Yale Smart Cabinet Lock Review: Secure almost any cupboard

Trusted Reviews is supported by its audience. If you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission. Learn more.

A simple upgrade for any cabinet

A neat upgrade, the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock can be fitted to pretty much any cupboard door to prevent unwanted access. The instructions are a little basic, so double-check everything before final fitting. With optional remote access and HomeKit built-in, this lock can be remote controlled and remote monitored, adding an extra layer of protection over a dumb standard lock. If you just want to secure an existing cupboard, this is a neat, unobtrusive way of doing so.

Whether you want to have a locked cupboard in an Airbnb rental, keep kids away from a medicine or alcohol cabinet, or just lock away valuables, the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock could well be the product you’re looking for.

A smart upgrade to almost any cabinet, this Homekit-compatible smart lock is controlled via your phone, and provides a seemless way to lock a door. It’s a little fiddly to fit, thanks to the basic instructions, but once installed it works smoothly.

Rather than requiring external access or drilling holes, the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock is designed to work from the inside of a cupboard as a retrofit upgrade. It comprises two main components: the chunky lock body, which goes on the inside of the cupboard, and the lock post, which goes on the door. The idea is that the lock post inserts into the lock, holding the door firm.

To aid different types of cabinets, there are standard lock posts, and a long lock post, which is designed for cupboards that have a face frame or lip.

Installation and operation are simple in theory, but the installation is a little fiddly, as the app and videos aren’t particularly clear, and may not work for all cabinets.

Before physical installation, the battery needs to be installed in the lock. Due to the small size of the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock, it needs a CR2 battery, the same as used for the SwitchBot Bot.

Once the battery was in place, I could use the Yale Home app to connect to the lock and get the installation instructions. Following the provided video, I folded the mounting template over the front of my cupboard to work out where to locate the lock.

At this point, the app said that I should use the mounting tape and stick the mounting bracket in place, but the lock was clearly too far forward due to the design of my cupboard.

I had to manually adjust the mounting template to push the lock further back into the cupboard to get it to work.

As the lock unit is quite large and can get in the way, it’s also work examining where it’s best installed. Before using the mounting tape, I recommend testing with Blu Tack to get the best lock position and make sure you’ve got everything in the right place.

Mounting the lock post is easier. There’s a lock post guide that prevents the lock from locking, which has to be inserted into the lock. Then, the lock post goes into this mount, and all I had to do was remove the mounting tape backing and press the door closed.

At this point, the lock can be left as is, or you can use screws to secure the lock and mounting post if you prefer.

As everything is inside the cupboard door, the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock has a neat finish and there’s no external way to see that a cabinet has a lock on it.

Similar to Yale’s other products, such as the Yale Smart Safe, the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock is a Bluetooth product. In its default configuration, you must be within Bluetooth range to operate it.

The Yale Home app shows the lock’s status, with a big red circle showing that it’s locked. Tap this, and the circle turns green to show that the door is unlocked. When unlocked, just pull the door to open it, and a broken green circle in the app shows that the door is open.

Locking is as simple as closing the door. The Yale Smart Cabinet Lock automatically locks once it detects that the lock post has been inserted. Auto-lock can be disabled or modified, and it only locks after a timer. There’s also a separate door lock timer, which controls how long the lock waits after unlocking before relocking.

I found the lock extremely reliable during months of testing, always quick to lock and unlock. As far as security goes, it would be relatively easy to pry a door open, although this could well cause damage to the lock or cabinet. Think of this product as more one to deter people from casually opening a door, rather than replacing a safe.

For safety, the lock has a button in the inside that unlocks the door. That’s so that if someone climbs into a big cupboard and shuts the door, they’ve got a way of unlocking the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock and climbing out.

That button is not accessible from the outside, so leaves one potential problem: what happens when the lock runs out of battery? By default, Low Battery Unlock is enabled, which will unlock the lock when the battery status is critical.

This feature can be turned off, but I don’t think you should do that. If the battery fails while the door is locked, you’ll have to prise it open, running the risk that you’ll damage your lock, your furniture or both.

For remote control, there are two options. If you’ve got an iPhone, then the lock is compatible with HomeKit, with remote control provided via a Home Hub, such as a HomePod mini, within Bluetooth range. That’s a neat upgrade, is it gives remote control without any additional hardware.

Alternatively, if you want Alexa support, remote control via the Yale Home app, or other third-party integrations, you need a Yale Connect WiFi Bridge. This is the same product that gives remote control for Yale’s other products, such as the Yale Linus smart lock.

A £70 upgrade, the Yale Connect WiFi Bridge is quite an expensive upgrade, and it only supports one device, so you can’t use an existing bridge that’s already paired with another Yale device.

You want to secure a cupboard without having to drill a lock

A neat upgrade for almost any cupboard door, this smart lock secures entry and gives you the option for remote access if needed.

You need additional security

The lock’s not that strong, and the quality of your furniture has a large part to play in how secure the system is. If you need more security for valuables, try a smart safe instead.

It’s a touch fiddly to fit, but for a seamless, smart way to add security to an existing cabinet or cupboard, the Yale Smart Cabinet Lock is a neat, well-priced upgrade.

The lock’s only really as strong as the door you fit it too, so those that need more security may be better off buying the Yale Smart Safe instead.

Unlike other sites, we test every smart home product we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.

Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.

We test how each product integrates with other smart home systems including Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Apple HomeKit, IFTTT and Samsung SmartThings

We use each smart home product in a real world setting, integrating it into our home.

Yes, but you either need to connect to the lock to HomeKit and have a Home Hub within range or buy a Yale Connect WiFi Bridge.

There’s an option in the app to enable auto-unlock, so that the lock will release the door when the battery is at a critical level.

Starting life on the consumer PC press back in 1998, David has been at the forefront of technology for the past 20 years. He has edited Computer Shopper and Expert Reviews, and once wrote a book on ho…

Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.

Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.

Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.

We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.

Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.

Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.

Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.

We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.