Short answer
Check the licence first — locksmiths need a licence for some work and not other work. Then check that the business is who it says it is: of the 570 Australian locksmiths in this directory, only 15.3% publish an ABN you can confirm, and 6.1% list a phone number that contradicts the one on their own website.
Locksmiths handle lockouts, rekeying, lock installation, safes and security hardware. This is what to check before you let one into your house, and what the evidence says about the trade as a whole.
Locksmiths are licensed for some work and not others
Locksmithing sits under security industry licensing in several states, and in others it is unregulated. This is a trade where an unlicensed operator is a genuine possibility, and the job by definition involves someone opening your home.
There is no national licence register in Australia — each state and territory runs its own. The regulator for your state is listed at the bottom of this guide, and checking a number takes about a minute.
What 570 Australian locksmiths actually publish
We check every business in this directory the same way, and publish the result whether it flatters the trade or not. For locksmiths:
| What we checked | Locksmiths | All trades |
|---|---|---|
| Publish an ABN we could confirm | 15.3% | 12.9% |
| Listed phone matches their own website | 43.2% | 44.3% |
| Listed phone contradicts their own website | 6.1% | 5.5% |
| Website responded when we checked | 69.5% | 70.8% |
| Corroborated by two or more sources | 87.5% | 95% |
| Median number of Google reviews | 74 | 18 |
What goes wrong with locksmiths
- Emergency lockout pricing quoted low on the phone and raised on arrival
- National-sounding call centres that dispatch whoever is nearest
- Drilling a lock that could have been picked, then charging for a replacement
What to ask before the work starts
- Are you licensed, and what is the number?
- Is the price you have quoted the total, including callout and parts?
- Will you try to open the lock before drilling it?
A locksmith who answers all three of those without hesitating is telling you something useful. One who is vague about a licence number is telling you something too.
The median matters more than the average
The median locksmith in this directory has 74 Google reviews. That is the number to hold in your head when you see a perfect five-star rating: five stars from four reviews and 4.6 from three hundred are not comparable, and the second is almost always the safer hire.
It is also why the ranking here weights review volume more heavily than review score. A business cannot buy its position, and a handful of glowing reviews does not move it far.
Where the locksmiths are
Sydney (83), Melbourne (68), Perth (42), Brisbane (37), Adelaide (22), Newcastle (22). A shortlist for your own area is more useful than a national ranking — the best locksmith in the country is no help if they are four states away.
Where to check a licence, by state
There is no national register. Search the licence number with the regulator for the state where the work is happening.
- NSWNSW Fair Tradingbuilders, electricians, plumbers and specialist trades
- VICVictorian Building Authority, and Energy Safe Victoria for electricalbuilding practitioners and plumbers; electricians are Energy Safe Victoria
- QLDQueensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC)building and most trade contractor licences
- WABuilding and Energybuilders, electricians, plumbers and gas fitters
- SAConsumer and Business Servicesbuilding work contractors and supervisors
- TASConsumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS)building and occupational licences
- ACTAccess Canberraconstruction occupations licensing
- NTNT Government building practitioner registrationbuilding practitioners and electrical workers
Common questions
- Do locksmiths need a licence in Australia?
- Sometimes. Locksmithing sits under security industry licensing in several states, and in others it is unregulated. This is a trade where an unlicensed operator is a genuine possibility, and the job by definition involves someone opening your home.
- How do I check a locksmith's licence?
- There is no national register. Each state and territory has its own regulator — NSW Fair Trading, the Victorian Building Authority and Energy Safe Victoria, QBCC in Queensland, Building and Energy in WA, Consumer and Business Services in SA, CBOS in Tasmania, Access Canberra in the ACT, and the NT Government. Search the licence number the business gives you on the regulator for the state the work is happening in.
- What percentage of Australian locksmiths have a verifiable ABN?
- 15.3% of the 570 locksmiths in this directory publish an ABN we could confirm against the national register, against 12.9% across all trades.
- How many reviews should a locksmith have?
- The median locksmith here has 74. Treat a five-star rating from a handful of reviews with more caution than a slightly lower rating from hundreds.
Compare locksmiths near you
570 locksmiths, ranked on the evidence described above rather than on advertising.
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