There is software that once was so iconic, and over the years, the need for it changes. I once wrote an article about how wonderful Dropbox was and I’ve stopped using it long ago. It changed with a focus on corporate accounts, and iCloud now gives me a way to share files built into the os itself.
1Password was a place to store all your passwords when the alternative were paper journals. Now Apple Passwords is part of the OS and has its own application. I can share passwords between my wife and myself. I can set 2FA with a OTP and even use passkeys. What is 1Password offering me that Apple Passwords doesn’t do?
And if I decide to move over to Apple Passwords, how hard is it to move my passwords over?
The Passwords app can import passwords from a csv file. The time to move over is when you’re ready. I stopped using 1Password two years ago and haven’t looked back. I dabbled with StrongBox as a replacement for a while before settling on the built-in passwords manager for ease of use.
I would also recommend running your eye over this blog post by Ricky Mondello. Lots of good advice here. I personally used the Online Method so I’ve been able to keep my passwords list mean and lean.
That’s the thing that keeps me with 1PW, there are browser extensions that work in Linux, even if the app itself does not.
Like almost every other 1PW user, I tried to export my 1PW data and then import it into Passwords. Several failed to import, and no Passkeys were imported. I decided to stay where I was.
Two more things to add to what @Halfsmoke posted , but, of course, I don’t know if you use them.
I store more than passwords (and passkeys) in 1p - secure notes, drivers license and passport info (including scanned copies), software licenses - things that the passwords app cannot do. Also, many sites store more than one password - sometimes there are things like security questions, and I can generate random words as answers to these and store them together with the password - 1p is very flexible about adding more information to a login record.
I also use more than one vault in 1Password and store passwords for very sensitive passwords in a separate vault. 1p has a feature called travel mode that lets me hide specific vaults, so if I’m in a foreign country and I’m forced to unlock my phone, even if I am forced to reveal my 1p master password, whoever has my phone won’t have those passwords.
Lastly, because Apple passwords is synced with iCloud Keychain, if Apple, say, deletes your account, with 1p (or another manager) you won’t lose your password manager as well.
These last two are, admittedly, not all that much of a risk.
In the last few years, I’ve had some issues with the reliability of the 1p extension in Safari on MacOS, so I’ve tried switching to other password managers, including Apple Passwords, Bitwarden, and Strongbox. I’ve had issues with all of them, and just switched back to 1p from Bitwarden after a couple of months, and I’ve found that the 1p extension is suddenly a lot more reliable.
So far passkey export / import is not supported by anyone, but it’s coming soon supposedly - the FIDO alliance is working on a specification for this. Apple Passwords with the 26 os updates listed this as a coming soon option.
When I switched password managers, I just created new passkeys. In most cases it’s not that difficult - only one site gave me issues with this - the pharmacy superstore CVS, which doesn’t give users the ability to manage passkeys online once they are created. Apparently you need to call customer support to have them delete your passkey record and then create a new one. I rarely shop there, though.
Also…Secure Notes, image attachments, and more robust data entry fields. Apple Passwords is decent enough if passwords are the sum total of your needs and you’re unconcerned about other operating systems.
I’ll second all this. Secure notes, security questions, bank routing and account numbers, multiple vaults, software registrations, notes, expiration dates, being able to generate random words and passwords according to criteria, and the knowledge that I can access these even without an Apple device if necessary. As a daily use multi-tool, 1Password is right up there with Keyboard Maestro for me.
So …. what is the bottom line. As an Apple/Mac user for about 30 years, I still get confounded on some issues. I’ve been using 1P for at least 18 years now. Is it ready to switch to Apple’s Password app. Or, is it still better to wait a bit. …. Rick on a fairly new G4 Mini running Tahoe 26.2 as of yesterday.
Glad you asked this question, I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I’ve used 1Password for many years & have been mostly happy w/it but have wondered if it had outlived its usefulness given the availability of other options. I’m glad others mentioned the usefulness of 1Password’s ability to add notes, software licenses, passport info, etc. as I also keep lots of info in 1Password in addition to passwords. Had not occurred to me that this other info might not be “storable” in Apple Passwords or other password apps. Guess I’ll continue to use & appreciate 1Password. But I will say I’ve encountered occasional glitches w/it in the last year or so; used to operate almost glitch-free.
In Apple Passwords, you can add Notes to any password. I actually have a few dummy password items (e.g., using a fake domain reference) for storing secure information. Although not as secure, I also use Locked Notes for various important id numbers and codes.
I’m still using v7 even with the v8 license sub and it’s still glitch free. All of the issues with v8 that caused my initial no switch have been resolved. But, v7 still works perfectly and I’m a firm believer in not fixing things that aren’t broke. I did a pretty exhaustive analysis of the alternatives and if one uses all those other features I found no alternative that supported all of them. I will switch to v8 when/if I have to.
I left 1PW a few years ago and moved to Minimalist. But the developer has announced Minimalist will cease being developed, and support will end entirely in August 2026. I moved to Passwords. But the problem of secure notes, software licenses, and other important documents remains. I decided to buy into Access/Uplock for that. I like it. But of course this means using two apps.
Recently I’ve had problems w/some sites where 1Password can’t fill in things such as credit card info; also some cases where my address can’t be filled in w/1Password. In all the years I’ve used 1Password, that has rarely, if ever, happened before. But I can’t blame the problem directly on 1Password. It’s possible that some sites are now set up in ways that prevent compatibility w/1Password. It’s inconvenient but I use 1Password for too many things, not worth the effort - IMHO - to set up work arounds in Apple Passwords or another app.
If your devices are all using Apple platforms and your needs are basic (e.g., just passwords, passkeys, and the ability to save a note or comment about a password or passkey), then I’d say go ahead and save yourself a subscription fee. You shouldn’t have a problem moving to Apple Passwords. You may need to update a credential or two manually, but my own experience with importing and exporting passwords has been very smooth. Read Apple’s Passwords support page for full details.
If you use Windows systems, it also should be straigtforward to use the Windows version of iCloud Passwords. I’m hedging just a little because Apple iCloud Passwords for Windows is relatively new, and you need to go through the steps of setting up both iCloud and iCloud Passwords for Windows. I’ve done it on a Windows computer I use at home, and it seems to work fine.
If your needs are more complex, e.g., you also use 1P for storing documents, medical records, etc., then stick with 1P.
1Password has a fully functional Linux app, and has had for years. The only limitation that I’m aware of is that if you’re using Wayland (the newer of two major display protocols in the Linux world), you can’t scan on-screen QR codes from within the app to set up TOTP authentication.
@ShermanWilcox I was unaware of UpLock and will definitely be giving it a try. Thanks.
@Wseries I’m using both 1P and Passwords concurrently and essentially following a variant of Ricky Mondello’s “Online Method“. I’m not iterating the entire collection, but adding credentials as I use them. Thanks for sharing his post.
Working on both macOS and Windows, I installed iCloud for Windows and enabled iCloud Keychain. Passwords sync which is helpful but passkeys are not supported. To share passkeys I still rely on 1P.
UpLock (or something else) would need to take over storing the secure information that is not login credentials that I currently keep in 1P.
It would be nice if Passwords supported some auxiliary fields in a credential entry. For example, I store security questions and answers in 1P. The answers are often untruthful on purpose. Yes, that could be put in the Notes today.
1P has a CLI and various types of integrations with command line tools. Definitely not something most users need but definitely something that 1P provides.
As I said, most sites should allow you to create a new passcode on windows. Or, if course, you can have the windows browser show a QR code and use the passwords app (or 1Password, etc.) to authenticate with the passkey on the iPhone. As long as Bluetooth is on for both the windows computer and the iPhone, it should work fine.
It’s inconvenient but I use 1Password for too many things, not worth the effort - IMHO - to set up work arounds in Apple Passwords or another app.