Programmable Alerts

Updated June 04, 2026 07:34

What are Programmable Alerts?

Programmable Alerts are custom notifications that organization administrators can set up and personalize for particular keys or key groups. Programmable Alerts are useful for many workflows. Some common uses are:

Reminding employees at the end of a shift to return their keys, preventing missing keys for the next shift
Notifying management when a guest has not returned a room key by their scheduled check-out time
Sending check-in instructions to guests when a booking is made
Keeping management informed of key usage in real time

There are three types of Programmable Alerts: Late Key Alerts, Key Exchange Alerts, and Booking Created Alerts.

1. Late Key Alert

A notification is sent to a key's admin/manager, user, or any other user within the organization by SMS, email, or webhook in three optional situations:

specified number of minutes/hours/days after a key is picked up
specified number of minutes/hours/days after the end of a booking or time shift
specified number of minutes/hours/days before the end of a booking or time shift

2. Key Exchange Alert

A notification is sent to a key's admin/manager, user, or any other user within the organization by email in two optional situations:

when a key is dropped off
when a key is picked up

3. Booking Created Alert

A notification is sent to a key's admin/manager, user, or any other user within the organization by email or webhook in two optional situations:

when a key is booked for a one-time booking
when a key is booked for a reservation

4. Location Status Alert

A notification is sent to an Organization's owner, admin, or Location manager by SMS, email, or webhook in two optional situations:

when a Location loses power
when a Location loses internet connection

Setting up a New Alert

Managing Programmable Alerts on Mobile

Note that creating and editing a programmable alert can only be done on the desktop app.

Log in to Keycafe desktop.
Select + Add → Programmable Alert → the type of alert you want to create.
Enter the Name of the alert.
Enter the Description of the alert. This is internal-only and will not be seen by users.
Enter the name of the key(s) or key group(s) that you'd like the alert set for.
For a Late Key Alert, select the user(s) who check out a key that the alert will trigger for, then select the duration of time and situation for the alert to trigger.

For a Key Exchange Alert, select the situation for the alert to trigger.

For a Booking Created Alert, select the the type of booking for the alert to trigger.

Select whether you'd like the alert to be sent via SMS (Late Key Alerts only), email, or webhook. If you chose webhook, enter the webhook URL.
Enter the message you'd like the alert to show. Click on Variables to display a list of useful variables you can include in the message.
Choose the recipients of the notification, then click Create Alert.

Helpful Tips

Multiple Recipients

You can have anywhere from one to a maximum of 10 recipients for an alert. If you'd like a user other than the key's managers or key user to be notified, enter their name in the Add More Users field.

Variables

You can add variables to your alert message by clicking Variables, then the + next to the variable you'd like to add. The options vary depending on the alert type, but some examples include the name of the key, the name of the user who picked up the key, the name of the alert, and the event that occurred.

Different Message for Manager and User

If you'd like to alert both the key's manager and user but have different messages for each, select + Add Notification to enter a separate message and select the corresponding recipient for each notification. You will then have one notification for the key's manager and one notification for the user.

Editing an Existing Alert

Log in to Keycafe desktop.
Select Settings → Programmable Alerts.
Select a category of alert, then the edit icon for the alert you'd like to edit.
If you'd like to pause an alert, you can simply toggle Enable Alert to the off position.