Where To Get Keys Made Near Me
Do you need a copy made of one of your keys?
Getting your key duplicated can be a pain.
I used to live in an apartment, and the landlord there only gave me one key to the place.
I asked about getting a second copy of the key from them, but they refused. They would only give me the one copy. The reasoning behind that was because they only wanted me to have access to the unit.
I was the only person on the lease, and I was the only person they knew, so I was the only person they wanted in there regularly. I was welcome to invite people over to my place, but they only wanted other people there while I was there.
They explained that if I had multiple sets of keys to the door, I might offer a copy of the key to a friend of mine who I might let use the apartment even if I were at work or away for the weekend.
They didn't want me to have a spare key for fear that I would let people they didn't know come and go without me there to supervise them.
That reasoning is sound, and it makes sense why they wouldn't want strangers in their building. But I didn't want people in my apartment when I wasn't there either. That wasn't why I wanted a spare key.
I wanted a spare key in case I lost the original. I still wanted to be able to get into my apartment.
The lock on the door was a deadbolt, so I had to have the key to lock the door as I was leaving, so there was no way I would ever accidentally lock my keys inside my apartment.
But it is possible I would drop it in a parking lot somewhere and never notice until I got home. In that situation, I wanted to have a spare so I could get in.
I would keep that spare either in my car or I would have a trusted family member hold on to the spare for me.
The landlord did not want me to have a spare, and maybe I should have respected their wishes on that, but I really wanted a spare.
So I went to a local locksmith shop. They made keys and I figured I could have them copy it for just a few bucks in less than 5 minutes.
I went in and asked the person behind the counter if they could copy my house key. They said they could. As soon as they had my key in hand, however, they said they couldn't help me.
The key said "DO NOT DUPLICATE" right on the handle. They said that I would have to have my landlord make the copy for me.
I left, fully believing that I was going to be unable to get a spare key made.
Within the next few days, I mentioned this story to a friend, and they said that they had recently made a copy of their key at an automated kiosk at a Menards. He was able to make the copy all by himself without needing to interact with anyone.
He pressed on the touchscreen on the machine, it prompted him to pick the type of key he wanted made, he was asked to insert his key into a port on the machine, then the machine cut the tooth pattern from his key into a brand new key. Within around a minute he had a duplicate key drop into a box on the front of the machine.
He was able to pay with a credit card at the kiosk. It was just a few bucks.
That was exactly the sort of machine I was looking for. I went there and got my key copied right away. Totally effortless. I was amazed at this invention.
The machine was made by a company called Minute Key. They make these automated key making kiosks and install them in major stores. The one I used was in a Menards, but they are also available in Walmart, Lowes, and Home Depot.
They are probably also available in other places. Keep an eye out for them. They are usually towards the front of the store by the checkout registers.
When I was in need of a spare key, I was glad I was able to turn to a Minute Key kiosk. It was cheaper and faster than any locksmith alternatives.
While they only copy some of the most common types of keys, like typical front door keys, that offering is enough to cover most people's needs most of the time.
I highly recommend these kiosks for when you need a key copied. And because they are in the sorts of stores that have locations practically everywhere, there will almost always be a place to get your key copied near you. The Minute Key site even has a kiosk locator tool which can help you to find a machine near you.
Minute Key is not the only maker of this type of machine. A couple of their competitors are KeyMe and My Key Machine.
KeyMe can be found in retailers like Dollar General, 7-Eleven, Safeway, Auto Zone, Rite-Aid, Sears, Kmart, Kroger, and Bed Bath & Beyond. They have a kiosk locator tool also.
My Key Machine is a UK based company, and so probably won't do Americans any good. But if you happen to be in England and need a key duplicated, you can find a nearby machine with their kiosk locator tool right on their homepage.
Going to a locksmith shop during their open for business hours and waiting for a person to cut your key for you is an inconvenience of the past. You now have the option of getting your key cut quickly and cheaply at retail locations that are open 24/7, or at least at the odd hours most locksmiths are closed.
These machines are one of the growing number of ways that robotics can improve our lives and save us time and money.
Have you ever had trouble getting a key copied? Have you ever used one of these automatic kiosks? Can you think of a reason you wouldn't want to use an automated key copying machine? Let me know in the comments!
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