When planning access control for an office, one of the first decisions is which type of credential your team will use day to day. Each option has practical trade-offs.
Proximity Cards
Cards are familiar, inexpensive to issue, and easy for staff to use — tap or present the card at the reader. They're a common default for offices of most sizes.
Key Fobs
Fobs work on the same principle as cards but attach easily to a keyring, which some teams find more convenient than carrying a separate card.
PIN / Keypad Entry
A numeric code entered at a keypad can work well for lower-turnover access points or as a secondary method alongside cards or fobs.
Mobile Credentials
Depending on the platform selected, some systems support smartphone-based credentials — reducing the need for physical cards, though this depends on staff smartphone use and the specific access-control platform's mobile support.
How to Decide
- Team size and turnover. Larger or higher-turnover teams may value the simplicity of quickly issuing and deactivating cards or fobs.
- Existing infrastructure. If you're integrating with an existing reader system, credential type may already be constrained.
- Future flexibility. Mobile credential platforms can offer more flexibility for future changes, depending on the system chosen.
Many offices use a combination — for example, cards for general staff access and PIN entry as a backup at a specific door.
Next Step
Explore all available options on our Access Control page, or request an assessment to find the right fit for your office.