Aqara’s U500 Smart Lock Series Launches in the UK

Aqara has expanded its smart lock ambitions in the UK with the launch of the new U500 series, a range of Matter-compatible locks designed for door types that are often unsupported by conventional retrofit smart locks. The lineup currently consists of the Smart Gate Lock U500, Smart Glass Door Lock U500, and Smart Rim Lock U500, covering installations for gates, glass doors, metal doors, iron doors, and traditional surface-mounted rim lock setups.

Unlike Aqara’s earlier deadbolt-focused products, the U500 range appears to target more specialised UK door formats. This follows the company’s wider move toward non-standard installations beyond typical North American deadbolt systems, with Aqara increasingly focusing on compatibility across European and Asian door types.

All three U500 models are designed around Matter over Thread connectivity, allowing integration with major ecosystems including Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, and Home Assistant, provided users have a compatible Matter controller and Thread border router. Aqara’s existing North American U-series locks already support Apple HomeKey, NFC, app control, temporary passcodes, and remote access, with many of these features carrying across to the U500 range. However, unlike the company’s flagship deadbolt like, the U400 (video HERE, review HERE) these locks don’t seem to come with UWB (Ultra WideBand) support.

Aqara says the lock features gyroscope-based auto-locking, automatically securing gates or doors once closed, alongside a “Do Not Disturb” mode to reduce sounds and notifications. The company also includes ‘One Tap Dual Unlock’, allowing multiple Aqara locks to unlock simultaneously. Power comes from four AA batteries, with Aqara quoting up to seven months of battery life, while a USB-C emergency power input provides backup access if the batteries are depleted.

Like Aqara’s recent smart locks, the U500 series also stores credentials locally using AES encryption rather than relying solely on cloud-based credential storage. Aqara has increasingly promoted local processing and automation within its ecosystem, particularly as Matter adoption expands across platforms.

The Smart Glass Door Lock U500 is aimed primarily at offices, apartment entrances, retail spaces, and commercial environments using frameless or specialist glass doors, while the Smart Rim Lock U500 is designed for regions and properties where surface-mounted rim locks remain common. Together, the range positions Aqara as one of the few smart home brands attempting to address a much wider variety of global door standards rather than focusing exclusively on deadbolt replacements.

All three locks are available to purchase directly from the Aqara UK store, with prices at £289.99 for the Gate Lock, £299.99 for the Glass Door Lock, and £279.98 for the Rim Lock.