Mobile access control is continuously evolving and is seeing various new trends that are worth exploring. This article looks at some of the latest trends in mobile access control.
Mobile access control, where users open doors with their smart devices, is gaining ground in end user entities across verticals. The technology is continuously evolving and is seeing various new trends that are worth exploring. This article looks at some of the latest trends in mobile access control.
Increased adoption seen in mobile access control
For the longest time, end users entered workplaces with employee badges, passwords or biometrics. This was the case until mobile credentials came along, where users open doors with the credentials stored in their smart devices. Today, mobile access control is seeing increased adoption at various organizations, where the technology has changed from a nice-to-have novelty to something of a requirement.
“Adoption of mobile access control is accelerating, and most of the conversation has moved from whether to adopt it to how fast organizations can standardize on it. Smartphones are already the most trusted device a person carries for payments, identity, and authentication, so extending it to physical access is a natural next step. For multi-site operators in particular, mobile credentials solve operational problems that plastic badges and physical keys never could,” said Aaron McGhee, Senior Product Manager at Interface Systems.
Indeed, one of the key drivers for adoption is the convenience and seamless user experience mobile access control offers.
“The credential lives in the phone people already carry, in the wallet they already use, with no plastic to issue and no app to download. Issuing, replacing, and revoking plastic is a manual, person-dependent process, and mobile lets you automate that entire lifecycle. When access is tied to the identity system, a credential can be provisioned the moment someone is hired, and deactivated the instant they are removed, with no one walking a card to a desk or collecting one at the door,” said Matt Bennett, SVP of Digital Transformation at Alert Enterprise.
Security, meanwhile, is another key reason for increased adoption, as mobile credentials are seen as more secure than cards or badges.
“From a security standpoint, mobile credentials are fundamentally stronger than incumbent technologies. They leverage encrypted communication, secure elements within the device, and built-in biometrics, and they can be revoked instantly and remotely,” said Sanjit Bardhan VP and Head of Mobile at HID.
Verticals that can benefit
In terms of vertical markets that can benefit from mobile access control, the advantages offered by the technology make it ideal for virtually all sectors. But there are a few that particularly stand out.
“Every vertical market could benefit from the security that mobile brings. However, some verticals are better suited to migrate to the technology as it is right now – such as higher education, multifamily home, commercial use cases such as corporate offices, small medium businesses, or retail environments. Mobile is also valuable in environments with: a) high throughput, b) multiple/many use cases, and c) younger populations with user experience expectations for mobile,” said Olivia Renaud, Group Product Manager of Credentials at Allegion.
In particular, education is cited as a key market that can especially benefit from mobile access control.
“Education is one of the most suitable markets, particularly universities, international schools and large campuses. Students, faculty, contractors and visitors often change frequently, and mobile credentials allow campus operators to issue or revoke access rights quickly without physically distributing cards,” said Raymond So, GM of Armatura. He adds the following can also benefit: multinational corporations, large enterprises, financial institutions, technology companies, data centers, government-related facilities, coworking spaces, healthcare facilities and logistics hubs.
Latest trends
While mobile access control is not exactly new, it continues to evolve. Today, we are seeing new features, functionalities and user habits that are trending in mobile access control. These are summarized as follows.
Mobile wallet support
One of the biggest trends in mobile access control is support for mobile wallets such as Apple Wallet and Google Wallet where the credentials are stored. This allows users to naturally tap their phone to the reader without having to install or open a dedicated app.
“Wallet-based access provides a familiar user experience because people already use mobile wallets for payment, transportation and digital passes. It can also provide a strong security foundation through the smartphone’s native security architecture. However, the market is still developing, and commercial cost, ecosystem requirements, device compatibility and project integration complexity remain important considerations,” So said.
Improved authentication
Another key trend in mobile access control is improved authentication. Traditional credentials such as cards and badges can be cloned, lost, stolen or shared. Mobile access control, on the other hand, can better check if you are who you say you are, especially now that most smart devices are integrated with biometrics authentication.
“Biometric authentication is playing a growing role in adoption. Fingerprint and facial recognition add a strong second factor. When a credential lives on a device that also requires biometric interaction, the ability to share or pass off that credential drops sharply,” McGhee said.
Physical and digital convergence
Integration between physical and logical identities is also trending in mobile access control, where the smart device can be used to perform various functions at the end user organization, not just open doors.
“We're seeing mobile become the foundation for broader use cases beyond the door, so a single credential can handle parking, secure printing, shared workstations, dining and more, which turns access control into part of the everyday experience rather than a standalone system,” Bardhan said.
“The access credential is no longer a standalone card sitting in its own silo. It is becoming one node in a wider identity fabric that spans workforce IAM, physical access, and visitor management. When those are connected, the credential simply follows the person through their lifecycle automatically,” Bennett said.
Migration to cloud
Finally, mobile access control is increasingly cloud-based. This is understandable as credential management and other operations excel in a cloud architecture.
“Cloud adoption is continuing to grow across physical security applications, and access control is often one of the easiest entry points, as it can move to the cloud with minimal disruption and deliver immediate operational benefits. This shift is also accelerating the adoption of mobile access control. Mobile credentials are inherently digital, making them well-suited for cloud-based management, where organizations can issue, update, and revoke access in real time, without relying on physical distribution or manual processes,” said Julia Bruzzese, Product Marketing Manager at Genetec.
Future outlook
Given the benefits and advantages of mobile access control, demand and adoption will only increase in the years to come.
“We expect adoption of mobile access control to continue accelerating across industries. Organizations increasingly view mobile capability as a standard requirement when modernizing their access control infrastructure. Even if they’re not ready to deploy mobile credentials today, many want to ensure their systems can support them in the future,” Bruzzese said.
Yet it should be noted that mobile credentials will not completely replace other types of credentials, which are still used in many end user entities today.
“I see greater adoption ahead, but the destination is a balanced environment, not an all-mobile one. Coexistence is key, and vendors that build solutions that incorporate coexistence of multiple modalities will continue to create significant value. Our 2026 State of Security and Identity Report found that looking five years out, 80 percent of organizations expect a mostly mobile or balanced mix and only 8 percent expect to go fully mobile, which tells me physical credentials will remain part of the picture for a long time,” Bardhan said.
Product Adopted:Others