The short answer
A plain mechanical key for an older truck: $59 to $89. A chip key that has to be coded to the immobiliser: $89 to $179. A remote head key, where the buttons and blade are one piece: $129 to $249. A proximity fob for a push-to-start car: $189 and up.
Same key machine, same technician, wildly different prices — because you are not paying for a piece of brass. You are paying for whatever electronics have to be taught to trust that brass.
Why the hardware store key did not work
We get this call two or three times a week. Someone paid $6 at a big-box store, the key opens the doors fine, and the engine cranks for two seconds then dies. That is the immobiliser doing its job. The blade was cut, the chip inside was never programmed, so the car reads an unknown key and cuts fuel.
The other failure mode is subtler: the blank was cut from a worn key rather than from the factory code. It works for a month, then starts needing a wiggle, then one morning it does not turn at all. We cut from the code the manufacturer assigned your VIN, which is why a fresh duplicate often feels smoother than the key in your hand.
Duplicating is cheap. Originating is not.
If you still hold one working key, the car already trusts a device and adding a second is routine — usually 20 minutes in a driveway. Lose every key and the job changes completely: we pull the code from the VIN, verify you own the vehicle, and persuade a security system to accept a key it has never seen. On some Toyota and Hyundai platforms there is a manufacturer-enforced wait timer on top of that.
That gap is the whole argument for getting a spare while things are calm. An $89 spare on a Tuesday afternoon versus a $250 emergency origination in a bar parking lot on Rainey Street at 1am is not a close call.
What a mobile appointment actually looks like
We meet you where the car is — an office lot off Braker, a driveway in Cedar Park, wherever. We decode the VIN, cut the blank in the van, program the chip alongside your existing key, then test doors, trunk, remote and three cold starts before taking payment. Half an hour, start to finish, for most vehicles.
Bring ID and something showing the car is yours: registration, title or an insurance card with the VIN. Texas requires it, and honestly you want a locksmith who asks.
When a duplicate will not fix the problem
If your current key needs a jiggle to turn the ignition, the fault may not be the key at all. Keys and lock wafers wear together, and a copy of a worn key just makes two worn keys. The test is simple: we cut a fresh key from the factory code rather than tracing yours. If the fresh key turns smoothly, your old key was the problem. If it still sticks, the ignition or door cylinder is worn and needs repair or replacement before any new key will behave.
The same logic applies to remotes. If the buttons on your fob respond only when pressed hard, the shell or the buttons are failing — duplicating the key inside a failing shell just moves the problem. A shell swap or a fresh remote head key is usually the cheaper, permanent fix.
Buying a blank online: what is safe and what is not
Aftermarket fobs sold online range from excellent to unusable, and the listings rarely tell you which you are getting. The safe move is to buy nothing until you know your vehicle's FCC ID — it is printed on the back of your existing fob — because a fob that looks identical but carries a different FCC ID will never program.
If you already bought one, bring it. We will tell you honestly whether it can be programmed before charging you anything; roughly half the blanks customers bring in are usable, and we would rather cut and code a good one than sell you hardware you did not need.
How long each type of duplicate takes
A plain metal key is cut and tested in under ten minutes. A transponder chip key adds programming time and usually finishes in 20 to 30 minutes. A proximity fob for a push-to-start vehicle takes the longest — the fob has to be registered to the vehicle's security system and the passive entry sensors verified, so allow 30 to 45 minutes.
All of these happen on-site, wherever the car is parked in the Austin, TX area. There is no drop-off, no second trip and no waiting on a parts counter — the van carries the cutters, the blanks and the diagnostic programmer.
Dealership vs hardware store vs mobile locksmith, side by side
The dealership: genuine OEM parts and factory software, but you drive or tow the car to them, wait for a service slot, and pay parts-counter pricing — typically $180 to $400 for a chip key and more for a proximity fob. For a car under factory warranty with a complex security system, sometimes this is genuinely the right call, and we say so when it is.
The hardware store or kiosk: $3 to $15, but only for plain mechanical keys on older vehicles. The moment your key has a chip — which is nearly everything built after 1998 — the copy opens doors and nothing else. It is a door key, not a car key.
A mobile locksmith: $59 to $349 depending on key type, done in your driveway in 20 to 45 minutes, cut from the factory code and programmed with licensed diagnostic equipment. For most Austin, TX drivers with a working key who just want a spare, this is the cheapest option that actually starts the car.
Five questions worth asking before you pay anyone
One: is the price quoted a final price, or a 'starting at' number that grows when the technician arrives? Two: is the key cut from the factory code for your VIN, or traced from your worn key? Three: is programming included, or a separate charge? Four: do they verify ownership — because a shop that does not ask is a shop that would make a key for anyone. Five: is there any warranty on the fob or the programming if it fails next week?
Any legitimate operator answers all five without hesitating. Our answers: flat quoted price, cut from code, programming included, ID and registration required, and we test everything before we leave.
Want the exact figure for your vehicle? Tell us the year, make and model and we will quote it on the phone.
See car key duplication pricing