The Best Lock Brands, According To Consumer Reports

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When it's late, and you're fumbling around with an old doorknob in the dark, you may start wondering if your lock would survive a break-in. Or maybe you've just moved into a charming fixer-upper, and the thought of who still has copies of your house keys keeps you up at night. Whether you want peace of mind, upgraded hardware, or smart features that keep your family more secure, occasionally changing your door locks is an excellent idea. From standard deadbolts to reinforced options, the huge variety of models and features out there can be overwhelming. To help narrow down the best choices, Consumer Reports tests a wide range of locks by simulating common break-in tactics like kicking, drilling, and picking. This ensures the brands and models they recommend aren't just theoretically secure. They've been proven under pressure. Two lock brands, Medeco and Bowley, consistently rise to the top in Consumer Reports' evaluations.

While you may be more familiar with household names like Kwikset or Schlage, if you're serious about making your home safer, the above two brands stand head and shoulders above the rest. Medeco, founded in 1968 as the Mechanical Development Company, invented the cylindrical lock concept that allows internal pin tumblers to provide millions of different key combinations. Today, the company's Medeco Maxum is Consumer Reports' most highly-rated lock. The Bowley Lock Company, a Canadian manufacturer founded by two brothers in 2015, takes a different approach by hiding the pins behind a steel shield that can't be accessed from the keyhole. In other words, if a burglar tries to pick your lock, they'll end up giving up and moving on.

When Consumer Reports went into the lab to test door locks, nearly half failed outright. Many deadbolts crumbled under a few forceful kicks from its custom jig. If testers can't kick it in, they try to "drill it into oblivion." That's what happened with the Medeco Maxum 11*603. At a glance, it looks just like any other deadbolt. But the high-security strike plate, solid brass collar, hardened steel bolt, and protective steel shroud stood up to everything Consumer Reports could throw at it. "With all but the high-security locks we test, even an ordinary cordless drill can disable the cylinders in 2 minutes or less," explained Senior Home & Appliances Writer Daniel Wroclawski (via Consumer Reports). "Our drill test on the Medeco Maxum 11*603, which has hardened cylinders, ruined the lock, but testers were still denied access." And it's only the second-highest rated lock on the list!

The Medeco Maxum 11TR503-19 scored 5 out of 5 on every testing metric, shrugging off kick-in, drilling, and picking attempts. Widely regarded as the strongest deadbolt lock you can buy, the internal cylinders and precision engineered pin mechanism make it a formidable barrier against break-ins. Outside the lab, users are divided on how easy it is to install. While some gulped at the $230 price tag, overall the value, quality, and durability get extremely high praise. The Bowley Grade 2 Lock delivers comparable protection, also earning perfect marks on all of the Consumer Reports lab tests. Retailing for $150, it's an excellent option if you want to replace all the locks on your doors and need a strong but affordably priced alternative.