How to choose the best access control system for your business
Choosing the best door access control system may be difficult, but the most important thing is to determine the right solution for your business.
The top access control systems are not just about keeping the bad guys out anymore. They provide a seamless experience to run your business more efficiently and now unlock more benefits beyond access - people management, visitor management, smart building analytics, workflow integrations and more.
How to select the best commercial access control system
The first question you should ask yourself is “What problems am I trying to solve with an access control system?” Write down your must-haves.
Access control is more than making a lock smart, especially when running a business in 2021 where remote management and flexible scheduling is more required. Once you have an idea of what you’re looking for, you can start checking those boxes to find the right access control platform.
Some other questions you’ll want to ask yourself before diving into each solution:
How many people will be using the platform? (Employees, members, guests, professional services like maintenance or cleaning crews, etc.)
How many locations need to be managed on the platform?
What intelligence and insights would you want to know about the traffic, occupancy, or usage in your space?
How important is gathering insights around your space (ex. traffic, occupancy, space usage, etc.)?
Is it a requirement to automate access through integrations with your existing workflows and apps you use on a daily basis.
Different types of access control systems
Commercial access control can typically be broken down into two categories - on prem systems and cloud based access control.
On premise systems are legacy access control systems that require a local server, while cloud based systems are, you guessed it, managed in the cloud. A local server requires additional hardware which can be difficult to manage, usually needs IT support or a managed service provider.
Legacy on premise systems
Managed on local server
Dedicated computer and room for server
Expensive
No integrations
Hard to manage
Cloud based access control
Managed in the cloud
Everything managed in software
Affordable
Integrations into existing workflows
Easy to manage
Nexkey falls under a cloud based access control system. For the purpose of this blog, we will compare Nexkey to other cloud based systems so you can choose the right one for you.
You can read more in depth about the different types of access control systems in this blog.
What access credential is right for you?
Every cloud based access control system offers different credentials to choose from - key cards, fobs, and mobile credentials. We did dive into the benefits and challenges for each one in one of our recent blog.
More and more businesses are adopting mobile access control, especially after the pandemic, to go truly keyless. We learned from our 2020 Access Control Trends Review, the No. 1 choice for office workers is to manage access and unlock the door with a smartphone, even though just 5% of respondents used a smartphone to unlock their office.
This year, HID surveyed over 1000 office workers: over 50% of respondents have already upgraded to mobile, are in the process, or have plans to upgrade to mobile access control in the near future.
Top 4 features seen in the best mobile based access control systems
Simplified key management
Managing keys or key cards can quickly become an administrative nightmare. The best access control systems allow you to instantly grant and revoke access, simplifying your operations. Replace every physical key, keycard, and fob with a smartphone.
Building analytics
Data on what is happening within your space can give you insights to make the best decisions for running your business. You can learn who and how many people are entering your space and when, and monitor occupancy and space usage to optimize staffing and operations across all areas of business.
Ability to remotely unlock
Guests, contractors, cleaners, etc. need access but you may not necessarily want to give them a key or be present to let them in. With a cloud-based access control system, remotely unlock the door from anywhere for deliveries and guests. You can be in the office, without actually being there.
Access scheduling
Contractors, part-time, and full-time employees can all have different access schedules with the top access control systems. You should also be able to set up Groups based on employee hours to share keys more efficiently.
Audit trail
Know who has access and when in real-time. Make sure your access control system meets your compliance standards and requirements. Detailed reporting on key access and activity can lead to improved security and operations for your business. Mobile credentials are most accurate as they are not as easily shared.
How Nexkey compares to other mobile access control systems
| Nexkey | Openpath | Kisi | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud based system | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Nearby unlock | ✅ | ✅＊ | ✅＊ |
| Remote unlock | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Optional remote unlock for users | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| SmartWatch app | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Smart keychain (No scrolling through keys) | ✅ | X | X |
| Manage key access via app | ✅ | X | X |
| Schedule access via app | ✅ | X | X |
| Send guest passes via app | ✅ | X | X |
| Manage key access via web portal | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Schedule access via web portal | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Send guest passes via web portal | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Unlock door until (great for events) | ✅ | X | X |
| Mobile optimized audit trail | ✅ | X | X |
| Notifications/Alerts | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Business hours | ✅ | ✅ | ✅＊＊ |
| Block access on holidays | ✅ | ✅ | X |
| Messaging | ✅ | X | X |
| Occupancy dashboard | ✅ | ✅＊＊＊ | ✅ |
| Space usage dashboard | ✅ | ✅＊＊＊ | ✅＊＊＊ |
| Works with electrified door hardware | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Retrofit mechanical locks | ✅ | X | X |
| Sliding glass doors | ✅ | X | X |
| Open API | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| App integrations | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Zapier integration | ✅ | X | X |
| Free support | ✅ | ✅＊＊＊ | ✅ |
| Free onboarding | ✅ | ✅＊＊＊ | ✅ |
*(Remote) - Unlocking is the same for nearby and remote so an accidental unlock may happen versus Nexkey having a nearby and remote unlock tab.
**(Unlock timer) - Business hours will expire, holidays will require new business hours for that week.
*** (Not a standard feature) - Requires additional payment, premium package, or third party integration