JioGate, MyGate, and other top apartment security apps for gated communities and societies

Earlier this month, Reliance Industries listed a new app Jio Gate on Google Play Store, instantly putting the spotlight on the apartment security market.

App-based security management services for gated communities, housing societies, and other closed complexes is a rapidly evolving sector. 

Several startups have mushroomed in recent years, allowing gated communities in India to improve their security processes, manage visitors and deliveries, auto-generate gate passes, parking tickets, and so on, without having to make any serious investments in physical infrastructure. 

These app-based security startups are increasingly striking partnerships with real estate developers and broking services, especially in metro cities, to reach out to home buyers right at the outset.

One of India’s earliest startups in this space, which counts Prestige, Lodha, and other developers as clients, claims to have secured over a million residents in three years. 

Globally, the residential security market is estimated to be worth $74.7 billion by 2023. The evolution of IoT and wireless technologies has led to the creation of smooth, seamless mobile apps that can be operated by both security professionals and individual residents. 

YourStory lists some of India’s top apartment security apps.

MyGate

Bengaluru-based MyGate was one of the first movers in this space. Founded in 2016, it has already raised close to $10 million from Prime Venture Partners. It calls itself an end-to-end “community management” platform that provides real-time information and alerts to its users. 

MyGate claims it has already secured over 4,000 gated communities in India and validated over 200 million visitors in 11 cities. By the end of 2019, it aims to secure 10,000 gated communities and 2.5 million homes. MyGate is the highest-downloaded (500,000+) app in this category. 

The only catch is, residents can use it only if their complex decides to become a part of the MyGate ‘safe community’.

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JioGate

JioGate is the latest entrant but could trigger a dramatic growth of the sector in 2020. Reliance Jio’s reach is unprecedented, and if the network plans to create bundled offers (along with its newly launched JioFiber service), adoption in gated communities will naturally rise. 

JioGate has already recorded over 1,000 installs on Google Play Store in less than 20 days.

Some of its top features include passcode-based visitor management, domestic help management, e-Intercom (that converts your smartphone into an intercom device), delivery boy verification, SMS-based panic alert system, and more.  

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GateKeeper by ADDA

GateKeeper allows housing societies to remotely manage security staff, visitors, vehicles, and get notified about emergency situations. It claims to have recorded over 90 million visits across 3,000 gated communities in India.

GateKeeper says its software can bring about up to 50 percent faster visitor and staff check-in and check-out.

The app adds new owners and tenants and removes the outgoing ones on the same day. It also allows society committees to seamlessly track and recover outstanding dues. 

GateKeeper has been installed more than 5,000 times on Google Play Store, and is rated 4.7 out of 5 - the highest in this category.

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NoBrokerHOOD

In 2018, General Atlantic-backed real estate portal NoBroker launched the NoBrokerHood app, with the goal of securing 100,000 housing societies in Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Gurugram. It is a tech-enabled visitor and community management system that allows residents to pre-approve entry for delivery personnel, cabs and more.

It also maintains Aadhaar-verified visual and digital records of all entries and exits, thus preventing unsolicited vehicle-parking in a gated community. 

The app is rated 4.5 out of 5 on Google Play Store, and has recorded over 10,000 downloads.

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Smart Guard

Real estate discovery platform CommonFloor launched Smart Guard in 2015 when the apartment management space was still nascent. The feature is available within the CommonFloor Groups app, which has recorded over 50,000 Google Play Store downloads. 

It allows admins of gated communities to login and create accounts for multiple security guards. The app is designed to work on even basic smartphones or tablets, and also comes with an offline mode. 

Based on the visitor data collected, weekly email reports are auto-generated and sent to admins. It also has a ‘Smart Check-In’ feature that allows visitors to make a quick entry at the gate.

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Lockated

Lockated is more than just a gate security app. It is an integrated and automated home management system.

Its features include mobile-video door phone, paperless societies management systems, project and home automation, and facial recognition (yet to be launched). 

Residents can use Lockated to easily log requests, track and interact with a building/society or property manager, receive visitor-related communication, book facilities and make payments. 

Interestingly, the app also integrates with UrbanClap for seamless management of household services. Lockated has notched up over 10,000 Google Play Store downloads. 

(Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta)

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