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Best free password manager in 2026: Bitwarden, Proton Pass and the built-in options compared

By Rahul Jha

Short answer

Bitwarden is the best free password manager for most people: unlimited passwords on unlimited devices, passkeys and sharing with one other person. Proton Pass Free is close behind and adds 10 email aliases. Apple Passwords and Google Password Manager are free built-in options, while LastPass and NordPass limit free devices.

On this page

The best free password manager for most people is Bitwarden. Its free plan stores unlimited passwords on unlimited devices, covers browsers, phones and desktop apps, and lets you share with one other person. Proton Pass Free comes a close second and adds 10 hide-my-email aliases. If every device you own is an Apple one, the built-in Passwords app is free and already installed, and Chrome and Android users have Google Password Manager. Be careful with LastPass Free and NordPass Free, which both limit your devices, and note that Dashlane dropped its free plan in September 2025.

How we put this together: on 24 October 2026 we read each password manager’s pricing page, help articles and security notices, all listed under Sources. We didn’t install them for this guide, so it’s research rather than a hands-on test, and free plans change often, so check the pricing page before you commit.

Best free password managers compared

Password managerWhat the free plan gives youCatch
BitwardenUnlimited passwords and devices, passkeys, sharing with one other userNo built-in 2FA code generator or file attachments
Proton PassUnlimited logins, notes and cards on unlimited devices, passkeys, 10 email aliases, 2 vaultsNo built-in 2FA code generator; sharing single items is paid
KeePassXCEverything, free and open source, with no accountNo cloud: you sync the file yourself, and phones need a separate app
Apple PasswordsPasswords, passkeys, 2FA codes, Wi-Fi passwords, shared groupsApple devices only, plus Chrome and Edge on Windows
Google Password ManagerSaved passwords in Chrome and Android, Password Checkup, passkeysTied to Chrome and your Google account
NordPass FreeUnlimited passwordsOne active session on one device at a time
LastPass FreeUnlimited passwordsComputer or phone, not both

Bitwarden: best free password manager overall

Bitwarden’s free plan has no limit that most people will hit. Its pricing page lists “Unlimited devices, unlimited passwords” for every account, with browser extensions, phone apps and desktop apps, passkey support and “Free sharing with another user”, which suits a couple sharing streaming and utility logins.

Two things are Premium only: the built-in authenticator that generates two-factor codes, and file attachments. Premium costs $19.80 a year. You don’t need it if you keep your 2FA codes in a separate authenticator app, which also keeps both halves of a login out of one app.

Proton Pass: for privacy and email aliases

Proton Pass Free matches Bitwarden on the basics, with unlimited logins, notes and cards on unlimited devices, and passkeys on all of them. What it adds is 10 hide-my-email aliases: throwaway addresses that forward to your real inbox, so a shop that leaks its customer list never had your real email.

The free plan gives you 2 vaults and lets you share a vault with 2 other people. Sharing a single item and the built-in 2FA authenticator are paid features. Pass Plus was $2.99 a month, billed at $35.88 a year, when we checked.

KeePassXC: if you don’t want your passwords in the cloud

KeePassXC keeps everything in one encrypted file on your computer, with “No cloud, no ads, no subscriptions”. It’s free and open source for Windows, macOS and Linux, version 2.8.0 came out on 21 October 2026, and an earlier version passed a first-level security certification from ANSSI, France’s national cybersecurity agency.

The trade-off is that you do the syncing. KeePassXC suggests keeping the database in a cloud folder you already use, and keeping a backup somewhere safe. It has no phone app of its own, but its FAQ points Android users to KeePassDX or KeePass2Android and iPhone users to Strongbox or KeePassium, which open the same file.

Apple Passwords: built in if you only use Apple devices

Since iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia and visionOS 2, Apple has a separate Passwords app. It holds passwords and passkeys, sets up two-factor verification codes, stores your Wi-Fi passwords, and lets you share chosen logins with family through a Shared Group. It syncs through iCloud and costs nothing.

The limit is everything outside Apple’s world. On a Windows PC, iCloud for Windows lets you use your passwords in Chrome and Edge. If you have an Android phone, pick Bitwarden or Proton Pass instead.

Google Password Manager: fine if you live in Chrome and Android

Google Password Manager is built into Chrome on any computer and into Android, and on an iPhone you can choose Chrome in AutoFill settings to use it in apps. Password Checkup looks for security problems in your saved passwords and helps you fix them. Passkeys are stored in your Google account, and you can share a password with members of your Google family group.

It’s a big step up from reusing one password, and it’s free with a Google account. It does keep your logins tied to Chrome, though, so if you also use Safari or Firefox, a standalone manager will follow you better.

Microsoft Authenticator no longer fills passwords

If you used Microsoft Authenticator as a password manager, that stopped in 2025. Microsoft ended adding and importing passwords in June, stopped autofill in July, and said the feature was gone by mid-August 2025. Saved passwords stay in your Microsoft account and show up in Edge, but payment details were deleted and the history of generated passwords wasn’t kept. Authenticator still does two-factor codes and passkeys.

Which free password managers have catches?

Three well-known names are free in a narrower way than they look.

  • NordPass Free allows one active session on one device. You can install it everywhere, but you’re only logged in on one device at a time.
  • LastPass Free is “limited to 1 device type”, meaning your computers or your phones, not both. LastPass also had a serious breach in 2022, when an attacker copied a backup of customer vault data. The passwords inside stayed encrypted, but website addresses were among the unencrypted fields, and LastPass warned that attackers may try to guess weak master passwords.
  • Dashlane discontinued its Free plan on 16 September 2025, so it’s no longer a free option at all.

Is a free password manager safe?

Yes, as long as your master password is long and used nowhere else, and you turn on two-factor login for the password manager itself. The LastPass breach shows why: stolen vaults stay encrypted, so the master password is what stands between an attacker and your logins.

How to move your passwords to a new password manager

  1. Export your saved passwords from your browser or old manager as a CSV file. In Edge, saved passwords live at edge://wallet/passwords, and Microsoft documents exporting them as a CSV.
  2. Create your account in the new password manager, with a master password you haven’t used anywhere else, and turn on two-factor login.
  3. Use its import tool to load the CSV file.
  4. Delete the CSV file and empty the bin. It’s a plain text list of every password you have.
  5. Turn off password saving in your browser so the two don’t fight over autofill.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bitwarden really free?

Yes. The free plan has unlimited passwords and devices with no time limit. Premium, at $19.80 a year, adds a built-in 2FA authenticator, file attachments and a few other extras.

What’s the best free password manager for iPhone?

Apple’s Passwords app if all your devices are Apple ones. If you also use a Windows PC or an Android phone, Bitwarden or Proton Pass, both of which have iPhone apps on their free plans.

Is Google Password Manager good enough?

For someone who uses Chrome and Android for everything, yes. It’s free, it checks your saved passwords for problems, and it handles passkeys. It’s less handy if you switch between browsers.

Does LastPass still have a free plan?

Yes, but it works on one device type only: computers or mobile devices, not both.

Can I use a password manager without the cloud?

Yes. KeePassXC stores your passwords in an encrypted file you control, with no account. You decide whether and how to copy that file to other devices.

What to do now

Pick one: Bitwarden if you use a mix of devices, Apple Passwords if you’re all Apple. Move your browser’s saved passwords into it today, then change the password on your email account first, since that’s the account that can reset all the others.

Sources

Changelog

24 Oct 2026: rewritten with 2026 free plans, Dashlane’s free plan ending and Apple’s Passwords app. It replaces an older list of free password managers with sync.