Toyota Camry key type: smart key or a key you turn?

A Camry with a START button on the dash uses Toyota's Smart Key System: the key stays in your pocket. A Camry with a key slot you turn uses a key you insert.

Toyota writes its Camry owner's manuals for both kinds of car, so the model year alone does not tell you which one you have.

Which Toyota Camry has push-button start?

The one with the Smart Key System. Toyota's Camry owner's manuals have separate instructions for "vehicles with a smart key system" and "vehicles without a smart key system", and list the system as "if equipped". It is equipment on the individual car.

Trim and options decide, not the year. The 2018 Camry, for example, was sold both with and without push-button start depending on trim and options, so "does a 2018 Camry have push-button start" has no single answer: look at the car.

The VIN settles it. Scan it in Partexia and see the key for that exact Camry.

How to tell which key your Camry takes

Look at the dash. A START button you press means the Smart Key System. Toyota's manuals call it the "ENGINE START STOP" switch, or the "POWER" switch on some Camry Hybrids.
No button? Look for a key slot. If you insert a key and turn it through LOCK, ACC and ON to START, the car has no Smart Key System.
Check the key in your hand. A smart key has a mechanical key hidden inside it that slides out. A key for a car without the system is the key itself, with or without remote buttons in its head.

Toyota smart key vs regular key

Smart key (electronic key). Stays on you. With it in the car, you press the brake and the START button. It also has the lock and unlock buttons, and a mechanical key inside for the door when its battery dies.
Key you turn. Goes into the engine switch and turns to START. It may have remote buttons in its head; in a recent Camry manual this key also folds into its head.

Both kinds carry a transponder. Toyota's manual says the engine immobilizer stops the engine from starting "if a key has not been previously registered in the vehicle's on-board computer", so a new key of either kind has to be registered to the car.

Which one yours takes is in the VIN. Partexia shows it, with the OEM key to order.

Camry smart key battery dead: how to start it

Open the door with the mechanical key. Release the mechanical key from the smart key and use it in the driver's door lock.
Touch the key to the START button. With the shift lever in P and the brake pressed, touch the Toyota emblem side of the smart key to the button. When the car detects the key, the switch turns on.
Press the button. Keep the brake pressed and press the START button once, firmly. Then replace the key battery: Toyota calls this a temporary measure.

If it still will not start, Toyota's manual says to contact a Toyota dealer.

Toyota Camry key fob upgrade: can a smart key add push-button start?

No. The Smart Key System is factory equipment, "if equipped" in the owner's manual. A Camry built without it has a key slot you turn and no START button, and buying a smart key does not add one. The key has to match how the car was built.

Order the key that matches the car. Partexia reads that from the VIN.

Where is the VIN on a Toyota Camry?

Through the windshield: on the top left of the dash, readable from outside on the driver's side.
On the driver's door: on the certification label on the door edge or the door post.
On the vehicle registration and title.

In Partexia, point the camera at the VIN barcode or type the 17 characters.

For locksmiths: Toyota Camry all keys lost

Before you quote, establish:

The ignition: START button (Smart Key System) or a key you turn. Look through the window if you have to.
The key number plate: Toyota gives one with the keys and tells owners to keep it out of the car. Ask the customer if they still have it.
The features: what the customer's key worked, such as opening the trunk from the remote.

Then scan the VIN in Partexia for the OEM key part numbers that fit that Camry. Registering the key to the car is a separate step, with your tool or at the dealer.

Toyota Camry key questions

Which Toyota Camry has push-button start?: The ones built with Toyota's Smart Key System, which the owner's manual lists as "if equipped". Look for a START button on the dash; a key slot you turn means no Smart Key System. Scan the VIN in Partexia to see which key that Camry takes.
Does the 2018 Camry have push-button start?: Some do. The 2018 Camry was sold with and without push-button start depending on trim and options, so check the car for a START button. Partexia shows the exact key from the VIN.
What kind of key does a 2017 Toyota Camry have?: Either a smart key, if the car has a START button, or a key you insert and turn. Which one depends on how that car was built, not the year. Scan the VIN in Partexia to see which, and the OEM key to order.
What is the difference between a Toyota smart key and a regular key?: A smart key stays in your pocket and you start the car with the START button; it hides a mechanical key for the door. A regular key goes into the ignition and turns. Partexia tells you which one a car takes from its VIN.
How do I start my Camry if the smart key battery is dead?: Open the door with the mechanical key inside the smart key, then with the brake pressed touch the Toyota emblem side of the key to the START button and press the button. To order a spare that fits, scan the VIN in Partexia.
Can I upgrade my Toyota Camry key fob to push-button start?: Not by buying a fob. Push-button start comes with the Smart Key System, which is factory equipment. Partexia shows the key that matches the car's VIN.
What do I check first on an all-keys-lost Toyota Camry?: Push-button start or a key you turn, whether the customer still has the key number plate, and which features the old key worked. Then scan the VIN in Partexia for the OEM key part numbers.