6 Top Password Managers to Secure Your Digital Life (2025)

Top password managers are the internet equivalent of vegetables. Although we are aware of their health benefits, most of us prefer to snack on the password equivalent of junk food.

That has been “123456” and “password” have been the two most popular passwords on the internet for almost ten years.

The issue is that most of us are unable to remember hundreds of passwords and have no idea what constitutes a strong one.

Memorizing all of your passwords is the safest (if most insane) way to keep them. (Verify that they are secure, robust, and long.) I was making fun.

For Memory Grand Master Ed Cooke, that might work, but most of us aren’t able to accomplish such amazing things.

We must delegate that task to password managers, which provide safe havens that can replace our memory.

In addition to being convenient, the best password manager helps you create stronger passwords, which reduces the possibility that password-based attacks will compromise your online presence.

Why Don’t You Use Your Browser?

A basic password manager is available in the majority of web browsers. (If Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox prompts you to save your passwords, this is where they are saved.)

Despite their limitations, browser-based password managers are still better than using the same password everywhere.

Although Google has improved the built-in password manager in Chrome in recent years and is now better than the others, it still lacks the features and support of a dedicated password manager like the ones listed below.

SPYIDEA readers have also inquired about Apple’s password manager, which has some good connections with the Safari web browser and syncs via iCloud. Nothing about Apple’s system is flawed.

It manages password security and synchronization across Apple devices, but it lacks some of the nice extras that come with dedicated services. The primary issue is that you won’t be able to sync your passwords with any non-Apple devices.

Are you all in on Apple? If so, this is a good, cost-free, integrated choice to think about.

What Are Passkeys?

About two days after passwords were created, a determined attempt was made to eliminate them. We don’t think passwords will be outdated anytime soon, but you can’t argue that they’re a pain.

An industry group called the FIDO Alliance, which aims to standardize online authentication methods, is the latest to attempt to do away with the password.

Does the infamous XKCD 927 sound a little bit like this? Yes, it does. But this time, it might work because of the monopolistic nature of devices.

Apple created the popular term “passkeys” and supports the FIDO specifications. Passkeys are cryptographic keys that are generated and controlled by your device, which is typically your phone.

They are simple to make; your device takes care of all the details, so you don’t have to do anything. Your device stores your passkeys, which are secured by PINs or biometrics.

There is nothing to remember because passkeys are generated key pairs rather than passwords. They are somewhat similar to GPG keys in that both require a public and private key.

The public key is sent to your device by the website you wish to access. You’re signed in (or not, if the keys don’t match) when your device compares that to its private key.

The fact that passkeys are a preinstalled tool for users who aren’t going to complete this article and sign up to utilize one of the services below makes them an improvement, even though they aren’t a drastic change.

A security victory will occur if millions of people abruptly stop using 12345678 as their password.

You can store your passkeys next to your passwords because practically all of the apps we’ve recommended here can store passkeys.

Passkeys can be created, saved, stored, and synced using our two favorites, Bitwarden and 1Password. You can even use a passkey to access Bitwarden, which essentially removes the need for a password altogether.

In the same way that Bitwarden and 1Password sync your passwords, your passkey will automatically sync to all of your devices once you have it stored.

Your password manager will use the passkey you generated to log you in when you visit that website again.

The credit cards that are kept in your wallet next to the cash (passwords) are called passkeys. There may be no need for passwords or password managers in the future since passkeys will be universally functional.

In the interim, we believe it’s best to continue using a password manager, even if you’re only using it to store passkeys.

Benefits of Password Manager (and Tips)

Passwords are generated, stored, and updated for you by a competent password manager at the touch of a button.

A password manager can be purchased for a few dollars per month to sync your passwords across all of your devices. This is how they function.

1. Just one password to keep in mind: You only need to remember one password to access all of your others. That opens the vault with all of your real passwords when you enter it into the password manager. It’s great that you only have to remember one password, but lots of things depend on it. Make sure it’s a good one.
2. Apps and extensions: The majority of password managers are complete systems as opposed to just one piece of software. The apps or browser extensions that come with each of your devices—Windows, Mac, Android phones, iPhones, and tablets—have features that assist you in creating secure passwords, storing them safely, and assessing how secure your current passwords are. It transfers all of that data to a central server, where your passwords are encrypted, stored, and shared across devices.
3. Fixing compromised passwords: Password managers can assist you in creating stronger passwords and protecting them from prying eyes, but they are powerless to secure your password in the event that the website is compromised. However, that does not imply that they are useless in this situation. Every cloud-based password manager we cover has features to notify you when a password may be compromised. Password managers also make it simpler to search through your credentials to make sure you haven’t reused any compromised passwords and to change a compromised password quickly.
4. Disabling auto-form-filling is advised: There are password managers that will automatically complete and submit online forms on your behalf. While this is very handy, we advise you to turn it off for extra security. Password managers have previously been subject to attacks because they automatically fill out forms in the browser. Therefore, some require you to opt into this feature, such as 1Password. We recommend you don’t.
5. Don’t be concerned about hacking: All software, including your password manager, contains bugs. The question isn’t what to do if your password manager turns out to be flawed, but rather what to do if it is found to be flawed. Being calm is the first piece of advice. Usually, bugs are found, reported, and fixed before they are exploited in the wild. You should be safe even in the event that someone manages to access the servers of your password manager. Since none of the services on our list save your encryption key and only store encrypted data, an attacker can only obtain encrypted data by breaching their servers.

6 Top Password Managers for 2025 (Tested & Reviewed)

1. Bitwarden: Best for Most People

• Bitwarden (Free)
• Bitwarden Premium ($10/year)
• Bitwarden Family ($40/year)

Bitwarden is limitless, open source, and safe (9/10, SPYIDEA Suggests). For the majority of users, the service is the best option because of the well-designed and intuitive applications.

Is it open source, did I mention that? This means anyone can freely examine, find errors in, and fix the code that drives Bitwarden.

Theoretically, the code gets more secure the more people who are looking at it. Bitwarden was audited by a third party for 2023 to ensure its security. Installing it on a local server for basic self-hosting is an option if you would rather control your own cloud.

All of the major web browsers and Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android apps have extensions. The Windows and macOS desktop apps from Bitwarden also support Touch ID and Windows Hello to provide users with the added security of biometric authentication systems.

I frequently use the web interface, which was recently updated to make it much cleaner and easier to use.

Since Bitwarden does not require a password, you can log in using a one-time code, biometric authentication, or a security key. Moreover, Bitwarden provides excellent passkey capability. Using a passkey instead of your username or password allows you to access your vault.

A feature for securely sharing files (called Bitwarden Send), an authentication app (which is paid for), and a very active and supportive community are some of the extras.

I enjoy using Bitwarden’s password filler, which is semi-automated. The browser icon in Bitwarden displays the quantity of saved credentials from a website when you visit it.

When you click the icon, a prompt to select your account will appear, followed by an automatic login form. This eliminates the problems associated with autofill and makes switching between usernames simple.

Additionally, if you absolutely need a form-filling feature, Bitwarden supports it completely automatically.

Upgrade accounts are paid for on Bitwarden. Bitwarden Premium is the least expensive of the group, costing $10 a year.

Along with 1 GB of encrypted file storage and two-factor authentication with gadgets like YubiKey, FIDO U2F, and Duo, you also receive a report on vault health and password hygiene. You can also get priority customer service with a paid account.

2. 1Password: Best Upgrade

• 1Password (Single, $36/Year)
• 1Password (Family, $60/Year)

1Password stands out from the other choices on this list because of how many extras it provides. Similar to its rivals, 1Password offers applications for all of the main operating systems, including macOS, iOS, Android, ChromeOS, Windows, and Linux.

A command-line utility is also available that can be used anywhere. Plug-ins for the web browser of your choice allow you to create and change new passwords on the fly easily.

Although 1Password has some really great features that you won’t find anywhere else, I still think BitWarden is a more cost-effective option for the majority of users. You’ll value my favorite feature, Travel Mode, if you regularly cross international borders.

This mode allows you to remove sensitive data from your devices before you travel, and once you’ve crossed a border, you can click to restore it. This stops anyone from accessing your entire password vault, including law enforcement at international borders.

It’s important to remember that 1Password unlocks your account using a combination of two keys: your password and a second secret key that is generated.

Although it adds another degree of security against weak passwords, it also indicates that you did not create some of the components required to crack your passwords.

Even though 1Password ensures that you have this key in your “emergency kit,” I still like to use a YubiKey and a password that I think of myself.

1Password is a password manager that also functions as an authentication app, much like Google Authenticator. For added security, it creates a secret key for the password encryption it employs, which prevents anyone from decrypting your passwords without it.

The drawback is that nobody, not even 1Password, will decrypt your passwords if you misplace this key. (Creating a custom group with the “Recover Accounts” permission can help lessen this.)

Additionally, 1Password provides close integration with other mobile applications. Since 1Password is integrated with numerous apps and has autofill capabilities, it eliminates the need to copy and paste passwords from your encrypted password manager to other apps, which leaves your password on the clipboard for a brief period. On iOS, where inter-app interaction is more constrained, this is more obvious.

3. Dashlane: Best Full-Featured Manager

• Dashlane (Single, $60/Year)
• Dashlane (Family, $90/Year)

Dashlane provides the majority of what our other choices offer. Dashlane doesn’t have a desktop app, but I primarily use web browsers to retrieve passwords, and Dashlane offers add-ons for all of the major browsers as well as apps for iOS and Android.

It is something to be mindful of if you value desktop apps, but based on my testing, it isn’t a major issue. In a zero-knowledge system, Dashlane employs the same AES 256-bit encryption, ensuring that passwords are never decoded outside of your device.

A hardware key, such as the Yubikey, or an authenticator app can be used to enable dashlane multifactor authentication.

Site Breach Alerts, which alert you if any web services you use have compromised your data, are among the additional security features that Dashlane offers at a significantly higher cost than Bitwarden or 1Password.

Additionally, Dashlane actively searches the shadowy areas of the internet for stolen or leaked personal information and notifies you if it has been compromised.

Even a Phishing Alert system will prevent you from entering login information on a website that has a fake URL. This last feature is very useful if you’re creating a password manager for family members or friends who aren’t as tech-savvy.

With Dashlane’s phishing protection, they can defend themselves against themselves. Additionally, Dashlane provides a VPN via Hotspot Shield VPN.

Similar to BitWarden’s setup procedure, Dashlane is easy to set up and migrate from another password manager.

You will encrypt your passwords using a secret key. In practice, Dashlane much resembles the other items on this list. Prior to committing, you can take advantage of Dashlane’s 30-day free trial.

4. NordPass: Best for Bundled Services

• NordPass (Free)
• NordPass (Premium, $80/Year)

Nord is best known for its VPN service, but it also provides a password manager called NordPass and a rather good online storage system called NordLocker.

Combining NordPass with the company’s other services to offer some alluring discounts contributes to its allure.

All the features you require in a password organizer are available with NordPass. Its zero-knowledge setup encrypts all of your device’s data before uploading it to the business’s servers.

NordPass employs XChaCha20 encryption, in contrast to the majority of services offered here. To understand the differences, a thorough understanding of cryptography would be necessary, but in summary, it is just as safe and possibly a little quicker.

Additionally, there is a feature for storing personal information that keeps your address, phone number, and other private information safe and accessible.

Using the emergency access feature, you can also allow another NordPass user to access your vault in an emergency.

If you are unable to access your account, it functions similarly to 1Password’s feature, enabling family members or trusted friends to do so.

Additional benefits include the ability to use two-factor authentication to access your account and security tools that can assess the strength of your passwords and notify you in the event that any of your data is compromised.

Although the monthly price of NordPass Premium is $3 in theory, there are always sales that make it much less. The lack of a monthly plan is the drawback and my one complaint about all Nord services.

As previously mentioned, the best value is obtained by bundling NordPass, NordVPN, and NordLocker.

Best DIY Alternatives (Self-Hosted)

Do you wish to manage your cloud data more effectively? Maintain your own password vault sync. The servers of the following services do not store any of your data. This suggests that attackers have nothing to target.

Instead of keeping your passwords, these services store your data in a local vault that you can sync with Dropbox, NextCloud, or SpiderOak.

This scenario is a little more complicated because there are two services to monitor. However, if you currently use a file-syncing service, this might be a good option.

5. Enpass

• Enpass (Single, $24/Year)
• Enpass (Family, $48/Year)

Enpass’s servers don’t hold any data. Third-party services handle the syncing. Although Enpass provides apps for every platform, it does not manage syncing. This implies that syncing functions exactly like any other service once it is configured.

Additionally, since your data is not stored on Enpass’s servers, you don’t need to be concerned about it being compromised. Enpass is compatible with Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud, Box, and Nextcloud, among other WebDAV-enabled services.

Unfortunately, SpiderOak is not supported at this time. A local WLAN or Wi-Fi network can also be used to synchronize your data.

All of the features you would anticipate from a password manager are included: breach monitoring, auto-generated and auto-filling passwords, biometric login (for devices that support it), and the capacity to store extra data, including identity and credit card information.

To identify any weak or redundant passwords in your vault, there is also a password audit feature. The capacity to tag passwords for easier searching is an extra feature that I really enjoy.

Additionally, Enpass makes it simple to set up syncing with the service of your choice. Enpass now supports passkeys.

Enpass is available for free on Linux, Mac, and Windows. The mobile version allows for free syncing of up to 25 items in a single vault. If you require more than that, you should subscribe to the paid service.

6. KeePassXC

• KeePassXC (Free)

KeePassXC functions similarly to Enpass above. You can use a master password, key file, or both to secure the encrypted digital vault where your passwords are kept. That database file is synced by you using a file-syncing service.

Once your file is in the cloud, it can be accessed by any device that has a KeePassXC client. Similar to Bitwarden, KeePassXC is open source, meaning that serious errors in its code can and have been found.

KeePassXC is a fantastic option if you’re an experienced user who feels at ease managing your own problems and support.

Having no official mobile clients is a drawback of KeePassXC. However, third-party apps are available for iOS and Android.

Other Best Password Managers

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for password managers. Although our top picks are the best options for most people and cover the majority of use cases, your needs might differ. Thankfully, there are many excellent password managers available. These are a few more that we tested and liked.

Keeper Password Manager: This password manager is part of Keeper’s suite of security tools, which costs $35 per year for unlimited use. Keeper offers two-factor authentication for account login and functions similarly to 1Password and others, keeping only your encrypted data. Similar to Dashlane, Keeper offers a number of extra features, such as dark-web monitoring, which verifies that your data isn’t accessible by looking at publicly available data.

RoboForm: RoboForm lacks some of the features that distinguish our top picks, like Bitwarden’s open source nature and 1Password’s travel features, but it shares the majority of the features with the other options on this list ($24/year, $48/year for a five-user family plan). I’ve tested the free plan and haven’t run into any problems. Apps are available on all major platforms, and using them is easy. According to an independent security audit, RoboForm won.

Pass (Free): Pass is a command-line wrapper for GPG (GNU Privacy Guard), so it’s only for the most geeky users. For handling encrypted.gpg files, third-party mobile apps are available and support Git. It isn’t suitable for everyone. This was my preferred password manager for years, but Bitwarden’s user-friendliness eventually won me over.

LastPass ($3 Per Month): We removed LastPass from our top picks because it has experienced more serious security breaches than any other service on this page. The business has since changed ownership and seems to be more secure, which is fortunate because a lot of people continue to use it.

What Are the Top Password Manager Features?

The top password managers provide more than just a place to store credentials. Look for apps that provide excellent privacy or security features, such as the ones listed below, if you want to get more out of your monthly or annual subscription.

Anonymous Emails

Email masking is a particularly helpful tool for reducing spam in your inbox and safeguarding your privacy. With certain password managers, such as Proton Pass, you can create a new, fictitious email address to access websites.

For the address, you can also set up an inbox so you can quickly respond to emails without revealing your identity. This feature comes in handy when you’re making purchases online and don’t want to give a business your actual email address.

VPN Access

Using a virtual private network, or VPN, to run your secure connections adds an extra degree of security. Dashlane has a basic VPN built in. The same company that makes NordVPN also makes NordPass. You can access the best-rated Proton VPN with a Proton Unlimited subscription.

Encrypted Cloud Storage

Another increasingly popular feature of password managers is secure storage. Allocating storage space is often sufficient to keep important documents in an encrypted state, but it won’t take the place of a specialized cloud storage and syncing service.

How We Test These Top Password Managers

Open source programming libraries offer the most secure and effective cryptographic algorithms. On the one hand, this is fantastic since any app can use these ciphers to protect your data. Unfortunately, cryptography is not enough to secure your passwords; encryption is only as strong as its weakest link.

Here’s what I look for: Where are the weakest connections? Has the server been sent your master password? Despite what every password manager claims, if you observe network traffic while you type a password, you may discover that it is.

I also investigate the operation of mobile apps. For instance, do they leave your password keep unlocked but only allow access with a PIN? Although it’s convenient, too much security is lost.

Although there are flaws in every password manager, the ones listed above are the best I’ve found. While still being user-friendly, they are as safe as possible.

Conclusion

Choosing a free password manager in 2025 is a smart step toward better online security and password hygiene. The best free password managers offer features like password generators, strong master passwords, and unlimited password storage.

Whether you’re new to password management or upgrading, tools like 1Password, Bitwarden, and NordPass deliver secure, easy-to-use solutions across all devices.

Don’t wait—protect your password and take control of your digital life today.

FAQs about Top Password Managers