Guide
Best password manager? Free and paid plans compared
Summary. If you reuse passwords, a password manager is an easy fix. Paid plans add things such as a built-in authenticator, emergency access and family sharing, and free plans exist too. We do not rank them. We read their pricing pages and did not test them. Table 1 shows what each company's own page says, in alphabetical order.
1Do I need a password manager?
You need a different password for each site. Australia's ACSC says a password manager "makes it easy", and "helps you create, manage and store your passwords and passkeys in one secure place" [1]. New Zealand's Own Your Online says it means you "only need to remember one master password" [2].
It is not the only way. The UK's NCSC says writing a password down is also OK, "provided you keep it somewhere safe" [3]. Your browser or phone may already offer to save passwords, though CERT-In in India advises turning off the browser's option to remember them [4].
2What each provider offers
| Provider | Paid plan | What paying adds | Free plan | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Password | Individual USD 3.99 a month, billed yearly (USD 2.99 in a first-year offer for new customers). Families USD 5.99 a month for 5 people (USD 4.49 in the same offer) | There is no free plan to compare. It includes use on all your devices and 1 GB of storage per person | No free plan on its pricing page. A 14-day free trial, with "No credit card required" | Lists alerts for weak or compromised passwords, and you can try it with no card. Choose this if you are happy to pay, and want to try it for 14 days first with no card. |
| Bitwarden | Premium USD 19.80 a year (USD 1.65 a month, billed yearly). Families USD 47.88 a year for up to 6 people | Integrated authenticator, file attachments, emergency access and most security reports | Yes. "Unlimited devices, unlimited passwords" | Lists "Open source security" as a core feature. Choose this if you want a free plan on unlimited devices, from a company that lists open source as a core feature. |
| NordPass | Premium has a 30-day money-back guarantee. Family covers 6 accounts. See its page for the price | Simultaneous login on multiple devices, Password Health, Data Breach Scanner, Emergency Access and file attachments | Yes, with autosave and autofill, but its plans table shows no simultaneous login on multiple devices | Premium includes a Data Breach Scanner and Password Health. Choose this if you use one device at a time, or you want a breach scanner in the same app. |
| Proton Pass | Pass Plus USD 35.88 a year (USD 2.99 a month, billed yearly), with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Pass Family USD 4.99 a month, billed yearly, for up to 6 people | Built-in authenticator, Dark Web Monitoring, emergency access, file attachment and unlimited email aliases | Yes. "Unlimited logins, notes and credit cards" and "Unlimited devices" | Its free plan also lists alerts for weak and reused passwords. Choose this if you want a free plan on unlimited devices that also warns about weak and reused passwords. |
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3Is it worth paying?
A paid plan makes sense if you want one of the things in the "What paying adds" column. The ones most readers would notice:
- A built-in authenticator, which puts your login codes in the same app. Bitwarden and Proton both list one on paid plans, and NordPass's page shows it both ways.
- Emergency access. Bitwarden, NordPass and Proton list it on paid plans.
- A family plan. All four list one, for 5 or 6 people.
- Breach or dark web monitoring. NordPass and Proton list these on paid plans, and 1Password lists alerts for compromised passwords. Our own check looks at one password at a time, when you ask.
4If you want free
Bitwarden and Proton Pass both list free plans with unlimited devices. NordPass has a free plan, but its table shows no simultaneous login on multiple devices. 1Password has a 14-day trial and no free plan. If you later want more, you can move up to a paid plan.
5Are password managers safe?
No password store is free of risk, so here are both sides. Own Your Online explains that the data is encrypted, so "even if someone got access to your encrypted password vault, they can't see the information you store in it without your master password" [2].
- The master password matters most. If someone gets it, they can reach everything. Make it long and random, and use it nowhere else.
- If you forget it, you may lose access. Read what your provider says about recovery before you move everything across.
- Turn on multi-factor login for the manager itself.
- A local vault needs backups. Own Your Online says to back up regularly if you store it on your device [2].
6How to start
- Make a master passphrase of 6 or more words, and keep a paper copy somewhere safe.
- Set up the manager and turn on multi-factor login.
- Change your email password first, using the manager's generator.
- Add the rest as you log in to each site. Change any that our check finds in a breach.
Sources
- [1]ASD's ACSC, Personal cyber security handbook, published 7 October 2026 (Australia). Read the source. Read 30 October 2026.
- [2]Own Your Online, Keep your data safe with a password manager (New Zealand). Read the source. Read 30 October 2026.
- [3]National Cyber Security Centre, Three random words, published 21 December 2021 (United Kingdom). Read the source. Read 30 October 2026.
- [4]CERT-In and Cyber Swachhta Kendra, Internet Safety Awareness Booklet for Digital Nagriks and Digital Enterprises, Safer Internet Day 2024 (India). Read the source. Read 30 October 2026.