What you need to know about buying Smart Locks in 2026

By Josh Teder

It’s 2026 and the world of smart locks is about to change in a major way thanks to a new standard called Aliro. And the best way to understand what this standard is going to mean for smart locks is to actually look at the capabilities of the Aqara U400 smart lock, which I recently purchased.

What Makes the Aqara U400 Different

This smart lock not only has the tap-to-unlock capability using Near Field Communication — otherwise known as NFC — which many smart locks have had for years now, thanks to Apple’s Home Key technology. But the thing that makes this smart lock so unique is that it can automatically and precisely, I might add, unlock as you approach it from the outside using a newer technology for smart locks called Ultra Wideband.

This is the same technology that powers Apple’s AirTags and Precision Finding features. In this case, the lock uses Ultra Wideband to support Apple’s Home Key Express mode, which is what this auto-unlocking feature is called in Apple Land.

“The hands-free unlocking has worked pretty flawlessly for me over the past month, and I don’t think I’d buy a lock without it going forward.”

What Is the Aliro Standard?

This lock is also Aliro-ready. That means it has the necessary hardware requirements for the Aliro standard, and all it needs is a software update once the standard goes live — which happened at the end of February 2026.

So, what is the Aliro standard? At a basic level, it brings the Home Key experience beyond Apple to Android. You’ll want to pay attention to this part, because not all Aliro-certified locks will be created equal. Some will only use NFC — that’s where you tap your phone or watch to the lock and it unlocks — plus Bluetooth Low Energy (otherwise known as Bluetooth LE). Others, like the Aqara U400, will use NFC, Bluetooth LE, plus Ultra Wideband. That’s the kind of smart lock you want, in my experience at least.

What’s Coming to Market

Here in the US and worldwide, you can expect other locks to come onto the market now that the Aliro spec has gone live in Q1 of 2026 — including, I would expect, renter-friendly options as well.

Other Ultra Wideband smart locks were announced last year at CES, but have yet to be released and are likely waiting for the Aliro standard to fully launch. The Ultraloq Bolt Mission UWB lock did finally launch after CES this year, and it has Ultra Wideband — but it does not support Apple’s Home Key Express mode at the time of this writing. Aqara has also just announced it will be working with Samsung’s Home Key equivalent feature, which works with the Samsung Wallet app.

Don’t Overlook Lock Grade Ratings

There is one other thing you’ll want to consider with these locks that I didn’t even realize was a thing, frankly, until I bought my home — and that’s the grade level of the lock.

This will differ whether you’re in North America, Europe, or even Sweden, which has its own specific standard. But basically, what all of these standards do is rate how physically strong a lock is — in other terms, how much force needs to be applied before it breaks — as well as things like how many unlocking and locking cycles the lock is rated to go through.

Grade three is your standard residential grade lock here in the United States, which is what the Aqara U400 is rated as. Then there’s commercial grade two, and then grade one, which is your top-tier grade lock — the one I’d likely install on a door that’s out to a busy road or a high-traffic area.

“When you do buy a smart lock, make sure it supports Ultra Wideband, not just NFC and Bluetooth LE. The hands-free unlocking experience is just that much better.”

What Aliro Means for iPhone and Android Users

So now that Aliro has launched, what changes for Android and iPhone users?

For iPhone users, not much — other than there will be more locks to potentially choose from that can now use Home Key Express mode. For Android users, however, you’ll finally be able to use the Google and Samsung Wallet apps for these capabilities.

My Recommendation

That’s what you need to know about smart locks in 2026. My recommendation: wait for the Aliro standard to fully launch in Q1, or grab the Aqara U400 smart lock if you don’t want to wait. But no matter what, when you do buy a smart lock, make sure it supports Ultra Wideband — not just NFC and Bluetooth LE. The hands-free unlocking experience is just that much better.

To see the smart locks we currently recommend, check out our smart home videos on YouTube, where you can also find our full smart home guide for 2026. And to save on all the smart home products we recommend, head to our shop page and search “smart home deals” — they’ll all show up there.