August has clearly taken customer feedback to heart and applied everything they’ve learned to the August Smart Lock 3rd Generation. It does everything you could want from a smart lock. Run out the door in the morning and let it auto-lock behind you, remotely send the babysitter a temporary key, have the door auto-unlock as you approach so you don’t have to stop and search your pockets, or tell Alexa/Google to lock your door at night rather than getting out of bed to double check.

The cherry on top is that it does all of this without modifying the look of your home or requiring you to change the locking mechanism.

The August Smart Lock Pro 3rd Generation is all about seamless integration with the rest of your smart home. If this is the only smart product you ever plan on buying, save the extra money and get the base model. Otherwise, only the pro lets you connect through Z-Wave Plus, Siri, and Homekit (both support Alexa and Google Home).

Like the base version, you can use the app to tailor how this lock functions for you. Enable and disable auto-lock or unlock features, view and control access remotely (as long as you have the Wi-Fi bridge), get low battery alerts, and know when the door is closed or locked.

The Danalock V3 is a good all-rounder in the smart lock game. There are four versions (Homekit, Z-Wave, Zigbee, and Bluetooth-only) so you can align it with your smart home setup. It takes 10 minutes to install, and the auto-unlock and twist-assist features make it feel truly ‘smart’. Danalock supports unlimited occupants and users can share digital keys to grant temporary access to visitors.

Unfortunately, the auto-unlock and digital keys features remain unavailable on the Homekit version. Combined with reports of inconsistent performance from buyers, the Danalock V3 falls just below our top-tier recommendations.

The Igloohome smart mortise locks packs a range of innovative features into a sleek design for your mortise style doors.

Airbnb Integration and offline pin code generation (See here https://www.igloohome.co/blog/how-it-works/smart-lock-without-internet for more information on how it works) are a standout feature for this lock and separates it from other locks and avoids having issues with Wifi connectivity and any late night calls from guests not being able to access your rental apartment.

A few alarm sensors are unique to this device include a built-in temperature sensor that will unlock the door automatically if temperature reach between 122-158 degrees. A built-in audio alert will also go off if the lock is being tampered with or codes have been entered 5 times without success.

Overall if you are hesitant to rely on your Wifi for managing access codes but still would like like to have remote key code capabilities this could be a great fit.

Originally a Kickstarted project the company has made great strides from their original release to this 2nd Gen version while still keeping the simple install and value proposition of their original vision.

With its simple design and out of the box with the features we have come to expect in our smart locks including access codes (via users installing the Sesame app), and auto-locking the Sesame really shines right out of the box with installation that blows its competition of out of the water using 3M tape and installing in just a few seconds.

This design opens up smart locks to renters and those that want to disguise the fact that they have a smart lock from anyone working by.

The Seasame also boasts some of the most integrations out of any lock on the market with an open API and integration with Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant along with IFTTT recipes and Apple Watch control. The only problem? Unfortunalty most of the integrations require the additional Wi-fi access hub addon to function.

Overall the Sesame has carved out a niche for itself in the lock market with its elegant design, easy installation and range of integrations. A top contender for your apartment or home front door in our book.

Once you get past the confusing line-up of Yale Assure and August connectivity this lever lock offers a full feature set and could be a perfect fit for you if you are looking for a clean lever/handle replacement.

The lock offers several types of connectivity options which can be confusing including a Z-Wave and Zigbee version which will work well for those of you already with a home hub or smart security system like Alarm.com or SmartThings. The second option is to go with the August Connect version which connects via Bluetooth and Wifi via a small hub that plugs into a wall socket. This version gives you remote locking and monitoring out of the box without another hub.

If you are really needing a backup physical key you will need to look elsewhere as this lock has no key access at all.

The lock does not have its own dedicated smart phone app and relies heavily on either the August app if you have that version or your smart home hub app. This has some positives if you are already familiar with those systems but confusing if this is your first “smart” product.

Additional options for you include either a touch screen or physical button version.

Overall the Yale Assure lever is a solid option that has good user reviews and a wide range of connectivity options to fit your exact needs.