By Kent · Lock Depot Staff Writer

The question that decides which one you need

Does the key box need to hang on something, or bolt to something? That single question sorts Master Lock's two key box models. The 5400D hangs off its own shackle, the way a realtor's lockbox hangs off a door handle at a listing. The 5401D mounts flat to a wall with included hardware and stays there. Same core idea, two completely different jobs.

Master Lock 5400D: the hang-anywhere box

The 5400D has a hardened steel shackle with a vinyl coating, so it hangs on a doorknob, a fence rail, a gate, or a padlock hasp without the bare steel scratching the finish on whatever it is hanging from. That shackle is also the point of this model: no fasteners, no drilling, no permanent commitment to one door. A contractor moves it from job site to job site. A realtor clips it to a listing's front door for the length of the showing period and pulls it when the house sells.

Inside, it holds the same core mechanism as the 5401D: a key storage compartment that holds more than 5 house, car, or padlock keys, opened by a 4-dial resettable combination you set yourself rather than a factory code you have to track down. The key door pivots open and stays attached to the body, so there is no small door to drop and lose in the bushes during a showing. The body is reinforced against hammering and sawing, and a shutter door over the dial mechanism adds weather resistance for a box that lives outside. Outside dimensions run 3-9/16" wide x 4" long x 1-9/16" deep.

Master Lock 5401D: the box that stays put

The 5401D drops the shackle and ships with hardware for wall attachment instead, sized at 3-7/8" wide x 4-5/8" long x 1-7/16" deep. It is the right call when the key box is a permanent fixture, not a portable one: mounted beside a back door for a cleaning crew, bolted next to a gate for a delivery driver, or fixed to an exterior wall at a rental property so a maintenance tech does not need a physical key handed off every visit.

Everything else carries over from the 5400D: the same 4-dial resettable combination, the same over-5-key storage compartment, the same pivoting key door, the same reinforced body and shutter door for weather resistance. The 5401D is not a lesser version of the 5400D. It is the same mechanism built to live in one place instead of traveling.

Setting the combination

Both boxes use a 4-dial resettable combination, meaning you set your own code at install rather than relying on a factory default. Change the combination whenever a key box changes hands between jobs, tenants, or listings; a resettable box left on the old code from the previous tenant is a hole in the whole point of using one. Neither box requires a special reset tool. The combination is user-set from the dials themselves.

Picking between them on a real job

If the box needs to move (different listings, different job sites, different jobs week to week) the shackle on the 5400D is the entire reason to buy it. If the box is going in one spot and staying there for years (a rental's back gate, a business's staff entrance, a facility's vendor-access door) the 5401D's flush wall mount is cleaner, harder to simply lift off and walk away with, and does not leave a shackle exposed for someone to attack with bolt cutters while the box hangs unattended.

Placement matters as much as the model

A hanging 5400D on a doorknob in plain view of the street is convenient and it is also visible to anyone walking by, which is the tradeoff every real estate agent already knows and accepts for the length of a showing period. A permanent 5401D gets more choice in where it lives, since it does not need a handle or rail to hang from. Mount it around the side of a building, inside a covered entry, or below eye level near a gate rather than dead center on a front door where it becomes the first thing anyone sees walking up. Neither box is a vault. Both are convenience hardware that trade a little exposure for not having to hand-deliver a key to every vendor, tech, or agent who needs access, and where you mount either one is a real part of managing that tradeoff.

Common questions

Which Master Lock key box do real estate agents typically use?

The 5400D, because its shackle lets it hang on a door handle for the length of a listing and move to the next property once the house sells. A wall-mounted box like the 5401D is the wrong tool for a listing you do not own permanently.

Can the 5401D be removed once it's mounted?

It can, since it is screwed to the wall rather than welded, but removing it means backing out the mounting hardware, which is exactly the point: it is meant to be a fixed installation, not something that comes off in seconds the way a hanging box does.

How many keys fit in either box?

Both hold more than 5 house, car, or padlock keys in the storage compartment, which covers a typical set for a home or a single-door commercial entry with room to spare.

Do I need a special tool to change the combination?

No. Both boxes use a 4-dial resettable combination you set by hand from the dials themselves, with no separate reset tool or factory code to track down.

Is either box weatherproof for permanent outdoor use?

Both include a shutter door over the dial mechanism for weather resistance, which is sufficient for typical outdoor exposure on a covered or semi-covered entry. Neither is rated for full submersion or constant direct weather with no cover at all.

Lock Depot stocks both the Master Lock 5400D and 5401D key boxes. Browse the full line on the Master Lock hub, or call 877-365-5625 if you are not sure whether your job needs a hanging box or a permanent one.

Related reading: Master Lock 6230: Picking a Padlock for an Outdoor Gate, the padlock to pair with a wall-mounted key box on that same gate.