Best Business Security Systems

1. ADT - Best Commercial Grade Security

Editors Rating:

9.8 /10

855-908-4461

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How We Review

What better company to hire to protect your business than one that knows how to run a successful business, too? ADT has been in business for well over a century, and while it’s widely recognized as one of the best home security systems, it also offers a complete suite of security solutions for businesses large and small.

ADT takes a similar approach to business security as it does home security. It knows that no two businesses are exactly alike, and so it offers customized solutions tailored to every business’ needs.

ADT also knows that business owners have to worry about more than just physical security. That’s why it also offers cybersecurity solutions that can mitigate risks such as data breaches.

ADT offers almost anything a business needs to build a reliable security solution, including video surveillance, automated access control, establishment safety solutions, and even cybersecurity products. The final business security package, however, is fully customizable, so you can trim the fat or add on more services depending on your needs.

While that sounds a lot to handle, ADT keeps it simple by working closely with its business clients. You may even be able to access ADT’s customized security solutions through an app or software. While ADT’s business solutions won’t be as simple as its home security systems, ADT is known for making its products easily accessible, convenient to use, and intuitive.

ADT offers solutions for both small business and large commercial enterprises. Its small business security solutions resemble its home security systems with a few improvements like automated access control. On the other hand, ADT’s solutions for larger businesses are more comprehensive. Either way, ADT will tailor the solution to your unique business needs, which is why it’s the best business security solution overall.

ADT Alarm Pricing

ADT’s business security solutions work best when they’re tailored specifically for your business, and ADT is excellent at doing that. You’ll have access to a representative who will help you design a security system for your business.

For your reference, though, ADT’s pricing for home security systems is affordable, and you can expect its business security pricing to be the same. Home security from ADT starts at $29 per month over a 36-month term.

We can also tell you that ADT runs special deals often, and you should take full advantage of those to get discounts or free equipment. And since you’ll be dealing with a real person from ADT — not an automated bot like some alarm companies use — you can put your entrepreneurial skills to good use and negotiate or ask for ways to save money. All in all, ADT’s monitoring prices aren’t the lowest, but ADT is one of the best business security companies out there, so you get what you pay for.

ADT’s Customized Business Security

Let’s talk more about ADT’s customized business security solutions. ADT has been in the security business longer than any other company in the U.S., and with that comes experience and knowledge. It knows that each business needs a different security setup, so instead of letting customers just buy security systems, ADT helps each business customize its security systems.

If you go with ADT for your business security, a security expert will assess your business needs and design a setup for you specifically. You can make changes along the way, like adding or removing equipment as you see fit, but you’ll find the input from ADT’s security experts valuable, likely. In particular, we recommend ADT’s custom-fit business security solutions to larger businesses or enterprises, as the experience will be like having your own security advisors.

As mentioned earlier, ADT also offers security solutions for small businesses, but it may not be the most practical choice largely because of the cost. There are more affordable options (we’ll get to those below) that can also provide customizable security solutions. What’s great about ADT, though, is that consultation is free. So even if you’re not 100-percent sure that it’s the perfect fit for your small business, you can still consult ADT and ask for a quote.

2. SimpliSafe - Best for Self-monitored Business Security System

Editors Rating:

9.2 /10

800-544-5942

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How We Review

Some security systems are better suited for smaller businesses than large ones, and SimpliSafe is a shining example of this. SimpliSafe is actually a home security system, but with its available equipment, it’s more than capable of securing a small business, too. If you own a shop with two or fewer entry points, then SimpliSafe can definitely be your security solution.

What sets apart SimpliSafe as a business security solution is its easy DIY setup. You don’t get that from brands that cater mostly to large businesses. With SimpliSafe, you can customize your system components and install them yourself. You can even decide whether to enroll in professional monitoring or monitor the system yourself.

Installation is easy, too. It took us less than 30 minutes to install a SimpliSafe system for our home. It may take you a little longer depending on how much equipment you buy, but you definitely don’t have to close down for a day for the setup process.

Once it’s set up, you can even self-monitor SimpliSafe to avoid monthly fees. But of course, we suggest getting professional monitoring for true around-the-clock protection. If that’s out of budget, we recommend getting at least cloud storage for your SimpliSafe cameras so they can record events. Here’s SimpliSafe monthly pricing.

SimpliSafe offers all the necessary pieces of equipment to protect a store or small business. It has motion sensors and entry sensors that you can arm once you close shop for the day, glass break sensors so that you have 24/7 protection, and indoor and outdoor cameras for video surveillance. SimpliSafe also offers emergency buttons that you can press in the event of a robbery to trigger an alarm.

All those pieces of equipment connect to the base station wirelessly, and you only need Wi-Fi to receive alerts and stream video. Once the system is set up, you’ll use an app to fully monitor your SimpliSafe business security solution.

Another great thing about SimpliSafe is that you can fully customize your system. The entire buying process can be done online — convenient and easy. There are pre-customized packages you can buy right away, or you can build out your own security system. We recommend the latter, especially if you’re getting security cameras, but either way, you have full control over your purchase.

SimpliSafe Monitoring

While it’s certainly possible to use SimpliSafe without monthly fees by self-monitoring, we highly recommend going for a paid plan, particularly the $27.99 per month Interactive plan. That’s because with this plan, you’ll get free cloud storage for up to 10 cameras (more than enough to monitor a small office or shop), and you’ll get video verification, too.

Video verification is a trick-of-the-trade for alarm companies to speed up police response. Basically, the police typically respond to alerts faster when there’s a verifiable source that a crime is in progress as opposed to just alarms sent in by security systems, which could turn out to be false alarms. If you’re on the Interactive plan, SimpliSafe will access your cameras to verify alarms, and will relay the information accordingly to the authorities.

Plus, with the $27.99 a month plan, you can use Alexa or Google Assistant commands if your office has Alexa or Google Assistant smart speakers or displays. Here at our office, we have the Echo Show 8 we reviewed and the Nest Hub Max we tested, and we can tell you right now that SimpliSafe’s integrations with both assistants work.

SimpliSafe equipment costs are low, starting at just $229 for the cheapest starter kit, The Foundation. With the best online promotions, The Foundation includes the SimpliCam, an indoor security camera that responds to motion and has infrared night vision.

It also includes a SimpliSafe hub, a wireless keypad, an entry sensor, and an indoor motion detector. You can add more units a la carte or choose a bigger bundle like The Hearth, which also has a smoke detector and a freestanding siren. All in all, you can connect up to 41 sensors to the hub, just enough for a typical office.

Wireless vs Cellular Service

If you self-monitor SimpliSafe, either for free or with the camera recording plans, your system will rely on your business office’s Wi-Fi network. If that’s not an ideal setup for you, you can activate your system’s cellular service simply by getting professional monitoring. Adding cellular service, or cellular backup, improves your business’ security, as it lets your SimpliSafe system alert you and SimpliSafe’s monitoring center whether or not your internet is working.

To sum up, SimpliSafe systems are inexpensive but not built cheaply. They can guard your office against intrusions, provide environmental alerts, and implement basic smart features for your office.

3. Vivint - Best Smart Business Security

Editors Rating:

9.4 /10

844-922-0575

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How We Review

Vivint means business. A security solution from the company starts with a professional assessment from a security expert and culminates with professional installation — all white-glove service from start to finish.

Once the system is installed, you’ll have access to cutting edge technology in Vivint’s tablet-like control panel and mobile apps, plus around-the-clock professional monitoring.

Video surveillance is also an option, and an excellent one at that. Vivint’s outdoor camera, for example, uses AI to detect lurkers and sirens and lights to ward them off. If you have a parking lot or if nighttime break-ins are a main concern, those features will come in handy.

That being said, the high-quality Vivint cameras come with a premium price tag, with each unit costing up to $400. But if you ask us, Vivint’s cameras are a worthwhile investment. You’ll have to shell out more cash, but the value they provide to your security is priceless. Just to give you an idea, here’s Vivint’s pricing for its cameras.

Lastly, with Vivint’s vehicle security, you can protect your employees and cargo on-the-fly using a device that you simply plug into your vehicles.

When we tested, we looked at Vivint as a home security solution, but we also noticed its potential in business security. As with most security systems, it included professional monitoring, which ensures emergency response in times of distress. Vivint can dispatch police, firefighters, and paramedics, depending on the incident.

Moreso, Vivint’s equipment is top-of-the-line, which makes it ideal even for business security. Vivint’s cameras, in particular, are above industry standards in terms of specifications, video quality, and artificial intelligence, which includes person detection and the ability to detect lurkers.

Continuous Video Recording

Continuous video recording, or CVR, is an alternative to motion-triggered video clips. The option to use CVR gives Vivint an advantage over ADT and other close competitors. It’s useful for countless business reasons, from patrolling against shoplifters to ensuring that workers follow safety protocols.

There’s more than one option to activate CVR. One is a $249 Vivint Smart Drive, which is like a DVR, but it connects to the internet and can stream recordings to your phone anytime. One Smart Drive can store videos from up to four cameras for up to 30 days.

The other option is to use the built-in microSD card slot in Vivint’s newer cameras. While this is a practical option, given that microSD cards are cheaper compared than the Smart Drive, we recommend using a Smart Drive over this option as it’s easier to lose footage stored in a microSD card. For example, if trespassers smash your camera or steal the microSD card, you’d have no backup. At least with the Smart Drive, the storage device is separate, so you can keep it locked in a secure room.

As for camera options, these are Vivint’s indoor and outdoor solutions:

• Indoor Camera Camera: A 1080p HD indoor camera that plugs into power outlets. It can stream videos, detect motion, record event videos, or record continuously with the assistance of the Smart Drive.
• Outdoor Camera Pro: The Vivint Outdoor Camera Pro we reviewed is a $399 outdoor camera with AI features. It can detect and deter potential burglars, especially those who like to lurk around business establishments before attacking. It also has superb video thanks to its 4K HD image sensor with HDR.

Aside from streaming to mobile phones, these Vivint cameras can also stream to smart displays, like the Google Nest Hub we reviewed, different Echo Show models, Fire TV, or Chromecast. This is all thanks to Vivint’s integrations with Alexa and Google Assistant. So you see, Vivint is truly at the top of the game when it comes to its security cameras.

Vivint Pricing & Products

Pricing for Vivint’s business security involves a monthly monitoring fee and equipment purchase. You can pay the equipment fee upfront or avail of financing over the course of 60 months.

As for monitoring, Vivint doesn’t advertise its business security pricing, not unlike ADT. You’ll need to contact Vivint and request a quote after a free security assessment of your business. However, for your reference, Vivint home security monitoring costs $39.99 to $49.99 a month.

Vivint certainly isn’t the most affordable security system, whether for businesses or homes, but it’s worth its price thanks to the quality of Vivint’s equipment.

4. Frontpoint - Best for Small Business

Editors Rating:

8.9 /10

844-933-2405

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How We Review

Frontpoint is a favorite for protecting homes and small businesses with trustworthy security systems. The company has a reputation for friendly service, straightforward pricing, and dependable equipment. It can support business security, environmental monitoring, and building automation with Z-Wave hubs and professional monitoring. Each Frontpoint system uses cellular communication and can have Wi-Fi backup.

A big difference compared with ADT and Vivint is that you can install Frontpoint yourself. This is why we nominate it as the best small business security system, but not necessarily ideal if you’re surveilling a sprawling property. With DIY labor you can guard a small business with Frontpoint in an hour or less.

Professional monitoring is included with all new Frontpoint systems, and the commitment can be month-to-month if you pay the equipment fee upfront. If you choose to finance, contracts can be anywhere between 12 and 36 months, depending on your loan term. Since there’s only one monitoring plan, you get all premium features if you buy a Frontpoint system, including:

• Professional monitoring
• Smartphone alerts
• Remote control via app
• Home automation
• Video monitoring
• Cloud storage for security camera event clips

Pricing for Kits & Monitoring

Frontpoint lets you get business security without a credit check, as you own the equipment upfront.

The cheapest starter kit is just $99 with online discounts, but it normally retails for more than $300. You can add other equipment such as glass break sensors, pipe freeze sensors, indoor and outdoor security cameras, and smart bulbs a la carte… or else choose a bigger Frontpoint starter kit.

DIY installation is simple and tool-free with Frontpoint’s all-wireless security kits. If needed, Frontpoint customer service can help by phone. Equipment is either freestanding or uses removable adhesive strips so you can avoid drilling/cutting into walls.

Professional monitoring costs $49.99 per month, and since there’s only one plan, you get all the features Frontpoint has to offer, depending on your choice of equipment. One of the features that works great for businesses is Crash and Smash Protection; police will be dispatched even if criminals destroy security equipment! The $49.99 per month Frontpoint plan also includes video monitoring and smartphone remote control along with compatibility for Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa.

In a nutshell, Frontpoint features some of the best small business security systems that you can self-install and get expertly monitored.Everyday customer service is friendly and readily available. Emergency monitoring is high quality with cellular and Wi-Fi signaling both available, and with two monitoring centers for redundancy.

All systems carry a 30-day money-back guarantee. Frontpoint equipment is under warranty for up to three years.

5. Lorex - Best Security Cameras for Business

Editors Rating:

9.6 /10

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How We Review

Lorex Technology is a leading supplier of industrial-quality security cameras for indoor and outdoor use. Whether you’re guarding a small storefront or spacious warehouses and parking lots, this brand has high-performance options to fit your needs. You can buy Lorex cameras individually or in multi-packs of two to 32 units with free shipping, and prices range from moderate to above-average. You can choose cams with rare special features like 115-foot night vision, color night vision, and vandal-proof casings.

The cameras are sold for your business’s own installation and monitoring. The Lorex Secure mobile app can keep you connected with alerts, cloud recordings, and livestreams anytime. It also lets you group camera feeds onto one screen and save video to your phone. For higher definition viewing Lorex sells wide-screen video monitors too.

You can buy Lorex cameras individually or in multi-packs of two to 32 units with free shipping, and prices range from moderate to above-average. You can choose cams with rare special features like 115-foot night vision, color night vision, and vandal-proof casings. We discussed Lorex’s pricing here, so check it out if you want to learn more.

Lorex sells security cameras, but it will be up to you to deploy and install your cameras. The Lorex Secure mobile app can keep you connected with alerts, cloud recordings, and live streams in real time anytime. It also lets you group camera feeds onto one screen and save the video to your phone. For higher definition viewing, Lorex sells wide-screen video monitors, too, as well as a Lorex doorbell camera which we’ve tested.

Commercial-Grade Security Cameras

Compared with the companies above, Lorex stands out for its security camera variety. Its website makes it easy to sort by camera styles with different power sources and output options. The main Lorex categories to search are wireless, digital IP, analog IP, and wire-free. There are also hybrid solutions (i.e. systems with digital IP and Wi-Fi cameras mixed together) under the Fusion line.

For businesses, we recommend a digital IP setup with an internet-connected NVR (a recording storage device) and a mix of indoor and outdoor cameras. With such, you’ll be able to enjoy 24/7 continuous recording, plus, most Lorex NVRs have expandable storage. You can add up to three hard drives each up to 1 TB to quickly expand the NVR’s storage space.

Hardiness helps make Lorex cameras qualify as industrial quality. Many models are vandal-proof; their casings are virtually indestructible. Furthermore, Lorex outdoor cameras have weatherproof ratings of IP66 to withstand extreme temperatures as well as serious precipitation. For comparison, the typical outdoor security camera has an IP65 rating, which means it’s water-resistant and dustproof.

Ultra-HD resolution is available, and you can even get cameras with color night vision. Competing companies above provide crisp black and white night vision only, and color only by day. Some other special features are two-way voice, motion zones, and built-in sirens.

Lorex Video Storage

Depending on the type of your cameras, you can either store footage locally onto a micro-SD card, NVR, or DVR. Local storage makes sense if you want easy access to your videos. If you have an NVR or DVR, you can review footage right away just by plugging a monitor into your recorder. If your cameras store videos on micro-SD cards, you can simply pop the micro-SD cards onto your computer.

Another option is to store videos in Lorex’s cloud. For free, most Lorex cameras capable of cloud recording get two days of cloud storage with up to 10 GB of storage space. If you need more storage, you can pay $6.99 a month to expand the storage to 30 days.

Although more expensive than local storage, cloud storage offers off-site video storage. That means if anything happens to your NVR, DVR, or cameras, you have backup videos in the cloud.

In conclusion, Lorex is focused on high-quality video surveillance. You can buy its cameras individually and monitor one or more with the Lorex Secure app. Typically though, Lorex customers are bigger businesses with lots of territories to guard. It’s most common to connect Lorex cameras to widescreen monitors.

Lorex cameras have free shipping and a 60-day return policy.

6. Cove

Editors Rating:

8.7 /10

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How We Review

Cove takes a DIY approach in business security, making Cove a better fit for small businesses than large ones. Nonetheless, you get professional monitoring from Cove, so you can rest assured knowing that an entire team out there is watching over your business security.

Cove systems start with a touchscreen, tablet-like control panel that wirelessly connects with and controls the system components. This touchscreen panel has 24-hour battery backup, which combined with Cove’s monitoring through cellular signals instead of Wi-Fi or landline, allows for professional monitoring to continue even when there’s a power outage. That is a critical feature for business security systems as you’d never want your business to be left unprotected even for just a few hours.

Cove Security System Equipment

Standing behind the touchscreen panel is a solid supporting cast of system peripherals, mostly sensors and cameras. Among the sensors sold by Cove, we think the glass break sensors make the biggest impact. Glass break sensors are noise sensors fine-tuned to listen for the sound of breaking glass. If your shop has large glass windows, placing glass break sensors strategically would help you monitor multiple points of break-in.

Aside from the glass break sensor, the usual motion sensors and entry sensors could help you detect break-ins that happen after office hours, as these sensors are built to detect the presence of people when there shouldn’t be anyone around. Placing entry sensors on your main and back entrances and motion sensors in offices or near safes and cash boxes ensures that you’ll be informed in case of a break in at night.

Affordable DIY Security System

Since Cove is a DIY system, it’s scalable in terms of size and equipment. But if you want your security system setup tailored to your business security needs, you’ll have to buy all the pieces of equipment you need from Cove. That also means you’ll probably have to spend more in equipment fees for your business security than you would for your home security.

Here’s the good news: Cove is affordable. We’ve seen entry sensors go for as low as $7.50 apiece, motion sensors for $15, and glass break sensors for less than $20. In fact, except for the cameras and the touchscreen panel, Cove’s equipment prices do not exceed $30 per piece. On top of that, professional monitoring with remote access via a smartphone app costs only $27.99 per month, which is much lower than most traditional business security systems we’ve looked into. And since it’s a DIY system, there are no installation or activation fees.

Now, Cove isn’t a perfect system for businesses. We do wish it offered a wider range of surveillance cameras. But overall, it’s a pretty solid pick.