This is why I keep my doors locked even when I am at home.

It does not matter how many times you knock on my door. You have no right to enter my home against my will. If you are knocking and nobody answers, take the hint and leave.

If you feel that this is a safety issue - say for an elderly neighbor with health issues you can call the Police and request a welfare check, but absolutely nothing gives you the right to enter another person’s home without their permission. There is a word for that action. It’s called “trespassing,” and it can result in your arrest or death depending on the reaction of the person who’s home you are invading.

It is not considered rude in my opinion, it is not obligatory to let anybody in who knocks.

I remember years ago when I was on a very early shift at work, this meant I had to get up at 2.45am and out of the door at 3.15am. During that half an hour when I was getting ready, I opened the blinds as I always did when I got up, regardless of the time, only to notice two people by my front gate, one of whom was sitting on the front step.

About five minutes later there was a knock at the front door, I opened it only because their knocking was about to wake up my husband, which I didn’t want. They had seen my light on and me at the front window and asked to come in to use the phone. I declined and directed them 200m down the road to a public phone box. Now why did I do that? I did it because the two people were druggies, if I had let them in, it is highly likely they may have attempted to overpower me or try to attack me - in my own home, they were not pleased I had refused, but I didn’t give a damn, nobody puts my family at risk including myself which I would have possibly been doing had I let them in.

Be careful who you invite in.

I just wouldn’t answer the door…but first make sure it’s not Publishers Clearinghouse with a big check in their hands. I use a Wyze Camera.

When I was in my late 20’s, living with my daughter and significant other. Both he and I worked long hours and liked to kick back in the evenings. My parents had a “habit” of stopping by unannounced. My man asked if I could talk to them about it and I did.

I just asked if they would call before they came over because we were often tired and not in the mood to entertain or make arrangements for a good time.

Now…I didn’t ask them to do anything that I didn’t do. I never stopped by their house or anyone else’s without calling first.

My Mom was highly INSULTED…I got the lecture of how they were family and shouldn’t have to call and how THEY had an open door policy- no amount of patience could get her to understand. They stopped coming, from that point on they disliked my fiancé and when he became my husband things never improved. It caused quite a rift in our relationship. Which was really sad.

It’s still good manners to call before you impose on anyones hospitality and be sure to say “…I apologize for calling on such short notice, I’m in your neighborhood and was thinking of you, are you up for a quick visit? If not I understand.”

simple…

Basically never.

I don’t knock on doors as a general rule. I don’t go where I’m not wanted or not given an invitation. If I do, then I’m behaving extremely out of character.

If I don’t know for certain where someone lives, you can definitely be certain I’m going to ask the person for directions and for them to come stand outside the door before I even step foot on the lawn.

I just do not go to random houses. Period.

If someone wants me to visit, then they either need to invite me and give me explicit directions or come get me and bring me to their house.

I would never be a door-to-door salesperson.

In fact, I don’t remember showing up at anyone’s door uninvited more than once or twice in my entire life.

My neighbour who is in his eighties was not answering his door or his telephone, his girlfriend had a key but could not get in because the chain was across the door. We shouted, we banged, we feared the worst. I used a large meat fork bent halfway down to unhook the chain and open the door. I waited outside while she went looking…….he had run out of batteries for his hearing aid. He later thanked me for my help and for my concern and also asked why I didn’t come in. My response was I thought you might have fallen getting out of the shower or something and I didn’t want to invade your privacy. If you’re not invited, don’t go in.

Considerate people do.

Holding the door used to be a man's task, but now it all comes down to practicality. Whoever is closer or whoever is holding a fewer number of things, is expected to hold the door for someone else. Regardless of their sex or age.

Holding the door is a sign of well-mannered people, and I am lucky to say that all of my friends and coworkers don't mind holding the door for others. In fact, it's kinda cute to see people arguing who would go first: No, please. You go first or No, no, after you…

However, there are those people push themselves first at all cost and even let the door hit the other person's face. Like the ones who don't want to give their bus seat to a 90-something old granny on crutches. Ah, that's another story.

Thanks for asking, Niklas.

It depends on what I am doing. Most of the time I open the door and say hello. It could be my dad or mom or niece dropping in.

If I am in the fecal position giving birth to a brown trout , sound asleep even a nap, taking a bath, involved with a little self loving or loving with my guy? They can knock away. If they are still knocking when Im done Ill answer the door.

See if it was a family member knocking down my door they would start hollering if it was important. As in one of my elderly parents fell or Goddess forbid worse. Cops would bust in the door and anyone else is just looking to sell me something, bend my ear on Jesus (points to the Goddess reference NOT interested in your Jesus) or tell me who to vote for. I dont care they can knock and leave.

There really are multiple questions to be asked before an answer can be determined to be correct.

1st question, Do you know the people inside and have been there before. If you’re a salesman or similar, then 2 or 3 times maximum if you don’t have an appointment with them. They may not want to be bothered by you. If you have a scheduled appointment or know them, after knocking the 2 or 3 times, wait a couple of minutes and try again, they may have be busy or indisposed at the time.

2nd question, Is this a scheduled meeting, if so, it may take a couple of knocks, maybe a phone call as well before leaving because the person might have been indisposed at the time or running late and arrive as you are waiting for them.

3rd question, Does the person you are visiting have challenges like, hearing loss, difficulty getting up and walking to the door or other medical issues. If this is the case, they may be slow answering the door so by patiently knocking and then waiting some, they will finally get to the door to answer it. Being impatient and banging on the door repeatedly may either scare them or annoy them!

And 4th Question, If you know that they are pretty much homebound and never leave, if they don’t answer the door it may be because they are in trouble. If this is the case, try calling first if you have a number to call. If that doesn’t work, call a family member or friend to see if maybe they had to leave for an appointment. Especially you you visit regularly at that time. I’ll now explain the reason behind this last question now.

This took place probably about 15 years ago now, I had an elderly neighbor who lived 3 houses over from me and I could always see how the grass looked in her backyard. I went and knocked on her door one day to ask her if I could mow her lawn for her, no charge. Since the houses were connected the only way to get into her yard was thru her house and basement. She thanked me but told me to call her lawyer to make arrangements for payment. I told her again that I wasn’t looking for payment, just to help her out. She insisted I call her lawyer because she felt I should get paid something.

So I called her lawyer and told him that I wasn’t looking for money, that I just wanted to be neighborly to her. He told me that she told him about my visit and thanked me for the offer, but that she insisted that I should be paid and so we agreed on $25/hr or any part of an hour. He would also like me to trim the bushes some as well and anything else. Basically he asked me to be her landscaper. I was fine with this if it made her happy.

Well one Thursday, I always came Thursday since garbage was picked up on Friday, I came knocking on her door. She didn’t answer. Meals on Wheels had been there earlier and she had received her meals so I figured that she should be there. I tried numerous times and waited just incase she was indisposed and needed a little extra time. After about 45 minutes I tried to call her lawyer and couldn’t reach him so I called the police and explained the situation to them. I could see an open window in the back of the house that could be reached with a ladder from the backyard. When the officers arrived, they tried the front door and still no answer, I told them about the back window and that I had a ladder.

So one officer stayed at the front door as the other joined me by going thru my house to my backyard, then took the ladder and crossed thru the next 2 backyards hopping fences to get to her backyard. The officer went up the ladder, called into the house thru the screen and could hear her calling out. He went thru the window to get inside. It turned out that not long after the Meals on Wheels had delivered her meals, she had fallen down the steps to the basement and could not get up. She had broken her hip and had been lying there for at least 5 hours. They took her to the hospital and the lawyer had finally arrived after they had contacted him.

If I had not been persistent on trying to reach her, she would have most likely died there at the bottom of the step I was told. The lawyer then gave me a key so I could get in if necessary in the future as well as to continue maintaining the lawns while she was in the hospital. Well she never came home, she went on to a nursing home for the rest of her life and the lawyer asked me to continue maintaining the yard as well as to clean out the house so he could sell it.

Moral of the story is that your knock could either be a nuisance (unwanted solicitation), welcome but it may take awhile to be answered, or a lifesaver, you never know.

When you ring on a person’s doorbell you should ring once and then wait. Give them enough time to get down the stairs etc from an upper level of their home to the door.

Wait 1 minute as they could be in a situation where they can’t get to the door fast such as on the toilet or something. If after 1 minute you can hear them coming to the door do not ring again. If you can’t hear them at all a minute later it is fine and not rude to ring it again.

Once you ring a second time wait another minute. If you still can’t hear them coming to the door after another minute then you can ring the bell once more but once more only.

If the third time they don’t come to the door then you have no option but to leave and come back later.

Ringing the door bell anymore times than this is rude. Ringing the door bell and not giving them a reasonable amount of time to get to the door is also rude and may well cause a comment like “Geee can’t you just wait, I am coming!” which is a comment the person ringing the door bell would deserve. Like others have said people are not sitting at their door waiting for the door bell to be rung.

What you tend to see here in Finland is a very pragmatic approach when it comes to holding the door open for other people.

Situations vary a lot. Older gentlemen still consider it as their duty to hold the door open for women. So do many younger men.

But Finnish society typically has a very low hierarchy, and there’s often not any difference between what is expected from men and women. In my circles most people just opt for what happens to be the most practical in each situation: if someone has their hands full, the others hold the door open for them; if we are in a hurry, people don’t stop to hold the door but take care to not let it slam on anyone’s face, either; and if there are parents with prams or old people involved, it’s common to hold the door.

I, as a woman, never expect it, but whenever it’s done as a genuine gesture and not in a patronizing manner, I’m grateful for the kindness.

In my team we are really equal, and it doesn’t make any difference what your status is; my boss will hold the door for me just as often as I do for her.

I think it all comes down to situational awareness, general politeness, and equality. Be friendly and helpful to everybody, irrespective of their sex, and you should be fine.

Thanks for asking, Niklas!

What makes you think there’s any specific difference between [1] Europe (a large continent of 40+ countries) and [2] “America” (includes Canada, the USA, and Central and South America)?

Even inside one country habits may vary.

Where I live, in Scotland, if I hear someone knocking at the door (we have no bell) I go to see who it is. I can see through a window before I’m near the door, so if it’s someone I don’t want to see, I simply don’t go to the door at all, and after a while they’ll conclude I’m out, and go away.

But usually I go to the door and open it. If it’s someone I know, I invite them in, unless they’re just delivering a very quick message. If it’s a stranger, I say “Hello” pleasantly and wait for them to state their business.

I did the same when I lived in Germany. Nobody gasped in astonishment at my foreign ways.

I knock - once, then again more loudly. I may try a variation in knocking pattern so it can be heard over a television, radio or music. I will wait a minute or so, but if it is someone I know, I will wait for up to five minutes (they may be busy and cannot answer the door immediately.

If it is someone who has asked me to visit at that time, I may try the door. If it’s unlocked, I may open it and call out. If it’s open, I’ll just call out. I’ll add I can have a very loud voice. If I still get no answer, then depending n that person’s protocol, I may just leave or enter the kitchen, write who I am, the time and my reason for calling on the pad provided and perhaps have a cup of tea using the crockery set out for that purpose and just wait (and yes, I knew a few people who had that protocol in their home).

When you ring someone’s doorbell, remember they’re not necessarily just sitting around waiting for you to arrive. They may not be expecting you at all!

Consider the first ring your request for the homeowner to answer the door. Then, wait. The person on the other side of the door might be getting dressed, using the restroom, or otherwise occupied. Give him/her at least a minute before even considering a second ring.

The second ring then becomes a question: Hey, is anybody home? You didn't come the first time I rang, so I’m making sure you know I’m out here. Maybe you didn’t hear me the first time I rang?

If that second ring doesn’t bring someone to the door, that’s your cue to leave. You’ve given the homeowner ample time to get to the door, and you’ve twice notified them of your presence. Don’t ring again.

There really isn't a set rule for how many times you should knock on someone's door. The idea is to give them ample time to respond to your first knock. Sometimes when you are knocking, the person might be on the toilet or being roused from a nap and need more time to get to the door.

The only real rule here is to have already made it known that you are going to stop by to visit and indicate a time to be expected. This way, the person is expecting you and listening more for the sound of the door knock or the doorbell.

So, if there's been no advance prior knowledge of your visit, then you just knock a few raps on the door loudly enough to be heard. Look at the size of the house and mentally figure out if you were in the far back of the house, about how long it would take you to get to the door. Add extra time for if the person is elderly or disabled. Look around to see if their vehicle is parked in the driveway to indicate if they are home. After doing a little mental calculation for a reasonable period of time to respond to your knocking, then attempt to knock again.

If you still don't get a response after the second knocking, this doesn't mean it's okay to enter the house even if the door is unlocked. You aren't given permission to enter. If you suspect it could be an emergency, then give the appropriate weight of thought about going in or call the police to do a wellness check.

I'll usually try the door knocking and waiting periods just twice before leaving. This is pretty much the standard for proper etiquette.

It's not considered rude. It's the people who are offended by that who are rude. Holding the door open for other people is a mark of manners. Some people don't have any manners. Some people don't know what manners are. Some people need to go and find the book called. “Miss manners” and read the d*** thing. They might learn a thing or two. You holding a door open for somebody else shows respect, shows consideration, shows manners above what many others do. never allow these people who are offended by your actions to offend you.They don't feel like they are worthy of someone opening the door for them, or holding a chair for them, or sliding a chair into the table for them, all of these things are manners that were once a normal way of being. for some reason around the 60s, it all went to hell. And people forgot what manners where. I applaud you for having manners. And I am sorry that you are bring attacked by those with less manners. bye bye.

In the day an age of working from home, children learning from home, and nest and ring cams, I believe there's no reason to ring the doorbell more than once. When my doorbell rings I hear a chime, my dog barks, and I get a notification on my phone and my Google Home. I am well aware someone is ringing my doorbell. First, I never answer our door unless it's a package I need to sign for. It seems rude to me when people ring our doorbell to sell us things. I live downtown and this happens on average 6–7 times per week. It's very distruptive (and they ignore my no soliciting sign). What often happens is someone rings the bell and I'm presenting on a zoom call. I'm not going to leave the call to answer the door for someone I don't know or expect. By ringing the doorbell a second time a minute later, it's just creating more disruption, more noise, and annoyance at that point. And yes, I consider more than one ring rude (and unwelcome rings from solicitors very rude). And it's just not necessary.