China, the U.S., South Korea, or Japan: Who is the Global Leader in the Smart Lock Industry?
Once upon a time, in the minds of many, China’s smart lock industry seemed to lag behind developed countries like South Korea, the U.S., and Japan. Looking back, this was indeed an undeniable fact. However, today, China has emerged as a leader in various fields such as new energy vehicles, aerospace, and AI models, ranking among the top globally. So, after several years of thriving development, has China’s smart lock industry undergone a magnificent transformation, fully surpassing the U.S., South Korea, Japan, and other smart lock powerhouses?
With this question in mind, the editor of Lock World reached out to DeepSeek to discuss "Which country is the global leader in the smart lock industry: China, the U.S., South Korea, or Japan?" After conducting in-depth research and analysis, DeepSeek provided the following answer:
Based on the latest market data and research reports, China is currently the world's largest producer of smart locks. Below is a detailed analysis:
1. China: Leading in Production and Market Size
Production and Sales: In 2022, China’s total smart lock sales reached 17.6 million units, a historic high, and the market is expected to grow to 29.9 billion RMB by 2025. Furthermore, China holds a major share of global smart lock production. According to 2023 data, China has a significant share of the global smart lock market.
Industry Foundation: Since 2014, China has been the world’s largest lock manufacturer, with annual sales of 2.2 billion traditional locks. The demand for commercial smart locks, such as fingerprint and biometric locks, has also been growing rapidly. Although mechanical locks dominated early on, the technology for smart locks has evolved quickly in recent years, leading to expanding market size.
Brand Competitiveness: Chinese brands such as Kaadas, Dessmann, and Xiaomi occupy significant global market positions. In 2022, the top four online brands in the market (CR4) accounted for 48.2% of the market share.
2. Comparison with Other Countries
South Korea and Japan: Data from 2018 shows that the smart lock penetration rate in South Korea and Japan reached 80% and 50%, respectively. However, their market sizes and production volumes are much smaller than China’s. Their advantages lie more in technological maturity and user penetration rather than production scale.
The U.S.: The U.S. smart lock market is mature but lacks the production volume and brand concentration seen in China. While global giants like ASSA ABLOY and Allegion are based in the U.S., Chinese companies hold a larger share of global production capacity in the supply chain.
3. Core Drivers
Technology and Cost Advantage: The average price of smart locks in China has dropped from 1,291 RMB in 2018 to an expected 1,051.5 RMB in 2025, making Chinese smart locks highly competitive in terms of price, which drives market adoption.
Complete Industry Chain: China has a fully integrated smart lock industry chain, covering R&D, manufacturing, and sales. Additionally, policy support and technological innovations (such as AI and facial recognition) have accelerated the industry’s growth.
In summary, China is currently the world’s largest producer of smart locks. Its massive market size, complete industry chain, and rapid technological iteration capabilities are the main supporting factors. While South Korea, Japan, and the U.S. have advantages in technology application and product penetration rates, they lag behind China in terms of production scale.
4. Conclusion
According to DeepSeek, China’s smart lock industry has undergone rapid development over the years and has transformed from being a follower to a leader, becoming the global leader in smart lock production. This achievement is due to China’s large market size, complete industry chain, and rapid technological advancement. In comparison, while South Korea, Japan, and the U.S. excel in smart lock technology and product penetration, their production scales are still not as large as China’s. Looking forward, China’s smart lock industry will continue to maintain its competitive edge and contribute even more to the global smart lock market's development.