Browsers & Accounts · Passwords, Passkeys & Two-Step · Lesson 4 of 5

Choosing and Using a Password Manager

Pick a manager that fits your devices, guard its main password and plan for emergencies.

Built-in or separate?

You already know the idea: a password manager stores your passwords, fills them in and makes new strong ones. The big choice is which kind.

Built-in managers come with your device or browser: Apple Passwords with iCloud Keychain, Google Password Manager in Chrome and Android, the one in Microsoft Edge, and Firefox's. They're free, already there, and sync across devices from the same company.

Separate managers are apps from companies whose whole job is passwords, like 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane or Proton Pass. Some are free, others charge a yearly fee.

How to choose:

• All one brand? An iPhone and a Mac with Safari suit Apple Passwords. All Android and Chrome suits Google's.
• Mixed devices? An iPhone with a Windows PC, or Chrome on a Mac? A separate manager covers more combinations. Google's works in Chrome almost anywhere, and Apple offers an iCloud Passwords app for Windows.
• Sharing with family? The major options can all share, in different ways. More on that next.

Whatever you pick, check that it syncs across your devices, warns you about breached passwords, stores passkeys, and lets you protect it with two-step verification.

The most important rule: pick one. Passwords scattered across three managers, a notebook and your memory are hard to keep track of. Most managers can import, meaning bring in, passwords from another manager or browser, so moving is a one-time job. Afterward, delete the old copies so they don't linger.

Is it safe to keep every password in one place? Good managers encrypt your saved passwords, scrambling them so they're unreadable without your key. That's far safer than reusing a few easy passwords, which is what most people do without one.

The main password, sharing and emergencies

A separate password manager is locked by one main password, which some apps call a master password. Built-in managers use your device or account sign-in instead. Either way, one key protects everything, so:

• Make it long and unique. A passphrase, four or five random words strung together, is strong and easy to remember.
• Never use it anywhere else, and never type it into a page you reached from a link.
• Turn on two-step verification for the manager account.
• Many separate managers can't reset a forgotten main password, because they never see it. That protects your privacy, but you must not lose it. Most give you a recovery kit or code to print and keep somewhere safe at home.

Sharing with family. Don't send passwords by text or email, where they sit forever. Use your manager's sharing feature instead. Apple Passwords lets you make a shared group with people in your contacts. Google Password Manager can share with members of your Google family group. Separate managers offer shared vaults. If someone leaves a shared group, change the passwords they could see, because they may have copies.

Emergency access. What if you're in hospital, or worse? Plan ahead so a trusted person can get in:

• Some managers, like Bitwarden, offer emergency access. A trusted person can request entry and gets it after a waiting period, unless you say no.
• Apple lets you add a Legacy Contact who can reach your Apple Account data after your death.
• Google's Inactive Account Manager shares data you choose if your account goes unused for a set time.

Set this up while things are calm. It takes ten minutes and saves your family weeks.