(Credit: CSA)
With Aliro, your phone is your door key. I first heard of the smart lock standard ahead of CES 2026. Now, a few months later, the first wave of compatible devices is starting to arrive.
At its core, Aliro lets you unlock your door by simply tapping your phone to it. I'll go into the technical details below, but the main idea is straightforward: It's designed to make unlocking faster and more seamless. Given that it builds on existing proximity-based technologies, it's expected to launch in a fairly refined, ready-to-use state.
Beyond convenience, Aliro also aims to simplify sharing access to your lock. Instead of juggling separate apps or codes, you can manage who has access directly through your phone’s wallet. It also improves interoperability, working across major smart home ecosystems like Amazon, Apple, Google, and Samsung.
On paper, Aliro is a meaningful upgrade for a major category of smart home devices. Still, I’m not planning to buy an Aliro-compatible smart lock right away—and you probably don't need to either. Here's why that might be the case.
Aliro Explained: Turning Your Phone Into a Universal Key
Developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance, Aliro is a universal digital key standard. Compatible smart locks will all have near field communication (NFC) built in, the same tech used by your phone’s wallet app when you pay at a retailer. Aliro was developed in collaboration with major phone manufacturers, so it’ll verify your digital wallet to unlock your door. In practice, Aliro will make opening your deadbolt the same as tapping to pay for your morning coffee.
If that sounds familiar, that's because you might already have a lock compatible with Apple Home Key. Aliro is functionally the same—your credentials are stored in your phone’s wallet, so you can simply bring your phone close to the sensor to open the door. NFC works fast enough that the verification should happen in milliseconds, as it does with Home Key, and it takes so little power that your phone can still unlock your door even if it's out of battery and turned off.
Unlike Apple Home Key, Aliro isn’t limited to a single platform. The Connectivity Standards Alliance is the same group that developed the smart home standard Matter, and Aliro will serve a similar purpose, unifying basic functionality across platforms. You will be able to unlock your door through Aliro whether you have an Android phone or an iPhone, and regardless of which digital wallet you use. Even smartwatches with your wallet’s credentials and NFC will work.
Beyond just unlocking your door, Aliro will make it easier to share access to your lock. You can manage access in your phone’s wallet app, without needing to tinker with an extra app just for the lock. Others can then join using their wallet app. If you already have an iPhone and use Apple Key, this will be the main advantage of Aliro over your current tech. You’ll be able to share access to your lock with family and friends who have an Android device, and they’ll get the same simple tap-to-unlock experience. You can even set rules, schedules, and permissions using your wallet.
Why Your Current Smart Lock Still Holds Up
At this point, you might be thinking Aliro sounds great, and I agree. You can buy a compatible smart lock soon, and your options will be quickly expanding in the near future. Ultraloq just announced Aliro certification, so expect hardware to follow in the coming weeks. Other companies, like Aqara, Nuki, and Schlage, are also jumping on board with Aliro.
However, if you already have a smart lock that works well, I’d argue that you don’t need to go grab an Aliro-compatible model. An Ultraloq spokesperson tells me that the tech isn’t backward-compatible with existing locks, so you do need new hardware to access it, but Aliro won’t necessarily change how you unlock your door.
Take our favorite smart lock, the Editors’ Choice-winning Ultraloq Bolt Fingerprint, as an example. Part of the reason we like that lock is that it already offers many ways to unlock your door. You can scan your fingerprint, issue a voice command, use the keypad, or even open it with the app on your phone. It even offers automatic unlocking based on your location via geofencing, a relatively common feature for smart locks. As you approach your door with a handful of groceries, the lock will detect your phone's location and unlock automatically.
Ultraloq and other companies have started using ultra-wideband (UWB) for the same purpose. Offering centimeter-level precision, UWB is used for Find My technology in smartphones, smartwatches, and most other devices with location tracking. With UWB, auto-unlock can be incredibly precise.
Other smart locks unlock by scanning your palm or your face. Aliro won’t affect any of these unlock methods, so if you have a smart lock and a method of unlocking your door you like, Aliro might not add any convenience. You might not even benefit from its enhanced sharing functionality. You’ve probably already shared access to your lock with your family, friends, and pet sitter, and Aliro only affects the initial granting of access.
I prefer using auto-unlock to open my door. I’m often approaching it with my arms full of something, and I’d rather not bother to grab my phone, even for the simple act of tapping it on the lock. I have a smart lock installed that works well, so I don’t need to upgrade to Aliro as it won't add any convenience to my daily routine.
The Case for Buying Into Aliro
If you don't already have a smart lock you like and are in the market for one now, it's worth making sure it's compatible with Aliro.
As mentioned, Aliro doesn’t affect many of the existing methods for unlocking your door with a smart lock. A device with Aliro can still have auto-unlock, palm recognition, and other cool tricks. Aliro simply ensures that the lock supports tap-to-unlock and works with any phone brand. The collaborative nature of the standard ensures compatible locks will stay up to date as the tech companies behind it evolve. In other words, it future-proofs your smart lock.
When I’m ready to swap to a new smart lock, the ease of sharing via Aliro will make a big difference. I won’t have to ask my family and friends to download a new app and create yet another extraneous account. I’ll just send the permission to their wallet.
Aliro will also give me greater peace of mind. If my phone dies while I’m out, I’ll still be able to get into my home, even if I didn’t bring a backup key. Moreover, functionality will be certified by a third party, so Aliro locks will be less prone to the potential failures of a single platform.
So while Aliro doesn’t deliver any need-to-have tricks that warrant replacing your existing smart lock, what it does add is future-proofing, optionality, and stability. All of those are worth seeking out the next time you're ready to upgrade.