Browser, Apple or dedicated password manager: which to use
The built-in password manager in Chrome, on an iPhone or a Mac, or in Microsoft Edge is free, already installed, and safe to use on your own devices, according to the UK’s NCSC. It becomes limiting when you mix ecosystems, share logins with people outside your family, or need someone to manage access for a team, which is where a dedicated app earns its place.
Built-in or dedicated password manager: which one to use
For one person who uses their own devices and stays with one company’s products, the password manager built into the browser or the phone is usually enough. A dedicated app is worth it when you mix Apple, Windows, and Android, when you share logins with people outside your family, or when someone has to manage access for a team. That is the short version of our guide to choosing a password manager. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre says the same in its advice on password managers: saving passwords in your browser is safe on your own devices, and the main benefit of a separate app is syncing across a mix of browsers and devices.
The details matter, though, because the three big built-in options do not work the same way.
What the built-in password managers do
The table below sums up what Google, Apple, and Microsoft say about their own tools, checked on their help pages on November 10, 2026.
| Google Password Manager | Apple Passwords | Microsoft Edge | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where it works | Chrome on any computer, Android, and passwords.google.com, signed in to a Google Account | iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro; Windows through iCloud for Windows | Edge on any device signed in to a Microsoft account |
| What it stores | Passwords and passkeys | Passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords and verification codes | Passwords; passkeys can be saved too |
| Leak and reuse warnings | Yes: exposed, weak and reused passwords | Yes: easy to guess, reused, or in a known leak | Not checked for this page |
| Sharing | Only with members of your Google family group | Shared groups with family and trusted contacts | Not checked for this page |
| Encryption choice | Standard by default; optional on-device encryption, which cannot be turned off once set up | Synced through iCloud Keychain | Not checked for this page |
Sources: Google Account Help on password encryption and related Google pages; Apple Support on the Passwords app; Microsoft’s support pages on Edge and Authenticator.
Google: convenient, but sharing stops at the family
Google Password Manager saves passwords and passkeys in your Google Account and fills them in wherever you are signed in. Its Password Checkup sorts your saved passwords into three groups: exposed in a breach, weak, and reused. Google keeps checking even if you turn off the alerts.
Two details matter for a business. Sharing only works with members of your Google family group, so it does not help with a colleague or an accountant. And by default, the key that encrypts your passwords is stored in your Google Account. Google offers an optional on-device encryption mode that keeps the key on your devices, but it cannot be removed once set up, and you can lose access to all your saved passwords if you lose every recovery option.
Apple: the most complete, if everyone uses Apple
Since iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, Apple’s Passwords app gathers account passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and verification codes in one place, synced through iCloud Keychain. It can generate the verification codes that sites use for two-factor authentication, which saves installing a separate authenticator app. Shared groups let you share passwords and passkeys with family and trusted contacts, as long as they use iOS 17, iPadOS 17, or macOS 14 or later.
On Windows, the iCloud for Windows app gives access to the same passwords through a browser extension for Chrome, Edge, or Firefox. It works, with conditions: two-factor authentication on your Apple Account, and an Apple device nearby or Advanced Data Protection turned on.
Microsoft: passwords moved to Edge
If you used Microsoft Authenticator to fill in passwords on your phone, that feature is gone. Microsoft said in 2025 that it would stop adding new passwords to Authenticator in June, stop autofill in July, and remove access to saved passwords by mid-August. Saved passwords and addresses now live in your Microsoft account and are filled in by the Edge browser; payment cards stored in Authenticator were deleted rather than moved. Authenticator still handles passkeys for work and school accounts managed with Microsoft Entra.
In practice, the Microsoft option suits people who already use Edge everywhere, including on their phone.
When the built-in one is enough
The built-in password manager is a sound choice if all of these are true:
- You use only your own devices, never a shared or public computer for saving passwords.
- Your devices come from one ecosystem: all Apple, or Chrome on everything.
- You do not need to share logins with anyone outside your family group or Apple shared group.
- The account behind it, Google, Apple, or Microsoft, has a strong password and a second factor, because whoever gets into that account gets your passwords too.
When a dedicated app is worth it
A dedicated password manager, such as Bitwarden, 1Password, or Proton Pass, makes more sense when you work across ecosystems (a Windows laptop with an Android phone and an iPad), when you share logins with a contractor or a colleague, or when you need someone to remove access the day a person leaves. It also keeps your passwords independent of the company that makes your browser, which helps if you switch phones or browsers later.
Moving is possible in both directions. Edge, for example, can export saved passwords to a file that other password managers can import. Treat that file as you would the passwords themselves: it is not encrypted, so delete it once the import is done.
What you can get without paying for a separate app
Several dedicated apps have a free plan, and some are generous enough for one person. Before paying, read what the free tiers actually include, checked on each provider’s site.
If a colleague needs access too
The day you need to give an assistant or an accountant access to one login, the built-in options show their limits. Our page on sharing logins with a team without sending them by email explains how the main apps handle it.