Smart lock buying guide for importers: deadbolt, mortise and rim locks

Selling the wrong lock architecture into a market is the fastest way to a container of returns. This guide maps lock type to door type, market and installation reality.

Deadbolt smart locks

A deadbolt throws a solid bolt into the frame. Smart deadbolt locks are the mainstream choice for North American and Australian timber entrance doors, where the door already has a deadbolt preparation. Installation is mostly a swap: the exterior keypad or reader replaces the cylinder and the interior unit replaces the thumb-turn.

Mortise smart locks

A mortise lock sits in a pocket cut into the door edge and combines latch and bolt with a handle. It is the standard in Europe, the Middle East and much of Asia, and it is what you need for flush apartment doors and steel or wooden entrance doors with a European preparation. Mortise locks are more work to install and more expensive, but they suit project work where the door is made for them.

Rim and surface-mounted locks

Mounted on the face of the door rather than inside it, rim locks are retrofits: they suit existing doors where cutting a pocket is impractical, older buildings, gates and utility rooms. They are the easiest to fit and the easiest for a distributor to stock.

Choosing by market

• North America, Australia → deadbolt, imperial door prep, keypad + app
• Europe, Gulf, North Africa → mortise, metric doors, handle-integrated readers
• Southeast Asia, Latin America → mixed: rim and deadbolt retrofits plus mortise for projects
• Hotels and serviced apartments → mortise or dedicated hotel locks with management software
• Glass and aluminium doors → specialist glass-door locks, never a timber lock with adapters

Specifications to fix before ordering

• Door thickness range and backset
• Unlocking methods (fingerprint, face, card, code, app, mechanical key)
• App ecosystem and whether you or your customer manages the accounts
• Battery type, expected life and low-battery warning behaviour
• Fail-safe or fail-secure behaviour on power loss
• Finish and IP rating for outdoor or coastal installations