Bitwarden vs Psono (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Bitwarden: it is first in our ranking of password managers, and it grades higher too, 3.8 against 2.6.
Checked Oct 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Bitwarden grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features and ease of use. Psono grades higher on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Bitwarden
Open-source password manager with a free plan and self-hosting
Psono
Open-source password manager that a company runs on its own servers
Which one is for you
Pick Bitwarden if
- Fits if you want a free password manager on all your devices with no limit on logins
- Works for a household of up to 6 at $3.99 a month, or anyone who wants to host it themselves
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free and want two-factor codes, attachments, health reports or emergency access, as all are paid
- Skip it if you share logins with several people but don't want Families, since solo plans share with one other user
- Not for you if you want a VPN or scam warnings bundled in, because Bitwarden sticks to passwords
- Watch out: listed prices assume yearly billing and leave out tax
- Pricey if your company wants single sign-on and policies, which need Enterprise at $6 a user a month
Pick Psono if
- Fits if you want to run your own team vault on your own server
- Works for small teams of up to 10 that want business features free
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you do not want to run and update a server
- Tight if you want the paid Business version, which has a 25-user minimum
- Watch out: professional support and SLAs are quoted on request, with no listed price
- Watch out: the SaaS tab of the price page could not be read, so hosted prices are not recorded
How we grade them
| 3.8GPABitwardenExcellent | 2.6GPAPsonoGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AThe useful version costs nothing, and Premium is $1.65 a month, billed as $19.80 a year, against $2.99 for the middle of this category and $2.49 where its lowest-priced quarter starts. Families covers 6 people for $3.99 a month. | CThe free editions are self-hosted, so a C. The Business version is $3 per user a month with a 25-user minimum, which is $75 a month for one person's floor. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe one free plan in this category with no cap on logins or devices: unlimited logins, passkeys, notes and cards on unlimited devices, with no time limit. File attachments, the built-in authenticator and emergency access are the paid extras. | BAn open-source edition with unlimited users, and the business edition free for up to 10 users. Both are self-hosted. |
| Features | AIt covers the whole job, plus two things none of the paid rivals here offer: the code is open source, and you can run the whole service on your own server. Passwords, passkeys, autofill, a generator, Send for links that disappear, then two-factor codes and 5 GB of encrypted attachments on Premium. | BClient-side encryption, team sharing, enterprise sign-in and a gateway for SSH, RDP and VNC. The listing shows no gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | A4.76 from about 33,500 App Store ratings, the highest in this category. Sign up free and your logins fill in across your devices. The self-hosting is optional and most people will never go near it. | DNo store rating on record. The free editions mean running and updating the server yourself. |
| Platforms and integrations | BNo common device is left out: web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and a browser extension. There's no list of integrations and no public API on the listing, though. The only connecting out to other software is directory sync, SCIM and single sign-on, and those are business plans. | AWeb, Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android and an extension, with LDAP, SAML, OIDC, SSH and RDP. |
| Best for | a free password manager on every device | an open-source team vault with a free self-hosted edition |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Bitwarden and Psono. How we grade
Price against what you get
Bitwarden starts at $1.65 a month and scores 3.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Psono starts at $3 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
Bitwarden scores higher and starts $1.35 a month lower. Of the other password managers on the chart, none scores higher than Bitwarden for less, and 9 score higher than Psono for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Bitwarden is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
At a glance
| Bitwarden | Psono | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $1.65 per month, billed annually at $19.80 (Premium) | $3 per user / month, billed annually (minimum 25 users) |
| Free plan | Free for 1 user: unlimited logins, passkeys, notes, cards and identities on unlimited devices, a password generator and text-only Send. No file attachments or integrated authenticator. | Open-source edition with unlimited users, or the business edition free for up to 10 users, both self-hosted. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of the Families, Teams and Enterprise plans, started from the sign-up pages the pricing page links to | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Bitwarden, Inc. | esaqa GmbH |
| Price read from | bitwarden.com | psono.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Bitwarden
- The free plan leaves out file attachments, the integrated authenticator, vault health reports and emergency access.
- Individual plans share items with only one other Bitwarden user; unlimited sharing starts with Families.
- Listed prices are based on annual subscriptions, and taxes are not included.
- SSO integration and enterprise policies require the Enterprise plan.
Psono
- The free editions are self-hosted, so you run and update the server yourself.
- The Business version has a 25-user minimum; its price is shown for the On Premise edition.
- Professional support and service-level agreements are quoted on request, not sold at a listed price.
- The page's SaaS tab could not be read, so hosted prices are not recorded here.
Key features
Bitwarden
- Unlimited free vault
- The free plan stores unlimited logins, passkeys, notes, cards and identities and works on unlimited devices through browser, mobile and desktop apps.
- Open source
- Bitwarden's code is open source, and the company describes its security as independently verified.
- Passkeys, autofill and generator
- Stores and manages passkeys alongside passwords, autofills logins across devices and generates strong passwords and usernames.
- Bitwarden Send
- Shares sensitive information through a link that disappears. Free accounts can send text only; file sharing comes with paid plans.
- Self-hosting
- Bitwarden can be deployed on premises or in a private cloud. Families and Enterprise organizations can be moved to a self-hosted server.
- Business controls
- Teams adds event logs, directory synchronization and SCIM provisioning. Enterprise adds policies, SSO integration and granular access control.
Psono
- Client-side encryption
- Vault data is encrypted in the client before it is sent to the server, then stored encrypted on the server.
- Self-hosted or SaaS
- Run every component on your own servers, or use a hosted edition. The pricing section is split into On Premise and SaaS tabs.
- Open source
- The complete codebase is public, so the security design can be audited independently.
- Team sharing and enterprise sign-in
- Share entries in encrypted form. The business editions add LDAP, SAML and OIDC single sign-on, audit logging and policies.
- Gateway for SSH, RDP and VNC
- The business editions include a gateway for opening remote sessions to servers and desktops.
- Apps on every platform
- Browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari, desktop builds, Android and iOS apps, a web client and a command-line tool.
Plans
Bitwarden
Free$0
1 user. Unlimited passwords and passkeys on unlimited devices, a password and username generator, and two-step login.
Premium$1.65
per month, billed annually at $19.80
Adds the integrated authenticator, 5 GB of encrypted file attachments, emergency access, security reports and priority support.
Families$3.99
per month for up to 6 users, billed annually at $47.88
6 premium accounts with unlimited sharing and collections, plus shared organization storage.
Teams$4
per user / month, billed annually
Secure credential sharing for a team, event logs, directory synchronization and SCIM provisioning.
Enterprise$6
per user / month, billed annually
Everything in Teams, plus enterprise policies, passwordless SSO integration, granular access control and self-hosting.
Psono
Open Source$0
Free community edition with unlimited users, password sharing, a generator and multifactor login. You host it yourself.
Free business version$0
Full feature set, including SSO, audit logging, policies and the SSH/RDP/VNC gateway, free for up to 10 users.
Business version$3
per user / month, billed annually, min. 25 users
Everything in the free business version for larger companies, with an optional extended support package quoted on request.
Ways to pay less
Bitwarden
- Other savings
Free Families plan for Enterprise users
Bitwarden's pricing page states that the Enterprise plan includes a free Families plan for all of its users.
Psono
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Bitwarden or Psono?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Bitwarden starts at $1.65 per month, billed annually at $19.80 (Premium), and Psono starts at $3 per user / month, billed annually (minimum 25 users). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Bitwarden or Psono?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Bitwarden and Psono have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.