How to Secure Your Home: The Complete Home Security Guide (2026)

Most home security advice is either a sales pitch for a monitoring contract or a list of fifty tips with no sense of what matters most. This guide takes a different approach. It uses the same layered method security professionals use to protect buildings, applied to an ordinary house or apartment, and it is built on what burglars themselves say deters them.

The short version: burglars want an easy, quiet, quick job. Every layer below makes your home slower, louder or riskier to break into, and a home that is all three gets skipped. You do not need to do everything at once. Start with the free habits and the cheap door fixes, then add detection, then protect what is inside.

Our top picks at a glance

Home burglary by the numbers

Burglary in the U.S. has fallen a long way over the past few decades, but it has not gone away. According to FBI data for 2024, there were 779,542 burglaries reported nationwide, and about half were residential. Residential burglaries in daytime outnumbered those at night, which surprises many people: an empty house during working hours is the classic target.

The most useful research on burglar decision-making comes from a University of North Carolina at Charlotte study that surveyed 422 incarcerated burglars in North Carolina, Kentucky and Ohio. Its key findings shape the rest of this guide:

• About 83% said they would try to find out whether a home had an alarm before breaking in.
• About 60% said an alarm would make them look for another target.
• If an alarm went off during a burglary, half said they would leave immediately and another 31% said they would sometimes leave.
• Outdoor cameras were seen as a deterrent by about half of the burglars.
• Most entered through open or forced doors and windows; only about one in eight picked locks or used a key.
• Many described their burglaries as spur of the moment rather than planned in advance.

Package theft is now far more common than burglary for most households. Security.org’s 2025 survey estimated that about one in four Americans has had a package stolen. And for overall safety, fire remains a bigger threat to life than burglary: the National Fire Protection Association has found that almost three in five home fire deaths happen in homes with no smoke alarms or with alarms that did not work.

The layered approach security professionals use

Professional security is built on four jobs, done in layers from the outside in: deter (make the target look like a bad choice), detect (know when something is happening), delay (make getting in slow) and respond (get help, or make the intruder leave). No single product does all four. A lock delays but does not detect. A camera detects and deters but does not delay. The goal is to cover all four, which is why the sections below move from the street to your bedroom closet.

Layer 1: The outside of your home

Burglars decide whether to try your home from the street. Your goal is to make it look occupied, visible and watched.

Make it visible

Trim shrubs and hedges below window height and keep trees from giving cover to doors and windows. A burglar wants to work where neighbours cannot see. Clear sight lines from the street and from the house next door are free security.

Light the approach

Motion-activated lights over the front door, back door, garage and any side gate remove the dark corners. In the UNC Charlotte survey, lighting ranked well below alarms and cameras as a deterrent, so think of it as a support layer: it makes cameras work better at night and makes anyone approaching more visible. Solar motion lights install in minutes with no wiring.

See current price →

Show that the home is protected

Alarm signs and window stickers, a visible doorbell camera and outdoor cameras all tell a burglar that this house is a risk. Since most burglars say they check for an alarm, make sure they can see yours.

Look occupied

Overflowing mailboxes, packages on the porch, bins left out for days and the same single light on around the clock all say “nobody is home”. Our vacation security checklist covers how to fake occupancy when you travel.

Secure what is outside

Lock side gates, sheds and outbuildings. Put ladders and tools away; they are how burglars reach upstairs windows and force doors.

Layer 2: Doors

Doors are the main way burglars get in, and most forced doors fail in a predictable place: not the lock itself, but the door frame where the bolt sits. Fix the frame and the lock, and you have dealt with the most common forced entry.

Use a real deadbolt on every exterior door

A spring latch in a door handle can be slipped or forced in seconds. Every exterior door, including the door from the garage into the house and any side or basement door, should have a deadbolt with at least a one-inch throw. Look for ANSI Grade 1 or a BHMA “A” security rating; these are the locks that passed the toughest strength tests.

Reinforce the strike plate

This is the most valuable cheap upgrade in home security. Replace the short screws in the deadbolt strike plate and the door hinges with 3-inch screws that reach the wall stud behind the frame, or fit a reinforced strike plate. It turns a door that pops open with one kick into one that takes real effort.

See current price →

Consider a smart lock

A good smart deadbolt is as strong as a good mechanical one, and it adds auto-lock, guest codes and alerts. It also removes the need for a hidden spare key, which burglars look for first. Our smart lock vs deadbolt guide compares them in detail.

See current price →

Do not forget the other doors

Back doors, basement doors and the door from the garage are often weaker and less watched than the front door. Give them the same deadbolt and strike plate treatment. Glass panels in or beside a door are a weakness if a burglar can break the glass and reach the thumb-turn; security film or a different lock position helps.

More detail: door and window security: how to stop break-ins.

Layer 3: Windows and sliding doors

Ground-floor windows and sliding patio doors are the second most common way in, especially at the back of the house.

• Lock every window, including small bathroom and basement windows. A surprising number of burglaries start with a window that was never latched.
• Add window locks or stops that let a window open a few inches for air but no further.
• Put a bar in sliding door tracks and stop the door from being lifted out with anti-lift screws. See our sliding glass door guide.
• Add stick-on alarms or alarm sensors to hidden ground-floor windows.
• Consider security film on glass that is hidden from view.
• Keep valuables out of sight of windows; do not give a burglar a shopping list.

See current price →

Layer 4: The garage

An open garage door is an open invitation, and an attached garage gives a burglar a private place to work on the door into your house. The biggest fixes: get alerts when the garage door is open, block the emergency release with a zip tie so it cannot be hooked from outside, lock the door from the garage into the house, and keep the opener remote out of cars parked in the driveway. Our garage security guide covers all ten fixes.

See current price →

Layer 5: Alarms and cameras

Locks delay; alarms and cameras detect, deter and help you respond. This is the layer the research supports most strongly.

An alarm system

Modern DIY alarm kits are wireless, take about an hour to install and run from your phone. Start with contact sensors on every exterior door, a motion sensor in the main hallway and sensors on hidden ground-floor windows. Self-monitoring is free with some systems; professional monitoring adds people who dispatch help, for a monthly fee. Our guide to home security systems with no monthly fee explains the trade-off.

See current price →

Cameras

Cover the front door, the back door or patio, and the driveway or garage. A video doorbell handles the front door and package deliveries. Choose cameras that record locally if you want to avoid subscriptions. Our home security camera guide compares the options.

See current price →

Make the alarm hard to defeat

Put the keypad where it cannot be seen from outside, secure the app with two-factor authentication, keep the base station away from the front door, and test the system monthly.

Layer 6: Inside the home

Assume that one day someone may get in, and make what they can take smaller. Burglars head first for the master bedroom, entryway drawers, the home office and the medicine cabinet. Keep passports, documents, spare cash and jewellery in a safe that is bolted down, or spread them across diversion safes in rooms burglars rarely search. Firearms always belong in a locked gun safe. See where burglars look first and our home safe guide.

See current price →

Make a home inventory: a walk-through video and photos of serial numbers and receipts, stored in the cloud. It speeds up police reports and insurance claims.

Layer 7: Habits

Most of the best security is free and depends on routine.

• Lock doors and windows every time, including when you are home and in the back garden.
• Never hide a spare key outside. Give one to a trusted neighbour or use a keypad lock.
• Do not leave car keys or the garage remote by the front door.
• Do not post that you are away until you are back.
• Bring packages in quickly; see our package theft guide.
• Break down boxes from expensive purchases before putting them out with the recycling.
• Get to know your neighbours. The presence of people nearby was one of the strongest deterrents in the burglar survey.
• Do not open the door to unexpected visitors you cannot verify; talk through a video doorbell instead.

Renting? Your version of this guide

Renters can do most of this without drilling. Ask the landlord to rekey the locks before you move in, use a door security bar or portable lock when you are home, put stick-on alarms on windows, and choose a wireless alarm kit and shelf cameras that move with you. Renters insurance covers what security cannot prevent. Our apartment security guide has the full renter version.

Home safety: fire, carbon monoxide and water

A complete home security plan protects against the things most likely to hurt you, and for most households fire, carbon monoxide and water damage are more likely than a burglary.

Smoke alarms

The National Fire Protection Association found that almost three in five home fire deaths happened in homes with no smoke alarms or with alarms that did not work, and that the risk of dying in a home fire was about half as high in homes with working smoke alarms. Install smoke alarms inside every bedroom, outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home, test them monthly and replace them when they reach the end of their life, usually about ten years. The date is printed on the back.

Carbon monoxide alarms

Carbon monoxide is invisible and odourless. Any home with a gas appliance, a fireplace or an attached garage needs CO alarms outside sleeping areas and on every level. Combination smoke and CO alarms cover both risks in one device and are among the best sellers in the category.

See current price →

Water leaks

A burst pipe or a failed water heater can cause thousands of dollars of damage in hours. Cheap leak sensors under sinks, behind the washing machine and next to the water heater send an alert to your phone, and many alarm systems can add them.

See current price →

A fire escape plan

Make sure everyone knows two ways out of every room, that sliding door bars and window locks can be opened quickly from inside, and where to meet outside. Security should never trap you in a fire.

Personal safety at home

Home invasions, where someone forces their way in while people are home, are much rarer than burglaries of empty homes, but they are the scenario people fear most. A few habits lower the risk:

• Do not open the door to people you are not expecting. Talk through a video doorbell or a closed door, and verify anyone claiming to be from a utility or delivery company by calling the company yourself.
• Keep doors locked even when you are home, especially the back door when you are in the front of the house.
• Have a plan: a room with a lockable door, a charged phone and a way to call for help.
• If you hear someone breaking in, get yourself and your family to safety and call 911. Property can be replaced.

For devices you can carry or keep at the bedside, see our personal safety devices guide.

Home security on a budget

You do not need to spend a lot. Here is how we would spend three different budgets on a typical home, starting with the fixes that stop the most break-ins per dollar:

Budget	What to buy	Why
Free	Lock everything, remove hidden keys, trim shrubs, stop posting when away, mail hold for trips	Removes the easy opportunities that most burglaries depend on.
Under $100	3-inch strike plate and hinge screws, sliding door bar, stick-on window alarms, two solar motion lights	Delays forced entry at doors and windows and lights the approach.
$100 to $300	Add a DIY alarm starter kit and one or two cameras	Detection and deterrence: the layer burglars say matters most.
$300 and up	Smart deadbolt, video doorbell, smart garage control, a bolted-down safe, leak sensors	Convenience, alerts, protection for valuables and wider safety.

Room-by-room home security checklist

Area	Check
Front door	Deadbolt (Grade 1 or BHMA A), 3-inch strike screws, video doorbell, light, no hidden key
Back and side doors	Deadbolt, reinforced strike, contact sensor, motion light
Sliding doors	Bar in the track, anti-lift screws, secondary lock, sensor
Windows	Locked, window stops on ground floor, sensors on hidden windows, valuables out of view
Garage	Door closed with alerts, emergency release blocked, inside door locked, remote out of the car
Outside	Shrubs trimmed, motion lights, cameras on entrances, gates and sheds locked, ladders put away
Inside	Alarm armed, safe bolted down, home inventory saved
Safety	Smoke and CO alarms tested, leak sensors, fire escape plan

DIY or professional installation?

Ten years ago, home security meant a technician, a drilled-in panel and a three-year contract. Today most people are better served by doing it themselves. DIY alarm kits, cameras and smart locks are designed for an afternoon install with a screwdriver and adhesive strips, and they cost far less up front. You own the equipment, you can take it with you when you move, and you choose whether to pay for monitoring.

Professional installation still makes sense in some situations. Large homes with many entry points, homes that need hard-wired cameras on high walls, and owners who want everything handled for them may prefer a professional company. If you go that way, read the contract carefully before you sign: check its length, what happens if you move, who owns the equipment, what the cancellation fee is, and whether the price rises after the first year. Ask whether the alarm uses cellular backup so it keeps working if the internet goes down, and get every promise in writing.

Whichever route you choose, the layers in this guide do not change. A professionally installed alarm on a door with a weak strike plate is still a weak door, and a DIY system that is never armed protects nothing. Start with the basics, then add the technology on top. If you are unsure where to begin, walk around your home with the checklist below and fix the first item you find.

Home security myths

• “Burglars strike at night.” FBI data shows more residential burglaries in daytime than at night, when homes are most likely to be empty.
• “A dog is all I need.” Dogs can deter, but they do not stop a determined intruder and are not home when you take them out. Treat a dog as one layer.
• “Fake cameras work just as well.” Cheap dummy cameras are often easy to spot, and they record nothing if they do not work.
• “Expensive locks solve everything.” A premium lock on a weak frame still fails. Reinforce the strike plate first.
• “My neighbourhood is safe.” Many burglaries are spur of the moment and happen wherever an easy opportunity appears.

Where to start this week

1. Walk around your home as a burglar would. Note unlocked windows, hidden doors, dark corners and hidden keys.
2. Fix the free items the same day.
3. Replace the strike plate screws on every exterior door.
4. Secure sliding doors and the garage.
5. Choose an alarm and cameras that fit your home and budget.
6. Test smoke and CO alarms and make a home inventory.

Keep reading

• How to secure a sliding glass door
• Apartment security for renters
• Smart lock vs deadbolt
• How to secure your garage door
• Home security while on vacation
• Home security systems with no monthly fee
• How to stop package theft
• Where burglars look first
• Best home security cameras
• Door and window security
• Best home safes
• Best personal safety devices

Sources

• UNC Charlotte — Through the eyes of a burglar (study of 422 incarcerated burglars)
• Blevins, Kuhns & Lee — Understanding Decisions to Burglarize from the Offender’s Perspective (UNC Charlotte, 2012)
• SafeHome.org — Burglary statistics (citing FBI 2024 Crime in the U.S., Tables 1 and 7)
• Security.org — 2025 Package Theft Report
• Safety+Health — NFPA report on smoke alarms in U.S. home fires
• PCWorld — ANSI and BHMA lock standards explained

Statistics verified October 2026. Amazon sales signals checked October 2026.

How we choose and check gear: see our Editorial Policy.