GMC Truck and SUV Key Replacement in San Diego

A GMC chip key costs $125 and a Denali-style smart key $229, programmed where the truck is parked. GMC dealers typically charge about $230 and $440 for the same parts.

This page covers GMC pickups, vans and SUVs: Sierra, Savana, Canyon, Yukon, Acadia and Terrain. The key gets cut and coded right beside the truck, so a crew is not standing around waiting on a tow.

GMC shares its key hardware with Chevrolet, so a Sierra key and a Silverado key from the same year use the same chip and blade, and only the logo differs. Malibu, Cruze and Equinox owners will find their details on the Chevrolet page. Every GMC key we supply is OEM or OEM-grade, programmed by the procedure GM specifies, and backed for a year.

The new key next to the original.

What a GMC key costs at your car

A spare GMC key with a working key present. The dealer figure is what a San Diego GMC dealer typically quotes for the same key, before tax.

Prices as of 2026-09-30. Every price includes the drive to you anywhere in San Diego County. There is no trip fee and no after-hours rate inside our open hours. All keys lost adds $60.
Key or job	Typical dealer	Value Car Keys	You keep
Transponder chip key, 2007 to 2018Circle Plus key on 2007 to 2013 Sierra, 2007 to 2014 Yukon, Acadia through 2015 and Savana vans; a later blank for the 2014 to 2018 Sierra and 2015 to 2017 Canyon. Locks work from a separate remote.	~~$230~~	$125	$105
High-security laser-cut key, 2010 to 2017A transponder key milled on the HU100 profile, without a remote: the plain spare for a 2010 to 2017 Terrain, which otherwise carries the same blade folded into its flip key.	~~$270~~	$145	$125
Remote head key, 2010 to 2017Terrain flip key with the HU100 blade folded into the remote.	~~$300~~	$165	$135
Smart key for push-to-start, 2015 and newerYukon from 2015, Acadia from 2017, Terrain from 2018, and Sierra trucks built with push-button start. Many 2019 and newer Sierra fobs carry a tailgate button.	~~$440~~	$229	$211

All keys lost. The dealer column adds a typical $150 tow, because a dealership programs only with the car in the bay.
Key or job	Typical dealer	Value Car Keys	You keep
Chip key, all keys lost2007 to 2018	~~$230 plus a tow~~	$185	$195
Laser-cut key, all keys lost2010 to 2017	~~$270 plus a tow~~	$205	$215
Remote key, all keys lost2010 to 2017	~~$300 plus a tow~~	$225	$225
Smart key, all keys lost2015 and newer	~~$440 plus a tow~~	$289	$301

GMC models with their own page

Known GMC key and ignition problems

Faults that come up on GMC models often enough to have their own page, with the years, the fix and the dealer figure next to ours.

GM theft deterrent no-start

Many Chevy and GMC cars and trucks that show Service Theft Deterrent System and won't start clear with a free 10-minute relearn.

Chevy and GMC truck ignition repair

Chevy and GMC trucks and SUVs from 1999 to 2014 wear out ignition cylinders and keys until the key stops turning.

Car key problems by make, and what each dash message means

Which GMC key do you have?

Metal key on the ring, remote beside it: Sierra, Savana, Canyon

Most GMC trucks and vans through 2018 start with a metal chip key and lock with a separate remote. The 2007 to 2013 Sierra and the Savana use GM's Circle Plus key, while the 2014 to 2018 Sierra and the 2015 to 2017 Canyon take a newer blank with an updated chip. Savana vans kept the key and separate remote through at least 2024. The key is $125.

Flip key on a 2010 to 2017 Terrain

The blade folds into the remote and uses GM's HU100 profile, milled into both faces rather than notched along the edge. A shop without a milling cutter has no way to copy it. Ours is $165 with the remote paired, or $145 as a plain chip key, cut from the key code beside the Terrain. Terrains built from 2018 on switched to a push-button smart key.

Push-button start: Denali trims and the newer SUVs

A smart key. The Yukon has used one from 2015, the Acadia from 2017 and the Terrain from 2018, and push-start Sierra trims carry one too. Many 2019 and newer Sierra fobs add a button for the power tailgate, and a steel emergency blade tucks inside each fob for the door. $229 at the truck.

Lost every GMC key?

Many GM trucks from the Circle Plus years relearn keys on a timer: new key in the ignition, security light lit for about ten minutes, repeated three times. That half hour is written into GM's procedure rather than added by us, so plan on it rather than a quick in-and-out on a Sierra, Yukon or Savana with no key left.

The lost-key charge adds $60 to the key, covering the cut data from the VIN and programming from scratch. Proof of ownership is required: title or registration, with a matching driver's license or ID. When the relearn finishes, the missing key no longer starts the truck, and wiping it costs nothing extra.

What the dealer charges, and why

A GMC dealer charges for the part, then adds $100 to $180 for programming, which puts a chip key near $230 and a Denali smart key near $440. A truck with no key gets towed in beforehand ($125 to $200), and a crew truck can sit for one to three days when the fob is on order.

For a business, the idle truck usually costs more than the key. We program at the yard or the job site, quote every truck by VIN before we drive, and charge for each key only after it starts its truck.

Two things we say on the phone first

Keep a second key. A spare Sierra or Savana key is $125 while one still works, and losing the last one adds $60, the relearn wait and a truck parked until we arrive. Online remotes are the other trap: a Sierra remote and a Sierra smart key look alike in photos and are different parts, so read us the FCC number from the case before paying anyone to program one.

GMC key questions

Is a Sierra key the same as a Silverado key?

For the same model year, yes in every way that matters. Chip, blade and remote come off the same GM parts shelf, and only the logo on the shell changes. A 2007 to 2013 Sierra uses the same Circle Plus key as the Silverado of those years. What changes the key is trim: a push-start truck and a turn-key truck take different keys, so read us the VIN.

Can you key several company trucks in one visit?

Yes. Each truck is programmed on its own at the yard, one after another, and nothing gets towed. We quote every truck by VIN on the phone, because a 2012 Sierra and a 2020 Sierra take different keys. You pay by card or cash as each key starts its truck, and each key is warrantied for a year.

My Savana has one key left. Is a spare worth making now?

Yes, because it costs less now than later. A spare Savana key is $125 while a working key still exists. Once the last one is gone, the job adds $60 and GM's relearn wait, and the van sits until the key is made. The remote on these vans is a separate fob, so mention it when you call if it needs replacing too.

What does a Yukon Denali smart key cost?

It is $229 at the vehicle, against roughly $440 at a GMC dealer before tax. A 2015 or newer Yukon Denali uses a push-button smart key, and our price covers programming it to the immobilizer and the remote functions, plus the drive. If the dealer would have to order the fob, you also skip the one-to-three-day wait.

Why does my 2016 Sierra have a key and a separate remote?

That is how GM built the 2014 to 2018 Sierra with a turn-key ignition: a metal chip key for the ignition and a separate fob for the locks. The key is $125, cut and programmed at the truck. A remote you already own is paired for $79 to $119, and a new remote is quoted on the same call.

The key snapped off in my Sierra's ignition. Can you get it running on site?

Usually, yes. The broken piece is extracted without drilling; that part runs $89 to $149. If there is no other key to use afterward, a replacement is priced separately, from $125 for a turn-key Sierra, and cut and programmed during the same visit so the truck leaves under its own power. See broken key extraction for how that goes.

Where we make GMC keys

Any GMC parked anywhere in San Diego County, with no trip fee. Cities where we cut GMC keys most often:

Related services

Text us your GMC year and model

Call or text (619) 340-1518 with the car's year, make and model. If a dealer already quoted you, send that quote over for our answer on the same key.

Call (619) 340-1518 Text us your car

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