We get a lot of questions about the various versions of Homelink®, so we figured this would make for a good blog topic. Here you go:
Homelink® version 3 has been around (at least in rear view mirrors) since approximately the 2004 model year, and was used on mirrors until 2013-2014 - the exact dates when the carmakers switched their mirrors from V3 to V4 varied, so there wasn't a firm switchover date. This version of Homelink works on older openers, prior to the ones made with a yellow learn button and yellow antenna. Here, too, the opener manufacturers didn't all switch at once, and even within a given manufacturer, the changeover was gradual. But again...the key detail here is the color of the learn button AND antenna on the opener...if yours has a yellow learn button and yellow antenna, your opener is newer, so a mirror with Homelink® V3 will not work with your opener, unless you acquire a Homelink® repeater such as the Liftmaster® 855LM. V3 is backward-compatible and will work with numerous older openers, even ones going back to the 1970's in some cases. If you had an older opener and recently purchased a new one & now you find that your mirror doesn't work with your opener, you'll need to either replace your mirror with one that has a newer version of Homelink® or purchase the aforementioned repeater.
Homelink® version 4 started to appear on rearview mirrors around 2010-2011, and is still in use on some mirrors manufactured in 2024. This version of Homelink® is compatible with just about all openers, current and prior...as with the V3 mirrors, V4 is also backward-compatible. If you have a newer opener, a mirror that has Homelink® V4 will work directly with the opener, without the need for a repeater.
And that brings us to the latest...Homelink® version 5. This version started to appear on rearview mirrors around 2015-2016 or so and is in widespread use today. And this version is also compatible with just about all openers, new, old and very old, lol! But what separates V5 from V4 is that the newest version also has small garage door last status indicators...these are two small arrows, one pointing up, one pointing down, either behind the mirror glass, or located in the bottom portion of the mirror frame. If you have a new enough opener that has the ability to transmit the garage door's up/down status back to your mirror, then when properly set up, these arrows will show you the last status of your garage door...either open or closed. Here's what these arrows look like on the "framed" version of the mirror: 
How can you tell which version of Homelink® your mirror has? Easy! Look on the back of your mirror...all Homelink® mirrors have the version stamped directly into the plastic on the back of the mirror housing, like this one:
Some examples are ZTVHL3, OBIHL3, WZLHL4, MOBHL4, GHSHL4 and AECHL5, among others. The last three characters indicate the version of Homelink® - so for these three examples, you have Homelink® version 3, version 4, and version 5, respectively.
There you go! If you have any questions or comments, scroll down to the bottom of your screen & post them below. And if you need a Homelink® mirror for your vehicle, we have hundreds of options available for a huge variety of vehicles!
Tagged Products
