As of July 2026, Chevy key replacement in Dallas–Fort Worth typically runs $80–$180 for a transponder key, $140–$280 for a flip key, and $190–$400 for a smart key fob from a mobile locksmith — and GMC pricing is effectively identical, because under the badge a Sierra and a Silverado share the same key hardware. Metroplex Locksmith cuts and programs GM keys at your location anywhere in the metroplex, from a 1996 work truck with a resistor key to a current Tahoe with push-button start. Call (817) 813-8746 with your VIN and we’ll quote the exact key generation before the van rolls.
Quick Answer: Chevy & GMC Key Replacement in DFW
Transponder key (most turn-key Silverados, Sierras, Tahoes, Equinoxes): $80–$180 cut and programmed on site.
Flip key / remote key (folding blade with integrated remote, common on later turn-key trucks): $140–$280.
Smart key fob (push-button start — recent Silverado, Sierra, Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban): $190–$400.
All keys lost: add $50–$150 on top of the key price for immobilizer recovery. Fully mobile — no tow to a dealership.
Theft-recovery work (stolen-and-recovered trucks with damaged columns): quoted on inspection, because the honest number depends on what the thief broke. More on that below, since Silverado owners in DFW need this section more than most.
GM Key Eras: Three Decades of Anti-Theft, One Table
General Motors has cycled through more anti-theft architectures than almost any other maker, and your model year decides which one you’re paying for. The eras below are deliberately general — GM mixed systems across plants and trim levels, so the VIN, not the calendar, gives the final answer.
| Era (approximate) | Key technology | Typical replacement (mobile, DFW) |
|---|---|---|
| Older trucks, pre-anti-theft | Plain metal key, no electronics | $50–$90 |
| 1990s cars and some trucks | VATS — a resistor pellet in the key blade | $90–$160 |
| Late 90s–2000s | PassLock — the sensor lives in the ignition, the key is plain metal | $70–$150 (key); ignition faults extra |
| 2000s–2010s | Circle-plus transponder keys and flip keys | $80–$280 |
| Current generation | Smart key fob, push-button start | $190–$400 |
Two of those rows deserve a translation. VATS keys carry one of fifteen resistor values, and cutting a beautiful blade with the wrong pellet gets you a truck that cranks and refuses to run — measuring the value is the whole job. PassLock is the opposite trap: the key itself is chipless, so a hardware-store copy works fine until the sensor inside the ignition housing fails, at which point people replace keys that were never the problem. That failure is an ignition repair call, not a key call, and telling you which one you have over the phone is exactly the kind of diagnosis that saves a wasted service fee.
Dealership vs. Mobile for GM Keys
GM dealers do competent key work; the question is what you pay around the key itself. Kelley Blue Book’s dealership survey puts fob replacement at $150–$500+ at dealers depending on model, and with no working key the dealer visit starts with a tow — on a crew-cab pickup, not a cheap tow. A mobile visit deletes the tow and the day of shop time and prices the same fob programmed in your driveway or on your job site. The security access is equivalent: licensed independent locksmiths retrieve GM key codes and immobilizer functions through the NASTF Vehicle Security Professional registry, the audited industry channel built for precisely this purpose.
Where we send you to the dealer instead: warranty fob failures on nearly-new vehicles, and the occasional just-launched platform where aftermarket tooling trails by a model year. We say so on the phone. A wasted trip costs us more reputation than the job was worth.
The Silverado Problem: DFW’s Most-Stolen Truck
Here’s the uncomfortable statistic for anyone who parks a GM truck outside: the National Insurance Crime Bureau counted 21,666 Chevrolet Silverado 1500s stolen in 2024 — the third most-stolen vehicle in America, in a year when national thefts actually fell 17%. Trucks get stolen for parts, for the trailers behind them, and for the tools inside them, and Texas is reliably near the top of the truck-theft map.
What that means for this page is theft-recovery work. When a stolen Silverado or Sierra comes back from the impound lot, the damage follows a pattern: a broken or drilled ignition cylinder, missing or compromised keys, and sometimes a vehicle that starts but shouldn’t — because whatever the thief did to defeat the immobilizer is still in place. A proper recovery job has three layers:
- Ignition: rebuild or replace the damaged cylinder so a key turns it the way GM intended — our ignition repair service, done curbside at the impound lot if needed.
- Keys: cut and program fresh keys, and erase every old key from the immobilizer so the one in the thief’s pocket is now a paperweight.
- Modules: on GM vehicles the body control module sits in the anti-theft chain, and theft attempts can leave the BCM interlock in a state where nothing syncs. Relearning or reprogramming that handshake is module work — the same discipline we cover in our ECM programming guide — and it’s why some recovered trucks “have new keys” and still won’t start.
We quote theft recovery on inspection rather than over the phone, and we tell you why: two recovered trucks with identical damage photos can hide very different electrical situations, and a real number beats a friendly guess that doubles on arrival.
Job-Site Trucks, Fleet Keys & the DFW Work-Truck Reality
A huge share of our GM calls aren’t family vehicles — they’re working trucks. Contractors in Mansfield, warehouse and logistics fleets around Grand Prairie, and trades crews across Arlington run Silverados and Sierras hard, and a work truck loses keys differently than a commuter car: keys ride in tool bags, get handed between crew members, and disappear into pour sites and attic insulation. A few patterns from years of those calls:
- A dead work truck bills by the hour. If the truck can’t move, the crew standing around it is the real cost. Mobile service to the job site — not a tow to a dealer — is the difference between losing an hour and losing a day.
- Fleet spares are cheap insurance. Programming spares for three trucks in one visit prices far better per key than three separate emergencies six months apart. We do multi-vehicle fleet visits on a scheduled basis, including early mornings before crews roll out.
- One key per truck is a policy failure. The foreman’s key ring should never be the single point of failure for a six-figure day of concrete work. If your fleet runs on single keys today, that’s the cheapest problem you’ll ever fix.
The same logic scales down to one truck and one owner in Dallas: if the Silverado tows your boat or carries your livelihood, the $80 spare beats the $230 emergency every single time. Ford crews, same story — our Ford key replacement guide covers the blue-oval half of the Texas truck market.
A Real-World Example
Situation: A framing contractor’s 2016 Sierra 1500 — the truck that hauls the crew’s generator and compressor — lost its only flip key somewhere in a Mansfield subdivision build. Four workers, a delivery window closing, and the nearest dealer quoting “bring it in Thursday” plus a tow.
What we did: Mobile all-keys-lost service at the job site that morning: ownership verified, key code pulled through licensed channels, two flip keys cut and programmed — one for the truck, one for the office drawer — and the immobilizer recovery completed with the truck parked exactly where it died.
Result: The truck moved before lunch. The second key cost a fraction of the first because the van, the tools, and the paperwork were already there — which is the whole argument for buying the spare during the emergency instead of after the next one.
“GM has used more security systems in thirty years than most brands use in their whole history — resistor keys, PassLock, transponders, smart fobs. The customer doesn’t need to know the alphabet soup. They need the person answering the phone to know it, because the VIN tells us which decade of GM thinking we’re dealing with before we quote a dime.”
— senior mobile technician, Metroplex Locksmith
Texas Consumer Protection: Hiring GM Key Work Honestly
Truck keys attract the scam end of this trade, because the caller is usually stuck somewhere expensive. Four checks keep you on the honest side of the market:
- License first. Texas locksmith companies must hold a Texas DPS Private Security Program license. Legitimate operators recite the number without hesitation; evasion is your answer.
- Watch for the bait-and-switch. The FTC has warned for years about locksmith operations that quote $19 by phone and renegotiate at your tailgate. A real GM quote names your model, your key era — VATS, PassLock, transponder, or smart fob — and a range tight enough to mean something.
- Ownership verification is a feature, not friction. ALOA-affiliated professionals check ID against the vehicle on every key job. Given where Silverados sit on the theft charts, you want the locksmith who asks.
- The floor price is real. The Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks locksmithing as a distinct skilled occupation averaging roughly $50,000 a year nationally — programming equipment, code-access subscriptions, insurance, and that labor are why a legitimate smart-fob job can’t cost $19. Prices meaningfully below the honest floor are an advertisement for what happens next in your driveway.
What to Have Ready When You Call
Five things get you a firm GM quote in one phone call: the VIN (GM’s era boundaries blur across years and trims, so the VIN settles it); turn-key or push-button start; how many working keys remain — a spare-key job skips the recovery surcharge entirely, which is the standing argument on our car key replacement page for cutting the spare before you need it; whether the truck was stolen or tampered with, because that changes the job from a key to a recovery; and where the vehicle sits — driveway, job site, or impound lot, we come to it. Locked out with the key visible on the seat? That’s a faster, cheaper visit than a lost-key call — AAA counts roughly four million locked-out drivers rescued every year, and full-size trucks with fobs in cupholders supply more than their share.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a Chevy or GMC key cost in DFW?
As of July 2026: $80–$180 for a transponder key, $140–$280 for a flip key, and $190–$400 for a smart key fob, cut and programmed at your location. All-keys-lost adds $50–$150 for immobilizer recovery.
Are Silverado and Sierra keys the same?
Mechanically and electronically, yes — Chevrolet and GMC are both General Motors brands, and a Silverado and Sierra of the same generation share key hardware and programming procedures. The badge changes the grille, not the price.
Can a locksmith program a GM smart key with all keys lost?
Yes. GM all-keys-lost procedures are well supported by professional mobile equipment: ownership verification, licensed key-code retrieval, immobilizer recovery, and a new fob programmed on site, with no tow to a dealership required.
My recovered stolen Silverado has new keys but still won’t start. Why?
Theft attempts often damage more than the ignition — on GM trucks the body control module sits in the anti-theft chain, and a disturbed BCM interlock can block starting even with correctly programmed keys. That’s module-level work, and it’s diagnosable on site.
What is a VATS or PassLock key, and do you service them?
VATS keys carry a resistor pellet that must match one of fifteen values; PassLock uses a plain key with the sensor inside the ignition. We service both daily — older GM anti-theft is routine mobile work, and misdiagnosed PassLock faults are one of our most common truck calls.
Where in DFW do you replace Chevy and GMC keys?
Everywhere — fully mobile across Arlington, Mansfield, Grand Prairie, Dallas, Fort Worth, and the rest of the metroplex, including job sites, impound lots, and early-morning fleet visits.
The Bottom Line
Chevy and GMC key replacement rewards a locksmith who knows which of GM’s many security eras your truck lives in — and punishes guesswork. As of July 2026, expect $80–$400 depending on key generation, mobile anywhere in DFW, with theft-recovery packages quoted honestly on inspection because Silverados earn that conversation more than most trucks. Call (817) 813-8746 or book online with your VIN ready — and if the truck still has one working key, cut the spare this week. On a working truck, the spare is never the expensive key; the emergency is.