The Best Home Safes For Cash, Documents And Valuables

The Yale YSM/250/EG1 is a certified home safe with an insurance rating that Yale quotes as £2,000 cash or £20,000 in valuables, and your own insurer has the final say on that figure. Some retailers now list it as the YSEM/250/EG1, so check the model number on the listing before you buy.

Inside, the 18 litre space is fleece lined so watches and jewellery don't get scratched, and the door locks with 22mm motorised bolts. A resettable PIN of 3 to 8 digits opens it, the LCD screen shows what's happening, and you get a warning before the batteries run flat. It can be fixed to the floor or a wall, and the fixing plate and instructions come in the box. It costs more than the Yale Y-MS0000NFP and is bigger than you need for a passport and a few documents.

The AmazonBasics safe is a simple, well-priced steel safe that comes in four sizes of 14, 20, 28 and 34 litres. That range lets you match the safe to a wardrobe shelf or a bigger cupboard.

It's built from heavy-duty carbon steel with two live locking bolts and concealed hinges that resist prying. Pre-drilled holes let you bolt it to the floor or a wall, and there's a backup key if the batteries or code let you down. AmazonBasics doesn't list an insurance rating like the certified Yale, and it isn't as well finished as the premium models, but for keeping everyday valuables out of sight it does the job.

The Yale Y-MS0000NFP is a more affordable digital safe from the same brand as our top pick. It has fewer features than the certified model, but it's still well made for the money and simple to use, with a four-digit code on a programmable keypad and an LCD display that shows what's happening.

The interior is soft lined so watches and jewellery don't get scratched, and pre-drilled holes let you fix it to the floor or a wall. It runs on two AA batteries, so keep a spare pair handy. Yale's wider range also includes laptop-sized and floor-insert versions if this shape doesn't suit your space.

The Dirty Pro Tools safe offers a lot of space for the money, with a 44.6 litre capacity in a single 50 x 35 x 31cm size. That's a lot of room for bulky items, and a removable shelf lets you split the space.

It's an all-steel safe with a powder-coated finish and 16mm locking bolts. You open it with a programmable code and an LED indicator, and two backup keys come with it. The base is felt lined, and four pre-drilled holes in the base and back let you fix it to the floor or wall. There's no digital display, and the bolts are thinner than the 22mm ones on the certified Yale.

Burg-Wächter specialises in locks, and its PointSafe can be bought with a fingerprint reader as well as a standard electronic lock. With the fingerprint version you open the safe with a touch of the finger pad, which is handy for things you get into daily, such as medication or a work laptop.

Capacities run from 20.5 to 57.9 litres, with a removable shelf inside. The body is single walled but the door is double walled, and an emergency lock gets you in if the electronics ever fail. It fixes to a wall or floor, and you'll pay more for it than for a similar-sized safe without a fingerprint reader.

The VECTA is a small wall-mounted safe measuring 7 x 5 x 2 inches, sized for keys, passports, watches and rings rather than bulky items. Inside there's a built-in key rack, which makes it a tidy place for spare house and car keys indoors.

You open it with a four-digit code shown on an LED display, and there's a manual override key as a backup. It's an all-steel box, and VECTA says it's approved by the UK police and the Master Locksmiths Association. It's an indoor alternative to an outdoor key safe when the keys don't need to be reached from outside.

Chubb Safes makes everything from budget safes to bullet-resistant models, and the PCSHOSAF0050XM11 is its premium home safe. It has a 51 litre capacity and weighs 46kg, which on its own makes it hard to carry away, and it's designed to be bolted to the floor with the mounting set supplied.

Chubb lists it as fire resistant, with multi-point locks and two keys. The weight means you need to plan where it goes, as getting it upstairs is a two-person job and the floor needs to take the fixing bolts. It's one of the most expensive safes in this list.

The Master Lock LFW082FTC is built to protect paperwork from fire and water as well as theft. Master Lock says it's UL classified and can withstand 927°C for up to an hour, and it's also ETL verified. That's what you want for deeds, passports, birth certificates and backup drives.

It's a steel safe with three live locking bolts and a backlit digital keypad. Master Lock sells it in sizes from 22 to 169 litres, and it comes with a two-year warranty. It costs more than a standard safe of the same size, which is the price of the fire and water protection.

The Sentry SFW123FTC is another fire and water-resistant safe, from the same brand as the SentrySafe we use in our office. It has four live locking bolts, which Sentry says are larger than those on traditional home safes, and a backlit digital keypad.

It comes in one size of 49 x 41.4 x 45.2cm with a capacity of 34.82 litres, and a multi-position tray helps organise smaller items. Sentry says it's UL and ETL classified and can survive a drop of over 15 feet, and it includes a fire replacement guarantee. It's more expensive than other fireproof safes of a similar size.

The Brihard is an affordable electronic safe sold in five sizes, so you can match it to a shelf, a cupboard or a corner of the office. It's made from solid steel with a scratch-resistant powder-coated finish in titanium grey, which looks smarter than a lot of cheaper safes.

A digital code with LED indicators opens it, Brihard adds anti-bump protection, and two mechanical keys get you in if the code ever lets you down. The bolts for fixing it to the floor or wall come in the box. It has only two securing bolts, so make sure both go into solid masonry or concrete.