Apartment vs House: Security Camera Placement Guide

Camera placement isn't one-size-fits-all — where a camera earns its keep on a freestanding house is often the wrong spot for an apartment, and vice versa. Here's how to think through placement for each.

Houses: think in layers

A house has multiple approach points, so the goal is layered coverage rather than one all-seeing camera.

• Front door — the single most valuable camera position. Most residential break-ins and package thefts happen here, and it's the spot most useful for identifying visitors.
• Driveway — captures vehicles arriving and leaving, useful both for security and for catching numberplates if something is stolen from the driveway itself.
• Back door and side gates — these are the quieter entry points burglars actually prefer, precisely because they're less visible from the street. Don't skip them in favour of a second front-facing camera.
• Backyard — especially valuable if you have a pool, shed, or outdoor entertaining area with equipment worth protecting.

For a typical house, this usually lands on a 4 to 6-camera kit: front door, driveway, back door, and one or two covering the backyard or side access, depending on the block shape. Our Build My System tool factors in your property type to suggest a starting point.

Apartments: fewer angles, different priorities

Apartment living changes the calculation in two ways: you usually only control your own door and balcony (not building common areas), and interior placement often matters more than in a house.

• Front door (inside-facing) — a compact camera facing out from just inside your door, or a video doorbell-style unit if your building allows exterior fixtures, covers the one approach point that matters most.
• Balcony or ground-floor windows — if you're on a ground or low floor, or have a balcony accessible from outside, this is worth a dedicated camera; higher floors typically don't need it.
• Common property is not yours to cover — hallways, lift lobbies, and building entrances are usually the body corporate's responsibility. Check your building's by-laws before mounting anything outside your own door — most buildings require approval for anything fixed to shared walls or corridors.

Most apartments do well with a compact 2 to 4-camera setup covering the front door and any ground-level access points, rather than a full house-sized kit.

Universal placement mistakes to avoid

A few things apply regardless of property type: don't mount cameras where direct sun hits the lens for hours (it washes out footage and shortens the camera's lifespan), keep the mounting height around 2.4–3 metres — high enough to avoid easy tampering, low enough to still capture usable facial detail, and avoid pointing cameras directly at a neighbour's windows or private yard, both as a courtesy and because most state privacy laws restrict it (see our state-by-state guide).

Getting it right the first time

If you're unsure how many cameras or which angles suit your specific property, our Build My System tool asks a few quick questions and recommends a kit, or you can book our installation service for professional placement and setup.