ButterflyMX video intercoms for Chicago apartment and condo buildings
We design and install ButterflyMX intercoms and door access for apartment buildings, condominium associations, and new developments across Chicago and the suburbs. Residents answer the door on their phones. Your manager changes access from a browser. No one has to wire a handset into every unit.
- Residents pay
- $0
- Software, per unit
- $30 to $42 a year
- Entry photos kept
- 365 days
- Rated to
- −40°F
Figures from ButterflyMX’s published pricing and product pages, September 2026. r:home is a ButterflyMX dealer.
One panel at the door, one app in every pocket
Pick a situation and step through it. The screens are simplified, but the sequence is how ButterflyMX works.
Rendering. Names are examples.
What is ButterflyMX?
ButterflyMX is a cloud-based video intercom and access control system for apartment, condo, and commercial buildings. A touchscreen panel at the entry lets visitors find a resident and call them. The resident sees live video in the ButterflyMX app and opens the door with a swipe. Managers keep the directory, permissions, and entry history in an online dashboard.
Because the call goes to a phone, there’s no handset to install in each unit. Residents can also get in with the app, a fob, a key card, or a PIN, and they can send guests a visitor pass ahead of time. ButterflyMX says more than 20,000 properties use the platform.
- Screen
- 8-inch or 12-inch touchscreen, surface or recessed mount
- Camera
- 156° wide-angle, 1080p live video
- Weather
- IP65 outdoor rating, −40°F to 140°F
- Display
- 1,500 nits, readable in direct sun
- Credentials
- App, fob or key card (built-in RFID), PIN, visitor pass
- Network
- Built-in 5 GHz Wi-Fi
- Records
- Photo of every door release, kept 365 days
- Warranty
- 2 years on hardware
Specifications from ButterflyMX’s product announcement and pricing page, September 2026.
Built around how Chicago buildings are run
Condo associations
Plenty of Chicago condo buildings still run a buzzer panel from another era, and the board ends up managing codes and complaints. ButterflyMX gives the board one dashboard for the directory and entry history, and residents need nothing beyond the free app. Owners without smartphones can take the call on a landline and press 9 to open the door.
Property managers
Move-ins and move-outs stop depending on cutting fobs. You change access from any browser, couriers use delivery PINs instead of buzzing every unit, and ButterflyMX connects to property management software including Yardi, RealPage, Entrata, and Rent Manager so the directory updates itself.
Developers and conversions
We join during design so door hardware, pathways, power, and network are on the drawings before walls close. A building can open with its entries and cameras live, then add smart locks on unit doors as a second phase.
What it looks like on a building
Brick, limestone, storefront glass, pedestals at a gate. The panel comes in two sizes and mounts on the surface or recessed into the wall.
Installation photos from ButterflyMX, shown to illustrate the hardware and mounting options.
How we run a ButterflyMX project
We design it, install it, teach your team to run it, and hand it off. Day-to-day access stays with your manager or board, and we stay available for service.
Walk the building
We look at every entry, gate, garage door, and elevator you want on the system, and at the wiring and door hardware already there.
Design the doors
We choose the panel and specify the lock, exit device, and power for each door, and coordinate with your fire alarm vendor where doors tie in.
Install and program
Panels, readers, network, and door hardware go in. We load the directory and set schedules for deliveries and amenity rooms.
Train and hand off
We walk your manager or board through the dashboard, help residents get set up, and leave you with written instructions.
What we plan for in Chicago buildings
Vestibules
Many Chicago buildings have a two-door vestibule. We decide which door gets the panel and which gets a reader, so guests aren’t calling from the sidewalk in January.
Winter at the door
The panels are rated from −40°F to 140°F. We still look at wind, snowmelt, and salt at each entry when we choose surface or recessed mounting.
Old wiring
Vintage buildings often have conduit or buzzer wire to the door strike that we can reuse, even though nothing new has to run to the apartments.
Phone lines going away
AT&T is retiring copper landlines in Illinois. If your panel calls residents over a phone line, plan the replacement now. What the AT&T change means
What does ButterflyMX cost?
ButterflyMX publishes its panels at $3,995 to $6,495 each, depending on screen size and mounting, and software at $30 to $42 per unit per year. The owner or association pays both. Residents pay nothing.
Installation is the part that varies: how many doors, what locking hardware is already on them, and how far power and network have to travel. For a 24-unit building with one 8-inch panel, the published hardware and first year of software come to about $4,700 to $5,000 before installation.
ButterflyMX questions we hear most
Do residents pay for ButterflyMX?
No. The app is free for residents and visitors. The building owner or association buys the hardware and pays an annual software fee per unit, which ButterflyMX publishes as $30 to $42 per unit per year.
What if a resident doesn’t have a smartphone?
ButterflyMX can ring a landline or a basic cell phone instead of the app. The resident answers, talks to the visitor, and presses 9 to open the door. A tablet with the app works too, and residents can still use a fob or a PIN.
Do we need to run wire to every apartment?
No. ButterflyMX doesn’t use a handset in each unit, so the work happens at the entries: the panel, the door hardware, power, and a network connection. In older buildings that usually means far less wall and ceiling work than a traditional intercom.
Can residents still use fobs and key cards?
Yes. Current ButterflyMX panels include an RFID reader, so residents can use a fob, a key card, a PIN, or the app. Most buildings keep fobs for people who prefer them.
Can it open garage doors, gates, and elevators?
ButterflyMX makes vehicle access, elevator control, keypads and readers, and package room products that run on the same platform. We decide on the site walk which of those your building actually needs.
How long is entry history kept?
Every door release is saved with a date- and time-stamped photo that managers can review for 365 days.
Is ButterflyMX the only system you install?
ButterflyMX is what we recommend for most apartment and condo buildings that want phone-based entry without wiring every unit. If your property needs something different, such as a large card-access system across several buildings, we’ll tell you on the site walk.
Where do you work?
Chicago and the north and west suburbs. We’re based in Northbrook.
Tell us about the building
We’ll walk the entries with you, look at the doors and what’s in the walls today, and send a written proposal with the panel, door hardware, and a price. There’s no charge for the walk.
- ButterflyMX: Next-generation video intercoms
- ButterflyMX: Cost and pricing
- ButterflyMX: How to use ButterflyMX without a smartphone
- ButterflyMX: How it works
Manufacturer specifications and prices are as published in September 2026 and can change. We confirm current figures when we quote.