What Does a Lock's Australian Standard Rating Actually Tell You?
In Australia, the relevant standard for residential lock sets is AS 4145. Locks tested and rated under this standard have been assessed for resistance to forced entry, picking, drilling, and key security. Grade 1 is the highest residential rating and reflects the most rigorous testing. A lock without a rating hasn't been independently tested to any known standard — which tells you something important about how much faith to place in it.
Walk into a hardware store and pick up two deadbolts sitting side by side. One costs $35. One costs $180. Both are steel. Both have a key. The packaging on each makes claims about security. And unless you know what to look for, there's no obvious way to tell which one will hold and which one won't.
The rating system exists to answer exactly that question. But most homeowners have never been told what the ratings mean or why they should care about them.
What AS 4145 Actually Is
AS 4145 is an Australian and New Zealand standard that sets out the requirements for mechanical lock sets used in residential and commercial buildings. It's published by Standards Australia and covers everything from how a lock is constructed to how it performs under specific attack methods.
The standard is divided into parts. AS 4145.2 is the part most relevant to residential deadbolts and lock sets — it covers key-operated locks and specifies what those locks must withstand to earn a rating. Testing includes resistance to drilling, resistance to picking, key security requirements (how many differs key combinations the lock provides), and operational durability measured by how many open and close cycles the lock can complete without failure.
A lock that carries an AS 4145 rating has been independently tested to those requirements. One that doesn't hasn't been — or hasn't been tested to a standard that could be published.
What the Grades Mean
Within AS 4145.2, locks are classified by grade. The grades reflect the level of security the lock is designed to provide, with higher grades requiring performance against more sophisticated or sustained attack.
Grade 1 is the highest residential grade and is the rating most locksmiths and security professionals will recommend for external doors, particularly front entries and any door that is a primary access point. A Grade 1 lock has been tested to resist attack by common forced entry methods for a meaningful duration. It incorporates anti-drill and anti-pick features as a baseline requirement, not an optional extra.
Grade 2 reflects a lower tier of testing — adequate for internal doors or lower-risk entry points, but not the appropriate choice for a front door on a standalone house or the main entry of an apartment.
Grade 3 is the lowest rating in the standard and is generally not suitable for any external residential door that needs to provide genuine security.
The gap between a Grade 1 and a Grade 3 lock isn't cosmetic. It reflects fundamentally different engineering — harder steel, more complex cylinder pin configurations, anti-snap features in the cylinder body, and tolerances built to resist attack rather than just resist casual use.
Why Cheap Locks Don't Get Rated
This is the part most homeowners don't expect: a significant number of locks sold in Australian hardware stores carry no AS 4145 rating at all.
That's not necessarily because they were tested and failed. It's because getting a lock independently tested and rated costs money, and budget lock manufacturers often don't pursue it. The lock gets sold on appearance — it looks like a deadbolt, it functions like a deadbolt, and the packaging says things like "heavy duty" or "high security" without any independent testing behind those claims.
A rating is a third-party verification. No rating means you're taking the manufacturer at their word.
The Cylinder Is Where Ratings Matter Most
The cylinder — the part the key goes into — is where most lock failures happen, and it's where the difference between rated and unrated hardware is most obvious.
A cheap cylinder without hardened anti-drill pins can be defeated with a standard drill in under a minute. A cylinder without security pins is vulnerable to picking with tools that are widely available and require no particular skill to use. A euro profile cylinder without anti-snap protection — and many budget ones lack it — can be broken off using a pair of adjustable grips and basic leverage, giving direct access to the locking mechanism without needing to pick or drill anything.
A Grade 1-rated cylinder addresses all of these attack vectors as a requirement of the rating. It's not a bonus feature. It's the minimum the cylinder had to achieve to earn the grade.
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What to Look for When Buying or Upgrading
When you're evaluating a lock — whether you're buying it yourself or asking a locksmith to supply and fit it — a few things are worth confirming.
Ask whether the lock carries an AS 4145 rating and what grade it's rated to. If it's rated, the documentation will specify. If the answer is vague or the packaging doesn't mention a grade, treat that as a signal.
For front doors, Grade 1 is the target. For secondary entry points such as side gates, back doors, or laundry entries, Grade 1 is still preferable but Grade 2 is a reasonable minimum if budget is a constraint.
Ask specifically about the cylinder. A quality lock body paired with a poor cylinder is still a security risk. Some manufacturers offer the same lock body in multiple cylinder options at different price points — the one without the anti-drill pins is the one you don't want on your front door.
And check the strike plate. The rating applies to the lock itself, not the installation. A Grade 1 deadbolt fixed into a flimsy strike plate held with 25mm screws into pine frame will fail at the strike plate under a kick regardless of how good the lock is. A heavy-duty strike plate with 75mm fixings into structural timber is the installation standard that matches the lock's rating.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are all locks sold in Australia required to meet AS 4145?
No. AS 4145 is a voluntary standard, not a mandatory requirement. Manufacturers can sell locks in Australia without having them tested or rated. The rating tells you a lock has been independently assessed — the absence of one tells you it hasn't been.
Does a higher price always mean a higher rating?
Not automatically, but there's a strong correlation. Earning an AS 4145 Grade 1 rating requires engineering and materials that cost more to produce. Budget locks priced below $50 to $60 almost never carry a Grade 1 rating. The price isn't a guarantee, but it's a reasonable signal.
Not automatically, but there's a strong correlation. Earning an AS 4145 Grade 1 rating requires engineering and materials that cost more to produce. Budget locks priced below $50 to $60 almost never carry a Grade 1 rating. The price isn't a guarantee, but it's a reasonable signal.
Yes. Standards Australia and some lock manufacturers publish their rated product lists. If you're assessing a specific brand or model, a licensed locksmith who works with residential hardware regularly will know whether it carries a genuine rating or whether the packaging language is marketing rather than certification.
Is AS 4145 the same as a star rating?
No. Some lock retailers use star ratings as a simplified marketing tool, but these aren't the same as AS 4145 grades. A five-star rating assigned by a retailer reflects their internal scoring, not independent testing against a published standard. Look for the AS 4145 designation specifically.
No. Some lock retailers use star ratings as a simplified marketing tool, but these aren't the same as AS 4145 grades. A five-star rating assigned by a retailer reflects their internal scoring, not independent testing against a published standard. Look for the AS 4145 designation specifically.
Not necessarily — older locks installed before the current standard was published may still be quality hardware, and a locksmith can assess the cylinder and lock body to give you an honest view of their actual security level. If they're worn, cheap-feeling, or show signs of damage, replacement is worth considering. If they're solid and functioning well, an assessment will tell you whether they're adequate or whether an upgrade is warranted.
The Rating Is the Shortcut
Evaluating lock quality without independent testing is difficult. The AS 4145 standard exists precisely because most buyers can't disassemble a lock cylinder in the hardware aisle and check its pin configuration. A rating is the shortcut — it tells you someone with the right equipment has already done that testing and the lock passed.
True Locksmith supplies and installs rated lock hardware for homes across Brighton, Sandringham, Hampton, Cheltenham, Moorabbin, Bentleigh, Beaumaris, and Melbourne's Bayside and southeast suburbs. If you're unsure what grade your current locks are or whether they're adequate for your doors, call 0421-767-767 and we'll give you a straight answer.