Airbnb self check-in works in a buzzer building when the lobby intercom can let your guest in without you standing there. Enterkey points your building's existing buzzer at a virtual phone number, then answers it for you. Set a timed key for the check-in window, or give the guest a PIN to type or speak at the panel. The door opens. No hardware, no key handoff.
That covers the front door. The unit door is a separate problem, and we will get to it honestly below.
Why does the buzzer break self check-in?
Smart locks solved the apartment door years ago. The building door did not get the memo.
In most mid-rise and high-rise buildings, the entry panel is a telephone dialer. A visitor finds your name or punches a directory code, the panel places a call, and whoever picks up presses a digit to release the magnetic lock. If you are not there to answer, nothing happens. Your guest is standing on the sidewalk at 11 p.m. with luggage and a phone at 4 percent battery.
Guests notice. According to Touch Stay's 2023 Guest Communication Study, 67 percent of guests say they prefer self check-in. A listing that promises keyless entry and then requires a live phone call to the host is not really self check-in. It is a scheduled meeting with extra steps.
The usual workarounds all have holes. A lockbox in the lobby only works if your guest is already inside the lobby. Asking a neighbour to buzz people in is a favour you can ask once. Leaving the front door propped is a safety problem and, in most buildings, a bylaw violation. If you want to understand what the panel is actually doing when it rings, our guide to how apartment buzzers work walks through the whole chain.
How does buzzer self check-in actually work?
Here is the sequence, start to finish.
- Confirm your buzzer dials outIf the panel calls a phone when someone presses your code, you are compatible. If it rings a hardwired handset mounted on your wall with no phone number involved, it is a landline-only system and Enterkey cannot help.
- Get your Enterkey numberThe app assigns you a unique virtual number during setup.
- Ask your property manager to update the directoryThey swap the number attached to your unit for your Enterkey number. It is a database edit on their end, usually done within a day.
- Set the access window before arrivalOpen a timed key that starts at your check-in time. While it is active, Enterkey answers the buzz and releases the door automatically.
- Send the guest a PIN as backupIf they arrive early, late, or step out for groceries, they can type or speak a PIN at the panel and let themselves in.
- Check the activity logYou can see when the door was opened, which is a quiet way to confirm your guest actually arrived.
Full detail on the setup side lives on our Airbnb hosts page.
Timed window or PIN: which should you use?
Use both. They cover different failure modes.
- Timed keysSet a window from five minutes to twelve hours. During that window, every buzz is answered and the door opens. Perfect for a 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. arrival window when you do not know the exact flight time. When the window closes, the door goes back to normal.
- PINsA code your guest types on the panel keypad or speaks aloud. It works for the length of the stay without leaving the door open to everyone who presses your directory code. See PIN entry for how spoken codes handle noisy panels.
- Recurring schedulesIf your cleaner comes every Monday at 10 a.m., set it once and stop thinking about it.
- Shared accessInvite a co-host or a local friend by link so they can let someone in when you are three time zones away.
- Call forwardingWhen no key is active, the buzz forwards to your phone. You answer and decide. This is your fallback for the guest who loses the PIN.
- Custom welcome messageA one-time purchase that plays a short AI-voiced greeting at the panel, so your guest knows they are in the right place instead of wondering if the box is broken.
A common setup: a timed key covering the arrival window, plus a PIN for the rest of the stay.
What should you send the guest?
Short and specific beats friendly and vague. Paste this into your check-in message and fill in the brackets.
Getting into the building: at the front door panel, find unit [###] and press CALL. The door will unlock on its own between [3:00 PM] and [9:00 PM] on your arrival day. If you arrive outside those hours, or any time during your stay, press [###] then enter the code [1234] on the keypad. You can also just say the code out loud if the keypad is stiff. Then take the elevator to floor [#]. Your apartment door code is [####].
That last line matters. Enterkey opens the building door, not your apartment door. You still need a smart lock or a lockbox inside the building for the unit itself. Anyone who tells you one product solves both doors is selling you something.
What do you tell the property manager?
You are not asking for permission to install anything. You are asking them to change a phone number in the directory. Keep it boring.
Hi [name], could you update the callout number for unit [###] in the entry panel directory? Please change it to [your Enterkey number]. Nothing needs to be installed or rewired, it is just the number the panel dials when someone presses my unit. Thanks very much.
One caution worth stating plainly: short-term rentals are restricted or banned in a lot of buildings and a lot of cities. Changing your buzzer number does not change your lease or your local bylaws. Check those first. Enterkey is just as useful for hosting friends, letting in a cleaner, or receiving groceries.
What are the limits?
Three, stated up front.
Enterkey is iOS only. There is no Android app. Your guests do not need the app, only you do, but if you host from an Android phone this will not work for you.
Your property manager has to make that one change. Most do it the same day. Some are slow, and a few will say no. Our page on asking your property manager covers the plan details and what the ask looks like.
And if your buzzer is hardwired to an in-unit handset with no phone number anywhere in the chain, no app can intercept it. Nothing to connect to.
If you get stuck, email support@enterkey.app. Real people answer, usually within hours.
Is it worth it?
If your listing says self check-in and your building has a telephone-entry buzzer, there is a gap between the promise and the reality, and your guests are the ones standing in it. Enterkey closes that gap with a timed window and a PIN, and it costs $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year, about $5.83 a month. One avoided lockout at midnight probably pays for the year.
New members get their first 14 days free. Cancel before it ends and you pay nothing, which is roughly two turnovers worth of evidence either way.
