Best Practices for Electric Strike vs Magnetic Lock
Choosing between an electric strike and a magnetic lock is one of the most consequential decisions in any access control project, and getting it wrong creates security gaps, code violations, or hardware that simply fails at the wrong moment. Both devices control door access electronically, but they operate on fundamentally different principles, suit different door types, and carry different implications for life-safety compliance. Understanding how each technology works — and where each one belongs — is the starting point for any informed installation or upgrade.
Best Practices for Electric Strike vs Magnetic Lock Overview
An electric strike replaces or supplements the fixed strike plate in a door frame. When power is applied (or removed, depending on configuration), the strike’s keeper pivots or retracts so a latch or deadbolt can pass through without mechanical key operation. The door hardware on the door leaf itself — the lockset, the lever, the panic bar — remains largely unchanged. The electric strike simply grants or denies the ability of that hardware to release from the frame side.
A magnetic lock, by contrast, has no moving parts at all. It consists of an electromagnet mounted on the door frame and a steel armature plate mounted on the door. When energized, the magnet holds the armature with a holding force typically rated between 600 lb and 1,200 lb. Power interruption releases the door immediately. Because there is no latch, bolt, or keeper involved, a magnetic lock cannot work in combination with a standard lockset the way an electric strike can.
The practical upshot is that these two devices solve different problems. Electric strikes integrate into traditional door hardware ecosystems. Magnetic locks are surface-mounted solutions suited to doors where modifying the frame or replacing the lockset is impractical or undesirable. Neither is universally superior — the right choice depends on the door type, the occupancy classification, the fire rating requirements, and the fail-safe or fail-secure posture the facility needs.
Key Factors
Fail-safe vs. fail-secure behavior is the single most important technical distinction when comparing these two lock types. A fail-safe lock releases when power is lost, prioritizing egress and life safety over security. A fail-secure lock remains locked when power is lost, prioritizing security over free egress. Magnetic locks are inherently fail-safe — the moment current stops, the door is free. Electric strikes can be manufactured in either configuration. Fail-safe electric strikes release on power loss; fail-secure electric strikes lock on power loss. Building codes, particularly NFPA 101 (Life Safety Code) and local fire marshal requirements, dictate which posture is acceptable for a given door location. Stairwell doors, corridor doors, and exit doors in assembly occupancies almost always require fail-safe operation.
Door type and frame material narrow the field quickly. Magnetic locks require a flat, parallel mounting surface on both the door and the frame header. They work well on aluminum storefront doors, hollow metal doors, and solid wood doors with a header that allows proper armature alignment. They are poorly suited to doors with significant door-frame gaps, doors on sloped or arched frames, or applications where the door swings in both directions. Electric strikes require that the existing door hardware include a latchbolt or deadbolt that engages a strike in the frame, meaning they are not compatible with doors that have no locking hardware on the door leaf itself.
Egress compliance is a non-negotiable consideration. Doors serving as required exits must allow free egress without special knowledge. For magnetic locks, this typically means integrating a request-to-exit (REX) sensor, a push-to-exit button, or a door position switch into the access control system so that an occupant approaching or contacting the door de-energizes the magnet. For electric strikes on doors with panic hardware, the panic bar itself provides the mechanical egress path even when the strike is energized, which simplifies compliance but does not eliminate the need for a careful code review.
Environmental conditions affect long-term reliability. Magnetic locks exposed to vibration, humidity, or repeated impacts on the armature can lose holding force over time as the mating surfaces degrade. Electric strikes with moving parts are susceptible to wear, debris infiltration, and misalignment caused by door sagging or frame settling. High-traffic exterior doors with weather exposure demand hardware rated for those conditions — look for ANSI/BHMA Grade 1 ratings and appropriate NEMA enclosure ratings for the power supply and controller.
Costs and Risks
Hardware costs alone give only part of the picture. A standard surface-mount magnetic lock unit runs between $80 and $250 for the magnet assembly. An electric strike spans a wider range — roughly $50 for a basic residential-grade unit to $400 or more for a high-security, fire-rated, monitored model. Neither figure includes the access control reader, the controller, the power supply, the wiring, or the labor to install and commission the system. Average: $450 · Range: $250–$1,200 · Travel: free in service area. The actual project cost depends heavily on whether conduit needs to be run, whether the door frame requires modification, and whether the existing door hardware is compatible or needs replacement.
Improper installation creates risks that go beyond cost. A magnetic lock installed without proper REX integration can trap occupants, creating a life-safety hazard and exposing the building owner to significant liability. An electric strike installed with the wrong fail-mode for the occupancy can leave a door unlocked during a power outage in a facility where security is critical, or conversely, can prevent egress in an emergency. Wiring errors — particularly reversed polarity or inadequate wire gauge — can cause intermittent operation that is difficult to diagnose and may damage the lock or controller over time.
Fire rating is another risk category that is frequently underestimated. Many magnetic locks are not listed for use on fire-rated door assemblies because they require continuous power to maintain the locked state, and a fire can interrupt power unpredictably. Some jurisdictions and some building configurations prohibit magnetic locks on fire doors entirely. Electric strikes are available in fire-rated configurations, but only specific models carry the listing, and installing an unlisted strike in a fire-rated frame assembly may invalidate the assembly’s rating. A locksmith or access control technician familiar with local authority-having-jurisdiction (AHJ) requirements can identify compliant hardware before installation, not after a failed inspection.
When to Call a Locksmith
A licensed locksmith should be involved at the selection stage, not just at installation. Identifying whether a door frame can accept an electric strike without compromising the fire rating, whether the door leaf has the structural integrity for a magnetic lock armature, and whether the existing access control infrastructure can support the new hardware requires hands-on assessment. Attempting to determine these factors from a product spec sheet or a video tutorial introduces risk that a professional site evaluation eliminates.
Call a locksmith when an existing electric strike or magnetic lock fails to hold, fails to release, or operates erratically. These symptoms can indicate power supply problems, wiring faults, controller configuration errors, or mechanical wear — each with a different remedy. Swapping the lock unit without diagnosing the root cause often results in the same failure recurring on the replacement hardware. A technician with access control experience can measure supply voltage at the lock terminals under load, inspect the door alignment and hardware engagement, and review the controller event log to isolate the fault efficiently.
Emergency lockouts involving access-controlled doors present a specific scenario where professional intervention is necessary. Forcing a door held by a magnetic lock is unlikely to succeed and will damage the door or frame. Forcing a door held by a fail-secure electric strike requires significant force and destroys the strike. A locksmith can de-energize the system safely, use bypass credentials or override procedures where the facility has established them, or in true emergencies, address the door hardware directly without causing collateral damage to adjacent hardware or the frame.
Upgrades from mechanical to electronic access control also warrant professional involvement. Selecting hardware that integrates with an existing access control platform — whether that is a standalone keypad, a card reader system, or a cloud-managed platform — requires understanding the signal types, the voltage and current requirements, and the monitoring capabilities of both the new lock and the existing controller. A mismatch here can mean spending on hardware that cannot actually communicate with the system already in place.
Recommended Next Steps
Begin any electric strike or magnetic lock project with a documented door schedule. List each door by location, door type, frame material, existing hardware, fire rating if applicable, occupancy classification, and the desired access control behavior (who can enter, who can exit, what hours, what credential type). This document becomes the basis for hardware selection and gives any locksmith, integrator, or inspector a clear reference for the project scope.
Review applicable codes before specifying hardware. NFPA 101, IBC (International Building Code), and local amendments govern egress requirements. The door hardware manufacturer’s installation instructions and product listings must be followed exactly to maintain any relevant certifications. If the building has an AHJ relationship — a fire marshal, a building official, or a historical preservation office — confirm requirements with that authority before finalizing specifications.
For new installations, have a licensed locksmith or access control technician perform the rough-in wiring inspection before walls are closed or conduit is terminated. Correcting a wiring problem at rough-in costs a fraction of what it costs after the system is commissioned and a fault appears. Similarly, have the technician present for door hardware alignment verification after the door is hung but before the lock is energized — door sag, frame plumb, and gap tolerances all affect whether an electric strike will engage cleanly or whether a magnetic lock armature will seat flush.
Test every door in the system for both access and egress before handing the facility over to the end user. Verify that the REX devices de-energize magnetic locks reliably, that panic hardware provides free mechanical egress on electric strike doors, and that power supply interruption produces the intended fail-mode on every door. Document the test results and retain them along with the hardware specifications, wiring diagrams, and controller configuration. This documentation is valuable for troubleshooting, for future modifications, and for demonstrating due diligence if a life-safety question ever arises.
Schedule periodic maintenance. Electric strikes with moving parts benefit from annual inspection of the keeper mechanism, lubrication of pivot points, and verification of strike-to-latch alignment. Magnetic locks benefit from armature surface cleaning to remove oxidation or contaminants that reduce holding force, and from periodic holding force testing with a calibrated pull gauge. Access control systems as a whole benefit from firmware updates, credential audits, and event log reviews that identify unusual access patterns before they become security incidents.
More to explore: What Homeowners Should Know About Electric Strike vs Magnetic Lock.
Call Low Rate Locksmith
Low Rate Locksmith provides 24/7 mobile locksmith service across the US and Canada, including electric strike installation, magnetic lock installation, access control troubleshooting, and emergency lockout response for commercial properties. Whether a project involves selecting the right fail-safe configuration for a fire-rated corridor door or diagnosing an intermittent release problem on an existing system, the technicians at Low Rate Locksmith handle it with the tools and code knowledge the work requires. Call (833) 439-8636 any time to speak with a technician, request a site assessment, or get pricing for an upcoming access control project.