Can two people be on an apartment buzzer?
Yes, two people can both get every buzz, but usually not as two entries on the lobby panel. A dial-out panel stores one phone number per unit, so the second person goes behind that number instead. Give the building one number that rings both phones at once, like a BuzzMeBro apartment number, and whoever is free answers and opens the door.
Live with others? BuzzMeBro puts more than one of you on the buzzer. First month free. Start free
The short answer is yes, with one condition. Knowing why tells you what the working answers have in common.
Why can the panel only hold one number?
A telephone entry panel keeps a directory. In Mircom’s TX3 user guide, each resident entry holds a name, an apartment number, the dial code a visitor enters, and one phone number. DoorKing’s 1834 manual likewise programs one phone number against each directory code.
When somebody enters the code, the panel places one phone call to that one number. There is no group and no second number field to fill in. The chain in detail.
So where does the second person go?
Behind the number. The panel dials one number, and what that number does afterwards is not the panel’s business.
| Approach | Rings both at once | Catch |
|---|---|---|
| A number built to ring a group, like BuzzMeBro | Yes | A monthly cost for the apartment |
| Carrier call forwarding | No, it moves the call | Plain forwarding means the first phone does not ring |
| A landline with extensions | Only inside the apartment | No help when either of you is out |
| Google Voice | It can ring linked phones | Free plan is US-only, and the door digit needs testing |
Only the first row does what the question is asking for. Why forwarding is not sharing.
How to set it up for two people
- Get a number for the apartment Sign up with your postal code. BuzzMeBro checks a local number is available for your building before you add a card.
- Add the second phone Type in the other person’s mobile. Nothing to install and no invitation to accept. Up to 4 phones can be on one apartment.
- Ask the building to store that one number One email to the property manager, the same request as a new cell number.
- Test from the lobby together Buzz your unit. Both phones should ring at the same moment, and either of you can press the door digit.
What to ask the building instead
Do not ask them to add a second number; the answer is usually no and it uses up the conversation. Ask them to change the number they hold to the one you give them.
That is a request they can action, and it is the same request whether the number behind it rings one phone or several. More on wording it, and the full steps for adding a roommate.
BuzzMeBro gives the apartment a number that is local to your building and rings up to 4 phones at once, for $9.99 a month. Start free.
From our own door
- A buzz rings the people on the apartment who are set to ring, up to 4 phones at the same time, and whoever answers first handles it.
- BuzzMeBro has run on our founder’s own Toronto apartment door since August 2026.
- Whoever answers hears a short spoken prompt, then presses the door digit (9, or the building’s own digit) to open.
Questions people ask
Is this different in newer buildings?
Not for a panel that dials out to phone numbers. A newer screen changes what visitors see, not how many numbers a unit’s entry holds. Some newer systems work through an app instead of a phone call, so ask your building which kind it has.
My friend has two names on their buzzer. How?
That is the display name, which holds whatever the building types into it. It is what a visitor reads while scrolling. It has no effect on which number gets dialled.
Could the building program a second call if the first is not answered?
Only if its panel offers a backup number, and you would have to ask. Even then it is sequential rather than simultaneous, so the visitor waits through the first attempt before the second starts.
Can a couple both get the buzzer calls?
Yes. The panel keeps one number, and that number rings both phones at once. When a partner moves in, nothing about the building has to change except that one stored number.
Can two people be on the buzzer if one has an out-of-town number?
Often not directly, because many lobby panels are set up for local calls only. Putting one local number on the panel and ringing both phones from it gets around that, since the panel only ever dials the local number.
Does this mean I need my own number for the buzzer?
You need the stored number to reach you. If you live alone with a local mobile, that can simply be your own number and it costs nothing.
What is the simplest way to get both of us on the buzzer?
One number stored on the panel that fans the call out. BuzzMeBro rings up to 4 phones at the same time, so whoever is free answers rather than whoever happens to be listed.