What is the Best Locksmith Course for a Beginner?

We often get asked what the best locksmith course for a beginner is, especially for anyone completely new to locksmithing with no knowledge of the industry.

To help we have compiled a list of the best beginners locksmith courses aimed at anyone looking to become a locksmith, from the best course to fit locks to the best key cutting course.

Before you decide on taking a locksmith course we always recommend deciding on what type of locksmith services you plan to offer as a business.

Try to specialise in something that will set you apart from other local locksmiths such as getting good at NDE (non-destructive entry) or opening jammed upvc mechanisms.

1. Best Locksmith Course to Open Door Locks

If you want to specialize in opening door & window locks when customers are locked out of their home we would recommend a course that teaches you the following:

Recommended Skills To Learn

• Lock Identification
• Lever lock picking & decoding
• Cylinder lock picking
• Opening techniques such as bumping, slipping, snapping, letterbox tool
• Minimum damage when having to open destructively (e.g. lock has failed)

2. Best uPVC Locksmith Course for Beginners

To get into working with upvc locks by offering uPVC lock repairs & upgrades as a service to your business there are specific topics you will need to learn.

uPVC locks are a specialist area of locksmithing that requires specific training.

Recommended Skills To Learn

• How to Identify Multipoint locks
• Opening failed uPVC mechanisms – a common call out for locksmiths
• How to replace uPVC gearboxes – failed gearboxes is a common fault of upvc locks
• Upgrading uPVC locks
• Door adjustments & alignment (including Toe & Heeling)
• UPVC door hardware

3. Best Key Cutting Course for Beginners

Learning how to cut keys is one of the most important skills a locksmith can learn and a very popular service requested by customers.

We recommend undertaking a course that teaches how to cut keys by machine and also gives the skills to allow you to cut keys by hand, this will enable you to provide a key cutting service.

Recommended Skills To Learn

• Learning how to cut keys by machine
• Setting up key cutting machines
• Cutting cylinder and mortice keys by machine
• Identifying cylinder & mortice key blanks
• Key cutting by hand
• Key cutting by code

4. Best Beginners Course to Fit Locks

Learning how to fit locks can be one of the biggest income earners for a locksmith is a common call outs for a locksmith.

As a locksmith you will need to know how to fit locks correctly though, including knowing what standard of lock to fit.

Recommended Skills To Learn

• Learning what locksmith tools are required to fit locks
• Fitting the correct standard of lock – important for Insurance purposes
• Fitting Night latches
• Fitting Mortice Locks
• Upgrade lever mortice locks to cylinder operated mortice locks
• Fitting additional security devices such as door chains, letter plates, window locks, Birmingham bars etc… )

5. Best Beginners Auto Locksmith Course

Important Note: Auto locksmithing is a very specialist area of locksmithing, some auto locksmith courses can last 10 days and the startup costs to become an auto locksmith can be significant especially if you want to program and replace lost car keys.

Some auto locksmiths can carry over £100K worth of programming equipment in their van.

1 Day Courses are a Great Starter

To learn how to open locked vehicles we run a 1-day auto course perfect for beginners or existing locksmiths who want to learn how to open vehicle locks.

A day one course could be your first step into auto locksmithing without the need to outlay thousands of pounds on equipment.

Recommended Skills To Learn

• How to open vehicles non-destructively (NDE)
• Mastering Lishi Pick tools – lishi picks are heavily used in the auto industry.
• Opening popular VW Group vehicle locks
• Opening popular Ford vehicle locks
• Learn to decode as well as pick locks

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do your beginners courses cost?

Our beginners locksmith courses start from £620 (Member rate) / £685 (Non-Member rate) for our 2-day foundation module, which is the perfect starting point for anyone new to locksmithing.

Non-members are required to take the Foundation module before taking any of the optional modules.

When are your next Beginners courses?

We run our courses every month, to see the dates of our upcoming beginners courses please see our course calendar here.

Can I start trading as a locksmith after a course?

Our courses will equip you to either seek employment as a trainee locksmith or even set up your own business.

For advice on starting up as a locksmith see our locksmith career guide page.