential/multi-family-housing/) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | Not published | Student Housing, Institutional Multifamily | 2026-09-02 |
| [dormakaba](/vendors/dormakaba/) | RFID and mobile locks with Community access-management software for multihousing. [source](https://www.dormakaba.com/us-en/offering/products/multifamily-housing-solutions/access-management-software/community-access-management-software--dk_301) | Not published; ask for the per-unit figure and the minimum. | Not published | Institutional Multifamily, Student Housing | 2026-09-02 |

## What the AI Shortlist Index shows

In the September 2026 edition, across 25 recorded runs, the engines named ButterflyMX (83%), Salto (76%) and Brivo (75%).

The live ranking, source map and every vendor row: [Multifamily Access Control in the AI Shortlist Index](/ai-shortlist-index/multifamily-access-control/).

### Inclusion criteria for this list

A vendor is listed when it sells access control to property managers in the United States, has a public website, and has at least one sourced fact in the shared vendor database (description, pricing model, or PMS integrations, each with a source URL and the date it was checked). Listing is free and never affects Index placement. Missing a vendor? [Tell us](/contact/), with a source. 9 vendors are listed today.

## Questions

### Does the front door need internet?

Not always, and the answer depends on which door. A lock with a local code list keeps opening for stored codes when the connection drops, but it cannot receive a new code or report a low battery until it reconnects. A cloud video intercom needs a connection to ring a resident's phone. Ask the vendor to walk you through each door type in an internet outage before you sign.

### Wi-Fi, Z-Wave, or cellular: which should a multifamily property use?

Wi-Fi locks join the building network directly and depend on coverage reaching every door, which RemoteLock's own guidance says fails at scale in garden-style properties. Z-Wave locks talk to a hub in each unit, and the hub needs its own connection. Cellular hubs carry their own data link and skip the building network. In the vendor data, SmartRent runs a Z-Wave hub while PointCentral and Gatewise are cellular-first. Pick by building shape. A mid-rise with wired hallways can run Wi-Fi or Z-Wave; a garden property with no hallway usually needs cellular.

### What still works during a power or internet outage?

Ask about the two separately. Battery locks keep working through a power outage. Through an internet outage, locks with stored codes keep opening, while anything routed through the cloud, including most video intercom calls and remote unlocks, stops until service returns. Get the answer per door. Unit doors, the lobby, the gate, and amenity doors often behave differently on the same platform.

### How much does a key fob cost?

Gatewise's blog on apartment fob costs puts the range at $50 to $100 per fob ([gatewise.com](https://gatewise.com/blog/apartment-key-fob-costs)). That figure comes from a vendor that sells app-based gate access, so treat it as an upper bound and get a quote for the credential type you plan to issue. Multiply by residents plus staff plus vendors plus the replacement rate, and put the total next to the software fee.

### Can we go app-only, or do we still have to offer a key?

Not everywhere. Washington's ESSB 5937, effective January 2027, requires a non-app key on request, and New York City has its own rule in Local Law 63; Sagareus summarizes both at [sagareus.com](https://www.sagareus.com/blog/wa-smart-access-device-rules). The research behind this guide also notes a New York case where older tenants without smartphones sued after a landlord blocked the key cylinder with a smart lock. Ask every vendor how a resident with no phone gets in, and keep a physical override on every unit door.

Part of [Property Management Software, every category a PM company buys](/property-management-software/).