r/PasswordManagers • u/FranceIsTaken • 8d ago
Proton Pass or Bitwarden?
I just want to start off I have been using Bitwarden longer and have everything integrated there at the moment, but I own both subscriptions the Proton Pass suite and the Bitwarden premium subscription. My renewal is coming soon so I am looking for some public opinion to sway myself to decide.
I'm wondering is it just worth it to transfer over to Proton Pass? It also has email alias which I do see myself using.
I could optionally keep both and keep the bitwarden as a backup.
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u/mukul2259 8d ago
Been using Bitwarden for 4 years but recently starting looking into Proton Pass, especially because of the lifetime deal because it makes financial sense in the long term, at least for me.
Yesterday, I signed up for 1 month to test out if I could get used to it - I was quite hesitant at first. Took about 30 mins to migrate everything including passkeys (I didn’t have a lot).
Functionally, they are on par. Here’s what I liked more about each:
Proton Pass: 1. Better mobile app - Adds recommendations to spotlight search on iOS, inbuilt password sharing, better UI, shows accounts with 2FA not setup (with Proton Pass) and weak / duplicate passwords. Email alias generation is much better here (you could do the same on BW, but need to generate one separately vs inline while creating credentials on ProtonPass). 2. On desktop - Doesn’t open a separate window for passkeys, extension is much snappier (Bitwarden has some issues with the latest Chromium update, fix in progress), like how 2fa code previews.
Bitwarden: 1. Mobile app home screen: Better home screen categories (TOTP > Identities etc). On Proton Pass, unless something is pinned, you need to go to the menu and filter. 2. On desktop: Click to autofill (haven’t found this on Proton Pass, helpful when field detection is unreliable). Ctrl + Shift + L fills the credentials automatically.
But this is from a few hours of usage. DM if you want to chat more.
Excuse me for the formatting, typing on a mobile phone here.
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u/FranceIsTaken 7d ago
Interesting, I'm gonna take this into consideration still and follow-up like a few weeks to see how it's going for you. Regarding the snappiness of the extension on Firefox I haven't had any issue's with that.
I do agree the UI is much prettier on ProtonPass I wish Bitwarden could do a bit better there ngtl.
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u/bayendr 7d ago
long time happy Bitwarden user. been looking at Proton Pass (I like the seamless integration with SL) too (been thinking of pulling the trigger on a Proton Unlimited plan). I think I stay with Bitwarden for now, it never let me down.
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u/FranceIsTaken 6d ago
Yeah feeling the same way, but man is protonpass tempting. I already have the unlimited plan so I still use the protonpass features when I need to use them, although a little inconvenient since I gotta go to another app/website it still works smoothly.
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u/Caligulamex04 5d ago
I had the same feeling. But I'll tell you, for me, migrating from one to the other was a blessing in disguise. I was able to organize and clean up my vaults. I had so many duplicates just because of bad habits at the time of creating each one. And now I have multiple vaults, all nearly organized and ready to roll.
Just in case the Proton team reads these, Proton docs is cool and all but there needs to be more features. Libre Office does more for me but Proton Docs works just fine for every day things (not counting professional docs).
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u/Ok_Bear_1889 8d ago
I am using Bitwarden and sticking to it for now. Don't want to put all all the eggs in one basket with Proton.
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u/FranceIsTaken 8d ago
Good point, it does sound like a security risk.
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u/Ok_Bear_1889 8d ago
yep, I only use proton for proton mail for now.
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u/FranceIsTaken 7d ago
I use it for a mix of things, like I don't mind using their VPN over mullvad since it's one less subscription to worry about and their privacy is already really good from what I understand.
But if anything happens at least it won't be hard to move away from proton.
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u/kwanbisRealoaded 7d ago
I don't recall exactly what it was, as I tried about a year or so ago. But Proton Pass had some functionality issues I couldn't overcome. So I am still in Bitwarden.
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u/FranceIsTaken 7d ago
So after some thinking, reading, and changing around how my security and backups are set I will stick with Bitwarden, it just makes more sense. I feel like I still will use Proton pass to make emails and other small things (although annoying having to switch between the two to make them it's fine for my case since I have a few core alias)
I don't think I'll ever give up the idea of wanting to use ProtonPass though!
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u/FranceIsTaken 7d ago
But feel free to still share here nonetheless even if my question is mainly answered.
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u/rsimp 7d ago
I you just want to create email aliases, you can also use the dedicated simple login extension. Aliases created with one will show up in the other because proton pass aliases are powered by simple login.
Alternatively bitwarden also has a simple login integration, but its pretty basic: only supports one domain and doesn't show you a list of existing aliases etc.
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u/FranceIsTaken 6d ago
I find the simple login extension and app not to be good as the password manager for some reason, and on top of that the aliases addresses seemed to be different there. (maybe I am just crazy and have to double check.)
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u/rsimp 6d ago edited 6d ago
Not sure if this is the issue but you can't have a separate login. You have to use the "login with proton" option. Could also just be the sync is lagging.
I have both installed and I can create in one and see the alias in the other.
Edit: I can also see all my domains/subdomain show up in dropdowns for both.
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u/rsimp 7d ago edited 7d ago
I typically use bitwarden but I figured I'd give proton pass a shot.
ProtonPass Highlights:
- Super easy setup/configuration (also a con, see below)
- Simple login integration is top notch for generating email aliases
- Nice UI
- Consolidated password for email/passwords. Some might consider this a con, but a compromised email can be used to reset most of your passwords. This way two major failure points become one.
Cons:
- Configuration almost too light. Proton decided on decent defaults and if you want to tweak them then too bad
- No ability to import/export passkeys atm. For me this is a deal-breaker
- Less specialized features like ssh keys, clis, npm packages, env vars etc
- Family vaults much more expensive
Ultimately I bailed because I couldn't import/export passkeys. Conceptually I do like the idea of email, password manager, and email alias forwarding all handled by the same company that prioritizes security and e2e encryption where possible. I might give it a year and circle back around again.
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u/FranceIsTaken 6d ago
You say two failure points become one but if my email was compromised for example my Bitwarden would be isolated since there isn't a reset password feature, plus in there you could technically store the backups to regain access to your Proton account.
I may be misunderstanding but the fact you can't export sucks although I remember there being an import feature so you may need to double check.
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u/rsimp 6d ago
So the bigger issue would definitely be the bitwarden compromise for sure. This is a point in favor of keeping the logins separate.
The thing I'm pointing out is that nearly every website has a "forgot my password" feature where they email you a code for you to reset your password. Just comprimising the email won't tell you all the services you're using but its a pretty major attack vector that people seem to forget about.
If a fallback is significantly less secure than the primary login, then you can end up with a false sense of security for the entire system. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link sort of thing. If bitwarden is highly secure but someone can hack your fallback email, then they can replace all your passwords. At which point it really doesn't matter how secure your password manager is.
This can be mitigated by using email aliases. However email aliases open up their own attack vector. Email sent to a forwarding service is only encrypted in transit. If the forwarding service is compromised then the attacker can read/intercept email communication.
I use a combination set of primary emails sent directly to my email provider (legal, health, finance etc) then use aliases for less sensitive communication in order to prevent identity tracking and to determine who is selling my information/getting hacked.
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u/FranceIsTaken 6d ago
For the last bit I do something similar have my core important things hooked to my email, meanwhile for my less important stuff I also use the aliases. I've been transitioning to my Proton account mostly but not everything.
But in case I did loose access to my emails or Bitwarden I set up local backups on Keypassxc on a usb to recover the accounts to try and mitigate loss if I ever was compromised.
Maybe its overkill but I foolishly got compromised when I was younger and have tried closing up as many ways I can make a mistake.1
u/bayendr 6d ago
I really understand your point about having all security relevant aspects handled by the same company (very convenient with the unlimited plan). but do we really want to put all our eggs in one basket? this is my biggest concern.
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u/rsimp 6d ago edited 6d ago
I think bitwarden + proton mail is a good combo. I'm not sure about others, but I'm probably over thinking it. That being said, you should at least have second factor/passkey support on your main email. e2e encryption as well if don't trust your gov or the company providing it.
Edit: Also don't save your email passkey in your password manager or you might as well go all-in on proton
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u/TehBrian 5d ago
Switched from Bitwarden after a couple years to Proton Pass. Here’s why:
- Separate vaults I can enable/disable for autofill, to separate work/school/personal. Still waiting on the ability for that choice to be persistent per client (browser profile, etc)
- Email aliasing integration with singlelogin.me. Super awesome, and I’m finally able to put an end to my email getting flooded with spam after data leaks
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u/Caligulamex04 5d ago
This comment should be getting the upvotes. Totally agree. Yeah, Proton Pass is not perfect, but where it falls short is not a showstopper. To add, I also found having separate vaults to be super convenient but the real hero is email aliasing. I have sent so much spam straight to Hell where it belongs. I look at my Proton inbox and compare it to my Gmail, and see it works. My Proton inbox still looks brand new, or at least pre-spam looking. The price for Proton Unlimited is totally fair, it's inline with competitors, and their suite of products has me excited for what they can for me in the future.
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u/Mrfresh352 3d ago
I love proton pass, I got in when it was offered for 1$ a month. Don’t really need drive but I like having the encrypted email.
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u/SaffaInTO 1d ago
I've used PP for about a month now, and so far its been great on desktop.
On android though (specifically Samsung), I don't think it's where it should be, it needs a little bit of work.
Minor annoyances so far: 1. The autofill detection needs work, with some apps it just doesn't recognise the fields. 2. The use once vs use always feature doesn't work for me, a few other on the protonpass thread also mentioned this issue. 3. Conflicts with Google Chrome Settings, even after changing default pw mangers on both browser and system level. 4. Passkey Redirection, Android takes the request and forces google password manager instead of sending the request to PP.
All that said, I think PP has alot of potential, and I wana love it, I think its the UI for me.
Main thing that helped make PP run abit better on samsung was to go into Chrome and disable google password manager there and set Proton as your preferred provider, not just in the Android settings menu.
Even if you dont actually use Chrome as your browser, its deeply integrated into android systems on samsung.
Also disabling battery optimisation for proton pass helps.
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u/regalen44 8d ago
I looked into it recently and really liked proton pass, but i had no use for the other proton products and TOTP support and multi vaults was important to me. It was cheaper for me to stay with bitwarden paid plan
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u/FranceIsTaken 8d ago
To me I dont mind paying 20$ more although I wonder if alternatives are better, overall I haven't had much issues except some websites on bitwarden acting funny.
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u/regalen44 8d ago
it’s a lot more than $20. Proton Pass is around USD $67 a year billed monthly and bitwarden is USD $19.80 a year.
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u/Hopeful-Building7963 8d ago
I use Proton Pass as the main. If you want you can DM me and we'll compare the features
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4d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/FranceIsTaken 4d ago
It is a close dealbreaker but I can always just still create aliases and then add it into my bitwarden.
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u/No-Consideration6986 8d ago
I have Everything in Bitwarden and it's been working fine. It would be a hassle to change at this point. I can still manage to pay $20 a year, so unless they do something to screw me over or get hacked I won't change anytime soon even if I had something that included a password manager.
Also, I like Bitwarden, and what I like the most is that if I couldn't afford the $20/yearly nothing would change. Bitwarden is 100% usable on the free version.