Nearly each on-line service requires guests to create an account, and that usually means extra passwords than you may probably bear in mind. With repetitive passwords thought-about a poor safety follow, utilizing password managers turns into crucial as they assist to generate and retailer advanced, distinctive passwords for every of your accounts.

Among the many prime password managers available on the market are NordPass and Bitwarden. Whereas NordPass is notable for its high quality encryption and VPN integration, Bitwarden’s open-source and self-hosting choices make it a worthy different. However how do you identify which to make use of? Let’s discover out.

• NordPass: Greatest for ease of use and suite of safety packages with the Nord Safety household of software program.
• Bitwarden: Greatest for open supply password administration and beneficiant free model.

NordPass vs Bitwarden: Comparability desk

The desk beneath holds a abstract of how each password managers stack up in opposition to one another.

NordPass and Bitwarden: Pricing

NordPass pricing

NordPass affords two subscription tiers: Private and Enterprise. All of NordPass’ premium plans have a 30-day money-back assure and the Free plan features a 30-day Premium free trial you may avail of as effectively. In the meantime, NordPass additionally affords a 14-day free trial of its Enterprise subscription.

Private:

Enterprise:

Bitwarden pricing

Bitwarden additionally affords a wide range of plans beneath their Private and Enterprise tiers. Bitwarden has a seven-day free trial for its Households plan and a seven-day trial for its Groups subscription on the enterprise facet.

Beneath is an outline of pricing and have variations for each.

Private:

Enterprise:

NordPass vs Bitwarden: Characteristic Comparability

In relation to options, each NordPass and Bitwarden supply options for safety, password sharing, encryption, and extra. I’ve included their standout options beneath:

Authentication

Each NordPass and Bitwarden supply two-factor authentication (2FA) options so as to add an additional layer of safety on your accounts. NordPass Authenticator makes use of biometric, possession and knowledge-based authentication strategies. Its time-based one-time passwords (TOTPs) expire each 30 seconds and function the second login issue you enter alongside your password. The Authenticator additionally comes with QR code scanning and guide key entry choices for straightforward setup.

Bitwarden’s Authenticator additionally makes use of TOTPs for safe logins and affords choices for QR code setup and guide key entry. Everybody can retailer authenticator keys in Bitwarden, however producing the codes requires a premium account or membership in a paid subscription corresponding to a Households, Groups, or Enterprise plan..

Password import and export

You may import your saved passwords from different password managers like 1Password and LastPass utilizing NordPass on desktop gadgets or import passwords from browsers utilizing the Android app. Word: To import recordsdata into NordPass, it’s good to manage the CSV file accordingly.

Bitwarden additionally helps importing and exporting knowledge through its Password Protected in CSV. Information should be imported to Bitwarden from the net vault or Command Line Interface (CLI). In my testing, I discovered that importing knowledge into the Bitwarden vault doesn’t verify for duplicates, so this ought to be achieved fastidiously.

Password sharing

NordPass affords safe password sharing throughout most of its plans. You may ship passwords securely through the NordPass app, or you should use NordPass Sharer, which lets you safely share passwords or different important data through a safe hyperlink. This safe one-time hyperlink is legitimate for twenty-four hours, or as soon as opened.

Bitwarden affords two strategies for sharing passwords: Bitwarden Organizations for sharing very delicate data like enterprise accounts, the place you create collections and share them with customers inside your group, controlling entry ranges; and Bitwarden Ship for much less delicate data like sharing a streaming service account, the place you share usernames, passwords and notes. Utilizing this technique permits you to management entry period and the variety of instances your shared merchandise could be accessed.

Security measures

NordPass affords multi-factor authentication, which acts as a further layer of safety and prevents unauthorized customers from accessing your accounts. It additionally makes use of superior encryption algorithms like XChaCha20 to make sure the safety of your vault. Moreover, with NordPass Enterprise, you may reap the benefits of different safety features corresponding to Single Signal-on (SSO), Information Breach Scanner, Password Well being, and Safe Merchandise Sharing.

Bitwarden affords open-source safety and makes use of the next key safety measures to guard consumer knowledge: AES-CBC 256-bit encryption, PBKDF2 SHA-256, and salted hashing. All cryptography keys are generated and managed by Bitwarden in your gadgets, and all encryption is finished regionally. Bitwarden additionally has vault well being reviews, affords SSO for Enterprise customers and a two-step login utilizing YubiKey OTP, Duo, FIDO2 WebAuthn, Electronic mail, and the Authentication app.

Automated gadget sync

NordPass can mechanically again up and sync your credentials and recordsdata. This lets you entry your knowledge within the vault from anyplace — whether or not it’s the app in your cellphone or a browser extension.

With Bitwarden, gadgets owned by you within the internet vault will all the time stay in sync. Objects owned by a corporation will sync throughout customers and consumer purposes each half-hour. Different Bitwarden apps — corresponding to browser extensions, cell apps, desktop apps, and CLI — will sync mechanically at login and frequently when unlocked.

NordPass execs and cons

Professionals

• Information Breach Scanner out there.
• Viable encryption possibility.
• Provides a free plan.
• Free trials for many plans.
• Safe password sharing.
• Stay chat assist.

Cons

• Just one gadget is supported on the free model.
• The free tier has very restricted options.

Bitwarden execs and cons

Professionals

• It’s open supply.
• Helps each graphical and command-line interfaces.
• One free account can run on a number of gadgets, though with restricted options.
• Superior two-step login.
• It may be self-hosted or cloud-based.

Cons

• SSO integration and admin password reset should not out there in some plans
• Desktop UI requires enchancment.
• Solely affords a 7-day free trial.

Ought to your group use NordPass or Bitwarden?

Selecting between NordPass and Bitwarden will depend on your priorities. NordPass affords seamless integration with different Nord merchandise like NordVPN and NordLocker, making certain a unified safety ecosystem for an organizational setting. The interface is user-friendly and easy, and it may well combine with many in style apps and browser extensions. NordPass’ shared folders permit customers to securely share data and delicate knowledge saved of their vaults, making it simpler for crew collaboration; plus, it features a knowledge breach scanner on the dashboard for straightforward password breach scans.

Bitwarden is an open-source safety password supervisor, prioritizing transparency, robust safety, and customization for budget-conscious people or enterprises. It permits self-hosting for superior customers, and it integrates very effectively with SSO suppliers like Azure Energetic Listing and Okta to streamline the log-in course of for numerous crew members in a corporation.

The pricing for each NordPass and Bitwarden are pretty comparable, however Bitwarden affords extra flexibility. Its free model affords extra options and helps limitless gadget connections, not like NordPass, whose free model helps just one gadget.

SEE: Penetration Testing and Scanning Coverage (roosho Premium)

Methodology

I evaluated NordPass and Bitwarden by assessing their consumer interfaces, safety features, and ease of use. For real-life expertise, I put in the free variations of every app on my Android, Home windows gadgets, and Chrome browser. This strategy helped me check options like password era, autofill, responsiveness, lengths of passwords, and cross-platform performance. Each scored effectively on these benchmarks; nonetheless, I observed that NordPass was quicker with its prompts however discovered it simpler to make use of Bitwarden on my Chrome browser. My evaluation additionally confirmed that customers can generate random strings of digits, letters, and symbols of as much as 128 characters on Bitwarden in comparison with NordPass’ 60 characters.

The merchandise’ websites have been additionally taken into consideration to offer a complete overview of pricing.

Try our full critiques of NordPass and Bitwarden. 

This text was initially revealed in December 2023. It was up to date by Luis Millares in February 2025.