Ask a gate owner what they want from an app and the answers are simple. Open the gate from the house. Let the delivery driver in without walking down the drive. Know whether the gate is open or closed. Hand a code to a contractor and take it back when the job is done.
The three systems we install most often all do some version of that. They differ in what they need at the gate, how far they go beyond open and close, and what they add to the cost of the project.
LiftMaster myQ
myQ is LiftMaster's own connected technology, and it is built into virtually every LiftMaster gate operator. From the myQ app you can see whether the gate is open or closed and open or close it from anywhere. The app is free, with no subscription fee for basic control.
The operator needs a path to the internet to do this. Depending on the model and the site, that comes from Wi-Fi reaching the gate or a LiftMaster internet gateway installed with the operator. For most homes with a LiftMaster operator, myQ adds very little to the cost of the gate.
Ghost Controls app with MultiConnect
Ghost Controls builds solar-native operators, and its app runs through a MultiConnect module that is wired to the gate's control board. The module connects over Bluetooth when you are at the gate, or over Wi-Fi and the internet when you are not. That Bluetooth option matters on rural property where Wi-Fi does not reach the entrance.
The app shows the gate's status, shares custom access keys with family, friends and guests, schedules automatic open and close times, and has party and vacation modes. It also runs diagnostics that tell you why a gate is not working. Existing remotes and keypads keep working alongside it, and the module runs on a solar setup. Like myQ, it adds little to the cost of a Ghost Controls gate.
UniFi Access Gate Hub
UniFi Access is a different class of system. The Gate Hub from Ubiquiti controls one vehicle gate and one side door, supports up to 6,000 users, and works with UniFi Access readers and intercoms. It is managed in the UniFi Access app as part of Ubiquiti's wider UniFi platform.
It also asks more of the site. The hub is powered over the network (PoE++), it is an indoor device that needs a weatherproof enclosure at the gate, and the readers and intercoms are separate equipment. That makes it a fit for communities, commercial sites and estates that want the gate tied into a larger access system, and it carries a considerably larger budget than myQ or Ghost Controls.
How to choose
- You want to open the gate from your phone and share access with family: myQ on a LiftMaster operator, or the Ghost Controls app on a Ghost operator. Both add little to the cost.
- Your entrance is far from the house with no Wi-Fi: Ghost Controls, which can work over Bluetooth at the gate.
- You manage many users, a pedestrian door and readers or intercoms: UniFi Access, planned as part of a larger system.
The part every app depends on
Every one of these systems needs a reliable connection at the gate, whether that is a strong Wi-Fi signal, a Bluetooth link at the entrance or a network cable. The app is only as good as that connection. Statewide plans the connection with the gate, and runs fiber, cabling or point-to-point wireless with our own crew when the gate is a long way from the building.
Statewide is an authorized LiftMaster and Ghost Controls dealer and holds Oklahoma Access Control License AC441220. We set up the app, the access codes and the connection before we hand over the gate.
Tell us about your gate and how you want to open it. We send a straight written quote, typically within 24 hours of the site visit.