Brivo describes itself through security: the Brivo Security Suite spans cloud access control, video surveillance through Eagle Eye, visitor management, intrusion detection, and 24/7 monitoring, sold across sixteen industries including retail, restaurants, cannabis, banks, and warehouses. Multifamily is one industry page on that list, and Brivo's multifamily pitch centers on whole-community protection, audit-ready event history, and portfolio oversight.
Gatewise describes itself through access. It is a smart access platform built for multifamily communities and the environments that operate like them: student housing, self-storage, mixed-use, and senior communities. One resident app, one Management Portal, one credential across every gate, amenity door, and unit lock, trusted across 500,000+ units, with 9 of the top 50 US apartment management companies as customers. Gatewise has been an Allegion company since July 2025.
That origin difference shapes everything below.
Operators searching for an all-in-one apartment access control system usually mean one thing: a single platform covering the vehicle gate, the pedestrian entries, the amenities, and the apartment door, with one credential and one dashboard. Both vendors now claim that coverage. How they deliver it differs.
Brivo's path runs through panels and partners. Brivo's multifamily page states that unit doors connect through supported integrations with lock providers such as Schlage and dormakaba, and that centralized management of wireless door locks is enabled when the locks are connected to Brivo Control Panels. Brivo Smart Home, its unit-level smart living layer, is offered where available. The result can be a capable stack, and it is also a stack: access software from Brivo, lock hardware from a partner, control panels and readers installed and supported through a dealer channel, with network infrastructure to tie it together.
Gatewise's path is one platform. Cellular-first hardware at every access point, so no internet line runs to any gate or door. Unit Locks in the Complete plan, managed in the same portal with the same PMS-synced credential lifecycle as the perimeter gate. Guest Access for visitors, Wallet Access for tap-to-enter, and Self-Guided Tours for leasing, all in one product family with one vendor accountable for the outcome.
For a garden-style community with gates scattered across the footprint, or a portfolio standardizing on one access experience, that architecture difference shows up in the quote, the install, and every support call afterward.
Brivo's model is panel-based: readers and locks connect to Brivo Control Panels, which connect to the cloud. That is familiar territory for commercial buildings with network closets and IT support. On a sprawling multifamily property, it means planning network and panel infrastructure for every zone you want covered.
Gatewise hardware operates over cellular networks independently of property internet, with power backup built in, so gates and doors stay operational when building internet or power does not. Deployment works with the gate operators and doors already on site: short deployment time, zero disruption. Brivo's own multifamily FAQ notes that deployment timelines depend on property size, infrastructure, and scope, and recommends phased rollouts starting with priority entrances.
Both platforms treat PMS sync as core. Brivo lists resident data sync with Yardi, RealPage, RentManager, and Entrata, with move-outs automatically revoking credentials where bi-directional sync is supported. Gatewise integrates with Yardi, RealPage, Entrata, and ResMan, provisioning and revoking automatically on lease activity. If your portfolio runs on ResMan, that difference decides the evaluation before it starts. Either way, ask both vendors to demonstrate a live move-out from lease record to revoked credential.
Brivo handles visitor flows through visitor management, PIN credentials, and vehicle entry automation with license plate recognition, including one-time PINs for delivery carriers.
Gatewise handles them resident-first. Guest Access replaces the physical call box with a QR scan plus two-way video from the visitor's own phone, and Visitor Keys expire automatically, so no shared code outlives its purpose. Residents grant entry from anywhere; the community team sees every entry logged in real time.
Brivo's mobile credential is part of a security platform that also serves office workers, gym members, and retail staff. Gatewise's app exists for one person: the resident. One app opens the vehicle gate, the pool, the package room, and the front door, sends a Visitor Key, and answers a Guest Access video call. In a category where the resident experience drives satisfaction scores and renewals, that focus is measurable: independent Grace Hill / Kingsley Index research across 649 properties from 2023 to 2025 found a 20 percent rise in resident satisfaction with controlled access at Gatewise communities, versus 7 percent at non-Gatewise communities in the same markets, and a 16.5 percent stronger link between access control and resident retention intent.
Brivo sells and supports through a certified partner and reseller channel, a standard model in commercial security. Gatewise includes three layers of customer success in every plan: direct support for residents in the app, 24/7 support for management teams, and onsite hardware support, with the Gatewise implementation team running onboarding end to end. When an access issue surfaces at a community, the question of who picks up the phone is not theoretical.
An honest comparison names them. Brivo brings enterprise-grade video surveillance through Eagle Eye, AI video analytics, license plate recognition at vehicle entries, intrusion detection, optional 24/7 monitoring, and compliance certifications including SOC 2 Type II and ISO/IEC 27001. A mixed portfolio that is primarily commercial, an operator who wants cameras, alarms, and access from one security vendor, or an IT organization standardizing on a certified security suite will find real substance there.
Gatewise's largest published deployment is Indus Property Management, running 38 communities and 10,800 units on a single platform. At the community level, Camelback Cove Apartments in Phoenix reports 25+ staff hours saved every month after consolidating onto Gatewise.
Choose Brivo if you are buying a security suite: video, intrusion, monitoring, and access together, with commercial properties in the mix and IT resources to run a panel-based deployment.
Choose Gatewise if you are buying an all-in-one access platform for communities: gates, amenities, guests, tours, and unit doors on one native platform, cellular-first so remote gates are as easy as the lobby door, with a resident app your residents actually enjoy and customer success included rather than channeled.
Start with what you are actually buying. If the answer is "one access experience from the gate to every front door," request a demo and bring your site map.
Brivo serves multifamily as one of many industries on a commercial security platform that also covers retail, warehousing, banks, and offices. Gatewise is purpose-built for multifamily communities and the environments that operate like them, which shapes everything from the resident app to PMS integration depth.
Yes, differently. Brivo connects unit doors through integrations with lock providers such as Schlage and dormakaba, with centralized management enabled through Brivo Control Panels. Gatewise offers Unit Locks natively in its Complete plan, managed in the same portal and credential lifecycle as every gate and amenity door.
Brivo's architecture is panel-based: locks and readers gain centralized management when connected to Brivo Control Panels, which means on-site network and panel infrastructure. Gatewise hardware is cellular-first, so no internet or phone line runs to any access point, and power backup is built in.
Gatewise integrates with Yardi, RealPage, Entrata, and ResMan. Brivo lists Yardi, RealPage, RentManager, and Entrata. If your portfolio runs on ResMan, confirm support before shortlisting any vendor.
One platform covering vehicle gates, pedestrian entries, amenity doors, visitor entry, and apartment unit doors, with one resident credential, one management dashboard, and credentials that provision and revoke automatically from the property management system.
Both platforms support operator security policies with authorized access, real-time logs, and instant revocation. Brivo additionally holds enterprise certifications such as SOC 2 Type II and ISO/IEC 27001 and offers video surveillance and monitoring. Evaluate against your compliance requirements; neither platform should be treated as a guarantee of security outcomes.
Gatewise offers a simple and modern gate entry system that provides residents with a mobile app and managers with a cloud-based management portal.
