---
title: "How to price car keys: locksmith quote builder · LockCommand"
description: "Free car key quote builder for locksmiths. Price a job from your own numbers by key type, spare or all keys lost, with extras and travel, plus what to ask first."
url: https://lockcommand.com/tools/car-key-quote
---

[Free tool · no account needed](https://lockcommand.com/tools)

# How to price car keys: a quote builder for locksmiths

Pick the key type and whether it's a spare or all keys lost, add the extras, and get a price range from your own numbers. It also lists what to ask the caller and writes the quote as a text.

## The job

Plain head with a chip the car must learn.

mi

## Quote range

Tell the caller

$243–$403

From the example prices. Put in your own below.

| Transponder (chip) key, all keys lost | $175–$275 |
| --- | --- |
| 1 extra key | $60–$120 |
| Travel, 4 mi past the first 10 | $8 |

- All keys lost on a chip key: confirm in your programming tool that you can add a key with none present before you give the price.

Text or email it to the caller

Car key quote: 2 chip keys, all keys lost. Estimated price $243–$403, travel included. The tech confirms the final price after checking the car. Please have the registration or title and a photo ID ready.

This is not a vehicle lookup. Check the key, blade and chip for this car in your programming tool or supplier catalog before you confirm the price.

## Ask the caller first

1. 1. What's the year, make and model? Key type, blade and chip depend on all three. Look them up in your programming tool or supplier catalog.
2. 2. Can you read me the VIN? It's on the dash at the windshield and on the driver's door jamb. It settles trim and build date, and some key codes need it.
3. 3. Is it push to start, or do you turn a key? Push to start means a smart or proximity key, the priciest kind.
4. 4. Do you have a working key, or are all keys lost? All keys lost usually means originating a key and more programming time.
5. 5. How many keys do you want? Extra keys made at the same visit cost you less time than a second trip.
6. 6. Can you show the registration or title and a photo ID with the same name? Proof of ownership before you cut or program anything.
7. 7. Where is the car, and is it locked? Address, parking garage or street, and whether you also need to open it.

## Your prices

Example values, not market rates

Basic mechanical key

$

Transponder (chip) key

$

Remote head key

$

Smart or proximity key

$

High-security or laser cut

$

Flip key

$

Add-ons

$

mi

$

Add your car key prices by make, model and year in LockCommand, and the AI receptionist quotes them to callers from your price book.

[Add car prices in LockCommand](https://app.lockcommand.com/sign-up?from=tool-car-key-quote)

## How to use it

Car key calls are where a quote goes wrong fastest. A caller says "just a key" and it turns out to be a push-to-start fob with every key lost. This tool keeps the quote tied to two facts you can get on the phone, the kind of key and whether a working key is on hand, and to your own prices for each.

### How to price car keys

Price from your costs and your time, not from a number you heard. A car key price has a few parts, and each one changes by key type and by whether a working key exists. Work out each part once, put the totals into the tool as your low and high prices, and every quote after that takes seconds.

| Part of the price | What to count |
| --- | --- |
| Blank, shell or fob | What you pay for it, plus the ones that fail to program or get returned. |
| Cutting | Machine time, and decoding or impressioning when no key is left to copy. |
| Programming | Your time on the car, plus what your tool costs per year or per make, and any per-car access fees. |
| Travel | Drive time and miles to the car, past what your price already covers. |
| After hours | What it takes for you or a tech to go out at night or on a weekend. |
| Risk | All keys lost jobs that take longer than planned, and cars your tool turns out not to cover. |

The low price is a straightforward job on a common car. The high price covers the slow ones. Keep the gap honest: a caller who hears $150 to $500 hears $150.

### Car key types, and how to tell them apart on the phone

| Key type | What the caller says | What the job involves |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Basic mechanical | Plain metal key, no plastic head, older car | Cut only. Nothing to program. |
| Transponder (chip) | Plastic head, no buttons | Cut, then program the chip to the car. |
| Remote head | Buttons on the key head | Cut, program the chip and the remote. |
| Flip key | The blade folds into the remote | Cut the blade, program the chip and the remote. |
| Smart or proximity | Push button start, the key stays in a pocket | Program the fob. Often an emergency blade to cut too. |
| High-security or laser cut | The cut runs down the middle or along the side of the blade | A milling machine, plus the chip. |

Spare or all keys lost matters as much as the type. With a working key you can usually copy it and add a key. With none, you originate a key from the code or the lock and add it with no key present, which takes longer and on some cars needs more equipment or online access.

### This is not a vehicle lookup

The tool doesn't know which key, blade or chip a 2017 Accord takes. That data is licensed and changes every model year. Look the car up in your programming tool or your supplier's catalog, then come back and pick the key type that matches. If your tool can't program that car, don't quote it.

### How to use it

1. Put your prices in under "Your prices". The tool opens with example numbers so it shows a result straight away. They are placeholders, not market rates, and the quote says so until you change one.
2. Ask the questions in the list. Year, make, model and VIN tell you the key. Push to start or turn key tells you if it's a smart key.
3. Pick the key type and the situation, then the extras: how many keys, extra remotes, after hours and the miles to the car.
4. Read the range to the caller, or copy the message and text it. Say the tech confirms the final price once they see the car.

### How the range adds up

The base price comes from your table for that key type and situation. Each key past the first adds your extra key price. Programming is added only if you charge it separately; leave it off when your key prices already include it. Remotes, after hours and travel add on top. Travel counts only the miles past your free miles, one way. On a push-to-start car the fob is the remote, so count extra fobs as extra keys.

### A worked example

With the example prices: a smart key, all keys lost, two keys wanted, one extra remote, after hours, 18 miles out with the first 10 free at $2 a mile.

| Line | Low | High |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Smart key, all keys lost | $300 | $500 |
| 1 extra key | $60 | $120 |
| 1 extra remote | $60 | $120 |
| After hours | $50 | $100 |
| Travel, 8 miles at $2 | $16 | $16 |
| Quote | $486 | $856 |

Swap in your own prices and the same job gives your real range. Keep them in one place with the [price book builder](https://lockcommand.com/tools/price-book-builder), so the phone and the van quote the same numbers. Trip fees by distance work better as zones: the [service area and trip fee tool](https://lockcommand.com/tools/service-area-zones) sets them up.

### Locksmith or dealer?

Callers often ask. A mobile locksmith comes to the car, which matters most when every key is lost and the car can't be driven. A dealer usually needs the car at the dealership. Tell the caller what your price includes (the key, programming and the trip) so they compare like with like.

### Before you cut or program anything

Ask for proof of ownership: the registration or title, and a photo ID with the same name. Some states set rules for locksmiths making car keys, so check yours, and keep a record of what you saw on every job. To get key codes and immobilizer data from many automakers you need a NASTF Vehicle Security Professional credential, which is only for businesses that serve the vehicle's registered owner. LockCommand saves [ID and proof of ownership photos](https://lockcommand.com/features/id-and-proof) on the job.

### Sources

Last checked October 2026.

- NASTF, [What is a NASTF Vehicle Security Professional?](https://support.nastf.org/support/solutions/articles/43000755446-what-is-a-nastf-vehicle-security-professional-) : the registry for locksmiths and technicians who program keys, order key codes or reset immobilizers, and who qualifies.

## Questions

### How much should a locksmith charge for a car key?

It depends on the key type, whether a working key exists, and your own costs for blanks, programming tools, time and travel. Work out a low and high price for each type and situation, and this tool adds up the job from them.

### Does this tool know which key my customer's car takes?

No. It isn't a vehicle lookup. Check the key, blade and chip in your programming tool or your supplier's catalog, then choose the matching key type here.

### Are the example prices what locksmiths charge?

No. They are placeholders so the tool shows a result when it opens. Replace them with your own prices before you quote anyone.

### Why does all keys lost cost more?

Without a working key you usually have to originate a key from the code or the lock and program it with no key present, which takes more time and sometimes more equipment.

### Should programming be a separate line?

That's your call. Many shops fold it into the key price. If you charge it separately, set a programming price and turn on the toggle for chip keys.

### Do I need NASTF to make car keys?

Not to cut a key from a working one. To order key codes, reset immobilizers or get security access from many automakers, you need a NASTF Vehicle Security Professional credential.

### Is anything I type saved?

No. Prices and quotes stay in your browser and are gone when you close the page.

## More for your shop

- [AI receptionist An AI that answers your calls in English or Spanish, quotes from your price book, books the job and transfers to your cell.](https://lockcommand.com/features/ai-receptionist)
- [Price book builder Build a locksmith price list with low and high prices, trip fee and after-hours surcharge, and print it.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/price-book-builder)
- [Phone script builder Questions to ask on every kind of locksmith call, in English and Spanish, with your greeting.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/phone-script-builder)
- [Lockout authorization form Make a printable lockout authorization form in English or Spanish, with ID, proof of ownership and signature lines, with your shop's details.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/lockout-authorization-form)
- [Service area and trip fee zones Set zones by miles from your base with a trip fee for each, and print a zone sheet.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/service-area-zones)
- [ID & proof ID and proof of ownership photos, a customer signature and before and after photos on every job.](https://lockcommand.com/features/id-and-proof)

## Let LockCommand do this on every job

The AI receptionist quotes from your price book, books the job and texts the customer. Create your account and set up your shop in a few minutes.

[Create your account](https://app.lockcommand.com/sign-up?from=tool-car-key-quote) [See pricing](https://lockcommand.com/pricing)

Already have an account? [Log in](https://app.lockcommand.com/sign-in). Questions first? Email  [support@lockcommand.com](mailto:support@lockcommand.com) .