Google Password Manager alternatives: should you switch?

Short answer

Google Password Manager is free and built into Chrome and Android, and for many people that is enough. Secure It Password Manager is for people who want a standalone zero-knowledge vault, encrypted on the device and stored in their own Google Drive, with no company servers, at a one-time purchase of US$4.99 (local prices vary by country).

I'm the developer of Secure It, so weigh this page accordingly. I've tried to make the Google column rely only on Google's own help pages, and to say plainly when staying with Google is the better call. Facts about Google were checked in October 2026 and can change.

Secure It is a zero-knowledge password manager that stores your encrypted vault in your own Google Drive: no company servers, not even ours.

What Google Password Manager is

It is the password and passkey store attached to your Google Account. Google's help describes it as a way to generate strong, distinct passwords, save them to your account, create passkeys, autofill sign-ins, and get alerts when saved passwords are exposed online. You use it in Chrome, through the Google Password Manager app and autofill on Android, and on the web at passwords.google.com.

That makes it a built-in manager: it comes with the browser and phone you already use. A standalone manager, like Secure It, Bitwarden or KeePass, is a separate app and vault that isn't tied to one browser or platform account.

The key difference: who holds the encryption key

By default, Google holds the key. Google's on-device encryption page says that without it, Google uses the key to decrypt your passwords when you view them, use them in Chrome, or run a password check.

Google also offers on-device encryption, where the key stays with you. Your key can be your Google password or the screen lock on a compatible phone or tablet. Google's page lists these trade-offs:

• If you lose the key, you can lose your passwords and passkeys.
• Once set up, on-device encryption "can't be removed". The only way out is to reset Password Manager, which deletes all saved passwords.
• It covers passwords and passkeys only.

So Google does offer an option where it can't read your passwords. The difference from a standalone manager is that it is optional, tied to your Google Account, and the vault lives on Google's infrastructure.

Comparison table (checked Oct 2026)

Availability note: Android is in closed testing and can't be bought on Google Play yet. The Windows app and Chrome extension are unlocked by that purchase, so they aren't open to the public yet either.

Why people look for an alternative

These are reasons that follow from how the product is documented, not complaints I've collected:

• The default key is Google's. If you want only yourself to hold the key, you must opt in to on-device encryption, and Google says that choice is permanent.
• It is tied to a Google Account. Your passwords sit in the same account as your mail and files. Losing access to the account means working through account recovery.
• Browser and platform tie-in. Google's pages centre on Chrome and Android. If you use several browsers or want one vault that isn't owned by a browser vendor, a standalone manager is more neutral.
• Limits. Google's import help says an account can store up to 10,000 passwords, and you can import 3,000 at a time. Most people never hit that.

None of these makes Google's manager unsafe. The practical question is whether you want your password vault with the same company as your browser and email.

Stay with Google if…

• You mostly use Chrome and Android, and want zero setup.
• You want passkeys and autofill that work with nothing to install.
• You don't want to pay or manage another app.
• You have strong protection on your Google Account (2-Step Verification, ideally a security key) and current recovery options.
• You need iOS support today. Ours is coming soon with no date.

Switch to Secure It if…

• You want the vault encrypted on your device with a key that Google, and we, never receive. Even in Drive, Google only sees an encrypted file, as explained in Is it safe to store passwords in Google Drive?.
• You want one purchase instead of a subscription, and a vault that works on Android, Windows and in the browser.
• You want a 12-word recovery phrase and an offline recovery script instead of relying on Google account recovery.
• You want the vault usable on one device without any account.

If you want open source, an independent audit or a long track record, look at Bitwarden instead. See our Secure It vs Bitwarden comparison. And if you simply want your vault in your own file with no vendor involved, KeePass is covered in KeePass and Google Drive.

How to export from Google Password Manager

Google's help describes these steps for desktop Chrome:

1. Open Chrome, select More, then Passwords and autofill.
2. Select Google Password Manager, then Settings.
3. In the Export passwords section, select Download file.

Google's page notes that anyone who uses the device can open the file if you don't delete it, and that imports use the .csv format. Treat the export as plain text: keep it off shared folders and delete it after you've imported it. We'll publish a verified step-by-step import guide for Secure It once the import path is confirmed. Until then, don't delete anything from Google.

Honest limits of Secure It

• It has not been independently audited yet.
• Using the vault on several devices needs a Google account, because sync goes through your own Google Drive. Without one, the vault stays on a single device.
• There is no iOS app yet.
• Android is in closed testing and the Edge listing is pending review.
• It's built by a small, independent developer, not a large security company.

See /security/ for the technical detail and /pricing/ for how the purchase works. You can check current platform status on /download/.