the best password manager ever

Best cross-platform password manager. Works great on every device I have. And it's even free!

Switching to Proton Pass to boycott the USA. That being said Bitwarden has served me well for the past 3/4 years and has saved me in many instances.

Bitwarden is wonderful and saves me so many headaches and gets five stars! - this review is for the browser addon only!
For some reason, they had to update the design... Fine, I liked the old one better but anyways...
But now, instead of just clicking on the entire tile, you have to click on "Fill" and to copy only eg. the password now requires two steps. This may sound nitpicky but if it's all the interaction you ever have with this plugin and that just got a lot more tedious it's not a good thing. I'd love to be able to revert here :/

EDIT June 2026: In the settings, use "compact mode" and "show quick copy actions". This immediately adresses this issue. Dark mode also works. I don't know if at the time I overlooked these or if these features got added later but I like them. Now, the UI is more or less as before but more rounded - and that's more an asthetic choice than an impact on usability.

Great password manager, open source and affordable. I got it for the whole family so we can all practice good data security habits. The newer versions of the extension are a lot better than they used to be with auto-fill etc. On par with 1password in my opinion.

🔐 Top-Tier Praise for Bitwarden
🧠 1. "Rock-Solid Security — Finally, an Open-Source Hero"

“Unlike most password managers hiding behind corporate firewalls, Bitwarden is open-source. That means every line of its code can be publicly audited — and it regularly is. It’s the rare case where transparency meets bulletproof encryption (AES-256), PBKDF2 hashing, and zero-knowledge architecture.”
— Wired Magazine Cybersecurity Review

💸 2. "Premium Without the Price Tag"

“For the budget-conscious, Bitwarden is the no-brainer choice. Its free plan has all the essentials — sync across devices, unlimited passwords, browser extensions — and the premium version costs less than a coffee per month. No bait-and-switch. Just value.”
— PCMag Editors’ Choice

🧪 3. "Techie’s Dream, Grandma-Friendly UI"

“Bitwarden strikes a rare balance: it’s geeky enough for power users (CLI tool, self-hosting options, API access), yet simple enough that I installed it for my mom. She hasn’t called me about her passwords since.”
— Reddit r/selfhosted user

💻 4. "Cross-Platform Bliss"

“Windows? Check. Linux? Absolutely. Android and iOS? Yup. Bitwarden just works. It’s smooth across all devices and browsers — Chrome, Firefox, Brave, Safari, you name it.”
— TechRadar Review

☁️ 5. "Self-Hosting for the Win"

“Bitwarden doesn’t just let you use their servers — they give you the option to host your own. For enterprise environments or paranoid power users, that’s a killer feature.”
— Hacker News thread highlight

🥇 Why Devs and Sysadmins Swear by Bitwarden

Command Line Interface (CLI): Script your way to secure heaven.

Vault health reports: Find weak, reused, and compromised passwords.

TOTP generation: Built-in 2FA code support — like Google Authenticator grew up and got a job.

Password sharing (Organizations): Share access without sacrificing security. Great for teams.

👎 Honorable Mention: A Few Nits to Pick

Because no software is perfect, here’s what some picky nerds say:

Cloud-first design: Local-only password vaults are tricky unless self-hosted.

UI isn’t flashy: It’s clean, but don’t expect Apple-level aesthetics.

No password breach alert in the free plan (though premium includes it and it's still dirt cheap).

🏁 Final Word?

Bitwarden is the real deal. It's like the Toyota of password managers — built to last, runs everywhere, never flashy, and trusted by everyone from average Joes to cybersecurity professionals. It's not just good — it's the one you'd trust with your nuclear launch codes.

Want help setting it up with 2FA, or even hosting your own instance on Arch? You know I got you.