August Wi-Fi Smart Lock vs Schlage Encode Plus vs Yale Assure SL: Which Works with Google Home in a Toronto Condo
Published August 23, 2026 · Updated August 23, 2026
In the August wifi smart lock vs schlage encode plus vs yale assure google home toronto debate, the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock (4th gen) wins for most downtown Toronto condos, not because it's the smartest lock, but because it's the only one of the three that mounts to your existing deadbolt without touching the corridor side of a fire-rated suite door.
- August Wi-Fi Smart Lock (4th gen) retrofits the interior thumbturn only. Exterior hardware and your building's key stay exactly as they are. Retail pricing varies.
- Schlage Encode Plus is the best keypad and the only one of the three built around Apple Home Key tap-to-unlock. It's a full deadbolt replacement, so it needs a standard tubular bore your condo door may not have. Retail pricing varies.
- Yale Assure Lock SL is a slim, key-free touchscreen. No keyway means no lock cylinder to pick, and also no backup key when the batteries die. Retail pricing varies.
- All three can appear in the Google Home app; the reliable route in 2026 is Matter, which every one of these families now supports on current hardware or firmware.
- The real blocker in Toronto isn't the app: it's a mortise lockset in a fire-rated suite door and a condo declaration that governs corridor-side appearance.
August Wi-Fi Smart Lock vs Schlage Encode Plus vs Yale Assure SL for Google Home in Toronto: The Short Answer
If you're a condo owner in Liberty Village, Yorkville or downtown Toronto whose suite door already has a building-keyed cylinder you're not allowed to swap, the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock may be the most practical option of these three. That single constraint can decide more of these purchases than Google Home compatibility does.
For a freehold house in The Annex, Riverdale or Leslieville with a normal 2-1/8" bored deadbolt, the calculus flips completely. There, the Schlage Encode Plus is the stronger lock, and the Yale Assure Lock SL is the better-looking one.
| Attribute | August Wi-Fi (4th gen) | Schlage Encode Plus | Yale Assure Lock SL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardware pricing is confirmed before purchase. | |||
| Install type | Interior retrofit over existing deadbolt | Full deadbolt replacement, both sides | Full deadbolt replacement, both sides |
| Keeps your building key | Yes — cylinder untouched | No — new Schlage keyway | No — SL model is key-free |
| Keypad / entry method | App + auto-unlock; keypad sold separately | Backlit keypad + Apple Home Key tap | Capacitive touchscreen keypad |
| Google Home route | Matter / Yale Home account link | Matter (verify firmware with Schlage) | Matter or Wi-Fi module + Yale Home |
| Batteries | 2× CR123A | 4× AA | 4× AA |
| Best fit | Condo suite doors, rentals, restricted keyways | Houses with mixed iPhone/Android households | Design-led renos, laneway suites, Airbnb-style turnover |
The Toronto Condo Door Problem Nobody Mentions in Smart Lock Reviews
Most Toronto condo suite doors are fire-rated assemblies fitted with a mortise lockset: a rectangular lock body buried inside the edge of the door, not a round bored deadbolt. Schlage Encode Plus and Yale Assure Lock SL are both designed for a 2-1/8" cross bore with a 1" edge bore. On a mortise door, neither drops in.
That's the part the YouTube reviews skip. They film in a garage in Ohio with a hollow-core test door.
There's a second layer: drilling new holes in a labelled fire door can compromise the listing that lets the door sit in that corridor at all. Ontario's Fire Code requires closures in fire separations to be maintained in working order, and property managers in Yorkville and Liberty Village take that seriously, modified suite doors get flagged during annual inspections. Add the condo declaration, which usually governs the appearance of anything visible from the common corridor, and the Encode Plus's satin-nickel escutcheon becomes a board issue rather than a hardware issue.
"The question that matters before choosing a smart lock is 'what's inside your door.' A professional inspection of the existing lock and door preparation can help identify compatible options."Colourflly Locksmith Team
Check these four things before you buy anything
A tall rectangular faceplate roughly 8" long means mortise: retrofit-only territory. Two separate round faceplates means a bored deadbolt and latch, which all three locks can handle.
Usually a small metal plate on the hinge edge. If it's there, assume no new holes without written approval from property management.
The August needs roughly 3" of clearance around the thumbturn. Door chains, viewers and secondary flip-guards are the usual conflict in older Cabbagetown and St Clair walk-ups.
Concrete shear walls and a hundred neighbouring routers make the entry hall the weakest corner of a downtown suite. Wi-Fi locks that drop offline are almost always a placement problem, not a lock problem.
August Wi-Fi Smart Lock (4th Gen): The Condo-Friendly One
The August Wi-Fi Smart Lock (4th generation) replaces only the interior thumbturn of an existing deadbolt, which is why it survives condo rules that kill the other two. Retail pricing varies, and it's roughly 45% smaller than the older third-gen puck, meaningful in a narrow entry vestibule where a fat lock body fouls the door chain.
Nothing changes on the corridor side. Your building's restricted key still works, the escutcheon still matches the other 340 doors on your floor, and if the electronics ever quit, the door is still a normal deadbolt. That last point is underrated. A dead smart lock that can still be opened with a key is an inconvenience; a dead key-free lock is a service call.
Weaknesses, honestly: there's no keypad in the box. If you want code entry for a cleaner or a dog walker, you're adding the August Smart Keypad. The CR123A cells are less convenient to source than AA batteries at 11pm. And auto-unlock via geofencing is the feature people either love or disable in the first week, in dense downtown buildings, phone GPS drifts enough that the lock sometimes pops as you step off the elevator on the wrong floor.
Schlage Encode Plus: The Strongest Hardware, The Fussiest Fit
The Schlage Encode Plus is a full Wi-Fi deadbolt replacement carrying an ANSI/BHMA Grade 1 residential security rating, the highest grade in the residential standard, and genuinely a step above most competitors in the category. Retail pricing varies. The bolt throw, the strike hardware and the keypad feel are all noticeably more substantial in the hand than either alternative.
Its signature trick is Apple Home Key: tap an iPhone or Apple Watch to the keypad and the bolt retracts. For a household running iPhones, that's the slickest entry method on this list. For a Google Home household, that trick is dead weight you paid for.
Google Home compatibility is where you need to read carefully rather than trust a product-page bullet. The Encode Plus launched as the Apple-centric model of the family, and Google integration has arrived through Matter rather than being native from day one. Confirm the exact model number and current firmware against Schlage's own compatibility listing before you buy, not against a retailer's checkbox grid.
The other honest caveat: it's a big lock. On a 1-3/8" thick apartment door in Forest Hill or Casa Loma, the interior escutcheon can crowd a chain guard, and the thicker exterior housing needs a properly sized bore. Get the door measured first. A professional assessment can determine whether an adjustment or new door preparation is needed.
Yale Assure Lock SL: Key-Free, Slim, and a Trade-Off You Should Understand
The Yale Assure Lock SL is the key-free touchscreen model: there is no keyway on the exterior at all, which is precisely why designers in Rosedale and Wychwood renos keep specifying it. Retail pricing varies, and connectivity depends on which network module is fitted; Wi-Fi, Yale Home, and Matter-capable options may be available separately.
No keyway means no cylinder to pick, bump or snap. That's a real security gain. It also means no cylinder for us to open non-destructively when the batteries die at -14°C on a January morning and the 9V jump terminal on the underside doesn't respond because the contacts are frosted.
Here's the part that surprised us the first time: the most common Assure SL callout isn't a dead battery. It's a touchscreen that reads ghost inputs because someone cleaned it with a wet cloth or because condensation formed on a poorly weather-sealed side entry. Wipe it dry, wait, and it usually comes back. Wet fingers and capacitive panels are a bad combination in a Toronto November.
For short-term rental hosts and landlords who need to rotate codes between tenants, though, the Assure SL is excellent. Codes are the primary entry method rather than an add-on, and you never hand over metal that could be copied at a hardware store.
- Choose August Wi-Fi Smart Lock if you live in a condo with a building-controlled or restricted key, if your suite door is fire-labelled, if you rent, or if you want a reversible install you can undo before you move out.
- Choose Schlage Encode Plus if you own a house or townhome with a standard bored deadbolt, your household is mixed iPhone and Android, and you want the heaviest hardware and a real physical keypad on the front door.
- Choose Yale Assure Lock SL if you're doing a renovation where the door hardware is a design decision, if you rotate access codes for tenants or cleaners, and if you accept there is no key backup.
- Choose none of the three if your suite door has a mortise lockset. In that case the correct upgrade is a mortise-compatible electronic lockset or a keypad cylinder, and that's a conversation with your property manager before it's a purchase.
Our Verdict
For a Google Home household in a downtown Toronto or midtown condo, the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock (4th gen) may be a practical option where keeping the existing cylinder and key matters. Add the August keypad if you need codes, and confirm hardware pricing before purchase.
For a house in Leslieville, Riverdale or The Annex with a normal deadbolt, the Schlage Encode Plus is the better lock, full stop. Grade 1 hardware, a keypad that works with gloves on, and a metal key as the last resort. Pay the premium.
The Yale Assure Lock SL wins on a narrower brief: rental turnover and interiors where the lock has to disappear into the door. It's the specialist, not the default.
One more thing worth saying out loud: a smart lock does not make a weak door strong. If a strike plate is held by short screws in a split jamb, consider a professional assessment of the door and strike hardware before choosing a Wi-Fi lock. The lock is not always the part that fails.
Professional installation is priced per job. New door preparation, including drilling and chiselling a door that has never had a deadbolt, is a different job. Our mobile technicians can assess which work is needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I unlock my August, Schlage or Yale lock with a Google Home voice command?
Google Home can lock a smart lock by voice on all three brands, but unlocking by voice is deliberately restricted, depending on the lock and firmware it is either disabled outright or gated behind a spoken PIN. You can unlock from the Google Home app or the brand's own app. Treat voice unlock as a bonus, not a buying reason.
Will my Toronto condo board let me install a smart lock on my suite door?
Most Toronto condo declarations govern anything visible from the common corridor and prohibit modifying a fire-rated suite door, which is why interior-only retrofits like the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock are approved far more often than full deadbolt swaps. Ask property management in writing before you drill anything. Buildings in Liberty Village, Yorkville and downtown Toronto that use a restricted master-key system almost never permit a cylinder change.
What does it cost to have a smart lock professionally installed in Toronto?
Professional smart lock installation is priced per job for a straight swap on an existing bored deadbolt. Retrofit units like the August may require less work because no drilling is involved. Fresh door prep on a door with no existing deadbolt hole is a different job and should be quoted after someone sees the door. Hardware pricing is separate and varies by model.
What happens if the batteries die and I'm locked out?
For a smart lock lockout, a mobile locksmith can assess the door and lock.
Sources
- Matter interoperability standard used by all three lock families for Google Home — Connectivity Standards Alliance
- Google Home device compatibility and smart lock behaviour — Works with Google Home
- Schlage Encode Plus specifications and platform compatibility — Schlage
- Requirement to maintain closures in fire separations in working order — Ontario Fire Code, O. Reg. 213/07
