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Nexkey Zapier integrationAutomate Nexkey with Zapier.

The Nexkey Zapier integration offers 1 trigger, 5 actions and 3 searches. A key share on a lock can start a Zap, and other tools can send or revoke keys, manage group members or unlock a door, without anyone opening the Nexkey portal.

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Overview

What the Nexkey Zapier integration does for your access control

Nexkey handles access control: who holds a key to which lock, and in which group. Connected to Zapier, it can start a Zap (an automation you set up once: one trigger, then one or more actions) when a key is shared on a lock, and it can receive key, group and unlock commands from your other tools.

Three results worth building. A written trail of every key share: Key Share on Lock starts a Zap that adds a row to your spreadsheet, so you can see who got access without digging through the portal. Access handed out from another tool: a search such as Find User identifies the person, then Send Keys shares a User or Admin key on the locks you name. And access taken back just as cleanly, with Revoke Keys or Remove Group Members once the identifying step has done its job.

What Zapier does not do for Nexkey. There is a single trigger, and it is a polling one: nothing reaches Zapier the instant a key is shared, and there is no trigger for unlocks, new users or group changes. There is no action to create a user, a lock or a group; the actions work on what already exists. The three searches have no find-or-create variant, so a missing user or group cannot be created on the way.

If you are comparing platforms before you commit, open our Make vs Zapier comparison and check on each side whether Nexkey is offered and with which operations.

Vocabulary

Zapier vocabulary in one minute

Eight terms return all over this page. Here they are in plain English.

Zap
The automation itself: one trigger, then one or more actions that run each time the trigger event happens.
Trigger
The event in an app that starts the Zap. For Nexkey, that is Key Share on Lock, once the Zap is switched on.
Action
What the Zap does after it starts: the step that writes, sends or moves something for you, such as sending a key.
Task
The unit Zapier bills. One action that completes successfully is one task, and your plan counts those.
Polling vs instant
A polling trigger is checked on a timer for new items. An instant trigger is reported by its app the moment the event happens.
Filter
A step that lets the Zap continue only when the incoming data meets your condition, and stops it otherwise.
Search step
A step that looks up something already in an app, a user, a lock or a group, so later steps can use what it found.
Multi-step Zap
Any Zap beyond one trigger and one action. A filter, a search or a second action makes one, and it then needs a paid plan.
Cost

What a Nexkey Zap really costs

Nexkey is not one of the apps Zapier keeps for paid plans, so a simple Zap runs on the free plan.

  • Free plan100 tasks a month, unlimited two-step Zaps
  • BilledEach successful action, never the trigger
  • Paid plan needed forA search, a filter or a second action

Key Share on Lock costs nothing, however often Zapier checks it. Each action that succeeds counts as one task; an action that fails is not counted. The free plan only builds two-step Zaps: one trigger, one action. Any Zap that uses Find Group, Find Lock or Find User is multi-step and needs a paid plan, and so is a Zap with a filter or a second action. How often Key Share on Lock is checked depends on the plan:

Connect

Connect Nexkey to Zapier in three steps

  1. 01

    Open the Apps page

    In your Zapier account, open Apps and click + Add connection. You need a Nexkey account, plus read or write access on anything you do not own yourself and want the Zap to touch.

  2. 02

    Pick Nexkey

    Type Nexkey in the search box of the dialog, select it in the results, then click Add connection. A new browser tab opens so you can reach your Nexkey account.

  3. 03

    Sign in and grant access

    Sign in to Nexkey in that tab and grant Zapier access to the account. The trigger, the five actions and the three searches of every Zap then reuse this one connection.

First Zap

Your first Zap: a team alert for key shares on one lock

GoalWhen a key is shared on the lock you pick, your team chat gets a message, in a two-step Zap that fits the free plan.

  1. 01

    Set the trigger

    Create a Zap, choose Nexkey and Key Share on Lock, select your connection and fill the required lock ID. Testing brings back the three most recent key shares so you map on a real one.

  2. 02

    Keep it at two steps

    One trigger and one action is all the free plan builds, and this alert needs nothing more. If you later want only some shares to go through, a Filter step does that, but it makes the Zap multi-step, which needs a paid plan.

  3. 03

    Add the message

    Choose your team chat app and its send event, then build the message from the key share data the trigger test brought back.

  4. 04

    Test each step

    Run each step once and read what came back. Check that the message carries the key share details you mapped, and fix any empty part before switching the Zap on.

  5. 05

    Publish

    Click Publish to switch the Zap on. Zapier then checks the lock at your plan's interval; key shares from before publishing are not sent.

Triggers

The Nexkey trigger

1 event starts a Zap when something happens in Nexkey. Zapier checks for them at the interval your plan allows.

1

Key Share on Lock

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a key share takes place on specified lock.”

Starts your Zap each time a key share happens on the lock you choose. Whatever comes next, a log line, a message, a record in another tool, works from that key share. It is the only Nexkey event that can open a Zap, so any automation reacting to Nexkey begins with it.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one
When to use it
you want a trace, outside Nexkey, of who received access to a given door.
Watch out
the lock ID is required, so the trigger watches one lock; only shares made after publishing are picked up.
Actions

The 5 Nexkey actions

Nexkey gives you 5 actions. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

1

Add Group Members

Action

In Zapier“Adds members to specified group”

Puts people into a Nexkey group with the role you set, without anyone opening the portal.

When to use it
someone joins a team in another tool and should land in the matching Nexkey group.
Watch out
Group ID and Role are required; Role takes 0 for User, 1 for Admin and 2 for Owner.
2

Perform Unlock

Action

In Zapier“Perform an unlock on target lock. Only for an Internet-connected Controller.”

Sends an unlock command to the lock whose Lock ID you pass, so a step in another app can open a door.

When to use it
a step approved in another tool should open one specific lock.
Watch out
it only works on a lock with an Internet-connected Controller; test it on that lock before publishing.
3

Remove Group Members

Action

In Zapier“Removes members from specified group”

Takes people out of a Nexkey group, the reverse of Add Group Members.

When to use it
a record in another tool marks the end of someone's access.
Watch out
Group ID, Role and User IDs are all required; Role uses the same codes, 0 for User, 1 for Admin, 2 for Owner.
4

Revoke Keys

Action

In Zapier“Revoke a key from a target user.”

Withdraws a key from a target user on the locks you list.

When to use it
one person should lose access to a few doors while keeping the rest.
Watch out
Lock IDs is required, so the Zap must carry those IDs; check at the test what lands in the field.
5

Send Keys

Action

In Zapier“Share an Admin or User level key for a lock to a user. This key can be scheduled to only allow access within certain time restrictions or it can be unrestricted and live indefinitely.”

Shares a User or Admin key for one or more locks with a user. The key can be limited to set time windows or left unrestricted.

When to use it
access should go out automatically when something is approved in another tool.
Watch out
Lock Ids and Target Role (0 for User, 1 for Admin) are required; with Disable Nexkey Welcome Messaging set to true, Nexkey skips its default welcome email or text.
Searches

The 3 Nexkey searches

3 search steps look for data that already exists in Nexkey, so a later step can use it.

A search step finds something that already exists in Nexkey and passes it to the next steps. In the editor, searches sit at the bottom of the Action event list, under SEARCH. Three settings decide what happens when the result is not one clean match.

1

Find Group

Search

In Zapier“Find a group by name.”

Looks up a Nexkey group by its name and hands what it finds to the following steps.

When to use it
your source tool knows the team name, while the group actions want an ID.
Watch out
a search makes the Zap multi-step, so it needs a paid plan; check at the test which group comes back and whether it carries the Group ID the next step needs.
2

Find Lock

Search

In Zapier“Find a lock by its name or description.”

Finds a lock from its name or its description, typed into a single required box, Lock Name or Description.

When to use it
a request in another tool mentions a door by name or description and the Zap has to find that lock.
Watch out
if more than one lock matches, the multiple-results setting decides what goes on, so set it on purpose and check the test.
3

Find User

Search

In Zapier“Find a user by first name, last name, email or phone.”

Locates a Nexkey user from a first name, a last name, an email or a phone number, then passes that user on.

When to use it
you hold an email from a form and need the Nexkey user before sending or revoking a key.
Watch out
if several users match, the multiple-results setting decides which one goes on, so verify at the test.

The three settings every search exposes

  1. Successful if no search results are found?
    Left on its default, a search that finds nothing stops the Zap and skips the steps that depended on it. Switched on, the Zap carries on empty-handed.
  2. Create X if it doesn't exist yet?
    Ticking this turns a search into a find-or-create. None of the three Nexkey searches has that variant on Zapier, so the box is not offered here.
  3. If multiple search results are found?
    Three ways out: keep the first match (the default), stop the Zap, or hand all the matches on at once.
When it breaks

When a Nexkey Zap breaks

Zapier links no help article to Nexkey and lists no limit specific to it, so the cases below are the general limits of any Zap built on it, plus the operation constraints already noted above.

  • Past key shares are not picked up

    A Zap only reacts to what happens after it is switched on. Key shares made before publishing never start it; moving that history is a separate job.

  • Writing where the trigger watches

    As a general precaution: a Zap that writes into the very place its own trigger watches can set itself off again and again and use up tasks fast.

  • A sudden batch can be held back

    After a bulk import or a migration, Key Share on Lock may return a huge batch at once, and Zapier's flood protection can hold it back.

  • The same key share does not fire twice

    Key Share on Lock is a polling trigger: Zapier keeps track of what it has already seen, so the same key share does not launch the Zap twice.
Need help

Need help automating Nexkey with Zapier?

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FAQ

Nexkey and Zapier: common questions

01Is the Nexkey Zapier integration free?
Partly. Nexkey is not among the apps Zapier keeps for paid plans, so it works on the free plan, which gives 100 tasks a month and unlimited Zaps of two steps each. Key Share on Lock followed by one action, such as a row in your spreadsheet, fits there. The three searches do not: Find Group, Find Lock and Find User each make the Zap multi-step, and multi-step Zaps need a paid plan. The same holds for a filter or a second action, so an access flow that starts in another tool and identifies a user first needs a paid plan.
02How many tasks does a Nexkey Zap use?
One task for each action that completes successfully. Key Share on Lock costs nothing, and Zapier checking it costs nothing either, however often it looks. An action that fails is not counted against your plan. A Zap that sends keys and then adds the same person to a group uses two tasks per run when both actions succeed. A few apps and actions on Zapier take more than one task, so check your task count after your first real runs rather than guessing it ahead of time.
03Does Nexkey report key shares to Zapier in real time?
No. Key Share on Lock is a polling trigger: Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and the interval depends on your plan. It is 15 minutes on Free, 2 on Professional and 1 on Team and Enterprise. There is no instant version, and the type cannot be changed from the editor. On paid plans, the interval can be adjusted and a check can be run by hand from the editor.
04What is required to connect Nexkey to Zapier?
A Nexkey account, plus read or write access on anything you do not own yourself and want the Zap to touch. You connect it once, from the Apps page of your Zapier account: click + Add connection, search for Nexkey, click Add connection, sign in to Nexkey in the tab that opens and grant Zapier access. The trigger, the five actions and the three searches of every Zap then share that connection, so nothing needs redoing for the next Zap you build.
05Why does Perform Unlock fail on some locks?
Because Nexkey states that Perform Unlock only works for an Internet-connected Controller. A lock without one cannot receive the command through Zapier, whatever the rest of the Zap does. The only required field is the Lock ID, and nothing in that field tells you whether the lock has such a controller: that is a question for your Nexkey setup. Before publishing a Zap that opens doors, run the action test on the exact lock it targets and read what came back.
06What if the Nexkey operation you need is missing?
Open the Nexkey app page on Zapier, which shows the current list of operations. Today that is one trigger, Key Share on Lock, five actions (Add Group Members, Perform Unlock, Remove Group Members, Revoke Keys, Send Keys) and three searches (Find Group, Find Lock, Find User). If your step is not there, a Zap cannot run it as a Nexkey operation. Check whether two existing steps get you there together, for instance a search followed by an action.
07Zapier, Make or n8n for Nexkey?
Choose on criteria, not on a ranking. Coverage: on Zapier, Nexkey brings one polling trigger, five actions and three searches, so check whether Make and n8n offer Nexkey and which of these operations they include. Timing: on the free plan, Zapier checks Key Share on Lock every 15 minutes, faster on paid plans. Shape: an access flow that needs a search before a key action already makes the Zap multi-step and paid on Zapier, so compare what that length costs on each side.
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