BitwardenBest overall
Open-source apps, yearly Cure53 audits, a free plan with unlimited devices and Premium at $19.80 a year with no renewal jump.
Password managers
A password manager is an app that creates, stores and fills a different password for every account, locked behind one master password. These password manager reviews compare seven apps on independent audits, incident records, family plans and the price after year one.
1PasswordBest for ease of use
The most polished apps, Travel Mode, Watchtower and a Secret Key design that protects weak passwords; no free plan and $47.88 a year after the first year.
Proton PassBest for privacy and email aliases
Open-source Swiss password manager with built-in hide-my-email aliases, a free plan for unlimited devices and a clean 2026 Recurity Labs audit.
NordPassLowest intro price
XChaCha20 encryption, email masking and a SOC 2 Type 2 audit from $1.49 a month on a 2-year plan; renewals cost more.
KeeperBest for security certifications
FedRAMP, StateRAMP and FIPS 140-3 credentials and 1,000,000-round key stretching; breach monitoring and storage cost extra.
RoboFormBest for form filling
Built around filling long web forms, with emergency access on every plan and a printed $29.88 renewal price; thin public audit detail.
DashlaneBest for large families
Friends & Family covers 10 people and Premium includes a VPN; no free plan since September 2025 and $64.99 a year for one person.
Compare side by side
Every score and price in one table. Select a column to sort. Prices are US list prices; hover a price for the full terms.
| Bitwarden | 9.1 | 9.3 | 8.7 | 8.5 | 9.0 | 9.6 | $1.65/mo | Yes | 30 days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Password | 9.0 | 9.1 | 9.6 | 9.6 | 9.0 | 7.6 | $2.99/mo | – | None by default |
| Proton Pass | 8.9 | 9.2 | 9.0 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 9.0 | $2.99/mo | Yes | 30 days |
| NordPass | 8.6 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 8.8 | 8.5 | 8.6 | $1.49/mo | Yes | 30 days |
| Keeper | 8.5 | 9.0 | 8.4 | 8.8 | 8.6 | 7.4 | $42.99 a year | Yes | – |
| RoboForm | 8.4 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 8.4 | 8.4 | 9.0 | $2.49/mo | Yes | 30 days |
| Dashlane | 8.2 | 8.6 | 8.7 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 6.8 | $5.42/mo | – | 30 days |
What is a password manager, and why does the vendor matter?
A password manager encrypts your logins in a vault that only your master password opens, then fills them in for you. One vault holds every account, so the vendor’s security record matters more than any feature list.
LastPass shows why. Attackers stole vault backups in 2022, and it isn’t ranked here. Scrutiny keeps coming, too: in February 2026, researchers at ETH Zurich and USI Lugano published a paper on what a hacked or malicious server could do to vaults. Bitwarden and Dashlane shipped fixes.
Which password manager fits you?
Choose by the need you’d pay for. Everything else is close.
- Free on every device? Bitwarden. Unlimited passwords and devices at $0, open-source apps, Cure53 audits every year since 2021. Our Bitwarden review has the full breakdown.
- Polish above all? 1Password, with Travel Mode and a 128-bit Secret Key that shields a weak master password. There’s no free plan.
- Email aliases as well? Proton Pass gives 10 hide-my-email aliases free, unlimited on Plus.
- Certifications for work? Keeper holds FedRAMP and StateRAMP authorisation and a FIPS 140-3 validated module.
- Seven to ten relatives? Dashlane Friends & Family covers 10 accounts.
- Long web forms? RoboForm, built around form filling since 1999.
When is a free built-in password manager enough?
If every device you own is Apple, or you live inside Chrome, don’t bother paying yet. Apple Passwords and Google Password Manager cost nothing, encrypt what they store, support passkeys and flag compromised passwords.
Pay when you want something only a dedicated app offers. 1Password’s Travel Mode, which hides chosen vaults while you cross a border, is one example; Proton’s email aliases are another.
What traps catch password manager buyers?
Three, mostly. Many people forget the first until the renewal email lands.
| App | Free plan | Year one | After that | Family plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bitwarden | Unlimited devices | $19.80 | $19.80 | 6 users, $47.88 |
| 1Password | None (14-day trial) | $35.88 | $47.88 | 5 users, $71.88 after year one |
| Proton Pass | Unlimited devices | $35.88 | Same price shown | 6 users, $59.88 |
| NordPass | 1 active device | $35.76 for 2 years | Not published | 6 users |
| Dashlane | None | $64.99 | $64.99 | 10 accounts, about $97.49 |
- First-year discounts. 1Password rises by $12 after year one. NordPass hides its renewal price entirely.
- Crippled free tiers. NordPass Free works on one active device at a time. Keeper Free allows 1 phone and 10 records. Dashlane dropped its free plan on 16 September 2025.
- Paid add-ons. Keeper charges $26.99 a year extra for BreachWatch dark web alerts.
How should you read our password manager reviews and scores?
Every score is a research score out of 10. Security and trust carry 30%: published audits, certifications, open code, and how each vendor responded when researchers reported flaws, such as the 2025 extension clickjacking research. Price and value carry 20%.
The top three sit within about a tenth of a point. Bitwarden edges 1Password and Proton Pass, so when you choose among them, pick on fit rather than rank. Password managers belong to our security and privacy section; a VPN is the usual next step.
How we score password managers
Every product here is scored 0 to 10 on the same criteria, using published evidence. The overall score is the weighted average.
Security & trustEncryption and key derivation, zero-knowledge design, independent audits (auditor, date and how much is published), certifications, open-source code, bug bounty, breach and incident history and how the company responded, and results from independent research such as the 2025 DEF CON clickjacking disclosures and the 2026 ETH Zurich malicious-server study.weight30%
FeaturesPasskeys, built-in authenticator, breach and dark web monitoring, password health reports, sharing with non-users, emergency access, email aliases, file storage, travel mode and other extras.weight20%
Apps & ease of useNative apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android, browser extensions, web vault, offline access, account recovery options and support channels.weight15%
Sharing & family plansFamily plan seats and price, shared and private vaults, admin and recovery tools for the plan owner, and sharing limits on free plans.weight15%
Price & valueFree plan limits, individual and family prices, intro versus renewal prices, monthly billing, trials, refund policy and paid add-ons.weight20%
Questions people ask
Is a password manager safe if the company gets hacked?
Your vault stays encrypted with a key derived from your master password, so stolen data is only as strong as that password. After the 2022 LastPass breach, weak master passwords became the risk. A long passphrase helps, and 1Password adds a 128-bit Secret Key on top.
Is a free password manager good enough?
For many people, yes. Bitwarden and Proton Pass both offer free plans with unlimited devices, and Apple Passwords and Google Password Manager are built in. Paid plans add extras such as emergency access, file storage, a built-in authenticator and family sharing.
What happens if you forget your master password?
The vendor usually can't reset it, because it never sees the password. Plan ahead: Bitwarden Premium and Proton Pass Plus include emergency access, RoboForm has it on every plan, and 1Password Families lets the organiser recover a member's account.