Compare / GateStride vs SwiftConnect

A SwiftConnect alternative that keeps door control inside your building

By Tom Jin · Reviewed October 2026

SwiftConnect and GateStride have something unusual in common: neither asks you to rip out the access control you already own. Both add to it. The difference is where the added layer lives. SwiftConnect runs it as a cloud platform; GateStride runs it entirely on your premises. This page sets out what each does, where SwiftConnect is stronger, and why we chose to keep door control off the internet. Everything we say about SwiftConnect comes from its own site, its partners’ pages or trade press, linked below.

What SwiftConnect is, and what it does well

SwiftConnect describes itself as “the Connected Access Network for places and spaces” that will “unify identity, credentials, and infrastructure into one secure, flexible platform” (source). Its product, AccessCloud, sits between the access control systems a company already runs, the credential providers, identity systems and workplace apps, and automates issuing and revoking badges across them. Trade press calls AccessCloud “the integration backbone between mobile app, credential technologies, access control systems and other business systems” (source). It does a lot well:

• Badges in phone wallets. SwiftConnect says employees can “instantly add mobile credentials to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet” (source). With Wavelynx it announced what it called the first corporate badge in Google Wallet and Company ID in Samsung Wallet in corporate real estate, at Stream Realty Partners’ RiverSouth in Austin (source).
• No rip-and-replace. In its own words it connects existing platforms “without rip-and-replace” (source).
• Certified with major enterprise systems. LenelS2 lists SwiftConnect’s SwiftAccess as an OpenAccess Alliance partner certified for OnGuard 8.1, 8.2 and 8.3; it needs an OnGuard API licence (source). Genetec lists “Access Cloud by SwiftConnect” as a certified integration that synchronizes cardholders and credentials with Genetec access control (source). It brought Apple Wallet employee badges to Software House C•CURE 9000 (source), and AMAG markets Symmetry CONNECT 2.0 as “Networked by SwiftConnect” (source).
• A wide partner list. SwiftConnect names partnerships with “Apple, Google, HID, Wavelynx, Legic, and dozens of other physical access vendors” (source). Its January 2026 purchase of Trecerdo added integration work with Honeywell Pro-Watch, Mercury controllers and elevator destination dispatch (source).
• Built for portfolios. It sells to corporate offices and commercial real estate, promising to “standardize access across your entire portfolio, even if building uses different systems or legacy infrastructure” (source).
• Published security certifications. SwiftConnect states it is “compliant with SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001” (source).

If you run a large portfolio with several different access systems and want everyone’s badge in their phone wallet, SwiftConnect is built for exactly that, and we would say so to anyone who asked.

Two overlays, two places to run them

Because both products sit on top of your existing access control, the useful question is not “replace or keep”. It is where the added layer runs and who is in the path to your doors.

SwiftConnect’s AccessCloud is, as its name says, a cloud platform. Partner pages describe it as an “intelligent centralized backend” that connects access systems and other sources of truth (source). Credentials, permissions and the link to your access control system are managed through that cloud. Whether a given site also needs a local connector is not published on the pages we checked; ask SwiftConnect.

GateStride runs entirely on your premises. A center in your comms room and one small node per door read your system’s events and call your system’s own unlock. GateStride offers no hosted service and relays nothing through its own network. When an administrator needs to manage a site remotely, they connect over your company’s own VPN, and each office is managed separately.

Side by side

SwiftConnect details checked on 2026-10-07 against the sources listed at the end of this page.

Neither SwiftConnect nor GateStride publishes prices, so ask both for a written quote. For SwiftConnect, ask what is charged per user, per credential, per building or per integration, and whether any of your readers need changing to read wallet badges. For GateStride, ask what is flat and what is not. The savings calculator helps you compare over three years.

When SwiftConnect is the better choice

• You want badges in Apple, Google or Samsung Wallet. That is SwiftConnect’s core, and GateStride does not offer wallet badges.
• You run a portfolio on several different access systems and want one place to manage credentials across all of them.
• Your system is not on our list yet. SwiftConnect has certified or announced integrations with LenelS2 OnGuard, Genetec, Software House C•CURE 9000 and AMAG. GateStride is verified on Kantech EntraPass only today.
• Your policy is comfortable with a cloud platform and you value a vendor that publishes SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 compliance.
• You need it at scale today, not in early access.

When GateStride makes more sense

• Your policy, insurer or tenant asks that door control and the people list stay inside the building.
• You do not want any vendor service on the path to your doors, and you already have (or can set up) a VPN for remote admin.
• You need to know who left, not only who came in, with a roll call for the fire warden.
• You are a small or mid-size office on Kantech EntraPass and want phone entry without per-user fees.
• Your integrator already maintains the system and you want to buy through them.

Why we keep door control off the internet

We chose an on-site design because of a simple observation: security-focused organizations, including security vendors and the FBI itself, still get breached. None of the incidents below involves SwiftConnect, and we make no claim about SwiftConnect’s security. They are here because they show that being careful is not the same as being unreachable.

• September 2026 · FBI jobs portal The FBI said it was investigating a criminal group’s claims that it had compromised the FBIJobs.gov portal and taken personal data on FBI employees and applicants. A group known as ShinyHunters claimed responsibility and said it held “very sensitive data” on almost all FBI agents and job applicants; the portal went offline and was reportedly defaced. According to 404 Media, as cited by the AP, a representative of the group shared what appeared to be a sample of personal data on 5,000 FBI employees. The FBI reportedly told staff it had declared a “cyber security incident” and that data such as names, addresses, job titles and Social Security numbers were exposed. (NPR, AP via Federal News Network, TechCrunch)
• November 2021 · FBI email server The FBI said “a software misconfiguration” temporarily allowed an actor to use its Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal (LEEP) to send fake emails from an FBI-operated server. The FBI said no data or personal information on its network was accessed, and that it fixed the vulnerability. (FBI statement)
• March 2021 · Cloud camera platform Bloomberg reported that hackers gained access to live feeds from about 150,000 cameras managed through Verkada’s cloud, after finding an administrator account’s username and password exposed on the internet. (Bloomberg; Security Sales & Integration)
• March 2011 · RSA SecurID RSA, a security company, told customers its systems had identified “an extremely sophisticated cyber attack in progress” and that information taken was in part “specifically related to RSA’s SecurID two-factor authentication products.” (RSA open letter, filed with the SEC)

Cloud platforms invest heavily in security, and many publish audits. But any service that can reach many buildings’ doors from the internet is a single place an attacker can aim at. Our view is that the safest internet path to your doors is none. So GateStride has no hosted service and no relay: there is no central GateStride system that could open a customer’s doors, because it does not exist. Remote admin uses the VPN you already run, with your own accounts and multi-factor rules. More on the no-relay design.

If GateStride is down, nothing changes at the door: your cards, request-to-exit, fire release and your system’s own log keep working exactly as before. GateStride is an add-on, not a dependency, and it is not a life-safety system.

The half most systems leave out: who left

Card systems, and the wallet badges that act like cards, log entries with a name. Exits usually go through a push bar or a request-to-exit sensor, because life-safety rules generally require people to leave freely, so the system records “door opened” and no name. GateStride notes an enrolled phone, watch or tablet leaving through those doors with no tap, keeps a live list of who is inside, gives the fire warden a one-tap roll call, and builds attendance from first-in and last-out. The door releases exactly as it does today. See how exit tracking works.

GateStride uses device credentials and non-biometric person detection by default. Facial recognition is optional, off by default, and offered only where it is legally compliant and you choose to enable it. Exit tracking supports accountability; it does not replace free egress, your evacuation plan or your certified fire and life-safety systems.

Where GateStride is today

Questions

Is SwiftConnect an access control system?

Not in the usual sense. SwiftConnect describes its platform as connecting existing identity, access and workplace systems without rip-and-replace. Your access control system still runs the doors; SwiftConnect manages credentials such as Apple Wallet and Google Wallet badges across it through its cloud platform.

Is GateStride a replacement for SwiftConnect?

Not directly. Both add to the access control you already own, but they do different jobs. SwiftConnect focuses on wallet badges and credential management across many systems and buildings. GateStride adds hands-free phone unlock, exit tracking, roll call and attendance, and runs entirely on your premises. If wallet badges across a large portfolio are what you need, SwiftConnect is built for that.

Does GateStride work with SwiftConnect?

Not today. GateStride does not integrate with SwiftConnect. GateStride is in early access and is verified on Kantech EntraPass only; LenelS2 OnGuard and Brivo are in development.

Can we manage GateStride when we are not in the office?

Yes, over your company's own VPN. GateStride runs on site and does not relay anything through its own network, so an administrator connects to the office the same way they reach other internal systems. Each office is managed separately.

Are you saying SwiftConnect is insecure?

No. None of the incidents on this page involves SwiftConnect, and SwiftConnect states it is compliant with SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001. We describe a design choice: GateStride keeps door control on your premises with no vendor service in the path, because even security-focused organizations get breached.

Sources

• https://www.swiftconnect.com/
• https://www.swiftconnect.com/partners/
• https://swiftconnect.com/commercialrealestate/
• https://buildings.honeywell.com/us/en/brands/our-brands/lenels2/security-solutions/third-party-integration/oaap-partners/swiftconnect-swiftaccess
• https://developer.genetec.com/r/en-us/new-certified-integration-access-cloud-by-swiftconnect
• https://www.securityinfowatch.com/access-identity/access-control/press-release/53079863/swiftconnect-integrates-with-software-house-ccure-9000-to-extend-employee-badge-in-apple-wallet
• https://www.sdmmag.com/articles/102951-swiftconnect-and-wavelynx-deploy-first-corporate-badge-in-google-wallet-and-company-id-in-samsung-wallet
• https://www.amag.com/symmetry-connect/
• https://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/swiftconnect-acquires-trecerdo-expanding-its-connected-access-platform

SwiftConnect details were checked on 2026-10-07 against the pages above and may change; check them before you decide. Incident sources are linked in that section. SwiftConnect, AccessCloud and other product names are trademarks of their respective owners. GateStride is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed by or a dealer for SwiftConnect or any vendor named here.

See also the full comparison.