Keyed alike padlock buying guide
Updated: October 2026
You are about to buy one key for a shed, a side gate and a toolbox, and the bullet says the locks match. This keyed alike padlock buying guide is the short list of facts that have to be true before the price is worth comparing. A shared key is a convenience. It is not a grade, and it is not a promise that the next carton will match. The packs, and what their listings actually print, are on the [padlocks keyed alike comparison](/hub/door-and-window-security/padlocks-keyed-alike). A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
You are about to buy one key for a shed, a side gate and a toolbox, and the bullet says the locks match.
You are about to buy one key for a shed, a side gate and a toolbox, and the bullet says the locks match. This keyed alike padlock buying guide is the short list of facts that have to be true before the price is worth comparing. A shared key is a convenience. It is not a grade, and it is not a promise that the next carton will match. The packs, and what their listings actually print, are on the padlocks keyed alike comparison. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Shackle as printed | Keyed-alike scope | Security mark | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  ABUS ABUS 64TI/40 4-pack | 6.5 mm, 23 mm clear, 22 mm wide | The four locks in this pack | ABUS level 5, not a CEN grade | 9.4 | about £31.01 | View offer |
 KAWAHA KAWAHA 41/50 stainless pair | Shrouded, 50 mm; diameter not stated | This pair only | None printed | 9.0 | about £27.99 | View offer | |
| Best value |  SEPOX SEPOX long-shackle 4-pack | Title says 58 mm; diameter not stated | Four padlocks, same key | None printed | 8.8 | about £18.96 | View offer |
On this page
What keyed alike actually promises
Keyed alike means the locks in that suite open with the same key. Keyed to differ means each lock has its own key. A master-key system is a third thing: a hierarchy, with a master that opens several different keys. These Amazon multi-packs are not that. They are several padlocks pinned, or claimed to be pinned, to one key. Locks Direct, in their keyed-alike explainer, make the point that matters: the CEN grade of the lock does not drop because the keys match. Sharing the key does not make the shackle thinner. It does make every hasp in the suite one lost key.
If the key is copied, or left in a coat that goes missing, every lock in the suite opens. Admiral's shed page, as an example of one insurer rather than a rule for every policy, says a theft claim may need proof of forced entry. A copied key does not look like a forced entry. The AA's shed wording asks for the shed to be locked and for a decent padlock on a hasp. Read your schedule before you treat any of these packs as enough. Do not leave spare keys in the shed.
This carton, or a key number you can reorder
Some makers sell a key number you can order again, such as an ABUS suite code. A bullet that says keyed alike within this set only is a different product. The KAWAHA 81/40 four-pack in this comparison prints that limit: other sets are not mutually unlocked. If you buy four locks now and a fifth hasp appears next spring, that fifth lock will not match unless the listing gave you a number you can reorder. Count the gates, the shed and the locker before you choose a three-pack or a four-pack.
The other failure is a carton that is not one suite at all. You see it when three locks turn and the fourth does not. That has shown up in United Kingdom reviews of covered multi-packs and of a discus six-pack in this comparison. Five spare keys for one lock are not keyed alike either. They are spares. If you cannot reorder the suite, buy the right count now, and try every key before you throw the packaging away.
Shackle, hasp and the three sizes
Body width is what the photo shows. The hasp cares about three other numbers: shackle diameter, clear height and clear width. Diameter is the thickness of the metal that has to pass through the staple. Clear height is how much of the bow stands above the body when the lock is open. Clear width is the gap across the bow. A 40 mm body with a short bow will not close on a thick gate bolt, and a long bow that does close leaves more of the shackle outside the staple for a cutter.
Locks Direct publish a shop guide that maps shackle diameter to a hasp class: up to 8 mm, then 10–13 mm, then 14 mm and above. Treat that as their guide, not as a British Standard. The only pack in this comparison that prints all three shackle figures is the ABUS 64TI/40, the top pick: 6.5 mm, 23 mm clear height, 22 mm clear width. Others state a body size, or a title length such as 58 mm on the SEPOX long-shackle four-pack, and leave the diameter out. Measure the staple before you trust a thumbnail. A longer shackle is a fit choice and an exposure. Fit is not a grade.
CEN, Sold Secure and a maker's own number
BS EN 12320:2021 grades padlock security from 1 to 6 and also scores corrosion and durability. ABUS's own explainer of CEN grades makes the buyer's point in plain language: if one required criterion fails, the lock does not keep the higher grade. You need the digit, if it is printed.
Sold Secure's 2025 catalogue maps padlock Bronze, Silver, Gold and Diamond to CEN 3, 4, 5 and 6. That is a trade approval scheme sitting on the European grades, not a second private scale with the same words. ABUS security levels run from 1 to 10 in the ABUS UK catalogue. Security level 5 on an ABUS listing is that maker's number. It is not CEN grade 5. None of the eight listings in this comparison print a CEN grade or a Sold Secure mark. If your policy, or the bike and the tools in the shed, need a named mark, this is the wrong shop until a listing shows it. Security Guides' rule of thumb for graded shed locks, about £20–£35 at CEN 3 or Silver and about £35–£70 at CEN 4 or Gold, is from that article. It is not a price for these ungraded packs.
The check on delivery
Open every lock with every key before you fit a hasp. A four-pack that is really two pairs will still look like a bargain on the doorstep. If the rubber cover or the shrink tube will not pass the bolt, that is a fit failure. Keep the keys that work somewhere that is not the shed. You cannot add a matching lock later unless a key number was printed. Fitting the hasp so the lock is not the only honest part of the door is on how to fit a padlock on a shed. If the stile is rotten, if the locks must match a house cylinder, or if the insurer has named a grade you cannot see on the listing, stop and speak to a locksmith. Most of these packs are not rekeyable. Peter F. checked the amazon.co.uk listings in this comparison. There is no laboratory test.
Common questions
What does keyed alike mean on a padlock?
It means the locks sold as that suite open with the same key. It does not mean every padlock of that brand, and it does not mean the next packet you buy. Keyed to differ is the opposite: one key per lock. A master key is a separate system, and these multi-packs are not one.
Does one shared key make the lock weaker?
No. Locks Direct note that the grade does not change because the keys match. The lock is only as strong as its shackle, its body and its fixing. The new weakness is practical. One lost or copied key opens every hasp in the suite, and a copy may not look like a break-in.
Can I add another lock to the same key next year?
Only if the listing prints a key number you can reorder. A line that says keyed alike within this set only, which the KAWAHA 81/40 four-pack prints, means a later carton will not match. Buy the count you need now.
What is a CEN grade, in one paragraph?
BS EN 12320:2021 grades padlocks from 1 to 6 and also covers corrosion and durability. The grade is the digit a listing or a certificate prints after the tests. If the product page never states a grade, you do not have one. Sold Secure Bronze, Silver, Gold and Diamond map, in their 2025 catalogue, to CEN 3, 4, 5 and 6.
Is ABUS security level 5 the same as CEN 5?
No. ABUS security levels run from 1 to 10 on the maker's own scale. CEN grades run from 1 to 6 under BS EN 12320. The same numeral is not the same test. The 64TI/40 listing in this comparison prints level 5 and an average-risk description. It does not print a CEN grade.
When is this Amazon set the wrong shop?
When you need a printed CEN grade or a Sold Secure mark, when you must add locks to an existing key number, or when the padlocks have to match a house cylinder. The packs here are ungraded convenience sets. A locksmith is the right call for a suite that has to meet a named grade.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources for padlock grades and shed security, plus the amazon.co.uk listings in this set. Last checked 21 October 2026.
- BSI, BS EN 12320:2021, padlocks and padlock fittings (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Sold Secure approved product catalogue 2025 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- ProtectUK, fences and gates (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- ProtectUK, home security advice (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- ABUS UK padlock catalogue (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Locks Direct, keyed alike padlocks explained (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- The AA, sheds, granny flats and outbuildings (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Admiral, shed insurance and keeping a shed safe (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Security Guides, which padlock for a shed (retrieved 21 October 2026)