Password management apps (opens in a new tab) are very useful in helping active Internet users keep track of their passwords across multiple websites and applications and avoid getting banned from their accounts.
There are many password managers (opens in a new tab) available, and two popular examples are Bitwarden and LastPass. These examples offer similar functionality, enabling users to store passwords and other sensitive information in a digital vault. Still, we want to see how they compare to each other based on other critical factors like features, pricing, performance, and customer support. You can see our previous one Bitwarden review (opens in a new tab) and LastPass review (opens in a new tab) for more information.
Functions
LastPass and Bitwarden work the same way. You can create a digital vault where you store passwords and other types of sensitive information. Whenever you need to remember a password, you can go to the Vault to retrieve it.
The vault is protected by a master password that you create and must enter when you want to log into it. You should use a mix of letters, numbers and symbols to create a strong master password. Alternatively, you can use a passphrase that will be difficult to guess, such as “Aren’t dogs beautiful creatures?”.
Both platforms offer a browser extension that allows you to autofill passwords on login forms across different websites. These extensions are available for popular browsers such as Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox and Opera.
Where both platforms stand out is in the additional features they offer. For example, Bitwarden offers a tool that lets you generate strong passwords (opens in a new tab) at the click of a button, password to protect your online accounts. LastPass offers a dark web monitoring tool that checks your credentials against a database of hacked credentials and alerts you if you were the victim of a data breach.
You can access both platforms from a web interface or mobile and desktop apps.
Performance
LastPass offers solid performance through its web interface or native apps. You can download the apps on a smartphone (iOS or Android) or a desktop (Windows, macOS and Linux). Once installed, you can easily add credentials for different sites to your vault. You can also access these credentials at any time.
Note that LastPass’s desktop application allows you to add a maximum of 5,000 items, including passwords, notes, forms or other sensitive information. Still, you should expect to see noticeable performance degradation after adding around 2500 or more items.
Bitwarden is also available via a web interface or native apps for desktop computers (Windows, macOS and Linux) and smartphones (iOS and Android). The apps offer a spacious interface that you should find easy to navigate, with features arranged neatly on the left side of the dashboard.
Just like with LastPass, you may notice a decrease in performance after adding too many items to your Bitwarden vault. The platform does not mention a specific threshold, but user reviews online indicate that it is around 2,000 items.
User support
LastPass offers customer support via email and phone, but free users do not have access to this support. Otherwise, there is an official help page with a plethora of articles and user guides to help users get to know the platform. There is also an official support forum where you can interact with other LastPass users and seek solutions to problems you encounter.
Bitwarden offers customer support via email. There is no option to speak to the support agents via live chat or phone. Otherwise, visit the official Bitwarden Help Center for articles and user guides to help you navigate the platform. Just like LastPass, there is also an official support forum where you can interact with other Bitwarden users and seek solutions to problems you encounter.
LastPass is the winner in this category, as it offers more support options than Bitwarden. You can talk to LastPass’s support team by phone and get immediate help, while with Bitwarden you have to send an email and wait a few hours for a response.
Pricing
Both LastPass and Bitwarden offer a free tier that anyone can use. However, these levels are limited to just one unit.
In terms of paid plans, both platforms offer different ones for personal, family and business use. Bitwarden’s personal tier costs $10 / £10 / AUD$15 annually, much less than LastPass’s equivalent plan which costs $3 / £3 / AUD$5 per month when paid annually.
Bitwarden’s family plan costs $3.33 / £3 / AUD$5 per month and supports up to six users, while LastPass charges $4 / £4 / AUD$6 per month for the same number of users.
For business use, Bitwarden offers two plans; Teams and Enterprise. The former costs $3 / £3 / AUD$5 per month per user, while the latter costs $5 / £5 / AUD$8 per month per user. The difference is that the latter includes advanced features such as single sign-on integration.
Similarly, LastPass offers two different tiers for business users. Businesses with less than 50 employees pay $4 / £4 / AUD$6 per user per month for a LastPass subscription. Those with more than 50 employees pay $6 / £6 / AUD$9 monthly for each user.
| LastPass | The Bitwarden | |
|---|---|---|
| Free teams | Yes | Yes |
| Personal | $3 per month | Less than $1 per month |
| Family | $4 per month | $3.33 per month |
| Business | $4 to $6 per user per month | $3 to $5 per user per month |
Bitwarden is clearly the cheaper alternative. But note that if you represent a large company with hundreds to thousands of employees, you can contact both Bitwarden and LastPass’ sales teams to arrange a custom plan with bulk discounts.
Verdict
LastPass and Bitwarden each have their advantages and disadvantages against each other. The latter is the more affordable option, but offers fewer options for customer support. LastPass is more expensive and offers better customer support, making it more suitable for business users.
Both platforms offer pretty good performance, so there’s no need to worry in that category. All in all, we think Bitwarden is the better option for personal and family use, while LastPass is the better option for business use.
We have listed the best password managers for businesses.
