Locksmith prices in Vancouver
Explained before any work begins.
Most locksmith pricing is vague on purpose, so here are ours with the qualifications attached. Two charges show up on a mobile job: the work, and the service call that brings a locksmith and a stocked van to you. They are always quoted separately, and you hear both before any work begins.
- Mobile service call
- From $75
- Rekeying
- From $35
- Home lockout work
- Quoted after lock details
- Car lockout work
- Quoted by vehicle
- Replacement car key or smart key
- Quoted by vehicle and key
- Lock repair or replacement
- Quoted after assessment
What the service call pays for, and what it doesn’t.
It is the one charge people are surprised by, so it gets the first section rather than a footnote.
What the mobile service call covers
A licensed locksmith, a van stocked with cylinders, blanks, picks and programming equipment, and the trip to wherever you are. It is charged whether the job turns out to be five minutes or two hours, because the drive and the stocked van cost the same either way.
What still gets quoted on top of it
The work. Opening the door, rekeying the cylinders, cutting and programming the key, fitting the hardware — and any parts. That figure is quoted before any work begins, not after the van arrives.
When the service call ends up being the whole bill
If we get you in without needing parts or further work, that can be the end of it. We will say so on the phone when it looks likely, rather than letting you find out.
What a rekey price includes, cylinder by cylinder.
Rekeying changes which key turns the lock without replacing the lock. It starts at $35 for the rekey itself, and four things move it from there.
How many cylinders are being rekeyed
One front door is a different job from front, back, garage and the suite downstairs. Doing them in a single visit costs much less per cylinder than doing them one at a time.
Standard or restricted keyway
A standard residential cylinder and a restricted keyway — where the blanks are controlled and copies cannot be cut at a hardware counter — are different parts at different prices.
How many keys you want cut
Every rekey comes with keys. Beyond that, extra copies are priced per key, and it costs far less to order them during the visit than to book a second one.
Keyed alike across several doors
Getting one key to open several doors is usually worth doing while the locksmith is already there. It takes more work than rekeying each lock separately, and it saves you carrying four keys.
Car key prices follow the vehicle, not the locksmith.
This is why a car key is quoted per vehicle and never off a list. The same locksmith with the same equipment faces four different jobs depending on what you drive.
Year, make and model of the vehicle
The single biggest factor. It decides the key type, the security protocol and whether the job can be done at the curb at all.
Mechanical key, transponder, remote head or proximity fob
A plain cut key, a chipped key, a key with buttons in the head, and a fob that never leaves your pocket are four different parts with four different programming procedures.
Whether every key is lost
One working key to copy makes the job substantially less expensive. All keys lost means decoding the vehicle from scratch and teaching the immobilizer a key it has never seen.
Programming equipment the vehicle needs
Some vehicles accept a key in minutes. Some enforce a security delay the car itself imposes, which nobody can skip. A few are dealer-only, and we tell you that on the phone rather than after driving out.
How we reach a firm number before any work begins.
1. Describe the lock, the door or the vehicle
Call 778-655-1957, or send the booking form.
2. We name the likely method and what it costs
You get the service call, the expected work price, and the specific things that could move either. If a firm total genuinely needs eyes on the lock, we say so plainly instead of guessing low.
3. You approve the number, then the work begins
Nothing is booked and nothing is charged until you have heard the figure and agreed to it. If what we find on site is not what was described, we stop and talk before doing anything different.
Have this ready and the quote gets specific.
Four details turn a range into a number. You will not have all of them, and that is fine — each one you do have makes the quote firmer.
The brand on the lock face, or the key
The brand is usually stamped on the lock face or the edge of the door.
The address, the buzzer and the floor
Including the unit number, and whether there is a concierge, a gate or a parkade the van needs to get through. It affects the trip as much as the distance does.
Vehicle year, make, model and any remaining key
Plus whether every key is gone. That single answer moves a car key price more than anything else on this page.
Whether you own, rent or manage the property
It decides who authorizes the work and who gets the invoice, which is worth sorting out before the visit rather than at the door.
Price questions we hear on the phone.
Do evenings and weekends change the price?
Yes. After-hours work is charged at a higher rate, and you hear that rate before you agree to the visit. Planned work booked into a daytime slot is the least expensive way to have a locksmith at your door.
Does the quote include parts, or labour only?
We say which, every time. When hardware is involved the quote names the part and its price separately from the labour, so you can see what you are paying for and choose a different grade if you want one.
What happens if the job turns out different on arrival?
We stop and re-quote before doing anything you have not agreed to. A lock that turns out to be a different model, a door that has dropped, a vehicle that needs a dealer procedure — you hear it, and you decide.
Is a lock replacement quoted before or after the lock comes off?
Before. Taking the lock off to find out what it costs is how people end up with a door they cannot close and no choice about the price.
Can I get the price in writing before work starts?
Yes. Ask and we will send it by text or email before the visit. For commercial and strata work we quote in writing as a matter of course, in a form a council or an accounts department can approve.
No surprises on the invoice.
Tell us what has happened and where you are, and you will have the number and the method before any work begins.