The Data
Nuki scores 4.3 out of 5 for installation ease, with 87% of 3,200 reviewers rating the experience positively. That's a strong result — second only to Tedee's 4.4 out of 5 with 89% positive from 1,400 reviews.
Yale comes in at 3.7 out of 5 with just 62% positive across 2,800 reviews. LOQED trails at 3.4 out of 5 with 54% positive from 720 reviews. The gap between the top two (Nuki and Tedee) and the bottom two (Yale and LOQED) is significant — we're talking a 25-33 percentage point difference in positive installation experiences.
These numbers are aggregated from Amazon, Trustpilot, Google Reviews, and the Apple and Google app stores. We filtered specifically for reviews that mention installation, setup, or mounting to ensure the data reflects actual installation sentiment rather than general product satisfaction.
What Users Love
The most frequently praised aspect is the no-drilling installation. Nuki mounts on the inside of your door over the existing euro-cylinder, held in place by an adhesive mounting plate or a screw adapter. Roughly 73% of positive installation reviews specifically mention this as the deciding factor.
The 15-minute install time is the second most cited positive. Users consistently report that from opening the box to having a working smart lock, the entire process takes between 10 and 20 minutes. The Nuki app walks you through each step with visual guides, and the calibration process — where the lock learns your door's turning range — is largely automated.
The euro-cylinder standard compatibility is another win for European users. Because Nuki sits on top of the existing lock mechanism, there's no need to replace anything. Your existing key still works from the outside, which means zero commitment — if you move out or change your mind, remove the Nuki and your door is exactly as it was before.
Common Complaints
Not everything is seamless. The most frequent complaint — appearing in roughly 8% of installation reviews — involves door thickness measurement confusion. Nuki needs to accommodate different door thicknesses, and some users struggle with measuring the exact distance between the cylinder and the door surface. The measurement guide in the app helps, but users with non-standard rosettes or thick decorative escutcheons sometimes need to troubleshoot.
Thick rosettes are the second most common issue. If your existing euro-cylinder has a wide rosette (the decorative plate around the keyhole), the Nuki's mounting bracket may not sit flush. Nuki sells a thicker adhesive pad for this, but it's not immediately obvious to new users that they might need it.
Finally, about 5% of users report that the first calibration attempt doesn't succeed. The lock needs to learn the exact turning range of your cylinder, and if the door isn't fully closed or the cylinder has resistance at certain angles, it can take two or three attempts. Once calibrated, though, this is a one-time issue.
Nuki vs Competitors
Tedee edges out Nuki by a slim margin: 4.4 vs 4.3, 89% vs 87%. Why? Tedee is a physically smaller and simpler device with fewer parts. There's no adhesive mounting plate decision to make — it only uses a screw adapter. The trade-off is that Tedee requires you to replace your cylinder with a Tedee-specific one, which technically makes installation more invasive even though the lock attachment itself is simpler.
Yale's 3.7 and 62% positive rate reflects a fundamentally different installation model. Most Yale smart locks require you to replace the entire lock mechanism, which involves removing the old hardware, fitting a new strike plate, and sometimes adjusting the door frame. That's a different category of effort.
LOQED at 3.4 with only 54% positive is the outlier. LOQED Touch requires professional installation for most users — it replaces the cylinder and involves a more complex multi-point locking integration. The product itself is excellent, but the installation barrier is real.
Real-World Takeaway
If you have a standard euro-cylinder door — and roughly 80% of European front doors do — Nuki installation is genuinely easy. The 87% positive rate across 3,200 reviews isn't marketing spin; it reflects a product that most people can install themselves in under 20 minutes without tools.
The small group who struggle almost always fall into one of three categories: non-standard rosettes, unusual door thicknesses, or multi-point locking systems. If you're unsure, Nuki's compatibility checker on their website takes 30 seconds and will tell you definitively whether your door works.
The fact that Tedee scores marginally higher shouldn't discourage you. Tedee's simpler device comes at the cost of requiring a proprietary cylinder, meaning you lose the ability to use a regular key from outside. Nuki's approach — mounting over your existing lock — preserves your current setup entirely. For most people, that flexibility is worth the 2% gap in installation satisfaction.