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MACS Rules for Branded Locks

Learn more about MACS values for branded locks to ensure your keys are correct every time.

Dustin Wagner avatar
Written by Dustin Wagner
Updated over 2 months ago

Review this chart to ensure you understand the limits when ordering cut or duplicated keys. When calculating the difference between cuts, take 2 cut values and subtract them from each other. If the answer is below the MACS Value, that code will work, if the answer is above the MACS Value, the code will not work.

You can always reach out to us to ensure the the code will work or not!

Lock Brand

MACS Value

Number of Pin Positions

Common Keying Depths

Notes

Kwikset

4

5

0–6

One of the highest MACS; watch for cut 1 next to 4.

Schlage

7

5 or 6

0–9

Uses 10 depths; cut 0 next to 7+ can be problematic.

Yale

5

5 or 6

1–9

Lower MACS requires more careful progression.

Sargent

7

6 or 7

1–10

Common in institutional settings.

Corbin Russwin

8

6 or 7

0–9

Watch for wear in high-use locks with low MACS.

Best (SFIC)

9

6 or 7

0–9

Interchangeable core systems.

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