Password Managers

Contents

1. 01WelcomeWhat these tools do, how many we grade and what to know before choosing
2. 02Our top threeThe three we'd look at first, and who each one suits
3. 03What they costWhat paid plans start at, the best buy at each budget and the free plans
4. 04The gradesThe highest graded, and how the whole category does on each subject
5. 05Keep or make?Which are worth paying for, and which you could make yourself
6. 06Every toolAll of them, best graded first, with what each costs
7. 07Quick answersThe questions people ask when choosing, each answered in a line or two
8. 08About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from each tool’s own pages, their app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on the Password Managers page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 18, 2026.

Store passwords and passkeys securely and share them safely with family or a team.

Before you choose, here are 8 things to know about password managers, worked out from every one we grade.

1. 1

   We grade 18 password managers

   15 of them are free or have a free plan, and 3 more let you try before paying. Everything in this guide comes from their own pages and our grades.

2. 2

   Paid plans start at $2.59 a month in the middle

   From $0.90 (Zoho Vault) to $5.42 (Dashlane), going by what each one's paid plans start at.

3. 3

   Best value: RoboForm, Bitwarden and Apple Passwords

   Nothing on our chart scores higher than these without costing more.

4. 4

   13 of 18 have iPhone and Android apps

   10 run in a web browser and 13 have a Windows app. Check the one you need before you fall for anything.

5. 5

   The middle GPA is 2.8

   8 score 3.0 or higher. The highest is Bitwarden, at 3.8.

6. 6

   Best free option: Bitwarden

   Bitwarden has the highest GPA of the free ones, 3.8. Open-source password manager with a free plan and self-hosting.

7. 7

   18 worth keeping, 0 you could make

   By our keep-or-make rules, 18 do something you couldn't reasonably build yourself, 0 are simple enough to make with an AI app builder, and 0 are a close call.

8. 8

   4 price changes in the past year

   That's how many price moves we've recorded for password managers in twelve months. Prices change, so check the maker's page before you pay.

Part 02 · Top three

Our top three

The three we'd look at first, and who each one suits

The three password managers we'd look at first. First place suits the most people; second and third are the best picks for the people it leaves out. Each has an Insider's Guide of its own.

1. 1st

   

   3.8GPA

   Bitwarden

   Free plan · from $1.65/mo

   For: Most people

   Bitwarden's free plan stores unlimited logins and passkeys on unlimited devices, and it runs in a browser and on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. It is open source and end-to-end encrypted, and it can be run on your own server instead of Bitwarden's cloud. Premium is $1.65 a month, billed annually at $19.80, and Families covers up to 6 users for $3.99 a month, billed annually. Its iPhone and iPad app averages 4.8 from about 34,000 ratings. Know the limits: the free plan leaves out the integrated authenticator, file attachments and vault health reports, and individual plans share items with only one other Bitwarden user.

   The Bitwarden Insider’s Guide

2. 2nd

   

   3.2GPA

   Proton Pass

   Free plan · from $2.99/mo

   For: People who want email aliases with their passwords

   Proton Pass is open source and end-to-end encrypted, and runs on the same devices as Bitwarden. Its free plan also covers unlimited logins on unlimited devices, and adds 10 hide-my-email aliases, to hand out in place of your real address, and alerts for weak and reused passwords. Its iPhone and iPad app averages 4.8 from about 8,400 ratings. It is second because paying costs more: Pass Plus is $2.99 a month, billed every 12 months at $35.88, against $19.80 a year for Bitwarden Premium. The free plan stops at 2 vaults, shared with up to 2 others, and the 2FA authenticator, sharing of single items and Dark Web Monitoring need Pass Plus.

   The Proton Pass Insider’s Guide

3. 3rd

   

   2.8GPA

   KeePassXC

   Free

   For: People who want passwords in a file on their own computer

   KeePassXC keeps passwords in an encrypted database file on your own computer, and nothing is stored on the project's servers. It is free and open source, with no paid tier, and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux with a browser extension that fills logins. It also handles one-time codes and passkeys, and an independent security audit was completed in January 2023. It is third because it asks more of you than the two above. There is no mobile app: the team points to third-party apps such as KeePassDX on Android and Strongbox on iOS. Sync is not built in, so you place the file in a service such as Dropbox or Nextcloud yourself.

   The KeePassXC Insider’s Guide

Going by our grades, RoboForm, Bitwarden and Apple Passwords give the most for the money among password managers: no tool on this chart scores higher without costing more.

Paid plans start at a middle price of $2.59 a month across the 14 that charge, from $0.90 (Zoho Vault) to $5.42 (Dashlane). 4 more cost nothing at all.

6 of the 18 score above the category's average while starting at or below its middle price. 1 cost more than the middle price and score below the average.

Every tool gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. Here are the 12 highest graded password managers, then how the whole category does on each subject.

Tool	Value	Free	Features	Ease	Platforms	GPA
Bitwarden	A	A	A	A	B	3.8
Apple Passwords	A	A	C	A	B	3.4
RoboForm	B	C	A	A	A	3.4
Google Password Manager	A	A	C	B	B	3.2
Proton Pass	C	A	B	A	B	3.2
Zoho Vault	A	B	C	B	A	3.2
NordPass	C	B	B	A	B	3.0
Strongbox	B	B	B	A	C	3.0
1Password	C	C	B	B	A	2.8
KeePass	A	A	C	C	C	2.8
KeePassXC	A	A	C	C	C	2.8
Keeper	C	D	B	A	A	2.8

Some software does something you couldn’t reasonably build yourself. Some is simple enough that an AI app builder could make the core of it in an afternoon. Here’s where password managers land, by the same rules for every tool.

• 18

  Keep it

  It does something you could not reasonably make for yourself, or it costs nothing.

• 0

  Your call

  You could make the core of it, and you would give something up.

• 0

  You could make this

  What it does is the kind of thing an AI app builder makes well, and it charges every month.

Every password manager we grade, with its GPA and what it costs. Each one has a page of its own on toolgpa.com, with its Insider’s Guide.

1. 1BitwardenFree plan · from $1.65/mo3.8
2. 2Apple PasswordsFree3.4
3. 3RoboFormFree plan · from $2.49/mo3.4
4. 4Google Password ManagerFree3.2
5. 5Proton PassFree plan · from $2.99/mo3.2
6. 6Zoho VaultFree plan · from $0.90/mo3.2
7. 7NordPassFree plan · from $4.99/mo3.0
8. 8StrongboxFree plan · from $2.99/mo3.0
9. 91PasswordFree trial · from $3.99/mo2.8
10. 10KeePassFree2.8
11. 11KeePassXCFree2.8
12. 12KeeperFree plan · from $3.58/mo2.8
13. 13LastPassFree plan · from $3/mo2.8
14. 14Sticky PasswordFree plan · from $29.99/yr2.8
15. 15DashlaneFree trial · from $5.42/mo2.6
16. 16EnpassFree plan · from $23.99/yr2.6
17. 17PasspackFree trial · from $1.66/mo2.4
18. 18PassboltFree plan · from $4.90/mo2.2

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

• 3,189

  tools graded

• 94

  categories

• 426

  price changes on record

• 579

  apps priced in 12 countries