KeePassXC
A password manager that keeps one encrypted file on your own computer.
Instead of Google Password Manager, Microsoft Authenticator
Screenshot from keepassxc.org, taken 2026-10-23, shown to help you recognise the tool. It belongs to its maker. Ask us to remove it.
In Spaceballs the combination to the air shield of an entire planet turns out to be 1-2-3-4-5, which the film treats as the dumbest thing anyone has ever said aloud, and plenty of real passwords are not far behind. KeePassXC is a password manager that keeps better ones in a single KeePass database file on your own machine, with no company or account behind it. The file format is the long-standing KeePass one, so other apps can read it, and browser extensions let it fill in logins without sending anything to a server. It runs on Windows, Mac and Linux.
A volunteer team maintains it, and a security review of an earlier version was published in 2022. KeePassXC scores a 5 on footprint, lock-in, power and longevity and a 4 on Delivery.
Syncing is left to you, so getting the same file onto your phone means pairing it with something like Syncthing, and Self-direction is a 3 because of that. There is no official phone app, though several independent ones open the same file.
Living with it means one encrypted file in a folder you already know how to back up, opened by KeePassXC on the computer and by an independent app on the phone.
- Keeps your passwords in one encrypted file on your own machine
- Uses the long-standing KeePass format that other apps can read
- You handle syncing yourself, for example with Syncthing
What stands out
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Side by side. KeePassXC vs Google Password Manager
For comparison, we also reviewed Google Password Manager (16/30) as a benchmark.
Other tools for “keep my passwords safe”
- passThe standard Unix password manager: each password is an encrypted file.
- KeePassDXA KeePass password vault for Android, stored in a file you own.
BitwardenA password manager with an open-source core and a generous free tier.
Proton PassAn end-to-end encrypted password manager with a free plan, from the makers of Proton Mail.