Just a year or two ago, many companies looked at mobile access and digital wallet credentials and said: "Eh... Not quite yet."

But as we head into 2026, things are different. With security incidents making headlines, the urgency around robust access control has never been higher. Meanwhile, pricing has dropped, provisioning is faster than ever, and early adopters are proving wallet can scale globally.

For security, IT, and workplace leaders, this is the moment to reconsider assumptions. The concerns that once made wallet feel like a risky bet are now outdated. Here are five myths we hear most often, and how the reality has changed.

Myth #1: "It not as convenient as promised."

Tap-to-pay set the standard. People in the building have reset their expectations for access to be fast, seamless, and everywhere. But early BLE mobile keycards were inconsistent and didn’t open every door.

The reality today:

• Cohesion’s integration with HID’s Origo Management Portal cuts onboarding time from days to minutes.
• Credentials and access rights are provisioned together. Security teams don’t waste time adding clearances manually.

For environments that have high volumes of people that require access to the building, offices, and other spaces, this automation eliminates hundreds of hours of manual work annually and ensures instant access from day one.

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Myth #2: "Nobody will actually use it. They'll download the app once and delete it."

Early mobile access apps were underwhelming. People downloaded them, used them once, and went back to plastic. Adoption stalled.

The reality today:

• Phones are more personal than plastic cards. People don't lend others their phones, making adoption stickier and more secure.
• Cohesion can link digital wallet credentials to a broader occupant experience that can include visitor management, amenity and space reservations, and maintenance workflows all in one app that integrates with your existing security stack.
• With web provisioning, users won't need to download an app at all. Credentials can be delivered via text message or email (available later this year).

Myth #3: "Security teams won’t trust it."

Security leaders and their teams are naturally skittish about new technologies.

The reality today:

• Cohesion delivers real-time adoption dashboards showing how many credentials were provisioned, how many are active, and who is on site today.
• Auditability and traceability expose risks (like former employees who still have access).
• Digital wallet becomes a data source for deeper intelligence, helping leaders measure adoption, occupancy, and occupancy patterns that inform space planning and security decisions.

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Myth #4: "It's too hard to deploy and migrate from what we have now."

Digital wallet pilots often stalled at a single office or property. Larger organizations worried about global rollouts, multi-tenant buildings, and integration complexity.

The reality today:

Cohesion's solution ships with Cloud Access Portal which supports PIAM (Physical Identity and Access Management) capabilities:

• Roles and default clearances
• Landlord/tenant partitioning for multi-tenant buildings or properties
• Horizontal integrations across commercial and corporate real estate portfolios
• Vertical integrations from lobby turnstiles to tenant suite.

One Cohesion customer rolled out wallet across more than 50 offices, in a dozen cities, provisioning 7,000 credentials in just seven weeks. Another was moving to a new office and had just 25 days to move everyone to digital wallet. They went from kickoff to launch in 3 weeks.

Cohesion digital wallet deployments can still support BLE and plastic keycards as fallbacks. This phased approach lets organizations migrate gradually rather than forcing a complete technology replacement.

Myth #5: "I just don't see the value."

Digital wallet used to cost north of $20 per user. Budget committees balked. Early wallet solutions were also black boxes that provided access without insight into usage or adoption.

The reality today:

• Cohesion has moved our digital wallet pricing to $12 per user per year, making us the most cost-effective option on the market today. Many of our competitors are still set at $20+ per user.

Security leaders are seeing how the hidden costs of plastic keycards can add up: lost card replacement, badge printing, admin labor, and onboarding delays.

The move to digital wallet is a productivity driver, not just a line item in your security budget.

The savings are direct: One customer estimated that even a 10-minute provisioning delay per user per day equates to thousands of dollars in lost billable hours.

It's Time to Reconsider Digital Wallet

Digital wallet adoption is ready for prime time:

• More affordable than ever
• Faster to deploy
• More secure
• Enterprise-ready
• Data-driven

As you plan for 2026 budgets, the barriers that held back wallet adoption are gone. The technology that felt experimental 18 months ago has matured into a proven, scalable solution that's transforming how organizations manage physical access.

Digital wallet has moved from “not yet” to “ready rigth now.” Find out how Cohesion's mobile access solution can cut costs, strengthen security, and make access control easier for everyone.

‍Learn more about Cloud Access Portal or talk to our team today.

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