Are you frustrated by the limits of your apartment buzzer? Do you want higher security for your home?
This guide draws on years of direct industry experience upgrading traditional apartment buzzer systems and a ten-hour review of current market options as of 2026. As security experts, we’ve observed how property management needs eventually outgrow the capacity of traditional apartment buzzers.
Upgrading to a smart apartment buzzer can meet growing apartment needs with mobile-based access control and automating management. In the guide below, we will take you through what makes apartment buzzer systems smart and what upgrade signs you should look for before making an upgrade decision.
We’ll also break down and introduce video intercom systems as a viable upgrade option. At a high level, video intercoms offer a multitude of security features that many apartment buildings and complexes are beginning to adopt in 2026.
Key Takeaways
- Smart apartment buzzers are driven by software to receive buzzer system calls on smartphones. They also enable remote door release through mobile applications.
- A smart apartment buzzer can help when residents miss visitors, can’t always answer delivery calls, or want more control over building access.
- In some cases, upgrading to a smart apartment buzzer is not feasible. Limitations include fixed-wire buzzer systems, buildings with modern intercoms, or properties without buzzer systems at all.
- Video intercom systems are a viable alternative when upgrading from buzzer systems. Video intercoms offer more security verification methods, two-way video communication, and more access controls.
Table of Contents: Quick Navigation
- What Makes An Apartment Buzzer “Smart”?
- Benefits of a Smart Apartment Buzzer
- Comparing Smart Apartment Buzzers vs Other Entry System Options
- Signs that You Should Upgrade to a Smart Apartment Buzzer
- Smart Buzzers: Upgrade Limitations to Take Into Account
- Video Intercom System: A Modern Alternative to Apartment Buzzers
- Swiftlane Video Intercom System and Access Control
- Evaluating Your Apartment Entry System
What Makes An Apartment Buzzer “Smart”?
A smart apartment buzzer is a door entry system controlled through a mobile application to answer entry calls, customize security codes, and allow visitors entry to the building.
What makes a buzzer “smart” is the use of software and internet connectivity for remote entry management, rather than relying on analog wiring and in-unit handsets. While smart buzzers still require some on-site hardware, they generally modernize access control without completely rewiring the building.
How Smart Buzzers Work
Smart buzzers reroute entry calls to a mobile app for residents to answer and remotely grant access to apartment buildings.
At an entrance, a visitor buzzes residents by pressing an entry button on the buzzer panel or callbox. Instead of dialing a telephone number, the smart buzzer system rings a dedicated virtual phone number from the smart buzzer’s software.
The virtual number redirects the call to a mobile application, where the resident receives the buzzer notification and receives the call. Through the same mobile app, the resident remotely unlocks the door.
Benefits of a Smart Apartment Buzzer
Residents can enjoy various smart features in a smart apartment buzzer depending on the chosen provider. However, common features across smart buzzers provide the following advantages.
1. Remote Door Entry Control
A resident can remotely open the building entrance through the smart buzzer mobile application to let guests, staff, and deliveries in. The resident is not restricted to their home to receive these visitors or packages.
2. Centralized Platform
The smart buzzer’s mobile application centralizes management for easier control over door entry. Customizing the functionality of the chosen smart buzzer may also be done directly through the app.
3. Temporary Visitor Passes
A resident can customize entry codes for specific visitors. Family and friends share a specified credential, while nannies, plumbers, and delivery drivers can have their own separate credentials.
Comparing Smart Apartment Buzzers vs Other Entry System Options
Traditional Buzzers
Apartment residents must be home to receive calls from visitors through a traditional door buzzer. This system enables communication only through telephone lines or fixed wiring to in-unit answering devices.
Residents unlock building doors by pressing a button on their telephones or in-unit answering devices, allowing visitors entry to the building.
In contrast, with a smart apartment buzzer, residents can remotely answer calls on their mobile phones to grant remote access when they’re not home. This offers a flexibility that is now becoming a standard amenity for residents.
Video Intercom Systems
Video intercoms are more advanced systems with video communication, multiple credentials, and several verification methods. Common credentials supported by video intercoms include Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) badges, QR codes, Bluetooth signals, and biometrics. In addition, many systems offer verification methods such as facial recognition, adding an extra layer of security.
On the other hand, smart buzzers lack visual verification. They only support two-way audio communication and limited credentials, such as PINs and voice commands.
Signs that You Should Upgrade to a Smart Apartment Buzzer
Over the years, we’ve seen the common frustrations that residents have with traditional buzzers. Here are some signs it’s time for an upgrade to a smart apartment buzzer replacement:
You keep missing deliveries, staff, and friends.
If you miss deliveries or guests because you’re not home to buzz them in, a smart system lets you grant access from anywhere.
Traditional buzzer systems require residents to be at home to receive calls and buzz in visitors. Without someone at home, deliveries, staff, friends, and family may be left locked out of the building.
With a smart buzzer system, visitors who buzz in may be granted entry through the mobile app. Some systems also allow residents to assign unique access codes to each visitor or schedule door releases in advance.
You are always busy or on-the-go.
Residents who are too busy to buzz in visitors need extra hands. Smart buzzers help by routing calls to roommates or family members.
Whether at home or outside, residents sometimes have their hands full, and other people are needed to grant door entry. With traditional apartment buzzers, no one else can buzz visitors in, and residents have to be home to receive packages or visitors.
However, smart apartment buzzers usually feature call routing, which buzzes other residents of the same apartment in case the primary resident is unable to answer. Call routing can be configured to ring everyone simultaneously or call residents one-by-one in a pre-arranged order.
You want a little more apartment security.
Residents have to rely on PIN codes or physical keys to access apartment buildings with traditional buzzers. Residents can upgrade to mobile credentials with smart buzzers, adding more convenient verification methods.
Traditional buzzers rely on PINs and keys, which aren’t always secure. Smart buzzers let you control access from your phone, set temporary codes for guests, and review who tried to enter, giving you more peace of mind.
Smart Buzzers: Upgrade Limitations to Take Into Account
Smart buzzer systems aren’t a universal solution—sometimes they simply won’t work due to technical limitations, building setup, or existing entry systems. Here are the most common roadblocks to watch out for.
Your existing system is not compatible with a smart buzzer.
Smart apartment buzzers are designed to work with entry systems that place calls to a phone number—either landline or mobile. If your building uses a legacy, hardwired system that connects directly to in-unit speaker boxes (with no phone involved), smart buzzers simply can’t connect. In these cases, the existing wiring can’t be reused, and a full system upgrade may be required.
You already have an apartment intercom.
Modern video intercom systems offer more advanced features than a basic smart buzzer, such as live video, remote access, visitor logs, and multiple credential options (RFID, mobile app, etc.), which means you are all set and better off.
Your apartment building does not have a traditional door entry system.
Some older or smaller buildings only use physical keys—there’s no buzzer, intercom, or callbox at the main entrance. Since smart buzzers need a telephone entry system to connect to, they can’t be installed in buildings where the only entry option is a key.
Video Intercom System: A Modern Alternative to Apartment Buzzers
Video intercom systems provide more significant upgrades to both legacy intercoms and apartment buzzers. They add several more layers of security and verification, as well as far more flexible communication.
Here are three reasons why you should consider upgrading to a video intercom system.
1. You want video communication and verification.
Unlike smart buzzers that are audio-only, video intercom systems let residents see and speak to visitors before letting them in. With live video calls and the option to record visitor images, you can verify who’s at the door in real time, adding a critical layer of security and peace of mind.
2. You want more access credentials and security.
Video intercom systems support more advanced credentials such as mobile access, facial recognition, voice commands, QR codes, and keycards. These credentials have more complex verification features, providing higher security against unauthorized building access.
Plus, with features like access logs and visitor photo capture, property managers and residents can review entry history and investigate any incidents more easily.
3. You want to future-proof your building’s entry system
While traditional buzzer systems may still work for basic needs, more property managers are choosing to upgrade entirely to video intercoms for long-term advantages. Video intercom systems offer greater scalability, easier integration with modern access control systems, and a more seamless experience for both residents, visitors, and property managers.
If your goal is to modernize your property, add new features over time, and reduce maintenance headaches, replacing your buzzer system with a video intercom is the smartest step forward.
Swiftlane Video Intercom System and Access Control
Swiftlane’s Video Intercom System is designed to replace legacy apartment buzzers and smart apartment buzzers with a modern, cloud-based approach to building entry. It combines mobile app access, two-way video calling, facial recognition, and centralized management as an end-to-end solution for security and convenience.
Property managers and owners of single apartment buildings or large multi-property portfolios can upgrade to Swiftlane for easy management of all access points using a single interface.
For managers and owners looking to modernize building access, add new prospective features, and eliminate buzzer system limitations, upgrading to Swiftlane’s video intercom shows a practical, future-ready path forward.
Lock in Your Price: Calculate your upgrade price instantly
Evaluating Your Apartment Entry System
A smart apartment system is a different kind of door entry system compared to a traditional buzzer system or a video intercom system. It provides remote access control and customizable security, although it is not appropriate for buildings with an intercom or a fixed wire buzzer system.
However, video intercom systems are also viable considerations with added verification methods and video communication. They are also smarter replacements for entire buzzer systems.
Evaluate your current apartment building and its door entry system so you can decide on the best upgrade option.
