Multi-Family Key Overview
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Multi-family Keys are closed-loop cards used to identify
users and grant building access.
Users can add their Multi-family Keys to their
Android-powered phone to securely access residence
buildings.
Multi-family Keys also give users fast
access to information such as user details and
important residence phone numbers.
User prerequisites
For a user to use Multi-family Keys with Google Wallet, they need the following:
- The latest version of their Service Provider's app from Google
Play
- For a possibly more streamlined user experience, consider creating a Play
Instant App. All functionality in this guide for creating
Multi-family Keys from Android apps is compatible with Play
Instant Apps. For more information about Instant Apps, see the
Overview of Google Play Instant.
- A phone that runs Android 9.0 or higher, with NFC turned on
- The latest version of the Google Wallet app (recommended)
Residence prerequisites
For a residence to support Multi-family Keys with Google Wallet, they need the following:
- NFC-enabled readers capable of receiving a user
account credential from Google Wallet through the
Service Provider's supported protocol.
Brand guidelines
The brand guidelines contain information on "Add to Google Wallet" button guidelines and Multi-family Keys asset
requirements. A field mapping template is also available to show how data maps
to each field on a Multi-family Keys.
Card provisioning and user experience
The Service Provider app links the user account to a
Google Account through the Add to Google Wallet flow. For details on the
steps of this integration, see
Provision a new card.
Terminology
The following table describes terms used in this documentation and their
meaning.
| Component Diagram Object Definitions |
| Access Reader |
NFC-enabled residence readers. |
| Account |
Typically managed by residences that use a
Service Provider's management system.
|
| Account Hub |
Account Hubs have access to the information necessary to manage
the lifecycle of access cards and the required auth keys to authenticate
with access readers. The Account Hub also performs security and
risk activities in order to improve overall security of the system.
|
| Google Play Services |
The Google Play Services application and its device services, which
enable all Multi-family Keys functionality. This component also
encompasses the Google Wallet app. For more information, see
the
Google Wallet structure page.
|
| Google Servers |
Google backend servers that implement several closed-loop APIs
supporting Multi-family Keys.
|
| Service Provider |
Technology providers of residence management
systems.
|
| Residence app |
An Android application created by a Residence (or
Service Provider) for user to manage their
account(s).
Also referred to as Service Provider app.
|
| Card Issuers |
The Residence that issues the cards.
|
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2025-04-03 UTC.
[null,null,["Last updated 2025-04-03 UTC."],[],[],null,["# Multi-Family Key Overview\n\nMulti-family Keys are closed-loop cards used to identify\nusers and grant building access.\n\nUsers can add their Multi-family Keys to their\nAndroid-powered phone to securely access residence\nbuildings.\n\nMulti-family Keys also give users fast\naccess to information such as user details and\nimportant residence phone numbers.\n\nUser prerequisites\n------------------\n\nFor a user to use Multi-family Keys with Google Wallet, they need the following:\n\n- The latest version of their Service Provider's app from Google Play\n - For a possibly more streamlined user experience, consider creating a Play Instant App. All functionality in this guide for creating Multi-family Keys from Android apps is compatible with Play Instant Apps. For more information about Instant Apps, see the [Overview of Google Play Instant](https://developer.android.com/topic/google-play-instant/overview).\n- A phone that runs Android 9.0 or higher, with NFC turned on\n- The latest version of the Google Wallet app (recommended)\n\nResidence prerequisites\n-----------------------\n\nFor a residence to support Multi-family Keys with Google Wallet, they need the following:\n\n- NFC-enabled readers capable of receiving a user account credential from Google Wallet through the Service Provider's supported protocol.\n\nBrand guidelines\n----------------\n\nThe [brand guidelines](/wallet/access/multi-family-key/get-started/brand-guidelines) contain information on \"Add to Google Wallet\" button guidelines and Multi-family Keys asset\nrequirements. A field mapping template is also available to show how data maps\nto each field on a Multi-family Keys.\n\nCard provisioning and user experience\n-------------------------------------\n\nThe Service Provider app links the user account to a\nGoogle Account through the Add to Google Wallet flow. For details on the\nsteps of this integration, see\n[Provision a new card](/wallet/access/multi-family-key/get-started/provision).\n\nTerminology\n-----------\n\nThe following table describes terms used in this documentation and their\nmeaning.\n\n| Component Diagram Object Definitions ||\n| Access Reader | NFC-enabled residence readers. |\n| Account | Typically managed by residences that use a Service Provider's management system. |\n| Account Hub | Account Hubs have access to the information necessary to manage the lifecycle of access cards and the required auth keys to authenticate with access readers. The Account Hub also performs security and risk activities in order to improve overall security of the system. |\n| Google Play Services | The Google Play Services application and its device services, which enable all Multi-family Keys functionality. This component also encompasses the Google Wallet app. For more information, see the [Google Wallet structure](/wallet/access/multi-family-key/guides/google-wallet-structure) page. |\n| Google Servers | Google backend servers that implement several closed-loop APIs supporting Multi-family Keys. |\n| Service Provider | Technology providers of residence management systems. |\n| Residence app | An Android application created by a Residence (or Service Provider) for user to manage their account(s). \u003cbr /\u003e Also referred to as Service Provider app. |\n| Card Issuers | The Residence that issues the cards. |\n|----------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|"]]
