TechRadar Reviews

Boulies EP200: 30-second review

If I asked you to draw a picture of an office chair, I strongly suspect you'd show me something that looked a lot like the Boulies OP300.

To me, it's professional seating well-suited for professional spaces. Now, I’m a big fan of the company’s EP200 office chair (you can read my review here). One of my main issues with it, though, is the limited availability outside the UK. Thankfully, that’s not an issue with the OP300 office chair, which is readily available in both the UK and the US.

With that in mind, I was keen to try out the OP300 - formerly, and briefly, known as the EP300. For what it’s worth, the EP series are for those using an office chair for around six hours a day, while the OP range are aimed at professional settings, gaming, and those using the chair for over eight hours a day. I’m not sure I fully agree with this division. I use the EP200 for at least eight hours a day without fatigue or discomfort. But maybe that’s besides the point.

It’s a smart, all-black ergonomic seat that looks professional and feels comfortable, with plenty of adjustments to find the sweet spot. I spent the last two months trying it out to see how it compares to the best office chairs around.

Boulies OP300: Price & availability

(Image credit: Boulies // Future)

The Boulies OP300 is priced at $370 / £290 - although at the time of review, it’s on sale for $300 / £260 via the Boulies website in the US (click here) and the UK (click here). I’m also seeing it on Amazon.co.uk, under its original name, for the same cost.

I’d suggest the price is about right for what you get here, putting it roughly on par with the likes of the FlexiSpot OC3 and Branch Task Chair as a mid-range professional seating option.

Boulies OP300: Specs

Price (RRP)

$370 / £290

Seat height

19.5 - 23in / 49.5 - 58.5cm

Seat depth

18.1 - 20.3in / 46 - 51.5cm

Seat width

20.7in / 52.5cm

Backrest height

20 - 21.6in / 51 - 55cm

Recommended user height

5’5” - 6’3”

Max weight load

120kg / 265lbs

Material

Back: Mesh / Padded mesh
Seat: Padded foam

Warranty

2 years

Boulies OP300: DesignImage 1 of 3

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There’s something distinctly functional about the design of the OP300 - and that’s no bad thing. It’s a traditional office chair design that will suit every office environment. One look and you can imagine it parked under a hundred desks in an open-plan office just as easily as in the home office.

The chair itself is available with either a mesh or padded mesh backrest (reviewed here) and a cushioned foam seat. Whichever you choose, this is an office chair Henry Ford would understand - like the Model T, you can choose any color you want, “so long as it is black.” And, again, I don’t consider that a drawback for the types of settings this chair is designed for. In fact, I’d argue that this uniformity is exactly what you’d want in the workplace.

The backrest width isn’t quite as wide as the EP200 (approximately 20in vs 19in), but wide enough - and more importantly, supportive enough - to comfortably fit most body types. As is the seat itself, for that matter, which I think it a nice touch. Around the back is a sturdy Y-shape support where backrest height adjustments can be made and that, again, to my eye, looks functional rather than unnecessarily over-designed.

In use, the casters rolled nicely across both wooden flooring and textured carpeting, and while sitting, it didn’t creak or feel unstable. While the plastic is thin in places (notably on that Y-support), it doesn’t feel cheap or prone to break under use.

Boulies OP300: Assembly

Firstly, it’s worth noting that when disassembled in the box, it’s heavy - I'd strongly recommend having two people carry this to its destination. How my delivery guy managed alone to get this from his van to my door is a testament to his strength and sheer tyranny of will. Once in position, it’s an easy one-person job.

I had no issues putting this chair together, taking me around fifteen to twenty minutes to complete the entire procedure. Instructions were clear to follow. Even if you haven’t assembled an office chair before, it all makes sense and is pretty intuitive anyway.

Boulies OP300: Comfort & adjustabilityImage 1 of 3

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I have no problems with the amount of comfort delivered here - like the EP200, the broad seat itself feels at once firm and supportive, even with its foamy cushioning.

Now, that may be a deal-breaker for some who prefer to sink into an office chair like it’s a well-loved couch, but I rather prefer this, and it kept me productive (and less sluggish) throughout my use. Although, saying that, the backrest, which reclines between 85 and 113 degrees, felt soft and breathable, and I found it all too easy to snuggle into it.

Having a lot of adjustability is, I feel, critical for any ergonomic chair worth its salt. So, I was pleased to find loads of options to tweak the seat and find that comfortable sweet spot.

First, you can modify the seat depth to make sure you're firmly ensconced with your back against the rest. The armrests move in three directions - up, down, back and forth, and swivel in and out to suit your seating style. And the headrest can be lightly angled and adjusted up or down. So, those are the basic boxes all ticked.

Beneath the seat to the right (as you’re sitting in it) are three levers to alter the chair’s height and angle, and to lock the recline into place. On the left is the lever for adjusting seat depth. These are all operated by flipping the levers up or down, which I really liked. There’s no need to fiddle here, no pushing and pulling and flipping up or swivelling around three times and performing an awkward rain-dance to get the chair into your chosen position. It’s just simple and effective.

In fact, the only area where the chair isn’t adjustable is the lumbar support. It’s fixed into position. I would’ve liked to see more flexibility here, but I can’t say it’s especially noticeable in use.

Given the backrest can be adjusted between five levels depending on your height, and is already contoured, at no point did I find fatigue setting in or that my lower back wasn’t adequately supported while sitting down during the working day.

Boulies OP300: Final verdictImage 1 of 3

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One of the reasons I like Boulies office chairs is that they’re generally good all-rounders - and the OP300 is no exception. I’ve used this seat for working, gaming, chilling out, and, when family were over, even eating dinner at my downstairs desk.

With its classic silhouette and all-black materials, the design isn’t especially flashy - quite the opposite, in fact. But to my mind, that makes it ideal, where it won’t dominate the office or home office landscape.

At all times, the OP300 felt comfortable and supportive, which are really the two criteria any good office chair should meet.

Should I buy the Boulies OP300 office chair?

Buy it if…

✅ You want a comfortable, adjustable office chair: I used this chair for hours and hours at a time and felt none of the discomfort I get from cheaper office chairs. I especially like the simple adjustment mechanics.

✅ You want a traditional office chair that won’t break the bank: For what’s on offer, the Boulies OP300 is well-priced. Neither too cheap, nor too expensive, but about right.

Don’t buy it if…

❌ You need adjustable or dynamic lumbar support: While the backrest is height-adjustable, the lumbar support is fixed into place, which some may not like.

❌ You need an office chair with serious style: I can’t emphasise enough how ‘professional’ the stylings of the OP300 are. In terms of design, it’s about as classic an office chair gets.

For more workspace essentials, we tested the best standing desks for the home and office.

LogMeOnce is, without a doubt, one of the best password managers we’ve seen. Most password managers offer the same core features, from autofill to secure password generation, but LogMeOnce goes beyond other apps thanks to its impressive range of advanced abilities.

Sign up to LogMeOnce and you’ll be able to use QR code logins, facial recognition, and cloud storage encryption, and security comes from military-standard encryption and security options along a wide range of multi-factor options.

With a free version and a range of plans at decent prices, LogMeOnce might seem too good to be true – so we’ve tested this software to deliver the real verdict.

LogMeOnce: Plans and pricing

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

For individuals seeking a no-cost solution, the LogMeOnce Premium edition that’s available for free, stands out. Remarkably, it provides a generous array of features, such as unlimited password storage, autofill, secure password sharing, encrypted file storage, two-factor authentication (2FA) options, and a lot more, making it an excellent entry point for anyone aiming to fortify their digital security.

Stepping up, the LogMeOnce Professional subscription, which costs $2.5/month enriches the cybersecurity experience with advanced attributes like 1GB of encrypted storage, multi-factor authentication (MFA), emergency access, advanced activity report, and priority tech support. This level is ideally suited for users who demand more sophisticated security features without substantial investments.

Then there’s the $3.25/month Ultimate plan that bumps up the encrypted file storage to 10GB, and adds even more security features like remote logout, comprehensive reporting, a customizable dashboard, and more.

Furthermore, the LogMeOnce Family plan is specifically tailored to cater to the needs of households. It costs $4.99/month, and allows up to 6 accounts, offering a centralized platform for families to securely manage their passwords, digital assets, and personal information. This subscription not only amplifies online safety but also promotes shared responsibility among family members.

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

For the business-oriented users, LogMeOnce presents three distinguished plans: Teams, Business, and Enterprise. The Teams plan is designed for a small group of people, and costs $4/user/month when billed annually. It provides all the essential features such as secure password management, comprehensive 2FA, user and group management, multiple login options, including passwordless login, priority technical support, and more.

If you need single sign-on (SSO) and active directory integration you can switch to the $7.99/user/month Business plan, which adds a lot more features such as automated user provisioning, role-based access control, delegated administration, identity theft protection, and more.

The top-tier is the Enterprise plan, which is designed for larger enterprises that require comprehensive and scalable cybersecurity solutions. In addition to all the features in the Business plan, it also offers MFA, IP address-based restrictions, bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy, and more.

Each of these subscription plans by LogMeOnce is developed with the understanding that security needs vary widely among users and organizations. By offering a broad spectrum of features across different tiers, LogMeOnce accommodates a range of budgets and security requirements, making it a versatile choice for anyone looking to protect their digital life or their business's online assets.

LogMeOnce: Setup

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

Whether you're an individual looking to protect your personal information or a business aiming to safeguard your data, setting up LogMeOnce can be a game-changer. In this blog post, we'll walk you through the setup process, ensuring you're up and running with LogMeOnce in no time.

Creating an Account: The first step is to create a LogMeOnce account. Visit the LogMeOnce website and choose the plan that fits your needs—ranging from a free version to professional and business plans.

Downloading the Software: After signing up, download the LogMeOnce software or app that corresponds to your device(s). LogMeOnce supports a wide range of operating systems, including Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux.

Installing LogMeOnce: Run the downloaded file and follow the installation prompts. Installation typically involves agreeing to terms, deciding on installation locations, and waiting a few moments for the software to install.

Launch LogMeOnce: Once installed, open the LogMeOnce application. If it's your first time, you'll be guided through initial setup procedures.

Import Passwords (Optional): If you’ve been using another password manager or have a digital record of your passwords, LogMeOnce allows you to import these during setup. Supported formats include CSV files, and LogMeOnce can also directly import from many other popular password managers.

Creating Your Master Password: Your Master Password is critical—it's the key to unlock all your other credentials. Choose a strong, unique password that you will remember. LogMeOnce does not store this password, so its recovery relies on security questions or a printed backup.

Manual Entry: You can manually add login details for websites and apps by clicking on the “+Add” button inside your vault. Enter the website URL, your username, and password.

Browser Extension/Add-On: Install the LogMeOnce browser extension to streamline this process. When you log in to websites, LogMeOnce will prompt you to save these credentials to your vault.

LogMeOnce Secure Wallet: Besides passwords, LogMeOnce allows you to safely store other sensitive information, including credit card details, secure notes, and personal documents, further enhancing its utility.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Set up 2FA for an additional layer of security. LogMeOnce offers multiple 2FA options, including SMS, email, and various authenticator apps.

PasswordLess Login: Explore LogMeOnce’s PasswordLess feature that enables you to log in without needing to enter your master password every time, using your mobile device or a photo of yourself.

Customization and Settings: Delve into LogMeOnce’s settings to customize your experience. This includes notifications, default behaviors, and security settings tailored to your preferences.

Syncing Across Devices: LogMeOnce seamlessly syncs your data across all linked devices. Install the mobile app on your smartphone and tablets to access your data on the go.

Staying Secure Everywhere: With LogMeOnce set up on your devices, you gain peace of mind knowing that your passwords are secure yet accessible to you anywhere and anytime.

By following these steps, you're well on your way to enjoying the myriad benefits of LogMeOnce, from heightened security and convenience to advanced features that cater to power users and businesses alike. Embrace this powerful tool and experience a more secure and streamlined digital life.

LogMeOnce: Interface and performance

It’s a well-designed bit of software. The main dashboard offers quick access to your passwords, secure notes and wallet, secure file storage, and dark web monitoring. You’ll also find quick links for your security evaluation and two-factor authentication settings.

The right-hand side has your Daily Journal, which summarizes your current password situation – a smooth feature that allows you to instantly see which areas need attention. There’s also the Identity Scorecard, which presents a quick security evaluation.

Head into different sections and at the bottom of the screen you’ll get a dock that opens more configuration options. Anyone who’s used a PC or Mac will be familiar with the setup – it works like a taskbar.

On top of this, the browser extension is very impressive. It includes quick links to all your saved websites, and logging in is as simple as clicking on the icon for the site you want to access. The mobile apps are equally powerful, and they performed very well on every device we tested them on.

One thing worth noting is that, although LogMeOnce is just as capable as other password managers, the user interface suggests otherwise. The mobile apps are particularly troubling, and have collected a handful of negative reviews accordingly. This, along with the limited browser extension support, put it one or two paces behind most other options.

LogMeOnce is also yet to announce any plans to adopt passkeys, which promise to revolutionize the way we log into websites. Promising the ultimate, passwordless security, passkeys have so far been slow to take off, and for all we know, LogMeOnce could just be waiting to see how it pans out, and whether it represents a worthwhile investment. Nevertheless, there’s no mention of passkeys anywhere on the company’s site.

LogMeOnce: Security

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

Like all good password managers, LogMeOnce is backed by powerful security features. This includes AES 256-bit encryption compliant with NIST guidelines and communication to the LogMeOnce server via SSL/TSL encrypted tunnel communication. In fact, it goes one step further than most of its competitors, with a range of patented and copyrighted tools to further protect your sensitive information.

Along with encryption and master password access, LogMeOnce also comes with PasswordLess login, powerful two-factor authentication (2FA), and anti-theft tools. Custom security solutions are also available for business users with highly sensitive data.

There are loads of multi-factor authentication options available here. You’ve got biometrics, PIN codes, secure devices, and even the option to login with a selfie. Beyond that, you can also turn a USB drive into an authentication token.

Elsewhere, LogMeOnce has options to wipe devices in emergencies, remind you to reset passwords after specified amounts of time, secure browsing and document storage and secure backup modules. Users also benefit from secure sharing options and auto-login single sign-on settings.

LogMeOnce Business: Team and Admin Features

For any business, a good set of team and admin features in their password manager are essential to help ensure security, efficiency, and control, and LogMeOnce’s business plans don’t disappoint in that regard.

The platform provides a centralized interface that helps admins manage user access, and team credentials, enforce password policies, monitor activities, and a lot more.

Talking of password policies, you can use LogMeOnce to define and enforce granular password policies. This includes setting requirements for passwords, such as minimum length, character complexity, expiration frequency, and such. In addition to mandating periodic password changes, admins can also enforce password history rules to prevent users from reusing old passwords.

LogMeOnce also has adequate user and group management features. You can use the platform to organize users into groups, which can be formed based on a variety of factors, including formal structure like departments (IT, marketing, finance, etc.), or specific tasks, and projects.

The platform also allows for delegated administration, which means specific individuals can be assigned roles at the group level or user level. The platform supports half a dozen roles, which helps streamline the management of access to shared passwords and other sensitive information.

Team password sharing is a core business feature, and LogMeOnce doesn’t disappoint on this front as well. Besides passwords, groups can have notes, and credit card details as well. By default, the platform only lets users within a group use the passwords, but you can give them permission to view, and modify them as well. Similarly, you can enable your users to share passwords as well.

In the same vein, LogMeOnce also lets you allow your users to create their personal vaults. You can do this for individual users, all for all users belonging to a group. Unlike the business vault that you as an admin can create, modify, and delete, you can’t access a user’s personal vault. Conversely, while users can delete their personal vault, they can’t delete the business credentials, unless allowed by the admin.

You can use LogMeOnce’s Cloud Encrypter feature to encrypt your files and photos in your favorite cloud storage platform (e.g., Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive). Once you’ve added your account, the platform will automatically encrypt all your data on the service with your own key using AES 256 encryption.

Additionally, LogMeOnce also includes its own encrypted file storage service. It works pretty much like any other cloud storage service with the exception that it encrypts all its contents.

To use the service, your users will need to install the Secure Drive desktop app. After logging in to their account, they can then open their LogMeOnce Secure Drive, and copy contents to it as they would on any other folder.

The total amount of data that you can store is based on your account limits. The Teams plans bundles 1GB of encrypted storage space, while the Business, and the Enterprise plans offer 10GB. You can easily purchase additional storage space with prices starting from $9.96/year for 10GB, going all the way up to $199.92/year for 250GB.

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

The platform backs up its set of features with comprehensive reporting and auditing capabilities. It gives admins access to all kinds of security and activity reports, which are useful for compliance purposes, as well as for identifying suspicious activity, and help gauge the overall password health within the organization.

LogMeOnce Business: Integrations and Compatibility

The Business and Enterprise plans of LogMeOnce support SAML 2.0, which allows integration with a wide range of SSO identity providers such as Okta, and Microsoft Entra ID.

This is increasingly becoming a must have feature for most organizations. Thanks to this integration, users in an organization can log in to multiple apps with a single set of credentials, which helps reduce password fatigue and the likelihood of using weak or reused passwords.

Additionally, LogMeOnce also integrates with on-premise active directory and LDAP, which helps automate the onboarding/offboarding of employees directly from their status in the directory services.

Thanks to this, instead of manually creating and managing user accounts in LogMeOnce, businesses can automatically provision new users, update existing user information, and de-provision users when they leave the company. This is another crucial feature for enterprise users as it ensures that access is immediately revoked upon an employee's departure, significantly enhancing security.

One of LogMeOnce’s stand out features is its support for a wide range of 2FA options. In addition to the standard use of email, SMS, and Google Authenticator option to send 2FA codes, the platform offers several other methods like voice calls, USB tokens, X.509 certificates, and its newest home-brewed mechanism called Selfie-2FA.

Thanks to the variety of options, businesses of all sizes can choose the authentication methods that best suit their security policies and user convenience needs.

LogMeOnce also offers an API, which businesses can use to integrate the platform with in-house apps, CRM systems, HR platforms, and such. The API can interact with LogMeOnce features, and can be used to perform functions like user provisioning, activation, deactivation, retrieve and change password, export logs, and more.

LogMeOnce Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

Like a majority of its peers, LogMeOnce Business is a web-based solution, which simplifies deployment as there's no server software to manage in-house. Once you’ve rolled it and signed up your users, they can easily install browser extensions and the desktop, and mobile apps to get going.

Again, just like its peers, LogMeOnce also uses a web-based admin console. The first time you log in, it’ll take you through the interface, and introduce the various sections, and buttons. There’s also an onboarding checklist that’ll help you complete the initial steps to setup the platform.

Unlike other platforms, LogMeOnce Business makes it the responsibility of the admins to import and manage passwords for business apps. The app itself has a curated list of over 4600 business apps that have been tested and vetted by LogMeOnce. You can search and add the apps (and their login credentials) manually. You can also import the credentials from popular web browsers, and password managers.

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

Next up, you add users, and groups. Again, you can do this manually, or hook up LogMeOnce with your identity provider, and directory services. Adding, and customizing password policies is also fairly straightforward and intuitive.

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

Once the platform is up and running, you can use the dashboard to get a quick snapshot of your organization's security posture. There’s also the security scorecard that tracks and analyzes various aspects of the managed passwords for the organization as a whole, as well as for individual users.

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)LogMeOnce: Support

(Image credit: LogMeOnce)

LogMeOnce has a range of customer support and self-help options to draw on if you run into trouble. The main website features a chatbot that will guide you to articles or help you submit a support ticket. Tickets can also be logged directly from your management dashboard or the online portal. We feel that real-time support could be improved - there are no phone lines and emails aren’t always the quickest way to get to the bottom of something.

LogMeOnce: The competition

LogMeOnce is a genuinely good password manager, but there are a couple of powerful alternatives worth considering, especially if you can’t look the increasingly dated UI.

For example, LastPass has long been a leading password management program backed by very advanced features. It includes secure multi-factor authentication, has over 1,200 pre-integrated apps, and comes with a selection of advanced administration controls for IT managers and other tech professionals. Additionally, pricing is quite comparable.

If you’re really going down the business security route, Bitwarden offers self-hosting so that businesses can keep passwords stored in a secure and trusted location, even behind their own firewalls and proxies.

LogMeOnce: Final verdict

LogMeOnce is up there with the absolute best password management programs we’ve used in terms of functionality. It’s extremely affordable, comes with advanced tools designed for business users, and is backed by a range of powerful features.

On top of this, it’s easy to set up and is compatible with most common web browsers, devices, and operating systems. Also, security tools and customer support resources are comprehensive with an extensive library of articles and even videos.

That said, the product’s design could do with quite a significant overhaul, which is most notable on the apps. In theory, this shouldn’t take away from the abilities of the password manager, but failure to keep up-to-date with design could suggest diminishing developer resources. Furthermore, when we attempted to contact LogMeOnce’s press department, we were met with radio silence.

Ultimately, we’d recommend LogMeOnce for anyone who’s looking for a powerful, versatile password management solution backed by advanced features.

What to look for when choosing a password manager

A password manager not only helps in storing your passwords across various platforms securely but also plays a crucial role in generating strong, unique passwords that enhance your online security. However, with a myriad of options available, choosing the right password manager can feel overwhelming. Key features to look for include security, ease of use, compatibility, additional features, and pricing.

First and foremost, security is the cornerstone of any password manager. Ensure the application uses robust encryption methods, like AES-256 bit encryption, to keep your passwords safe from unauthorized access. Two-factor authentication (2FA) adds an additional layer of security, making it significantly harder for intruders to gain access to your vault. Next, consider the ease of use. A user-friendly interface that integrates seamlessly across your devices is essential for a smooth experience. The ability to automatically fill in passwords and form data across websites and apps can amplify convenience and enhance your online interactions.

Compatibility is another pivotal aspect. The ideal password manager should support a wide range of devices and platforms, including Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, ensuring you have access to your passwords regardless of the device you're using. Moreover, assess additional features such as secure password sharing, digital wallet functionality, and the ability to store other sensitive information like software licenses or confidential notes. These features can significantly enhance the utility of a password manager beyond just password storage.

Lastly, pricing is an important consideration, but it shouldn't be the sole deciding factor. Free versions can be a great starting point, but they often come with limitations that might not meet your needs. Evaluate the features offered in paid plans and consider whether they justify the cost, based on your personal or business requirements. Opt for plans that offer a balance between cost and functionality, ensuring you receive value for your investment.

In conclusion, selecting the right password manager involves considering a balance of security, user experience, platform compatibility, additional functionalities, and cost. By prioritizing these key factors, you can choose a password manager that not only secures your digital life but also simplifies it, allowing you to navigate the online world with confidence and ease.

We've also featured the best business password managers.

Proton has established itself quite successfully in the world of security products. You may have heard of its offerings in the encrypted email and VPN industries. Well, it also has a superb answer to the best password managers in the form of Proton Pass.

This handy password manager promises end-to-end encryption for all your passwords, ensuring your sensitive data remains secure even from Proton itself. It supports 2FA, encrypted notes, and even email alias generation - all packed into Proton's signature user-friendly interface. And just like all of Proton's offerings, its open-source and regularly audited by security experts.

But does Proton Pass live up to its reputation for privacy and ease of use? With competition from established players, can a relatively new password manager carve out a space for itself? Let's take a look.

Proton Pass: Plans and pricing

(Image credit: Proton Pass)

Proton Pass offers a range of pricing options to suit different needs. The Free plan provides a solid foundation with unlimited passwords, support for passkeys, and two vaults, all protected by end-to-end encryption. For users seeking enhanced privacy and convenience, the Plus plan, priced at $2.99/month with an annual subscription, unlocks access to the Proton Sentinel service, unlimited hide-my-email aliases and premium support.

The Proton Pass Family plan is $4.99 per month, when paid for a year, and it allows up to six people to experience everything the Proton Pass Plus offers.

Those who want a comprehensive suite of privacy tools can opt for Proton Unlimited at $9.99/month with an annual subscription, which includes all Proton services like Mail, VPN, Drive, Calendar, and Pass.

(Image credit: Proton Pass)

The Business plans start with Pass Essential that costs $1.99/user/month when paid for a year (yearly total $23.88/user). It includes all the essential password management features such as the ability to store unlimited passwords, passkeys, notes, and credit card details, a built-in 2FA authenticator, and unlimited email aliases.

For larger organizations that need support for single sign-on (SSO), and detailed activity logs, there’s Pass Professional that costs $4.49/user/month with an annual subscription (yearly total $53.88/user). You’ll have to pay for a minimum of three seats for both Pass Essential and Pass Professional plans.

(Image credit: Proton)Proton Pass: Setup

Here’s an overview of how to set up Proton Pass.

First and foremost, it's important to have a Proton account. If you still need to create one, visit the Proton website and sign up for an account. Once you've registered and verified your credentials, you'll need to enable two-factor authentication (2FA), which is where Proton Pass comes into play. Two-factor authentication adds a level of security by requiring your password and a unique code that you can access only at the time of login.

To set up 2FA and Proton Pass, log in to your Proton account and navigate to the security settings page. Here, you will find the option to enable two-factor authentication. Click on it, and you'll be prompted to download a two-factor authentication app if you haven't already. Proton recommends using an authenticator app like Google Authenticator, Authy, or FreeOTP, which you can download from your mobile app store.

After installing the authenticator app on your smartphone or tablet, the next step is to link it to your Proton account. Within the Proton security settings, a QR code will appear on the screen. Open your authenticator app and use its 'Scan QR code' feature to scan this code. This will automatically add your Proton account to the app and generate timed, one-time passcodes.

The Proton security settings page will also provide you with a recovery code. Writing this down or printing it and keeping it somewhere safe is crucial. This code is a lifeline for instances where you might lose access to your second-factor device. With your authenticator app now synced, your Proton Pass is effectively set up. When you log in to your Proton account, you will enter your password and the unique code displayed in your authenticator app.

(Image credit: Proton)Proton Pass: Interface and performance

The Proton Pass interface is a masterclass in minimalist design, reflecting Proton's philosophy of providing simple yet powerful security solutions. Activating two-factor authentication (2FA) for your Proton account reveals a clean and intuitive dashboard that seamlessly blends user-friendliness with robust security.

Navigating to 2FA settings is effortless, with clear instructions and visuals guiding you through the setup process. The prominent display of the QR code for your authentication app ensures quick and easy account linking. Proton Pass excels in its handling of the recovery code, prominently showcasing it during setup and stressing its importance for account recovery. This thoughtful design prioritizes user understanding and preparedness.

Once set up, using Proton Pass becomes second nature. The login process is streamlined, requiring your password and 2FA code in a clear, two-step sequence. Input fields are unambiguously labeled and positioned for a frictionless experience. This commitment to simplicity extends throughout the interface, minimizing distractions and cognitive load to ensure a smooth and efficient authentication process.

The aesthetic minimalism of Proton Pass isn't just about visual appeal; it's a deliberate strategy to enhance usability and encourage secure practices. By prioritizing clarity and ease of use, Proton Pass empowers users to take control of their online security without unnecessary complexity.

(Image credit: Proton)Proton Pass: Security

Proton Pass takes a multi-layered approach to security, aiming to protect your passwords and sensitive data with the strongest possible safeguards:

End-to-End Encryption: This is the cornerstone of Proton Pass's security. All your data, including passwords, usernames, notes, and even website addresses and metadata, is encrypted on your device before it's sent to Proton's servers. This means that no one, not even Proton themselves, can access your information in its unencrypted form.

Zero-Knowledge Architecture: Proton Pass operates on a zero-knowledge principle. This means that your encryption keys are generated and stored only on your device. Proton has no access to these keys, further ensuring that they cannot decrypt your data.

Strong Encryption Algorithms: Proton Pass uses both asymmetric and symmetric encryption algorithms to secure your data, including AES256 and OpenPGP. These are industry-standard algorithms known for their resilience against brute-force attacks and other security threats. Proton Pass also encrypts stored passkeys using Curve25519.

Open Source: Much of Proton Pass's code is open source, allowing security researchers and the community to audit it for vulnerabilities. This transparency helps ensure the integrity and security of the software.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Proton Pass supports 2FA, adding an extra layer of security to your account. This requires a unique code from your authentication app in addition to your password when logging in, making it much harder for unauthorized access. As an additional bonus, Proton Pass also offers an in-app authenticator and will let you know when 2FA can be enabled on any of your stored accounts.

Password Generator: Proton Pass includes a strong password generator that can create complex, unique passwords for each of your accounts, reducing the risk of password reuse and vulnerability to breaches.

Breach & Dark Web Monitoring: Proton Pass can monitor your accounts for data breaches and alert you if your information is compromised. This allows you to take immediate action to protect your accounts.

Proton Sentinel: For users in need of extra protection, Proton Pass also offers protection from it's Proton Sentinel high-security program which includes additional security protections, enhanced visibility into security logs, 24/7 suspicious login monitoring using both AI and human detections, and automatic security specialist referral for all account security support requests.

Hide-my-email Alias: Proton Pass also makes your email more secure by offering a fully integrated email masking tool that allows you to customize your masked domain and alias, and allows you to forward mail that is sent to your masked email to multiple inboxes.

Secure sharing: Outside of secure sharing with other Proton users, you can securely share vaults, links, and files with non-Proton users.

Secure payments: Proton Pass will let you securely store an unlimited amount of credit cards.

In summary, Proton Pass employs a comprehensive suite of security measures to safeguard your sensitive information. Its focus on end-to-end encryption, zero-knowledge architecture, and open-source practices makes it a highly secure choice for password management.

Proton Pass Business: Team and Admin Features

Proton Pass Business offers adequate team management and administrative capabilities.

As is the norm for such offerings, Proton Pass Business offers a web-based centralized admin console for managing users, controlling permissions, and monitoring password health, and user activity.

Your users can use the platform to create organization-wide, or department, and team-specific vaults to share credentials, and other secure data. Users can share the vault with other users in the same team or department, with granular access permissions.

By default, the invited users can only view the items in a vault, but they can also be given Edit permissions to create, delete, and export items in the vault, or Manage permissions to grant, and revoke access to a vault to other members.

As an admin, you can prevent users from sharing vaults with others who aren’t part of your organization. In addition to vaults, you can also prevent your users from sharing individual items, and stop them from exporting their data as well.

If you do allow sharing of individual items, your users can share passwords, and other sensitive information, such as secured notes, with their colleagues.

They can also share these with anyone, even if they don’t use Proton Pass, with Secure Links. The feature helps create unique, expirable links to your login credentials, secure notes, and other items. You can set the expiration date from anywhere between one hour up to 30 days, and even restrict the number of times the recipient can access the link (from one to as many).

That said, you can’t control which devices can access company vaults. Neither can you restrict access by IP address.

You can use Proton Pass Business to define password policies. The platform gives you the ability to enforce password complexity requirements, including the ability to customize minimum and maximum password length, and whether they should include numbers, special characters, and uppercase characters.

(Image credit: Proton Pass)

One interesting option is the ability to ask the platform to help your users generate memorable passwords. That said, unlike some of its peers, the platform doesn’t allow admins to enforce a password rotation policy on its users.

Another strong security feature is the ability to require all your users to use 2FA. If you don’t want to force this upon them, you do have the option to gently remind them (via email) to enable 2FA on their own.

(Image credit: Proton Pass)

The platform also lets admins forcefully logout users after the expiry of a configurable idle period, which can range from one minute to one hour. Here too we miss a failed login attempt feature that you get with some of its peers, which locks accounts after detecting suspicious activity, like a number of failed logins.

(Image credit: Proton Pass)

Talking of suspicious activity, Proton Pass Business gives users access to a Pass Monitor feature that monitors the dark web for leaked passwords, and more. Business users are also enrolled in the Proton Sentinel program, which helps detect and stop unauthorized attempts to break into your account, even if the attackers have the correct password.

Finally, the platform offers detailed activity logs that help give visibility over all kinds of user activity, such as any changes made to passwords and vaults. The platform is pretty comprehensive in its logging, and tracks about two dozen events, for everything from invitations, and vaults, to individual items, and secure links.

Proton Pass Business: Integrations and Compatibility

Proton Pass works across platforms, and offers native apps for all the popular desktop and mobile operating systems, namely Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. It also offers extensions for the best web browsers including Chrome, Brave, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.

Proton Pass can import passwords from any of these browsers, as well as from the best password managers including 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane, Keeper, NordPass, RoboForm, and others.

If you are a Pass Professional user, you also get support for SSO and SCIM integration. Proton Pass Business plugs into all the mainstream identity providers (IdPs) like Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, and Google Workspace to streamline user lifecycle management.

Finally, as we have mentioned earlier, Proton Pass is also deeply integrated into the Proton ecosystem of services, including Proton Mail and Calendar, Proton Drive, Proton VPN, and Proton Wallet. As an admin you can control which of these services can users in your organization access.

Proton Pass Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

The admin panel of Proton Pass Business is clean, and fairly intuitive.

The first order of business is user provisioning, and the platform offers adequate options to help admins add (and later remove) team members.

(Image credit: Proton Pass)

Admins can invite members by sending them an email. You can also directly create a password for them, instead of sending them an invite, and then share the password with them using other secure means. The platform also offers bulk user import through CSV files.

In the same vein, the process of enabling SSO for the supported IdPs is also fairly intuitive, and is well documented. Once added, you can give admin privileges to other users, although only the primary admin can edit the plan of the organization.

Admins can track the activity of their users through the Reports section. It offers a Pass Monitor report that tells you the number of reused, weak passwords, if the passwords were found in any breach, and other details, for every user. Then there’s the Usage report that tells you the total number of items a user has access to, the number of vaults they own, and have access to, and other details, again for every user.

Finally, there’s the Activity Logs section that logs all user events along with their time, the user account that it happened on, the type of event, and the IP address the activity originated from.

You can filter the logs by email or IP address, event type, and date range. You can also click on a time or event entry to filter by that timestamp or event type. Both the reports, and the activity logs can also be exported as a CSV file.

Proton Pass: Customer support

(Image credit: Proton)

Like any other company, Proton has a wealth of online guides to help you set things up and carry out basic troubleshooting and other issues. There are also helpful tabs on the latest Proton Pass updates and guides to enhancing personal privacy.

Getting in touch is easier than with some bigger companies, as there’s a clear form that’s easy to find, though responses will be by email rather than live chat. As more Internet users begin to question and value their privacy, turning to Proton and other security-focused products, we can only hope that the company invests in multi-channel support, be it live chat, social media support, or a phone number. Fortunately, it looks like all customers, free or paid, are treated equally.

Proton Pass: The competition

Proton Pass is not short of competition, and frankly the password management market is fairly saturated. However, Proton's open-source basis and wealth of security tools and features make it a very strong contender.

It's rivals include the likes of NordPass, which offers more competitive pricing with a similar feature set. For business oriented customers, 1Password is slightly more expensive but offers 24/7 support, however a business looking for a dedicated suite of secure business products may benefit from signing up to the full Proton Business Suite to access Mail, Calendar, VPN, Pass, and Drive for just a few extra dollars per user per month.

Proton Pass: Final verdict

Proton Pass simplifies strong security with its intuitive two-factor authentication (2FA) interface. Setting up 2FA is a breeze, thanks to clear instructions, a streamlined recovery process, and an uncluttered dashboard. While Proton Pass makes robust cybersecurity accessible to everyone, deciding whether to use it depends on your specific needs.

If you regularly handle sensitive information, Proton Pass provides a significant security boost, protecting your account from potential breaches. However, if you rarely deal with sensitive data or find 2FA workflows disruptive, alternative security measures might be sufficient.

Ultimately, choosing Proton Pass is about your commitment to online security. It's an extra step in your authentication process, but one that significantly strengthens your defenses and protects your digital identity.

We've also featured the best business password managers.

What to look for in a password manager

Choosing a password manager is a crucial step towards safeguarding your digital life. With so many options available, it's essential to prioritize features that guarantee both security and a seamless user experience. Here's a breakdown of key factors to consider:

Security is Paramount:

Robust Encryption: Look for a password manager that employs industry-leading encryption standards like AES-256. This ensures your sensitive data remains unreadable even if a breach occurs.

Zero-Knowledge Architecture: Prioritize providers who utilize a zero-knowledge model, meaning they cannot access your encrypted data or master password. This puts you in complete control of your information.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Enable 2FA for an added layer of security. This requires a unique code from your authentication app in addition to your master password, making it significantly harder for unauthorized access.

Open-Source Options: Consider open-source password managers. Their transparent code allows for community scrutiny and independent security audits, ensuring higher trustworthiness.

Usability Matters:

Intuitive Interface: A user-friendly interface is essential for effortless password management. Look for features like easy navigation, clear organization, and a straightforward password generation process.

Cross-Platform Compatibility: Ensure the password manager seamlessly integrates across your devices (desktops, laptops, smartphones, tablets) and various operating systems (Windows, macOS, iOS, Android).

Auto-fill and Password Generation: These features streamline your online experience. Auto-fill automatically populates login credentials, while the password generator creates strong, unique passwords for each account.

Beyond the Basics:

Password Health Check: A good password manager should assess your existing passwords for strength and identify any weak or reused ones, helping you improve your overall security posture.

Breach Monitoring: Some password managers offer breach monitoring, alerting you if your credentials are compromised in a data breach. This allows for swift action to secure your accounts.

Secure Sharing: If you need to share passwords with family or colleagues, look for secure sharing features that maintain encryption and control over access.

Provider Reputation and Support:

Reliable Customer Service: Choose a provider with responsive customer support to assist you with any issues or questions.

Regular Updates: Frequent updates demonstrate the provider's commitment to security and addressing potential vulnerabilities.

By thoroughly evaluating these factors, you can select a password manager that not only protects your digital identity but also simplifies your online experience. Remember, a good password manager is an investment in your online security and peace of mind.

Bitwarden takes a different approach from most of the best password manager tools because it is released under an open-source license.

Bitwarden's open-source status doesn't mean that, either. That designation means people can view, access, and contribute to the app's development. When you want an app to be secure and transparent about how it works, that can only bode well for its effectiveness.

There's more to like about this app than its open-source status. Bitwarden promises easy, robust security within minutes, unlimited password and device support, and secure, encrypted sharing.

Bitwarden is known for its open-source nature, one of its greatest strengths. This means that anyone can review its codebase for security vulnerabilities, ensuring a transparent approach to security.

To secure your data, Bitwarden uses end-to-end encryption, strong encryption, salted hashing, and PBKDF2 SHA-256. This ensures that your data is encrypted and decrypted locally on your device, meaning that not even Bitwarden can access your passwords.

It is compatible with various devices and platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, browser extensions, and a web interface, making passwords accessible from anywhere.

Bitwarden offers a generous free tier and reasonably priced premium options. The premium plan is competitively priced and allows individuals and businesses to access advanced features like two-factor authentication.

Bitwarden comes with essential features such as secure password sharing, a security dashboard for password health, and the ability to store sensitive data securely.

For organizations, Bitwarden provides team and enterprise plans that include user management, directory sync, event logs, and enterprise policies for added security and administrative control.

Some drawbacks of Bitwarden include:

• The user interface (UI) may not be as intuitive or polished as that of other commercial password managers, making it a bit cumbersome for new users to navigate and use.
• While Bitwarden covers the basics well, it may lack some of its competitors' more advanced or niche features, such as advanced form-filling capabilities or breach monitoring services.
• Accessing Bitwarden offline may limit some functionalities until you're back online, which could be a disadvantage in areas with poor internet connectivity.
• Priority support is reserved for paying customers, so free users may find it challenging to get timely assistance.
• Non-technical individuals may find it difficult to set up and get the most out of Bitwarden without assistance, especially when configuring more advanced features.

Need more advice on passwords? Then look no further than our reviews of the best password managers. And if you need some help with images, look at our coverage of the best password recovery software.

Bitwarden: Plans and pricing

Bitwarden’s business and personal plans are packed with features and are affordable (Image credit: Bitwarden)

When looking at Bitwarden's pricing model, it's evident that they have designed it to cater to a wide range of users, from individuals to large enterprises. Bitwarden offers several tiers, which are extensively outlined on their official pricing page.

The free tier provides a robust feature set that includes unlimited password storage and syncing across all devices, making it an excellent starting point for individual users.

For those seeking enhanced capabilities, Bitwarden offers a premium tier priced at just $10 per year, adding features like advanced two-factor authentication and emergency access. Family packages are available for just $40 per year for up to six people.

(Image credit: Bitwarden)

For businesses, Bitwarden categorizes its offerings into Teams and Enterprise plans. The Teams option starts at $4 per user per month, which includes everything in the Premium plan along with essential capabilities such as user management and event logs crucial for small to medium-sized teams. The Enterprise plan, tailored for larger organizations, offers additional advanced features such as Single Sign-On (SSO), directory synchronization, and custom branding. Enterprise pricing varies based on the required features and the scale of deployment, and interested users are encouraged to contact Bitwarden for a custom quote. For most users, the Enterprise plan is $6 per month for each user.

The flexibility of Bitwarden’s pricing not only makes it accessible for different types of users but also underscores its commitment to providing secure password management solutions across varying corporate needs and user bases. Whether you're an individual looking to bolster your personal cybersecurity or a large organization aiming to protect sensitive data, Bitwarden provides versatile and affordable options to fit the bill.

Bitwarden’s installation process is one of the simplest you’ll find. (Image credit: Bitwarden)Bitwarden: Setup

Here’s a comprehensive guide on how businesses can set up Bitwarden to safeguard sensitive information effectively.

Bitwarden offers various plans tailored to meet different business needs. Companies can choose from the Teams or Enterprise plans depending on their size and requirements. The Teams plan is ideal for smaller businesses or teams within larger organizations that need essential user management and sharing capabilities. Larger organizations can benefit from the Enterprise plan, which includes advanced features such as Single Sign-On (SSO), directory sync, and custom branding options. Deciding the right plan is crucial as it impacts the features and capabilities available to the organization.

The next step is to set up an organization account once the plan is selected. This is a straightforward process:

• Register for an organization account on Bitwarden’s website.
• Verify the email used for registration to activate the account.
• Once in, navigate to the dashboard to add and manage users.

Users can be added individually or in bulk through services like directory integration in the Enterprise plan, which supports syncing with directories like Microsoft Active Directory.

Bitwarden uses Collections to manage passwords and secure notes accessible to different users or groups within the organization. Setting up Collections ensures that sensitive data is only accessible to authorized personnel.

Here’s how to set up Collections:

• Create Collections based on department, function, or any other criteria relevant to your business.
• Assign users or groups to these Collections to manage access rights.

To maximize security, Bitwarden allows businesses to implement custom security policies across the organization. These policies might include:

• Mandating two-factor authentication for all users.
• Enforcing password complexity and rotation policies.
• Restricting login attempts and locations.

Implementing these policies helps in further safeguarding your business from potential cyber threats.

User training is essential to ensure that all team members understand how to use Bitwarden effectively and why robust password management practices are important. Training should cover:

• The importance of using a password manager.
• Guidelines on creating strong passwords.
• How to use Bitwarden daily to manage and retrieve passwords.
• Reporting and remediation processes in the case of suspected security breaches.

Regularly auditing the use of Bitwarden within your organization is crucial to maintain security standards. This includes checking who has access to what data, ensuring that outdated or ex-employee access is revoked, and conducting periodic security reviews and updates of the tool itself.

All of Bitwarden’s features can be administered in the web application (Image credit: Bitwarden)Bitwarden: Interface and performance

Bitwarden’s basic plans focus on the meat of password management, but even the free plans include multi-device sync, optional self-hosting, and unlimited cloud storage.

Premium plans include reports on your passwords that highlight weak passwords and unsecured websites. Also, advanced features are added, such as two-factor authentication (2FA) and emergency access. A Data Breach Report can tell you whether an email address has been compromised in a known data breach.

Bitwarden has a sleek, straightforward interface that allows users to easily search and access their passwords and secure data. And while it’s not as slick-looking as some other tools, that doesn’t really matter when the app’s functionality is more important.

While there are desktop clients for viewing and editing credentials and checking other account information, most will rarely use them in favor of the extensions that serve the password manager’s primary function: to automatically fill out login details and capture new ones.

Adding a new item is as easy as filling in a simple form, and you can attach notes and custom fields to each entry for total personalization.

We prefer using the web app, as it still includes complex authentication options and access to reports. The browser extension resembles the web app and includes a password generator, which makes using the password manager on the fly even easier.

Bitwarden includes plenty of features to make life easier. It automatically fills forms, quickly syncs passwords and data across devices, and tests your passwords for strength levels. Like many other apps, it monitors your password vault and lets you know if your information has been exposed in a security breach.

The web portal and apps come into their own when it’s time to access the other types of information stored in the vault. Saved payment details work with autofill, but you’ll need to log in to find identity information like driver’s licenses and passports. This can be really handy when you’re booking travels, so long as you know where your passport is when the time comes to board the plane!

Bitwarden promises to be compliant with a range of industry standards (Image credit: Bitwarden)Bitwarden: Security

It’s got a robust slate of security features, too. Your Bitwarden vault is secured with AES-256 encryption and your master password is never sent to Bitwarden – so there’s no chance of a breach from Bitwarden’s side of things.

Besides using Bitwarden’s own servers to keep your passwords online, so that you can access them from anywhere, you can also opt for self-hosting. This is designed primarily with businesses in mind, who can apply their own firewalls, proxies, and other services to maintain optimal security and compliance, keeping passwords inside their trusted infrastructure.

Bitwarden’s security measures go beyond zero-knowledge encryption, too. The app’s open source status means its source code is available online, resulting in more scrutiny from security experts – so problems get sorted in a timely fashion.

Bitwarden Business: Team and Admin Features

Bitwarden’s two business plans offer the right amount of features to help organizations manage credentials efficiently.

The platform revolves around the concept of a vault where your users can securely store and manage not just their credentials, but also other sensitive information such as credit card details, and more.

The platform has two kinds of vaults. There’s the organization vault that is a shared space where teams or the entire organization can store and manage credentials collaboratively. In addition to this shared vault, all users also get a personal vault that only they can access.

Credentials placed in either of the vaults can be assigned to specific collections, which are then shared with teams or groups. Think of collections as folders that you can assign to different teams, or user groups. Collections let you segment access based on departments like IT, HR, Marketing, or even specific projects.

(Image credit: Bitwarden)

All users in Bitwarden are assigned a role that helps determine what actions they can take. On the other hand, you also have the ability to set collection permissions, which help determine what actions a user can take with the items in a particular collection.

While roles can only be set at an individual-member level, permissions can either be set for an individual member or for a group as a whole.

So, for instance, you can have a member with a simple User role that gives them the ability to access shared items in assigned collections. By default, this user can also add, edit, or remove items from assigned collections. But you can revoke all except the permission to only view the items. This gives you fine-grained control over the use and sharing of credentials, and other sensitive information in your organization.

(Image credit: Bitwarden)

You can also assign Custom roles to users, which allows for even more granular control of permissions. Using this role, you can, for instance, give a user permission to access event logs, or manage users.

Another core concept in the Bitwarden Business plans is called Bitwarden Send. Using this feature your users can securely share sensitive information, such as text or files, with people inside or outside the organization.

The sharing feature comes with adequate restrictions. For instance, you can set an expiration time and date, from one hour to 30 days. You can also limit access by number of views, and even lock access behind a password. This feature comes in handy when you want to share temporary credentials with contractors.

The business plans also offer a comprehensive suite of security policies. As admins you can enforce minimum requirements for master passwords, including length, complexity, and the use of special characters.

You can also set a maximum vault timeout duration to automatically lock vaults after a specified period of inactivity. For additional security, you can also make 2FA authentication mandatory for all users.

The platform also lets you disable certain features like personal vaults, or revoke a user’s ability to export data from their vaults. Similarly, you can also turn off the send feature to further prevent data exfiltration.

That said, Bitwarden does lack a couple of policy features that you get with its peers. For one, you can define a password rotation policy. There’s also no ability to restrict login attempts based on apps, or locations.

(Image credit: Bitwarden)Bitwarden Business: Integrations and Compatibility

Both the Bitwarden business plans offer a couple of methods for automatic user and group provisioning, and deprovisioning.

For starters, the platform supports the System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM) protocol, which allows you to automatically provision and deprovision users and groups from your existing identity provider (IdP), such as, Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, OneLogin, JumpCloud, and Ping Identity.

Both plans also allow the use of a standalone Directory Connector app that can sync users and groups from various directory services, including Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace, and others.

(Image credit: Bitwarden)

Meanwhile, the Bitwarden Enterprise plan also supports Single Sign-On (SSO) integration, which allows users to log in to the platform using their existing credentials on various IdPs including Google, JumpCloud, AWS, and several others.

Both Bitwarden business plans also offer pre-built integration with popular Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) platforms like Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, Panther, Elastic, and Rapid7. Thanks to this integration you can export the Bitwarden event logs into any of the supported SIEM platforms and combine it with other security data for enhanced threat detection and incident response.

Bitwarden Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

Unlike a majority of its peers, Bitwarden offers two deployment models. There’s the standard cloud-hosted model, and then there’s the self-hosted model. The ease of deployment differs significantly between the two, with cloud being a lot simpler.

Getting started with the cloud option just takes a matter of clicks as there’s literally no software to install or servers to configure.

On the other hand, while the self-hosted option offers maximum control, it requires significant technical expertise and IT resources to roll-out. While Bitwarden provides detailed guides to help you set it up, it's an involved process that’ll take some doing.

Despite the complexity, self-hosting is invaluable for businesses with stringent data residency requirements, or those operating in regulated industries that require full control over their deployment.

The cloud-hosting option also comes with a web-based admin console that is logically organized, and straightforward to navigate with clear menus. Its intuitive layout enables admins to quickly find and tweak the features and settings you need without extensive searching or training.

Onboarding users is a simple process that can be done manually by providing the platforms a list of email addresses of users you want to invite. Larger organizations can easily hook up Bitwarden with their existing IdPs to streamline onboarding and offboarding users.

Both Bitwarden business plans also have detailed logging and reporting abilities. The event log provides detailed, timestamped records of over 60 distinct event types within your organization, including user logins, password changes, failed logins, edits to groups, and collections, and a lot more.

(Image credit: Bitwarden)

Then there are all kinds of vault health reports that can help identify weak, and reused passwords, as well as those that have been found in known data breaches.

All things considered, between the two deployment options, the Bitwarden business plans both empower business users with the right tools for managing passwords, and are also easy to administer.

Bitwarden has a useful help center and you can email the developers for support (Image credit: Bitwarden)Bitwarden: Customer support

Bitwarden is an active open-source project, so there’s plenty of support in the form of an online community, tutorials, a knowledge base, and forums. Every common feature has a well-written tutorial and the user forums, while basic, are active and helpful.

You can even email the developers for support via an online support portal, with Premium subscribers getting priority. It’s impressive for an open-source project like Bitwarden to have the level of customer support that rivals commercial products. The only thing missing is phone support – that would have been a welcome addition, especially for business customers.

Unlike most other companies, because Bitwarden’s individual developers all have their own preferences, many of them are happy to interact with customers on other platforms, like Reddit and Twitter. These aren’t considered official help channels as such, but sometimes they’re a way to get a more authentic, personalized response.

Besides troubleshooting, the company’s blog is generally a good place to visit now and again to check for content relating to up-and-coming features, or just to alert you of something you might not have known such as how to create secure passwords.

Bitwarden: The competition

If you’re willing to spend a little more, Dashlane adds identity theft protection to the mix. This adds credit monitoring, identity restoration support, and identity theft insurance that covers you up to $1 million should the occasion occur. Another paid password manager with more features than Bitwarden is LastPass.

If you have a specific feature or trait in mind, you may want to consider alternative avenues. For example, KeePass is another open-source password manager, while the likes of iCloud Keychain and Google Password Manager are among a growing number of services with support for passkeys.

Bitwarden: Final verdict

There’s lots to like about Bitwarden. It’s got rock-solid security options bolstered by the app’s open-source status. It works with virtually every device and browser you could think of – so it’s impressively versatile too.

When it comes to features this app ticks every mainstream box and it’s easy to use, even if it’s missing out on some of the slick design and high-end ability you’ll find elsewhere. But that's not a big issue when it’s got a tempting free product, good pricing on all of its paid options, and solid open-source security.

What to look for in a password manager

Businesses must diligently choose a robust password management solution when safeguarding sensitive information. Security is paramount; thus, a prospective password manager must offer advanced encryption standards, such as AES-256-bit encryption, to ensure that critical data remains inaccessible to unauthorized parties. It’s also imIt'stive that the service touts end-to-end encryption with zero-knowledge architecture, meaning even the service providers cannot access your passwords.

A business should seek a password manager that improves user-friendliness without compromising security. Employees should be able to navigate the system effortlessly, encouraging widespread adoption and adherence to security protocols. Cross-platform compatibility is another vital feature, guaranteeing that employees can securely access their credentials across various devices and operating systems, whether at their desks or on the go.

From an administrative perspective, managing user access, enforcing security policies, and monitoring usage are critical for maintaining company-wide password hygiene. Businesses should look for services that provide comprehensive admin controls, user provisioning, and detailed audit logs. Moreover, scalability is crucial – the chosen solution should be able to accommodate the growth of the business, with flexible plans that can be adjusted as the company expands or its needs evolve.

Budgetary considerations are inevitably part of the decision-making process; hence, a password management solution should offer transparent pricing with a clear understanding of what features are included at each pricing tier. It is beneficial to seek out options that provide a good balance of advanced features and cost-effectiveness, including premium customer support, to promptly address any technical issues or security concerns that may arise.

Lastly, while it is vital to focus on immediate needs, it is just as important to consider future-proofing. The chosen password manager should be from a reputable provider that updates the latest security trends and threats, ensuring the business is equipped with up-to-date protection. This forward-thinking approach secures the present and long-term integrity of a business's sbusiness'sata and online assets.

We've also featured the best business password managers.

Using a password manager is crucial if you want to protect your important information and ensure that you’re covered if you forget one of those all-important codes. If you’re looking for the best password manager, consider 1Password. This app has a strong business pedigree, with companies like IBM, GitLab, and Slack trusting the software to keep passwords secure and consistent. With customers like that, it’s undeniably a top option for your family or organization.

Like any technology solution, 1Password has its mix of advantages and disadvantages. In this blog post, we'll explore the pros and cons of using 1Password to help you decide if it's the right password manager.

One of 1Password’s most significant advantages is its strong focus on security. It utilizes end-to-end encryption, meaning your data is encrypted before it leaves your device and can only be decrypted with your Master Password, which 1Password does not store or have access to. This approach minimizes the risk of data breaches and unauthorized access.

1Password boasts a sleek and intuitive interface that simplifies password management whether using the desktop app, browser extension, or mobile app, navigating through your data and accessing your passwords is straightforward and hassle-free.

With the increasing importance of two-factor authentication (2FA), 1Password's ability to generate and store one-time passwords (OTPs) is a significant plus. This feature enhances security and consolidates your login and 2FA data in one spot.

Another notable advantage of 1Password is the ability to securely share passwords and sensitive information with family members or team members. Depending on your subscription plan, you can control who can access specific items, ensuring that sensitive data is only shared with authorized individuals.

1Password supports various devices and platforms, including Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. It also offers extensions for popular web browsers, ensuring you can access your passwords no matter where or what device you're using.

Unlike some competitors offering a free version, 1Password operates on a subscription model. While there is a 14-day free trial, long-term use requires a subscription. This ongoing cost may be a drawback for users who prefer a one-time purchase or a free solution.

For users new to password managers, the array of features and settings with 1Password can be overwhelming at first. While user-friendly, there's a learning curve to utilize all its functionalities efficiently.

While 1Password's free trial allows users to explore its features, it could be more robust in functionality compared to the full version. This limitation might not provide a comprehensive user experience assessing the tool's capabilities.

For the highly security-conscious, storing sensitive information in the cloud (even with solid encryption) might be a concern due to the theoretical risks of cloud breaches. Although 1Password's security is top-notch, the very nature of cloud storage can be a deal-breaker for some.

Certain features of 1Password, such as accessing your password vault from a new device, require an internet connection. While you can view and use stored passwords offline, initial setup and synchronization across devices need the internet.

We’ve evaluated 1Password’s family and business plans to see if this app is worth using – or if you should seek out a competitor instead. And if you want to explore those alternatives, take a look at our roundup of the best business password managers. 

(Image credit: 1Password)1Password: Plans and pricing

1Password offers different plans tailored to fit individual and business needs. Let's take a closer look:

For Individuals and Families

*  Individual Plan (from $2.99 per month): Designed for one person, this plan includes access to all devices, protection for your data, and around-the-clock email support.

*  Family Plan ($4.99 per month for up to five): This plan is ideal for household use. It has all the features of the individual plan but allows you to share passwords, credit cards, secure notes, and more with family members.

For Teams and Businesses

*  Teams Plan ($20 per month for up to 10 users): Built for collaboration, this plan provides features that help manage team access to shared vaults, with admin controls and secure document storage.

*  Business Plan ($8 per user per month): Tailored for larger organizations, the business plan includes everything from the Teams plan and additional advanced tools for security audits, custom roles, and more.

1Password may also offer unique plans, typically discounted, targeted at specific users, such as students, educators, or non-profit organizations.

1Password: Setup

As a leading password manager that simplifies password management while bolstering security, setting up 1Password in a work environment is a strategic move towards enhancing your company's digital security posture. In this guide, we'll walk you through every step of the process.t

Before diving into the setup, it's crucial to understand why 1Password is an asset for any organization. It goes beyond storing passwords - 1Password can manage secure notes, documents, and credentials, ensuring that all sensitive information is kept within a tamper-proof digital vault. Additionally, it enhances productivity by streamlining the login process for various work tools and platforms, reducing the time employees spend managing their passwords.

Step 1: Sign Up and Create Your Account

Begin by visiting the 1Password website and signing up for the plan that best suits your organization's needs. During this process, you'll create an account that will serve as the main administrative hub for managing your team or business.

Step 2: Configure Your Vault

Upon setting up your account, the next step is to configure your vaults. Vaults are secure containers where items like passwords, notes, and documents are stored. You can create multiple vaults for different departments or projects to keep your organization's data organized and accessible to the right people.

Step 3: Adding Users and Groups

After your vaults are configured, you'll need to add your team members. This can be done individually or in bulk through an invitation link or email. Additionally, consider setting up groups for easier management, allowing you to assign vault access to entire teams rather than individual users manually.

Step 4: Establish Security Policies

One of the key benefits of 1Password is the ability to customize security policies. This includes enforcing Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), setting password strength requirements, and configuring other security settings tailored to your organization's security guidelines.

Step 5: Training and Support

With your 1Password setup complete, the final and crucial step is training your team. Ensure that everyone understands how to use 1Password effectively, including storing and managing passwords, using the browser extension, and accessing their vaults. Take advantage of the resources and support provided by 1Password for a smooth transition.

(Image credit: 1Password)1Password: Interface and performance

1Password provides convenient access on virtually all devices. Along with mobile apps for iOS and Android, the platform also provides desktop apps for macOS, Windows, and Linux, plus a command-line tool and extensions for popular browsers including Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave, and Safari. There are also some more quirky options, like Apple Watch support.

It’s a very intuitive app. On the left-hand side, there’s a navigation column that allows users to access their private or shared vaults, tutorials, and their popular passwords. Here you’ll also find the Watchtower, which keeps track of security breaches and lets you know if your details have been compromised. In the main window, you can see all your passwords, messages or alerts, and the search box – which is extremely fast.

Adding new passwords is simple and comprehensive. You’re able to choose from more than two dozen security categories – from straightforward login and credit card details to medical records and passports – and each category collects different kinds of relevant information. It makes creating passwords easier – and speeds up categorization, too.

This is a highly responsive app, too, with changes on one device showing up on other devices almost instantaneously. We’re really fond of the small highlights than run across the top of the UI and throughout the experience, such as Wi-Fi passwords, medical records, identity information, and payment details.

Logging in online is a little more of a task than it is with other password managers. You still use your master password to get in, but you also need to authorize it by copying and pasting a so-called secret key to verify it’s you. We feel this could be handled a little easier, even if by manner of notification to the apps that are already signed in. Dashlane does something similar, and emails a one-time code to the account holder too, just for that extra layer of protection.

(Image credit: 1Password)1Password: Security

1Password uses a wide range of tools to keep your information as secure as possible. Accounts are locked by a master password, which is never shared with 1Password or any third parties. Beyond that, you’ve got your Emergency Kit, which includes a secure key you’ll need to use when logging in.

1Password provides two-factor authentication with Authy and Microsoft Authenticator, and it comes with security breath alerts, protection against keyloggers, and AES 256-bit encryption. Your passwords are also protected with Secure Remote Password (SRP), which adds another layer of credential authentication. 

(Image credit: 1Password)1Password Business: Team and Admin Features

1Password for Business pitches itself as a robust enterprise password management platform that’s designed to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. It offers a comprehensive set of features that help facilitate secure credential management, while streamlining administrative tasks, and can also integrate with your existing IT infrastructure.

Its shared vault system is particularly useful for use in a business setting. In the context of a password manager, think of a vault as a secure container that stores login credentials, as well as other secure information like credit card details.

The vaults in 1Password Business provide granular access control with over a dozen distinct permissions, which allow you as admins to control who can view, edit, copy, share, or export items within the vaults.

You can also choose which apps can be used to access this vault. For instance, if you aren’t using 1Password Business’ developer features, you can disable access to the vaults from the CLI tool. Similarly, if you only want your users to access the vault through the browser extensions, and the Android and iOS apps, you can disable access through its Windows, macOS, and Linux apps.

The platform also has an interesting Travel Mode feature that allows your users to temporarily remove access to all but certain vaults that have been marked as Safe for Travel. This helps protect sensitive business credentials and data from potential exposure during travel, especially during border inspections or other security checks.

Like all its peers, you can also use 1Password Business to create custom groups based on the departments, or projects in your organization. You can then assign specific permissions and responsibilities to these groups, such as the ability to invite, and remove people, create vaults, recover accounts, and more, facilitating efficient delegation and management.

Setting permissions at the group level allows for scalable permissioning. You can then assign vault access once to the group instead of each user.

In addition to regular users, 1Password Business also has a concept of guest users. These are individuals who are granted limited access to specific shared vaults. They don't have their own private vault, nor can they access all the shared vaults within the organization. Instead they can only access a designated vault that you’ve earmarked for them. A guest user can be a freelancer, a contractor, or anyone who needs limited access to specific information, like project-related passwords or client-specific details.

(Image credit: 1Password)

The platform also lets you define various security policies. The authentication policy helps create rules to manage how your users authenticate with, and log into the platform. You can use these to require strong master passwords, and select a two-factor authentication (2FA) mechanism. 1Password Business supports multiple 2FA options including the use of an authenticator app, security keys, and the Duo authentication service. You can also choose to make 2FA mandatory for all users.

Then there are sharing and permissions policies, where you create rules for features like credentials sharing. For instance, if you don’t want your users to share items with anyone, you can restrict them to only share items with someone who uses an email from an approved domain. You can also define the expiration settings for the shares, and more.

Finally, there are the firewall policies that you can use to restrict access to the platform, based on country, continent, or IP address.

1Password Business backs it all up with extensive logging and reporting mechanisms that provides a comprehensive trail of all actions within the 1Password account, including who accessed or modified what items and when.

1Password Business: Integrations and Compatibility

Your users can access their credentials from various devices and platforms as 1Password offers apps for all the popular desktop and mobile operating systems including Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android, along with browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.

1Password Business also integrates with all the major identity providers (IdPs) such as Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, OneLogin, JumpCloud, and Rippling through the SCIM Bridge. This helps streamline user management as it allows for automated provisioning and deprovisioning of users and groups.

The platform also integrates with leading Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) tools such as Splunk, Sentinel, Elastic, Sumo Logic, Panther, and several others. Thanks to this, the platform can stream activity to the SIEM tools for more detailed auditing and security analysis.

1Password Business also offers a robust set of developer tools that can help integrate secret management into various stages of the software development lifecycle. For instance, developers can generate, import, and store their SSH keys directly within 1Password, and also help it integrate with Git workflows.

Then there’s the 1Password CLI that allows developers to securely access items stored in 1Password directly from the terminal. 1Password Business can also integrate with popular CI/CD platforms like GitHub Actions, CircleCI, and Jenkins, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools like Kubernetes, and Terraform.

1Password also provides an open source Software Development Kits (SDKs) for popular programming languages like Python, and JavaScript, and also offers an extension for the Visual Studio Code IDE.

1Password Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

Deploying 1Password Business is relatively straightforward. The initial setup, as outlined earlier, can be completed quickly, and the user onboarding process is intuitive enough.

From an administrative standpoint, the interface is clean and neatly arranged. Most of the regular admin tasks can be completed without too much mucking about the interface, and don’t require extensive technical knowledge. That said, you’ll need to have IT chops to tackle more advanced tasks like IdP integration.

(Image credit: 1Password)

1Password Business’s web-based admin interface provides an overview of user activity, vault access, security insights, and policy compliance. There’s also an activity log that can help you track events like vault access, user logins, sharing activities, policy changes, and more. All activity is timestamped, and the log can be easily filtered.

(Image credit: 1Password)

The platform also has various reports, like breach report, and business watchtower. After you’ve verified the domain controlled by your company, the breach report will flag accounts, information, and employees that have been exposed in data breaches. Then there’s the business watchtower report that identifies security issues like weak passwords, across all your vaults.

(Image credit: 1Password)

Besides these, you also get detailed usage reports, adoption reports, team reports, devices reports, and more. Then there’s the insights dashboard that offers analytics on data breaches, password health, and team usage.

All things considered, the 1Password Business admin interface strikes a good balance between power and simplicity, and works well for all sized organizations.

1Password: Support

With 1Password, you’ll have access to 24/7 support via email. The website states that Business users get VIP support, but it doesn’t explain the difference between regular and VIP—just that help is available “whenever you need it.” As mentioned above, Enterprise subscriptions come with a dedicated account manager and onboard engineer.

The 1Password site also provides helpful articles covering a variety of support topics. These are a great place to start if you run into technical issues or want to learn more about the service’s features. Users can also access security white papers if they’d like a deeper dive into how the service works.

1Password: The competition

Lastpass, one of the most popular password managers, comes with some notable pros and cons compared to 1Password. Unlike 1Password, Lastpass offers a surprisingly robust free plan that enables users to store and share passwords across all their devices.

Furthermore, Lastpass Emergency makes it easy to configure a digital will that automatically transfers your information in case of an emergency or death. The only way to set this process up on 1Password is to pay for a family or team plan and create multiple admins or organizers. That said, Lastpass and 1Password come with many of the same features, and their pricing is mostly similar aside from the Lastpass free plan.

If you’re after more than a password manager, Dashlane and Proton Pass are among the handful that offer VPN connections for certain plans, all in a bid to keep your identity protected.

1Password: Final verdict

1Password offers everything individuals and businesses need to store and share passwords and other sensitive pieces of information. The spread of pricing options means it’s a low-cost way to keep your data safe.

In addition to mobile apps, the service is also compatible with macOS, Windows, and Linux along with several browsers. Its flexibility, affordability, and ease of use make it a great option for companies and home users.

We've listed the best password recovery software.

What to look for in a password manager

In today's world, where digital security breaches are not just common but expected, the importance of robust password management cannot be overstated. Password managers have become essential tools for individuals and businesses striving to secure their digital realms. However, with many market options, it can be challenging to know what features to prioritize when selecting a password manager. Here's a curated checklist to guide your choice.

Non-Negotiable Features

Encryption is the foundation of a password manager's security. Choose a service offering strong encryption, such as 256-bit encryption — the standard governments and militaries use worldwide. This encryption level ensures that even if data gets intercepted, it remains indecipherable without the unique key.

A zero-knowledge protocol means the service provider does not know your data. Your passwords and sensitive information are encrypted locally on your device before syncing with the server. Ensure your chosen password manager offers end-to-end encryption, with decryption only possible on your device.

Two-factor authentication (2FA)

Two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification beyond just the master password. This could be a biometric scan, a security key, or a code generated by an authenticator app. A password manager that supports 2FA significantly enhances your protection against unauthorized access.

Important Usability Features

Your digital life isn't confined to one device, so your password manager shouldn't be either. Cross-platform compatibility ensures you can access your passwords on a PC, Mac, Android, or iOS device. Check for seamless integration with various operating systems and browsers for a smooth experience.

One of the main benefits of a password manager is convenience. Look for features like autofill and auto-login that save time and prevent the risk of typing errors. This facilitates a smoother and faster login process without compromising security.

Strong, unique passwords are essential for secure accounts. A built-in password generator that can create complex passwords enhances security by eliminating the human tendency to reuse passwords or choose easy-to-guess options.

Additional Considerations

A simple, intuitive interface makes a big difference, especially for teams or individuals less familiar with tech. Ease of use encourages adoption and regular use, which is critical for maintaining security practices.

Consider recovering access to your account in case of a forgotten master password. Options like account recovery using a trusted device or emergency access for trusted contacts can be life-saving without compromising the security of your data.

Evaluate the cost relative to the features offered. Many password managers offer a basic level of service for free, with premium features available for a fee. Consider what features are must-haves for you and whether the cost of a premium plan justifies its benefits.

Choosing the right password manager is a balancing act between security features and usability. The ideal tool secures your digital life from threats while seamlessly integrating into your daily routine. You can select a password manager that protects your information and enhances your online experience by focusing on solid encryption, zero-knowledge architecture, and essential usability features. Remember, in the quest for digital security, your password manager becomes your closest ally.

Lots of password managers are free, and plenty more only unlock a good range of features if you pay loads of cash – but Sticky Password tries to bridge the gap.

Sticky Password is developed by Lamantine Software, a company that includes some of the original creators of AVG Antivirus.

This app attempts to deliver the best of both worlds by offering a free version with loads of features, including unlimited encryption and storage and biometric authentication – so it’s very capable for lots of people. The paid version is no less impressive, with cloud syncing, secure sharing and emergency access.

Then there’s Sticky Password for Teams, which is a comprehensive password management solution tailored for businesses. It offers all the security features as its consumer variant, alongside administrative controls to help streamline the use of passwords for a team of users.

We’re going to find out if Sticky Password can compete with the best password managers currently available.

Sticky Password: Key Features

Sticky Password offers essential features such as password sharing, password autofill, password generation, automatic syncing, and encrypted storage of credit cards and digital notes.

Sticky Password can generate long, complex password strings up to 99 characters long. You can customize the length and character types, and can combine uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols to maximize protection.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)

The app can also help you save lots of time with its automatic form filling feature. You can use it to create and manage identities, and save everything from personal, email, and address details to credit card details, passport information, and more. Besides these, the app also lets you securely save any text with its Secure Memos feature.

Sticky Password also offers a suite of powerful features designed specifically for business. For instance, it allows admins to specify different permissions for different people. This makes it easy for businesses to streamline their password management and reduce points of weakness in the system.

The app also monitors the dark web and will alert you (and the concerned employee) if any of the managed credentials are found in known data thefts or leaks.

As a business product, Sticky Password for Teams has a centralized admin console. You can use it to add or remove users, delegate administrative rights, and more. As an admin you can even manage the entire team's licenses, including renewals and seat allocations, through this interface.

You can also grant, manage, and remove access to shared passwords with specific permissions for different people, to ensure your employees can collaborate securely. You can even earmark individuals who can access critical accounts in case of emergencies.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)

For this, the app allows you to set the conditions under which access will be granted. The emergency contact will be granted access after sending you a request that you can reject during the waiting period.

The paid version of the app ensures all your passwords, and other encrypted data is synchronized across all devices, including desktops, tablets, and smartphones. It offers multiple options for this purpose, which is one of its best features.

You can either choose to sync the data over the cloud, which is very convenient if you have employees on the go, or, you can choose to sync over the local Wi-Fi router. Local Wi-Fi sync means that devices on the same network can share encrypted passwords and credentials without this data ever leaving the premises. This is ideal for businesses operating in one primary location because you can share passwords among colleagues in total security.

Importantly though, Sticky Password gives you full control over the devices and the network your data is synced over.

A final security feature we haven’t seen before is Sticky Password’s use of Intel Software Guard Extensions (Intel SGX) to further secure the sensitive data stored on a device. So even if an employee’s computer is stolen, the thief will be unable to access Sticky Password data that is encrypted and stored deep within the device’s CPU chip. Note however that this requires you to have a 7th Gen, or newer processor.

Sticky Password: Security and compliance

Top-notch security protocols are essential for any password manager, and Sticky Password doesn’t disappoint. Sticky Password uses all the industry-standard encryption protocols, and also goes further, offering innovative security features that are perfect for businesses.

Not only does Sticky Password encrypt all data end-to-end with 256-bit AES encryption, but it does not store the master password or the encryption key. Without these, no one, not even Sticky Password, can unencrypt your business’s valuable passwords and data. Elsewhere you’ve got fingerprint scanning, and this software runs portably – so it can boot from USB sticks and memory cards.

To ensure security when transferring passwords, Sticky Password uses the concept of trusted devices. These are devices that have been specifically authorized to access and synchronize your encrypted password database.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)

Such devices are added to a whitelist on the admin console, after which they can perform synchronization operations. The first device you use with Sticky Password is automatically authorized during the initial setup. Additional devices require individual authorization, which is done by sending a one-time PIN.

For added security, you can also enable two‑factor authentication, which works in conjunction with the Google Authenticator app. Sticky Password can also be made to use biometric authentication. For this, you can verify your identity with a swipe of a finger on Android and iOS devices.

Sticky Password’s storage space and back-end system reside on secure Amazon AWS services (Amazon S3 and Amazon EC2), and according to its Privacy Policy, the app adheres to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) standards.

Sticky Password: Setup

Sticky Password has native apps for all the popular desktop, and mobile operating systems, including several releases of macOS, Windows, iOS, and Android.

The platform is also compatible with over a dozen of the best web browsers, from popular ones like Google Chrome, Brave, Safari, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Opera, to other more obscure options like Vivaldi, Comodo Dragon and Sidekick.

The apps themselves are easy to download and install. It’s necessary to make an account before logging in, but this simply requires an email and password. We also recommend installing the Sticky Password browser extensions.

While it doesn’t have native Linux apps, you can use it on the best Linux distros like Ubuntu, and Fedora, and even on Chromebooks, through the contactless connect feature. This feature also gives you access to your passwords on shared computers where you can’t install the Sticky Password app.

Using contactless contact involves scanning a QR code with the Sticky Password app on your mobile device. That said, accessing passwords through this feature, while being completely secure, requires a little running around, and isn’t as convenient as using a native app.

Sticky Password: Interface and performance

The Sticky Password desktop application has a pleasing layout and makes it easy for the user to find important information and control their account. The security dashboard is particularly useful for visualizing security weaknesses.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)

We were impressed with the speed of syncing. Using both a mobile and desktop device simultaneously resulted in a seamless experience. Once we had entered credential information on a desktop site, we could immediately log in password-free on a mobile device.

When setting up Sticky Password for Teams, the first person to activate the team license key on their device automatically becomes the team administrator. Once the admin is set up, you can invite other team members through the admins’ web interface.

Head to My team under the StickyAccount section to add and remove team members.

You can invite users via their email addresses. They’ll then receive instructions on how to install Sticky Password and join the team. Once added, you can also assign (and later revoke) admin rights to other team members.

If your colleges already have a StickyID, you can simply email them the team license key, which they can then plug into their account.

It’s a good idea to check your list of trusted devices from time to time. Head to Dashboard > Trusted devices to see the list of trusted devices, and remove the ones that are no longer in use. Removing a trusted device will also remove the local database and backups created by Sticky Password on this device.

The other tasks can be performed by the team members from their native Sticky Password desktop app. The first thing they should do is head to Menu > Import to import all their passwords in bulk. Sticky Password can import data from all the popular web browsers, as well as from the best password managers such as Bitwarden, BitDefender, KeePass, LastPass, RoboForm, and more.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)

They can then also navigate to the Web Accounts tab to manually store their usernames and passwords for online accounts and services. Then there’s the App Accounts section where your users can store credentials for any locally installed app, such as for Skype or a remote desktop connection.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)

Then there’s the Sharing Center where you can share passwords with other Sticky Password users, and manage their access and permission levels. As an admin, you can set individual permissions for each team member, and grant them either limited read-only rights, or full rights. The latter gives them the same rights as you, and they even have the authority to revoke your access as well.

Finally, head to Emergency Contacts under the Sharing Center section to add emergency contacts.

One of the most important sections of the Sticky Password app is the Security Dashboard. From here your users can monitor their password hygiene, and security posture. It helps identify and change weak, expired, reused passwords, and those that were exposed in a data breach.

(Image credit: Sticky Password)Sticky Password: Plans and pricing

Sticky Password offers a single Premium plan for businesses, with access to a 30-day free trial first. It costs $29.99 user/year, making Sticky Password more affordable than most of its competitors.

Similarly, individuals also get a single Premium product, which costs $29.99 for a one-year license. However, if you’re sure that you want to stick with Sticky Password for the long haul, the lifetime license for individuals costs $79.99.

Individuals can also use Sticky Password for free, which is meant for users who need to store and access their passwords from a single device, since it doesn’t have any synchronization ability. Also, just like business users, individuals too can take the Premium version for a spin with a 30 day free trial.

Sticky Password: Support

The Sticky Password website has a help center, so most of the time, troubleshooting can be done online without needing to contact the Sticky Password team.

For more complicated issues, businesses have access to online support with an average wait time of fewer than 24 hours. We would like to have seen a more responsive support service, as the lack of phone support might deter some businesses from investing in Sticky Password.

Sticky Password: The competition

While Sticky Password provides an excellent core service, we think businesses might be better off considering a password management solution with greater administrator control over user settings and privacy.

Competitors such as NordPass, LastPass, and RoboForm all provide more advanced analytics that medium and large-sized businesses are likely to appreciate. Although these providers are more expensive, companies that value user management and centralized access control might prefer to consider one of them.

Also note that unlike many other business password managers, you can’t use Sticky Password for Teams to provision users by integrating with in-house or cloud directory servers like active directory, or Microsoft Entra ID.

Sticky Password: Final verdict

Sticky Password is a middle-of-the-pack password management solution. Although it may not be the best password manager available, it is still a highly secure platform with just enough features to please business users.

In particular, we think local WiFi sync and Intel SGX are innovative features that might convince businesses to rely on Sticky Password for their organization. However, the lack of advanced business features like Active Directory integration means the app will only work for small businesses, rather than large companies.

On the flipside, its limited feature set means Sticky Password is also more affordable than many of its competitors. Given the fact that it makes no compromises when it comes to security, Sticky Password manages to successfully position itself as one of the most secure password managers available for small businesses.

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The password manager market contains a huge variety of products, from basic individual products to enterprise-level utilities – and that’s where ManageEngine Password Manager Pro comes in.

This tool delivers the kind of features admins need with a business password manager, with rock-solid security, an incredible number of customization options and granular, in-depth options for managing your entire company’s identities and passwords.

It’s no wonder that it’s trusted by more than one million admins and users and has already been deployed by businesses like Walmart, VMWare and NASA. It’s also no wonder that this product is produced by Zoho, as that company has loads of experience producing enterprise software.

After you’ve discovered whether you should roll out ManageEngine Password Manager Pro to your business, head over to our verdict on the best password managers.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Key Features

Password Manager Pro aims to equip admins with enough features and functionality to help transform password management from a security liability into a structured, controlled process.

Being aimed at large enterprises, the platform claims to deliver a complete solution that can help you control, manage, monitor, and audit the entire life cycle of privileged access.

Like all its peers, it offers a centralized password vault where your users can store all their passwords in a secure, encrypted database. As an admin, you can create a hierarchical structure of folders within the vault to organize passwords based on departments, systems, apps, or any other logical grouping.

The platform also enables you to define granular access controls to control who can access specific passwords, and whether users can only view the password, or even change it. They can also set time-based access restrictions, and even force approvals for password access.

Similarly, you can also restrict access based on IP addresses or IP ranges. Admins can also assign ownership of specific password records to other authorized users, allowing for decentralized management, which is especially useful in larger organizations.

Password Manager Pro can store more than just passwords, which makes it pitch itself essentially as a centralized, encrypted repository for business-critical data. You can, for instance, use it to securely house all kinds of documents, images, and files, as well as Windows service accounts, digital signatures, SSL certificates, SSH keys, and more.

The platform also offers password lifecycle management features. You can use it to create and enforce organization-wide password policies. It enables you to specify complexity requirements (minimum length, character types), word usage (password should not contain dictionary words, or login name), password aging (how often passwords must be changed), and password history (preventing reuse of recent passwords).

(Image credit: ManageEngine)

You can also manually reset passwords for any account in the vault, and also enforce mandatory password resets for users. Passwords can be changed any time on demand, or automatically at periodic intervals. You can also configure passwords to be automatically reset after every usage.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro also offers several disaster recovery options, including live and scheduled database backups. You can restore the backed up data to the Password Manager Pro database using the provided recovery scripts.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Integrations and Compatibility

As an enterprise solution, Password Manager Pro integrates with your existing Active Directory (AD) and Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) installations. This allows your users to log in to Password Manager Pro using their existing AD or LDAP credentials, eliminating the need for separate logins.

Moreover, when a password is reset in Password Manager Pro, it can automatically update the password in the corresponding AD or LDAP account. Similarly, when users are added or removed in AD or LDAP, Password Manager Pro automatically updates its database to reflect these changes.

Password Manager Pro can also integrate with third-party Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems. It also integrates with IT Service Management (ITSM) tools like ServiceNow and Jira to automate password retrieval and management within incident and problem management workflows.

The platform also has plugins for several popular continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) platforms including Jenkins, Ansible, Chef, and Puppet. Thanks to these plugins you can securely inject secrets into your CI/CD pipelines, instead of hardcoding credentials in scripts.

The platform also provides three APIs to enable all kinds of enterprise apps to securely retrieve passwords from ManageEngine Password Manager Pro.

The platform also has a remote login feature that your users can use to securely access remote machines directly from the Password Manager Pro web interface, without needing to manually enter passwords. This comes in handy especially for establishing one-click connections to RDP, SSH, and telnet sessions.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Security and Compliance

Unsurprisingly, ManageEngine Password Manager Pro has faultless security credentials. This software uses dual 256-bit AES encryption, first at application level, and then at database level.

You can also set it up to run in the Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) compliant mode where all encryption is done through FIPS 140-2-certified systems and libraries.

Password Manager Pro also supports smart card authentication. You can further compliment this by various two-factor authentication (2FA) provisions to provide an extra layer of security. The platform supports PhoneFactor, Google Authenticator, Duo Security, YubiKey, and several more 2FA mechanisms.

(Image credit: ManageEngine)

Password Manager Pro can also be configured to detect and send alerts when it detects passwords that violate your organization's IT policy, or have expired. Alerts can also be generated when users request access to specific passwords or resources.

(Image credit: ManageEngine)

When it comes to auditing, the platform gives you as admins access to detailed audit logs that track all activities performed within Password Manager Pro. This covers events like password access, modifications, policy changes, user logins, and administrative actions.

(Image credit: ManageEngine)

All events are reported together with timestamps and user details. These logs will help with security analysis, incident investigation, and compliance reporting. Password Manager Pro also lets you grab compliance reports for PCI-DSS, NERC-CIP, and ISO/IEC 27001 standards.

To ensure that none of its logs can be tampered, in addition to restricting access, the platform ensures they are encrypted with AES-256 encryption.

The platform can also record videos of sessions initiated through Password Manager Pro for RDP, SSH, telnet, and remote database connections. The videos include everything the users see on their screen, along with all the actions they perform during the sessions.

These videos help organizations meet audit requirements, and help comply with regulations like PCI-DSS, FISMA, and HIPAA.

Remember though that recording sessions can be resource-intensive in terms of storage space. Also, depending on the number of concurrent recordings, and the resources of the Password Manager Pro server, there might be a slight performance impact on user sessions.

(Image credit: ManageEngine)ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Setup

Unlike many of its peers, Password Manager Pro is a self-hosted, on-premises password management solution. You can set it up on top of a Windows or a Linux machine, as it offers 64-bit installers for both platforms.

Before installing it, make sure the machine has at least a Dual Core or Core 2 Duo processor, with no less than 4GB of RAM. The product itself needs about 200 MB of disk space, and recommends earmarking 10GB at the minimum for the database.

The disk space requirements vary on usage, and you’ll need a lot more if you’ll be recording sessions regularly.

Besides this, you’ll also need an external mail server that Password Manager Pro can use to send emails and notifications to users. It can work with both your own in-house SMTP server, or a publicly available one.

Once that’s done, you can access ManageEngine’s settings through a web portal. At this point you’re going to get lost unless you’re an IT admin or someone with plenty of technology experience. This is a powerful tool, but that means you will be confronted with lots of different menus.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Interface and performance

By default, Password Manager Pro has five predefined roles that come with a specific set of permissions. Administrators can set up, configure, and manage the platform, while Privileged Administrators can additionally configure privacy and security controls.

Then there are Password Administrators who can perform resource and password-related operations, while Password Auditors can also access all audit reports. Finally, there are Password Users who can view (and optionally modify) only those passwords that are shared with them by the Administrators and Password Administrators.

You’ll most likely login as an admin, which gives you extensive control over the platform. You can, for instance, perform bulk actions on password records, which helps save significant time and effort when managing a large number of passwords.

(Image credit: ManageEngine)

Indeed, the ManageEngine interface is not one for beginners. Its Dashboard has options for configuring mail servers, adding users and managing your company’s data, and the Dashboard also provides a quick overview of your password conflicts and violations – and how users across your whole network are managing passwords.

(Image credit: ManageEngine)

Go beyond the Dashboard, and in sub-menus, you’ll find in-depth areas for managing resources, groups, connections, certificates and SSH keys.

There’s lots going on here and you’ll have to know plenty about system administration to find your way around, but the interface is straightforward and unfussy – so it’ll fit right into your workflow.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Plans and pricing

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro is a complex, technical product designed for medium business, large companies and huge enterprises, so its pricing structure is necessarily complex – and it’s not exactly a cheap bit of software.

As we’ve said before, Password Manager Pro has five predefined roles, and the licensing restricts the number of administrators as a whole. That said, there is no restriction on the number of Password Users and Password Auditors.

The Standard edition starts at $595 / £550 / AUD$ 900 for a year-long license for two administrators, and prices rise if you add admins. The Premium software starts at $1,395 / £1,250 / AUD$ 2,000 for a five-admin, one-year deal, and the Enterprise edition costs $3,995 / £3,800 / AUD$6,000 for a ten-user package. It’s also possible to buy perpetual licenses, although prices obviously rise further.

The Standard Edition has all the basic features to store your passwords and selectively share them among users. The Premium Edition adds more enterprise-class password management features such as remote password resets, session recording, IP restrictions, privacy settings, and more. To access every feature though you’ll need the top of the line Enterprise Edition.

Importantly though, you get support for adding unlimited resources and for managing an unlimited number of users, with each plan.

It’s also possible to add SSL/TLS certificate discovery, CSR, public CA integration and several other extra features to your package with the Key Manager Plus add-on. And while this is all very complex, ManageEngine’s enterprise-level feature set does mean that you’re able to contact the company for a customized quote too.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Support

You get plenty of support options if you fork out the cash for ManageEngine Password Manager Pro, with toll-free phone support, email forms, direct email addresses and active user forums all available. Suffice to say that you will be able to get help if you need it, no matter the time.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: The competition

ManageEngine has plenty of strong competitors in the enterprise and big business password management space. Parent company Zoho has its own Vault password management system, and it’s worth exploring that product if you’d like a password management product that can be integrated with wider CRM, workplace and finance products.

Beyond Zoho and ManageEngine, we’d also recommend N-Able Passportal, which deploys a top range of impressive, high-end features for enterprise-level password management. It’s a great standalone product, although N-Able doesn’t have the same broad packages you’ll get with Zoho or ManageEngine.

ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Final verdict

We’ll say this right away: ManageEngine Password Manager Pro is not the tool to buy if you want small business password management or a family product. It’s a high-end tool for enterprises and large businesses, and both its price and feature set reflect that status.

If you’ve got the budget and you need a high-end password management tool, though, there’s not much better than this. It’s just as good as its rivals, and you only need to consider which product has the features and integrations that your organization needs.

We've listed the best password recovery software.

For good reason, Keeper Password Manager is considered one of the best password managers available. Keeper is one of the most respected names in the security business, and this app emphasizes helping companies keep sensitive data secure.

Thankfully, Keeper has impressive security credentials, including zero-knowledge design, high-end security auditing, market-leading encryption, and other features.

In addition, Keeper offers powerful admin tools, excellent sharing options, and remote access, making it a top-notch choice for any business needing a comprehensive password management system. Check out our roundup of the best business password managers for more information about business password protection.

With cyber threats becoming more sophisticated and frequent, securing sensitive information has never been more critical. That's where Keeper, a leading cybersecurity platform for password management and data protection, comes into play. This blog post explores the key benefits of integrating Keeper Security into your business operations.

Keeper Security provides robust tools to manage and secure passwords across your organization. Unlike traditional methods where passwords are reused across multiple sites or written down insecurely, Keeper encourages using strong, unique passwords for each account. The platform automatically generates high-strength passwords that are nearly impossible to crack, ensuring a foundational level of security against breaches.

By centralizing password management, Keeper significantly lowers the risk of data breaches. It encrypts passwords and sensitive information, storing them in a secure digital vault accessible only to authorized users. This encryption is critical, ensuring that even if data is intercepted, it remains unreadable and secure.

Compliance with legal standards is non-negotiable for businesses in industries regulated by GDPR, HIPAA, or SOC2. Keeper helps ensure that your business meets these standards by providing tools for compliance management. Features like role-based permissions, event logging, and secure sharing conform to the strictest regulatory requirements, protecting your business from costly legal penalties.

(Image credit: Keeper)

Keeper’s interface saves employees time and frustration. With features like autofill and auto-login, employees no longer need to remember or retrieve passwords manually. This leads to more time focused on productive tasks rather than administrative overhead. Additionally, Keeper allows you to securely share passwords and files to facilitate seamless collaboration among team members.

Beyond just managing passwords, Keeper Security offers secure storage for sensitive files, documents, and digital certificates. With high-level encryption, files remain protected at rest and in transit. This is particularly valuable for businesses that need to share proprietary or confidential information securely and regularly.

Keeper is designed to scale with your business, making it ideal for small startups or large enterprises. Its flexible architecture and customizable features mean that as your business grows and your security needs evolve, Keeper can adjust to meet them without shifting to a new platform.

In today's world, accessing information across smartphones, tablets, and desktops is essential. Keeper supports all major platforms, ensuring that your team can securely access necessary information from any permitted device, anywhere, at any time, enhancing security and productivity.

Keeper: Plans and pricing

Keeper Security offers several tiers to accommodate businesses of varying sizes and needs. Below is an overview of the primary packages:

1. Keeper Business Starter includes password management, and sharing, shared team folders, basic two-factor authentication, a family plan for all users, and more. It’s designed for small businesses with 5-10 users, and costs $2/user/month.
2. Keeper Business adds a few more administrative features on top of the Starter plan such as the ability to delegate admin responsibilities. It costs $3.75/user/month and requires a minimum purchase of five seats.
3. Keeper Enterprise offers all the benefits of the Business plan, plus advanced features like single sign-on, SCIM provisioning, active directory, and LDAP sync, command-line provisioning, and advanced two-factor authentication options (Duo, RSA, etc.). This plan too requires a minimum purchase of five seats, though it has custom pricing that is based on the needs and size of the organization.

Keeper Security primarily focuses on business solutions and offers packages for personal use and families. This can benefit small business owners who want comprehensive cybersecurity at home and work.

With Keeper Unlimited, you get unlimited password storage, identity and payments, secure record sharing, and more for about $2.92 monthly.

On the other hand, the Keeper Family Plan includes up to five private vaults, 10GB of secure file storage, and unlimited password storage. When billed annually, this plan is currently priced at $6.25 per month.

Keeper: Setup

Implementing Keeper Security within a business environment helps bridge the gap between complex cybersecurity needs and user-friendly functionality, making it a preferred choice for many.

The first step in the setup process involves choosing the right Keeper Security package that aligns with your business's specific needs and size. From the Keeper Business plan, which offers essential password management and secure file storage, to the Keeper Enterprise solution designed for larger businesses needing advanced features like SSO and delegated administration, there's a tailored approach waiting to fit into your corporate structure. For managed service providers, the MSP package offers customized solutions to manage multiple client organizations efficiently.

Once the appropriate package is selected, the implementation process moves to account setup. This phase usually starts with a centralized admin console that serves as the command center for your organization's cybersecurity management. Through this console, administrators can effortlessly add or remove users, configure permissions, and manage security policies across the board.

Keeper has several data centers around the world, powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), including US, Canada, Japan, EU, and more, and you can choose which one to use to house your data.

(Image credit: Keeper)

When you log into the admin console, it brings up the Getting Started wizard that helps guide admins through the initial setup, such as adding users, and tweaking enforcement policies. The first order of business is to add users, and assign them roles. By default, the platform has a Keeper Administrator role, and recommends adding multiple admins to avoid single points of failure.

You should also take a moment to review Keeper's default enforcement policies. These policies control how users access their vault, utilize features, and manage their data within Keeper.

The policies are diverse and cover everything from login settings, and two-factor authentication, to disabling specific vault features, and restricting access based on platform, and IP addresses. These policies are applied based on user roles, which helps admins fine-tune access, and permissions for various groups of users within your business.

Training is a pivotal component of the setup process. Keeper Security’s intuitive user interface and straightforward functionality make the learning curve gentle for end users. However, it's imperative to conduct formal training sessions or provide resources to ensure all team members comprehend the features available to them, like generating strong passwords, securely sharing sensitive information, and using the KeeperFill for seamless autofill across apps and browsers.

Integration with existing tools is another cornerstone of setting up Keeper in a business environment. Keeper's versatility is evident in its ability to integrate with popular single sign-on (SSO) services, including Azure AD, Okta, Google Workspace, JumpCloud, Ping and others, and other business tools, streamlining login processes and enhancing security protocols without disrupting workflow. Assessing your current software infrastructure and leveraging Keeper's integration capabilities can significantly boost your cybersecurity posture and operational efficiency.

Security doesn’t end after deployment. Keeper recommends periodic reviews of user practices, shared records, and security policies to adapt to any emerging threats or business changes. Utilizing additional features like BreachWatch can further enhance your organization's defense by monitoring the dark web for compromised credentials, ensuring proactive threat management.

Finally, customer support stands as a pillar of Keeper Security's offering. Should any questions or issues arise during the setup process or thereafter, Keeper provides accessible and knowledgeable support to assist businesses in navigating any complexities.

(Image credit: Keeper)Keeper: Interface and performance

Each user has their own encrypted vault for storing passwords, credentials, and information, accessible through any number of desktop, mobile, and online apps. All the password management basics are here: a password generator or strong and unique passwords, identity management and payment information, and access to shared passwords. However, identity information for form filling is a bit limited, as you can’t create your own fields or add multiple addresses.

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Administrators can easily manage multiple users, who can be assigned roles and divided into teams. Passwords, folders, and subfolders can be shared with individual users, teams, or roles, with the ability to disable password re-sharing, editing, or even viewing, while enforcement policies ensure everybody in your company is using or generating strong passwords. There is also an Admin Console for monitoring and managing Keeper across the organization. This can also help to enforce the use of best security practices like 2FA, and password security.

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The desktop app interface is intuitive and easy to use, with tabs for passwords, identities, security audit, and BreachWatch. In-browser password autofill and form-filling are well executed with the KeeperFill browser extension, which offers tabs for entering a password, address, or card information. It’s also great to see a separate area dedicated to IDs like driver’s licenses and passports, in an era when identities are both in regular use and targeted by criminals. Being able to call on passport information to book a flight can be much easier digitally than having to retrieve the physical passport, especially when you’re away from home.

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The admin interface is equally agreeable to use, with a Dashboard that gives you a quick overview of user activity and any security issues, and an Admin tab for managing users, roles, teams, two-factor authentication, and provisioning. If you’ve paid for additional modules, you’ll have access to the Security Audit, BreachWatch, and Reporting & Alerts to manage these features. Everything is also clean and well laid out.

Platform support is good, too. Keeper works on Windows, macOS, and the best Linux distros like Fedora, Red Hat, CentOS, Debian, Ubuntu, and Mint. There’s also iOS and Android support, and a password-filling extension that works in the best web browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, Brave, and Opera. The main app can also run directly in your browser. That command-line installation is a boon, and the only thing missing here is functionality on only the most obscure browsers.

Some mobile users will be pleased to see that Keeper also has an Apple Watch app for on-the-go monitoring and quick access to things like notes of combination lock codes. In fact, if you’re really bored, you can use Keeper’s lock-shaped emoji stickers in iMessage chat. While this is totally pointless and nothing more than a gimmick, it’s really enlightening to see a company that’s dedicated to as many platforms and services as Keeper - very few come anywhere near.

(Image credit: Keeper)Keeper: Security

Security is first and foremost at Keeper. First of all, it’s a zero-knowledge company that undergoes regular SOC 2 and ISO 27001 auditing. It also meets US and EU directives on data protection, and is GDPR-compliant. Encryption is done on the fly and at device level, with AES 256-bit and PBKDF2 encryption, so no readable information is ever kept on Keeper’s servers.

Keeper is also certified by the NIST Cryptographic Module Verification Program (CMVP) and meets the FIPS 140-3 standard, which ensures the platform can withstand various attack vectors. This is particularly important for businesses that operate in regulated industries like finance and healthcare.

Keeper also claims to perform pen testing against the platform every quarter with independent security researchers as well as third-party experts such as the NCC Group, and CyberTest.

As we’ve mentioned earlier, Keeper uses AWS data centers located in multiple geographic locations to securely host your encrypted data. Once you’ve made your choice, your data and access to the platform will be isolated to that specific region. It ensures the encrypted data is further encrypted during transit with TLS 1.3 with an additional layer of encryption.

Admins have full control over which users can access what information and for how long, so there’s no risk of an employee keeping any information after leaving your company, while BreachWatch continuously watches for leaked passwords, and a secure file storage system helps keep your most sensitive documents safe.

For additional security, whenever a user tries to log into an account from a new device, the platform forces them through a verification step, to protect against brute force attacks.

(Image credit: Keeper)Keeper: Support

Keeper comes with great support for businesses. Not only can you benefit from onboarding and training for the whole team, but the support center features a very rich knowledge base with plenty of videos and articles that balance depth and accessibility.

All business plans include Live Chat and email support (capped at 25 sessions each) between Monday and Friday, from 8AM-5PM CST. We were a little confused by the online chat, which didn’t tell us if we’d been connected to somebody or how long we might have to wait, although somebody did get back to us within two minutes.

If you want phone support, you’ll have to subscribe to the Silver or Platinum support packages. While the former offers 25 calls per year, the latter has no cap. If you are subscribed to any of these two paid support plans, you can avail the support services 24/7/365.

Personal users don’t get the same support as the business clientele. There is no direct phone number, nor an email, but rather they need to go through the support portal. They still have access to all the articles and videos on the self-support side, such as step-by-step guides for installing Keeper on each web browser and supported platform.

Keeper: The competition

There are a number of good password managers out there for businesses. Dashlane has a similar business offering, but includes dark web monitoring at a cheaper price than Keeper Business and its BreachWatch. This is a good solution if you don’t need Keeper’s advanced user management.

At $2/user/month Keeper’s Business Starter Password Manager plan is one of the cheapest options for business users. However, while it does have all the usual features you expect from a business password manager, it doesn’t get you SSO authentication. If that’s something that’s important for your business, you’ll find it bundled with the only slightly more expensive RoboForm Business plan. Even the NordPass Business Plan supports Google Workspace SSO.

Then, there are the do-it-alls. If you’re already using Zoho for its other online collaboration tools, then you may want to stick to having everything under the same roof and opt for Zoho Vault.

Keeper: Final verdict

Keeper provides top-of-the-line security measures through an intuitive interface that appeals to both end-users and IT managers. The pricing is competitive with industry standards, but it’s worth noting that additional features such as BreachWatch and enterprise-grade, customizable reporting and alerting functionality can lead to a notable increase in the annual cost. Nevertheless, when it comes to effectively managing passwords and sensitive data across different teams and roles, Keeper stands out as a reliable choice.

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What to look for in a password manager

One of the foundational elements of a solid cybersecurity plan is implementing an effective password manager. However, with many options on the market, identifying the most suitable password manager for your business can be daunting. Here are key features to consider when choosing a password manager to ensure your business's online security needs are comprehensively met.

Any password manager's heart is its ability to safeguard data with unassailable security practices. Look for a password manager that employs AES-256-bit encryption, the gold standard in the industry, ensuring that all stored passwords and data are practically impenetrable. Two-factor authentication (2FA) or multi-factor authentication (MFA) capabilities are also crucial, adding a layer of security upon login.

While robust security measures are non-negotiable, the user experience cannot be overlooked. A password manager should have an intuitive interface that simplifies password storage, retrieval, and management without requiring steep learning curves. This ensures that all staff members, regardless of their tech savviness, can adhere to cybersecurity protocols effectively.

Businesses evolve, and so do their digital security needs. A password manager must be scalable and capable of growing your business without compromising performance. This includes effortlessly adding or removing user accounts, adjusting permissions, and managing different levels of access as your organization expands or changes.

Businesses must be able to track user behavior and compliance to enforce and monitor cybersecurity policies. Opt for a password manager that offers detailed auditing and reporting tools, providing insights into password health, user activity, and security vulnerabilities. These metrics are invaluable for identifying potential risks and fortifying your cybersecurity posture over time.

The modern business ecosystem relies on various digital tools and platforms. A password manager should seamlessly integrate with your existing infrastructure, including single sign-on (SSO) services, directory services like Active Directory (AD), and other critical business applications. This integration streamlines workflows, enhances user experience, and reinforces security measures across all platforms.

In the complex digital security realm, access to prompt and reliable customer support is essential. A vendor that offers comprehensive support through various channels (live chat, email, phone) and possesses a proven track record of reliability ensures that any issue can be swiftly addressed, minimizing potential disruptions to your business operations.

Adhering to specific regulatory standards (such as GDPR, HIPAA, or SOC 2) is not optional for many businesses. A password manager should help your business maintain compliance with relevant laws and industry regulations, safeguarding not just your digital assets but also your reputation and legal standing.

Finally, the cost of implementation should be considered against the return on investment (ROI). While it's vital not to compromise on essential features for the sake of the economy, the chosen solution should offer a favorable balance of cost to features, demonstrating clear value to your business through enhanced security and efficiency.

In conclusion, choosing the right password manager is a critical decision that can significantly impact your business's cybersecurity stance. By prioritizing these essential features, your business can implement a password management solution that protects against current threats and is also equipped to adapt to the future of cybersecurity challenges, ensuring the safety of your digital environment in this relentless digital age.

RoboForm is one of the best password managers, first released in 2000. In 2009, it introduced a dedicated Enterprise version for business users. It offers a rich and complex set of features that compete well with other premium password managers. It was relaunched as a software-as-a-solution (SaaS) solution, named RoboForm for Business, in 2015.

Security is a top priority, with military-grade encryption, flawless security records, and other features enhancing its offering. After trying RoboForm, you may want to check our list of the best business password managers to explore alternatives.

RoboForm ensures that your passwords are always synced and accessible, regardless of whether you’re using Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, or Android. This simple yet powerful tool makes managing passwords easy for both beginners and tech-savvy users. With industry-standard encryption protocols, RoboForm secures your data against unauthorized access, ensuring that only you can unlock your vault.

Roboform: Plans and pricing

RoboForm offers a range of options for individual, family, and business users, providing secure and easy-to-manage password protection for personal online activity.

The free version is ideal for new users and includes many features other companies usually charge for. These include unlimited logins, the ability to fill out web forms, a password audit, and two-factor authentication (2FA).

For personal use, the RoboForm Premium plan offers additional features at a competitive price point. It includes all the free version features plus cloud backup, sync across all devices, secure shared folder, web access, and priority 24/7 support. The RoboForm Premium plan is available for as little as $1.66 monthly.

RoboForm Family is designed for households with multiple users and includes all the features of RoboForm Premium for up to five members in a single package. The family plan is priced at $2.66 per month.

For businesses and teams, RoboForm offers plans that cater to the unique needs of companies, including centralized employee onboarding, secure group sharing, role-based permissions, Active Directory integration, advanced reporting, and dedicated technical support. RoboForm for Business operates on a per-user pricing model, with costs starting at $3.33/user/year.

For larger organizations, there’s also an Enterprise edition that offers customized, volume-based pricing, and a self-host option for installations that have over a thousand users.

Roboform: Setup

Setting up RoboForm for businesses is a straightforward process that ensures a smooth transition and minimal workflow disruption.

The journey to heightened security begins with setting up RoboForm on your company's workstations and devices. RoboForm’s installation process is user-friendly and straightforward, requiring RoboForm's time and technical knowledge. Administrators can quickly deploy the RoboForm business solution across multiple devices using standard deployment methods such as MSI installers or management platforms compatible with your IT infrastructure.

Once installed, RoboForm's administrative console becomes the command center for overseeing the use of RoboForms and permissions. Here, you'll initiate onboarding employees by creating new RoboForm accounts or integrating existing ones. The centralized control ensures all users adhere to the company's security policies, streamlining the management process and maintaining the board.

RoboForm enables administrators to enforce robust security policies, such as mandatory Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) and strict password generation rules. You can assign role-based permissions, ensuring that employees have access only to the credentials and passwords relevant to their role within the organization.

One of RoboForm's key benefits for businesses is the ability to securely share login credentials and other sensitive information within the company. Efficient sharing mechanisms, such as creating shared folders, allow teams to collaborate without compromising security, increasing productivity without risking data breaches.

To maximize RoboForm’s benefits, staff should be encouraged through organized training sessions to understand cyber hygiene and the practical usage of the password manager. User buy-in is crucial, and straightforward tutorials will help employees become comfortable and proficient in using RoboForm's features, leading to a smoother transition and better compliance.

With RoboForm for Business, you're backed by robust technical support tailored to handle any questions or issues arising during and after implementation. Continuous updates and a dedication to customer service mean your business can rely on uninterrupted service and state-of-the-art security features, ensuring your password management system remains at the cutting edge.

By following these steps, your business will implement a reliable and effective password management system that strengthens your cyber defenses and enhances operational efficiency. RoboForm’s commitment to security and user experience makes it a wise choice for RoboForm's aim to protect its digital assets and streamline password management processes.

(Image credit: Roboform)Roboform: Interface and performance

RoboForm includes features such as a password generator for creating strong and unique passwords of sufficient length and complexity, one-click login, cross-platform password syncing, and offline access. This feature has been further strengthened with the addition of a passphrase option that can add random words, not only a string of random characters. It can also auto-fill data fields for time savings on sites that need long web forms completed. As of January 2023, the company also added the much-anticipated 2FA generator into the experience so there’s no need for users to rely on third-party apps to generate codes.

We also love RoboForm’s integration of folders, enabling users to organize passwords in whatever way is most useful to them. For example, you can easily create separate folders for work-related passwords and personal passwords.

The app itself, in our experience, lacks the intuitiveness of some other offerings on the market but is more of a personal preference based on the numerous password managers tested. However, we did find ourselves digging around for options and trying to figure out how to best navigate the app. With time, the usage does get easier as you figure out where things that you use all the time are located.

We tested the RoboForm app on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, and were impressed by the speed of syncing. Although we had to conduct a manual sync, it took less than three seconds for data uploaded on the mobile app to appear on our desktop device. You can also enable automatic syncing.

Another strength of RoboForm is the high degree of account control. Users can make loads of customizations to security protocols and account settings when using the desktop or mobile apps. These advanced controls are one of the reasons RoboForm is one of our favorite password management solutions for businesses.

It’s worth mentioning that, unlike some of its rivals, this is purely a password manager. Other companies tend to bundle in some additional functionalities, or offer more services as a company, which makes RoboForm look a little bit expensive in comparison. For example, there’s no VPN service so you’ll either have to pay extra for one of those or go for a password manager that has one.

Companies that constantly evolve their offering are usually the ones that tend to be near and dear to users' hearts. RoboForm takes this seriously with another recent addition, where the app now supports passkeys, allowing users to store, autofill, and securely share passkeys in RoboForm. Passwordless logins have become increasingly popular, though the initial pick-up was slower than expected. With competitors also having the passkey option available, it is nice to see that RoboForm listens to the users and the market while adding new features to strengthen its offering.

(Image credit: Roboform)Roboform: Security

As with any password management solution, a top-notch security framework is integral. Luckily, RoboForm doesn’t disappoint. As a standard, all data stored on RoboForm’s platform is encrypted end-to-end with AES 256-bit encryption. 2FA is also available for all businesses, further enhances data security, and supports third-party authentication apps.

Moreover, there’s an entire page on the company’s site dedicated to exposing the security measures and features, which is a major green flag for us. Companies that are open about how they operate inspire confidence, and subject themselves to more scrutiny.

RoboForm Business: Team and Admin Features

RoboForm Business gives admins adequate control over password management. Like its peers, it offers a centralized admin console to help you with all tasks from user onboarding, and single sign-on (SSO) integration, to access control, and password policy enforcement. You can also use it to monitor user activity, track weak passwords, manage groups, and view reports.

One of RoboForm's key benefits for businesses is the ability to securely share login credentials and other sensitive information within the company. You can use the admin interface to organize users into teams, or departments, like Sales, Engineering, Finance, and such. You can also create shared folders that are accessible only to designated groups, which is ideal for sharing team/department-wide credentials.

RoboForm Business enables you to assign permissions at both the folder and individual credential level. You can assign role-based permissions, ensuring that employees have access only to the credentials and passwords relevant to their role within the organization. Employees can either have full access to view and edit the credentials, or just limited access to only use the credentials, and not view them.

RoboForm enables administrators to enforce robust security policies, such as mandatory 2FA and strict password generation rules. By default, RoboForm also doesn’t allow users to export their data. You can also further tighten the screws by restricting access based on device type.

For example, if you don’t have any Mac users in your organization, you can ensure no one can connect to the server from that OS even if they try logging in with the right credentials.

You can also log off users forcibly after a defined period of inactivity. Similarly, you can log them out when they switch to a different Windows user, or lock their computers.

The admin interface also has adequate monitoring and reporting options. You can use it to monitor password health, get breach alerts, and generate detailed activity reports that track events like login attempts, credential changes, password sharing activity, and more. These can also be exported for internal audits or for compliance checks in SOC 2, HIPAA, or GDPR-aligned environments.

RoboForm Business: Integrations and Compatibility

You can integrate RoboForm Business with various essential business platforms and tools.

In addition to SAML-based SSO, RoboForm also integrates with popular identity providers (IdPs) for SCIM provisioning. You can plug the platform with Okta, OneLogin, and Microsoft Entra ID to automate user account provisioning and management.

RoboForm also offers an Active Directory (AD) Connector that you install on a local on-premise Windows server. Once installed it enables you to sync your AD users and groups to your RoboForm Business account. This will help you provision, suspend, and remove user accounts based on their AD membership status.

While not essential for everyone, these integrations are essential for organizations that use IdPs and AD, as they help ease the onboarding process, and ensure employee access aligns with their organizational status.

As we’ve already mentioned, RoboForm offers clients and apps for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, with browser extensions for the best web browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera.

While there is no desktop app for Linux, RoboForm rather offers Chrome and Firefox extensions for Linux users. Even Chromebook users are offered a Chrome extension instead of a native client.

RoboForm Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

The RoboForm for Business admin console is well laid out and intuitive to navigate, which makes it fairly approachable even for first time users. It lists key functions on the left side of the screen, some of which, such as Users, Groups, and Data, display detailed information in sortable tables on the right.

(Image credit: Roboform)

On the dashboard you get a snapshot of the number of active users, and groups, shared folders, an overall company security score, and other useful information. The security score (higher the better), available for the entire company, individual groups, and individual users, is computed based on the strength of a user’s password.

The dashboard also offers buttons to add users, groups, data, such as logins, and folders, and more. As an admin you can either add users manually, in bulk via CSV, or through automated provisioning, via SCIM or AD.

(Image credit: Roboform)

Once invited, users receive email invites with easy to follow setup instructions that’ll help them setup a master password, import existing credentials, and install the browser extension.

As we’ve said, RoboForm offers clients, apps, and extensions for all popular desktop and mobile platforms, which makes it fairly simple to roll it out in diverse environments, while ensuring consistent use. RoboForm also offers MSI installers that can quickly deploy the client app to all users in an organization by creating a Group Policy Object (GPO) in AD.

The process for creating and managing user groups is intuitive as well. You can easily add users to groups, review its data, get an overview of its security score, tweak its settings, take a backup of its data, and more.

(Image credit: Roboform)

Defining security policies is just as straightforward. They are broken into three broad categories, namely Security & Access, RoboForm Data, and User Settings. Just scroll through the settings listed within each, and toggle the ones you want to enable. In addition to company-wide policies, you can also define separate policies for the different groups.

The Reports section gives useful insights about the users and groups. For instance, it helps break down users by their security score, helping you identify users that use weak passwords.

Roboform: Support

RoboForm has a detailed manual for its desktop users. You can also look for quick solutions to common issues in the Help Center, which also has a separate section for RoboForm Business. While that platform doesn’t offer a forum board to ask questions, you do get the option to raise a support ticket.

RoboForm provides superior customer support for its subscribers and business customers. IT administrators or employees can contact the RoboForm team either via their online support system or by phone during business hours, 9AM to 5 PM EST.

Roboform: The competition

Although RoboForm is close to best in class, it still faces competition from some of its competitors. LastPass, often considered the top provider, offers advanced administrator controls and centralized account management comparable to RoboForm’s platform.

Small and medium-sized businesses can also look at comparable options such as RememBear, Sticky Password, NordPass or Dashlane.

If security is of great important to you, you may want to consider the recently launched Proton Pass, or if you want to take it a step further, Bitwarden users can opt for self-hosting to keep their data in a location they know and trust, even behind a firewall or proxy, which is a really exciting option that isn’t typically seen in password management, and beyond.

Roboform: Final verdict

RoboForm is an exceptional password management app that offers top-notch security features and a user-friendly interface. It competes with the best in its class and is particularly cost-effective, with a range of plans to suit different needs. For individual users seeking a secure online experience without unnecessary complexities, the free version of RoboForm is a perfect fit.

In terms of security, RoboForm ensures data protection with 256-bit AES encryption, two-factor authentication (2FA), and secure vaults. The recent successful completion of a thorough security audit and penetration test by a third party demonstrates the company's commitment to maintaining high security standards. Additionally, RoboForm has a clean track record with no reported breaches, reaffirming its reliability in safeguarding sensitive data.

The company provides reliable customer support and consistently updates the app with new features, such as support for passkeys, an improved TOTP authenticator, and enhanced password change history. Regular communication through their blog and FAQs ensures users are well-informed about updates and improvements. While not the absolute best option available, RoboForm certainly offers competitive features that rival even premium offerings in the market.

What to look for in a password manager

In the era of increasing digital threats, the importance of robust cybersecurity practices cannot be overstated. Central to these practices is password management, which can significantly enhance a company's data security posture. However, with numerous options available, deciding on the right password manager for your business can be daunting. It requires careful consideration of several critical factors to ensure that the chosen solution protects your digital assets and aligns with your business processes.

Security Features: A password manager's primary purpose is to secure sensitive data. Look for advanced encryption standards, such as AES-256, which is the cornerstone of robust security. Two-factor authentication (2FA) or Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) capabilities are essential, adding an additional layer of security beyond just the master password. The ability to audit password health and enforce strong password policies across your organization is also vital, ensuring that all users adhere to best practices in password security.

User Management and Access Control: The ability to easily manage user access is crucial for businesses. The ideal password manager should offer granular access controls and user permissions, allowing administrators to define what employees can view or edit. Role-based access enhances operational efficiency by ensuring employees have the proper access for their roles, reducing the risk of internal data breaches.

Integration and Compatibility: Operational harmony requires seamless integration with your existing IT infrastructure and compatibility with a wide range of devices and platforms. The chosen password manager should work across different operating systems and integrate well with other tools your business uses, such as directory services for automating user provisioning and de-provisioning.

Ease of Use: Adopting across the company may be challenging if the password manager isn't user-friendly. The solution should offer an intuitive interface and straightforward functionalities that do not disrupt employees' workflows. Features like autofill and auto-login can significantly enhance productivity, reducing the friction of adopting new security measures.

Scalability: As your business grows, so do your password management needs. The selected password manager must be scalable, accommodating an increasing number of users and storing a growing volume of sensitive information without degradation in performance or security.

Cost Effectiveness: While cost should not be the primary factor in choosing a password manager, it's undeniably essential. Evaluate the password manager's pricing structure against the features and security it offers. Consider the return on investment, focusing on how much potential downtime and data breaches could cost your company in comparison to the password manager's subscription fee.

Customer Support and Training: Reliable customer support and access to extensive training materials are invaluable. Responsive technical support ensures that any issues can be promptly addressed, minimizing potential disruptions. Training resources like tutorials and webinars can facilitate smoother onboarding and ongoing use.

Selecting the right password manager is a critical decision that can significantly impact your company's security posture and operational efficiency. By carefully evaluating each password manager against these criteria, companies can make an informed choice that best fits their unique needs, ensuring the protection of their digital assets and the productivity of their teams.

We've listed the best password recovery software.

With a long track record and billions of credentials stored securely, Dashlane remains one of the best password managers, and a top choice for individuals and large companies like Wayfair and PepsiCo. Its popularity stems from essential features like 2FA encryption, customizable settings, and secure autofill. It also boasts support for an unlimited number of passwords.

Dashlane's size and experience enable it to stay ahead of the curve, as evidenced by its support for cutting-edge technologies like passkeys. The business plans also provide good bang for your buck with top-end security tools and features.

In our review, we explore the features that set Dashlane apart and examine whether this seasoned password manager can keep pace with newer, potentially more nimble competitors.

(Image credit: Dashlane)Dashlane: Plans and pricing

Dashlane is recognized as one of the most robust password managers available today. It integrates seamlessly across devices and platforms to provide convenience and enhanced security to its users. Whether you're an individual looking to safeguard your personal information or a business aiming to secure sensitive data, Dashlane offers tailored pricing plans that cater to a wide range of needs.

For individuals keen on upgrading their security, Dashlane's pricing structure is simple and accommodating, with a free version available for those wishing to test the waters. The free version allows you to store up to 50 passwords on a single device, which could be a great starting point for someone new to password management tools. For those requiring more comprehensive features such as unlimited passwords, secure VPN, and dark web monitoring, Dashlane Premium is available at approximately $59.99 per year, offering a significant uptick in capabilities and peace of mind.

Families looking to secure their collective digital footprint can opt for Dashlane Premium Family, which costs about $89.99 annually. This plan covers up to six separate accounts, making it an economical choice for households. Each member enjoys the full benefits of Dashlane Premium, including personalized security alerts and the convenience of securely sharing passwords.

Regardless of size, businesses can leverage Dashlane's comprehensive security solutions through its Business plan. Designed to bolster cyber resilience, this plan costs around $96 per user per year and has advanced features tailored to organizational needs. These include a dedicated Admin Console for user and policy management, secure password sharing among team members, and simplified onboarding, such as single sign-on (SSO) integration. For larger enterprises looking for customized solutions, Dashlane offers personalized plans and pricing upon request to meet specific security requirements and enterprise-scale demands.

As you can see, Dashlane provides various options for varying needs and budgets, from individual users to large organizations. With its user-friendly interface, advanced security measures, and flexible pricing plans, Dashlane stands out as a premium choice in the increasingly essential field of password management and online security. Whether you are taking your first steps towards better digital security or looking to fortify an entire organization, Dashlane offers a solution designed to provide peace of mind in the digital age.

Check out the latest Dashlane promo codes to see how to save further on certain plains.

Dashlane: Setup

Setting up Dashlane is straightforward. It can significantly improve your online security by managing and protecting your passwords and personal information. 

First, visit the Dashlane website or download the Dashlane app from your app store of choice. Once you have the software on your device, please open it and select the option to create a new account.

Enter a valid email address. This will serve as your Dashlane username, and you'll receive your account notifications there.

The most crucial step in setting up Dashlane is creating your Master Password. This password is the key to all your stored data and passwords, so it should be firm and unique—something you haven't seen anywhere. It should be a long combination of letters (both upper and lower case), numbers, and symbols. You must remember this password, as Dashlane doesn't do it, and thus cannot recover it if you forget it.

Follow the on-screen prompts to install the Dashlane extension for your preferred web browser. This extension allows Dashlane to auto-fill passwords, payment information, and personal details while you browse the internet.

We encourage you to add the Chrome extension. We were presented with a list of popular websites with links and logos and asked to select our first site. The software then guided us through choosing and storing passwords using the Chrome extension.

Beyond the Chrome extension, there are other popular browsers, such as Edge, Firefox, Brave, and Opera, as well as desktop clients for the major operating systems and mobile apps.

After installing the extension, Dashlane will offer to import your existing passwords from your browser or other password managers. This process will help consolidate your passwords into one secure location. The intuitive import feature will guide you through steps to ensure your passwords are transferred securely.

Enter your personal information, such as addresses and payment details, into your Dashlane account. This step allows Dashlane to auto-fill forms and payment methods when shopping online or signing up for services, saving you time and ensuring accuracy.

If you have Dashlane Premium, you can take advantage of its sync features by installing Dashlane on all your devices. This ensures that your passwords and personal information are accessible wherever you are. Download Dashlane to your other devices and log in with your account details.

Finally, explore the additional features that Dashlane provides, such as the Password Health Score, which assesses the strength of your passwords, or the Dark Web Monitoring, which alerts you if your information is found on the dark web. If you have Dashlane Premium, you can also use the Secure VPN to get alerts for potential security breaches.

Following these steps, you can set up Dashlane to manage your digital identity effectively. Always keep your master password in a safe place, and remember that regular updates to your password vault can further enhance your online security. Dashlane not only simplifies your browsing experience but also rigorously protects your data from the threats of the digital world.

Suppose your setup is because you're moving to another password manager. You can import credentials straight into Dashlane by exporting from 1Password, Bitwarden, LastPass, KeePass, Keeper, or RoboForm as a .csv file. You can do the same from Google Password Manager, Microsoft Edge Password Manager, iCloud Keychain, and the Firefox browser.

(Image credit: Dashlane)Dashlane: Interface and performance

I've been using Dashlane for a while now, which has revolutionized how I manage my passwords and sensitive information. The feature that automatically fills in login details for websites, credit and debit card numbers, and online forms has made my average working day far more efficient. I no longer have to spend time manually entering this information, which has been a game-changer for me.

One of the standout features for me is the bulk password-changing function. Changing multiple passwords at once is incredibly convenient, especially in a significant data breach. This feature lets me know I can easily update my passwords to enhance security.

What's moreMoreoverare offers a VPN for safe browsing on public Wi-Fi connections with its Premium plans. This goes beyond password management and adds an extra layer of security to my online activities. Even with the free version, I get personalized security alerts and a reliable password generator, which has been very useful.

Dashlane's business suite is comprehensive when it comes to business use. It handles every aspect of a company's password security, from password storage to security policy management. The Admin Console allows for detailed password hygiene analysis and provides insights into compromised passwords, which is crucial for maintaining a secure environment.

I appreciate that Dashlane works seamlessly across most operating systems and offers plugins for all the main browsers. The clean and intuitive interface makes managing and adding passwords, viewing account information, and accessing other features quickly. I also love the instant syncing across platforms, which ensures I can access my passwords and data on all my devices.

The password generator, accessible through the browser plugin, is a nice touch that allows me to create strong passwords while browsing. Overall, Dashlane has become an essential tool for maintaining high online security and efficiency.

Dashlane has a well-organized, dedicated support page. (Image credit: Dashlane)Dashlane: Passkeys

Dashlane has implemented Passkeys as a more secure alternative to traditional passwords, aligning with evolving internet security standards. Passkeys in Dashlane help protect logins stored within the service, preparing users to manage their online presence on platforms that support passkeys. Although only some websites and apps have adopted this technology, Dashlane provides a streamlined process for managing and using your passkeys for those who have. When logging in or creating an account on a site that uses passkeys, Dashlane will prompt you to generate a passkey for that site. Once set up, this passkey will be used for future logins on the website, identifying the correct passkey for easy access.

Passkeys work by generating two cryptographic keys for each account: one public key stored on the website where you create the account and a private key stored in your authenticator, like Dashlane. This method enhances security by ensuring that the key needed for access is never transmitted or stored on servers, reducing the risk of theft or interception.

To further illustrate how Dashlane employs passkeys, specific guides are provided for securing accounts such as Google and GitHub using passkeys. The process involves creating a passkey in the respective platform's account settings, which is then stored in Dashlane’s vault. Users can sign into these accounts using the stored passkey, streamlining the login process while bolstering security measures.

Dashlane: Security

Dashlane is the only US-patented password manager and uses military-grade AES 256-bit encryption alongside its patented technology.

Further security is enabled by two-factor authentication (2FA) compatible with common authenticator apps and U2F security keys. Like some other password managers, there is a master password that the user needs to enter to access the service, but only the user has it, and Dashlane has zero knowledge of it, and does not store it. What this means, though, is that if you forget your master password, you could be locked out for good.

(Image credit: Dashlane)

There's plenty of support for different SSO apps here, too – Dashlane integrates with Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Azure, Duo, Okta, and more. Businesses can also use customizable policies to create a tailored, secure environment, and automated employee management allows security to start immediately.

Dashlane even has a bug bounty program that offers rewards of up to $5,000 in return for the notification of vulnerabilities by eager security workers.

(Image credit: Dashlane)Dashlane: Customer support

Dashlane has a well-organized and easy-to-navigate support page that we could access through the web app and browser extension. It has a prominent search bar top and center to look for content and plenty of articles that guide users through key app features.

FAQs are comprehensive and arranged into categories such as Account & Security, Passwords & Data, and Platforms & Browsers.

Live chat support is available in English during working hours on weekdays, while out of hours, it's possible to consult the chatbot and contact the support team via email. We tested all options and were impressed with each of them, as there was no queue on the live chat and our request was dealt with quickly and professionally. Our email was answered quickly with information on contracting the live support staff, but the chatbot was a little underwhelming compared with other similar experiences across the web, especially during an era of generative AI. The responses and pre-determined inputs were somewhat limiting.

Remember, too, that certain product tiers also included phone support – ideal if you need help in a hurry.

Dashlane: The competition

Dashlane's biggest competitor is LastPass, which is consistently voted among the best password managers on the market.

Dashlane has a cleaner, more user-friendly interface, but LastPass wins on value for money. Its free version is only slightly different from its paid one, while Dashlane's free product misses out on features like dark web monitoring and VPN support.

KeePass is Dashlane's closest competitor in regard to security. The company sells its service on its security merits, but, unlike Dashlane, this advanced security comes at the expense of convenience. Another strong competitor is N-Able Passportal, which is well-suited to demanding businesses.

Dashlane: Final verdict

The simplicity of Dashlane's interface means even first-time users can benefit from the advanced password management services and security. The free product is a decent option for essential password protection. There's plenty of functionality available in all of Dashlane's products, especially if you upgrade to the paid versions. However, it's worth noting that some of Dashlane's business products are relatively expensive compared to other password manager tools.

Dashlane BusinessDashlane Business: Team and Admin Features

As an admin of Dashlane’s Business plans, you get a web-based admin console from where you can manage the users, groups, policies, and security settings of the password manager. It also offers an overview of your organization's password health, and flags potential risks.

As an admin you can add, and remove individual users, and organize them into groups based on teams, departments, or projects. Members of a group can share anything in their vaults including credentials, with other members of the group.

You can also delegate group management responsibilities to other users without granting them full admin privileges. This is especially useful for large organizations, or businesses that have a large number of groups. Group managers get access to the Groups tab of the admin console, and can add (and remove) users to a group.

By default, Dashlane wouldn’t let your users share credentials with anyone outside of your organization, but you can override this behavior.

As noted earlier, Dashlane encrypts data using AES-256, and provides different options for the key derivation function. Admins can also enforce a specific key derivation function for all the users, or give them the option to choose their own from the available options.

You can also require all users to mandatorily use 2FA when they log in to Dashlane. You can also generate 2FA recovery codes for your users if they lose the phone they use with 2FA. In the same vein, if a user forgets their master password, admins can also help them regain access to their account.

As a security measure, you can also set when members are automatically logged out of Dashlane after a period of inactivity. It is set to Never by default, but you can choose from 15, 30, or 60 minutes.

Dashlane’s business plans also include some security tools. It can help highlight weak, and compromised credentials across your organization, even when those users aren’t using Dashlane. It’ll also alert users of potential phishing attempts when the URL they visit differs from the saved URL of the related credential.

Some business plans also have support for Smart Spaces that helps your users separate credentials into Personal and Business spaces within the same account. You can list any work-related domains, and logins that contain the domain in the email, username, alternative username, or website, will be forced into the Business Space automatically.

This also comes in handy especially when a user leaves your company. Thanks to this feature, you can revoke their business credentials, without deleting the entire account.

You can also access detailed activity logs from the admin console that give a detailed history of user actions, and also note key events like policy changes, and security events. Any changes made by a group manager are also logged. The logs are searchable, and can also be filtered by credential, category, activity type, and date.

Dashlane Business: Integrations and Compatibility

As an admin of a Dashlane business plan, you can integrate the password manager with some of the best Identity Providers (IdPs) including Okta, Azure AD, Google Workspace, as well as with LDAP. This will help your employees log in to Dashlane using their existing corporate credentials.

You can also plug Dashlane with System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM) to automate user provisioning and de-provisioning. Once connected, when new employees join or leave the organization, their Dashlane accounts will be created, or revoked, automatically, which streamlines user management, and improves security.

Dashlane also integrates with Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) tools so you can monitor suspicious activity, such as logins from unrecognized devices, unusual deletion of credentials, and more. Currently, it offers integration with Splunk, and is working to offer support for Microsoft Sentinel in the near future.

Dashlane Business plans also have a new feature called Nudges, which connects the password manager with the Slack messaging platform. Once integrated, Dashlane will send alerts to employees about their weak, reused, and compromised passwords via Slack.

(Image credit: Dashlane)

Dashlane also has a public API that provides read-only access to all kinds of data, and insights about your Dashlane business plan, its users, and the devices they use. You can use this API, for instance, feed these details to tools like compliance platforms, and help them audit and verify your organization’s security posture.

Dashlane Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

Navigating the web-based admin console is pretty straightforward, and it allows admins to manage their organization-wide Dashlane deployment remotely.

(Image credit: Dashlane)

From the Dashboard, you can view the Password Health score of the entire organization, along with the total number of compromised passwords. You can also track the number of licenses left before inviting new users, or purchasing more seats.

You can also track the individual user’s Password Health score from under the Users tab, along with the number of total, safe, weak, reused, and compromised credentials for each user. The panel also makes it fairly simple to change a user’s rights, remove them, create groups, and add users to groups.

(Image credit: Dashlane)

Dashlane offers several mechanisms to onboard users. You can invite users manually by mentioning their email address, which sends them an invitation to join. If you have to invite a lot of users, it’s best to upload a CSV, or TXT file that contains multiple email addresses. The admin console also lets you send reminders to all users who haven’t yet accepted the invitation.

You can also activate an invite link from the admin console, which you can then send to the employees via other means such as an instant message.

As we’ve mentioned earlier, you can also integrate Dashlane with your IdP from the admin console. If you’ve set up SSO for Dashlane, you can also enable Just in Time Provisioning, which further simplifies onboarding employees.

Installing the Dashlane browser extension is a critical part of using Dashlane. All members will be asked to install the extension when they get onboard, but you can also install it for them by mass deploying it for Windows users with Group Policy Object (GPO), and Microsoft Intune, or with Jamf for Mac users.

We've also featured the best password recovery software.

What to look for in a password manager

Your online identity has never been more crucial in today's digital age. With many login credentials to remember, the convenience of using a password manager can sometimes overshadow the importance of choosing one that offers top-notch security and reliability. When selecting a password manager to safeguard your digital life, here are key features and considerations to remember.

The primary objective of a password manager is to keep your passwords secure. Look for services offering robust encryption protocols, such as AES-256, which is the industry standard. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is another essential feature, adding an extra layer of security by requiring a secondary form of identification beyond just the master password. Additionally, please find out about the company's security company's breach history to gauge its commitment to security.

In our multi-device world, it is key to ensure your password manager works seamlessly across all your devices and operating systems. This compatibility allows you to access your passwords on your phone or computer, regardless of the operating system.

The best password manager is one that you will use consistently. It should have an intuitive interface, be easy to set up and offer simple tools for password generation, storage, and auto-fill capabilities. The less friction it adds to your daily routines, the more likely you will keep using it.

Password-sharing capability is necessary for those who need to share account access with family members or colleagues. However, this feature should not compromise security. Ensure that the password manager allows for secure sharing, enabling you to share access without revealing the passwords.

A top-tier password manager stores your passwords, helps you create strong, unique ones for every account, and evaluates your current pass. The strength of your current passwords is invaluable in maintaining a secure online presence, as it helps eliminate weak or reused passwords.

Data breach alerts are increasingly common, and they are a proactive security feature that notifies you if your information has been compromised in a data breach. This early warning system allows you to change your credentials before they can be misused.

Beyond passwords, many people need to securely store other types of sensitive information, such as bank account numbers, secure notes, or personal documents. Beyond password manager, a good password should also offer encrypted storage for these items.

Consider the cost of the password manager and what you get for your investment. Many offer a basic free version, which might suit your needs. However, premium features like advanced multi-factor authentication, secure file storage, or family plans usually require a subscription. Ensure that the price aligns with the benefits provided.

Finally, take the time to read user reviews and expert opinions on the password manager. A robust and positive reputation within the industry can be a good indication of reliability and user satisfaction.

Choosing a password manager is a crucial decision that can significantly affect your online security. Take the time to compare features, understand your security needs, and select a service that doesn't just remember your passwords but actively contributes to your online safety and convenience.

Are you still using insecure passwords that put your online accounts at risk? With so many data breaches, leveling up your password security game is time.

NordPass, from the makers of the popular NordVPN, is one of the best password managers that combines robust security features with a user-friendly interface. From its zero-knowledge encryption to multi-factor authentication and passkey support, NordPass ensures your passwords stay locked down tight.

But it's not just about security. NordPass makes password management a breeze with autofill, secure sharing, password health checks, and more. Whether you're an individual or a business, NordPass has flexible pricing plans to meet your needs, including a free tier.

The best part? NordPass strikes the perfect balance between robust security and convenience, making it a top choice for anyone looking to safeguard their online life. It also offers some excellent features that businesses can utilize to enhance their credential security, which you can read about at the bottom of this review.

Learn more about how NordPass can simplify your digital life while fortifying your defenses. Read on.

• Interested in NordPass? Check out the website here

NordPass: Plans and pricing

There is a free tier with NordPass, which isn't always a given with password managers. It gets you storage for an unlimited number of passwords, which you can access from anywhere, but you’ll only be allowed one signed-in session at a time, so if you alternate between your phone and your computer, you’ll be kicked out each time you change your device.

It won't detect weak or reused passwords, and it won't scan the web for data breaches, which some competitor companies do even at this free level. It also won't let you mask your email or securely store files within the app.

(Image credit: NordPass)

The Premium account turns all those features on and costs $1.99 per month for annual commitments, or $1.49 per month for a two year commitment. It also allows you to use trusted sharing, which grants access to trusted contacts in case of emergencies.

(Image credit: NordPass)

The top personal tier is the Family plan, which you can buy for as little as $3.69 per month on the one year plan, or $2.79 per month for the two year commitment. You'll get six accounts with this product alongside all of the features included with the Premium product. Both of these plans are also available with two-year commitments, which means you can save a bit more money if you’re willing to pay upfront.

It’s also worth mentioning that some countries, including major markets like Australia and Canada, will see pricing in USD. Despite this, billing will still occur in local currencies.

(Image credit: NordPass)

NordPass's standard Business product starts at $3.99 per user per month for the one year plan, or $3.59 per user per month for the two year plan, and can handle up to 150 users, so it's ideal for small and medium businesses. This time, it’s advertised in USD globally, but each country will pay in local currencies. You get all the features we've mentioned alongside a security dashboard, the option to deploy company-wide settings, and Google Workplace SSO. The business product also includes team management features, like company-wide settings deployment and real-time monitoring. If you need more than 150 users, NordPass prompts you to contact the sales department for a quote.

(Image credit: NordPass)

The conventional business product doesn’t require a dedicated account manager or face-to-face onboarding. If you'd like those features, more SSO options, and user provisioning via Active Directory, you'll need the Enterprise product, and you'll again have to contact NordPass directly to get a quote.

In all cases, you can get a more significant discount via the NordPass promo codes that always are available to new users.

Unfortunately, Nord Security doesn’t offer bundles with its VPN service, NordVPN, which is a missed opportunity because other companies like Dashlane do.

(Image credit: NordPass)NordPass: Setup

NordPass is a well-regarded password manager developed by the cybersecurity experts behind NordVPN. With a strong focus on security and a user-friendly interface, it offers a reliable way to manage passwords. If you've chosen NordPass as your digital vault, here's your step-by-step guide to setting it up.

To begin with, NordPass, head to the NordPass website and create an account. You can sign up with your email, and you'll need to create a master password. This master password is the key to unlocking your vault, so ensure it's strong and memorable. NordPass doesn't have access to this password, so remember it, or your vault will become inaccessible.

With your account ready, download the NordPass application for your device. NordPass supports various operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. After downloading and installing the app, sign in with the NordPass credentials that you just created.

Once you're in, NordPass can import passwords from your previous password manager or browser. This step can save you a considerable amount of time, as manually adding each password can be tedious. NordPass typically provides a guide for importing data to help you through the process.

Now it's time to explore NordPass features. Familiarize yourself with the user interface and see how to add and manage passwords. Try out the auto-fill and auto-save functionalities by logging into a few of your accounts to see how smoothly NordPass operates.

If you have various types of data you want to keep secure, NordPass allows you to store not just passwords but also notes, credit card information, and even personal details for quickly filling out forms online. Each entry is encrypted, ensuring your sensitive information remains private.

To enhance security further, consider setting up two-factor authentication (2FA). NordPass supports several 2FA methods, adding an extra layer of protection to your account. With 2FA enabled, accessing your vault requires something you know (your master password) and something you have (such as a code from your phone).

NordPass also offers a secure password generator tool, which you should use to create new, complex passwords for your accounts. To boost online security, update any weak passwords, replacing them with intense, randomly generated ones from NordPass.

Finally, download and install the NordPass browser extensions for a seamless browsing experience. Whether you're using Chrome, Firefox, or Safari, the NordPass extension can help you auto-fill passwords, save new login credentials, and access your vault quickly.

By now, your NordPass account should be fully operational. As you continue using NordPass, it's essential to review your vault for outdated information regularly and also take advantage of any new features that NordPass may release. With the NordPass setup complete, you can know that managing your passwords is now secure and straightforward.

(Image credit: NordPass)NordPass: Interface and performance

Everything about the NordPass interface is smooth and elegant, from the initial sign-up page to the apps you'll install as you get the software set up – it's actually one of the most polished experiences we've seen, and the same its true of other Nord Security products. Everything is built to be user-friendly and accessible, so it's a password manager that will suit users at all levels of technical know-how.

The software does a really good job of hiding itself away in the background and only popping up discreetly when needed, and we had no complaints in terms of getting our passwords synced across multiple devices (it only takes a second or two usually).

The helpful touches spread throughout were much appreciated. You can customize generated passwords by length or by turning off characters that can be misread as something else, for example). Following this theme, you can even streamline online shopping by letting NordPass input your credit card details and shipping info for a smoother checkout. It’s even possible to switch between different Nordpass accounts without compromising your security, so if you need to manage work and personal life separately, it’s easily done.

When it comes to managing your account, logging in and accessing your settings, passwords, and other stored information is very straightforward. We appreciate the clean interface that is well laid out, and easy to use.

Previously, we mentioned that it would be nice to be able to tag or otherwise sort different types of credentials, but this has now been addressed. Folders allow you to separate categories, for example social media, online shopping, and banking.

There’s a separate area for payment details, but it would be a nice addition to see a dedicated area for IDs, such as driving licenses and passports. These are the sorts of documents that you don’t carry every day, but when booking a flight, you might unexpectedly need to call on them.

The app's extra features are just as easy to use. Look to the bottom-right of the app and you'll find a password generator, password health assessment module, and a data breach scanner, and they're all as straightforward as the app's main functions.

NordPass: Passkeys

As more and more websites begin to add passkeys as a login option, password managers are beginning to commit to their adoption, but NordPass has actually already integrated passkey support, making it one of the first.

The desktop application, NordPass Web Vault, and Firefox and Chrome-based browser extensions are already compatible with passkeys, but Safari users will have to wait for a future release to be included. Mobile support is also coming as soon as software makers open up passkeys to third parties.

Passkeys are saved in a separate location from regular passwords, and chances are you’ll still have a vault full of passwords for a long time to come because the few websites that are adopting passkeys are just using them as secondary login methods.

Passkey login and passwordless authentication for accessing NordPass is also in the works, but details are limited at the moment.

(Image credit: NordPass)NordPass: Security

As you would expect from a developer that also offers a VPN, NordPass has a tight security setup. For a start it deploys a zero-knowledge approach, with end-to-end encryption for your password backups and data syncing – that means not even the NordPass team can see the data that you've got saved.

The increasingly well-respected XChaCha20 encryption algorithm is used, which is also a favorite of companies like Google and Cloudflare: it goes up to 256-bit encryption and is seen (by some at least) as a more future-proof solution than the AES-256 encryption commonly used elsewhere.

Biometric security can be added where supported – FaceID or Touch ID on Apple hardware, Windows Hello on a Windows machine, or a fingerprint reader for other smartphones. Two-factor authentication is supported for your NordPass account and the accounts you're storing passwords for. You're also able to use OTP generators or USB sticks to activate multi-factor authentication for added security.

NordPass also operated a blog which it uses to publicize important security tips alongside product announcements. The most common passwords page is particularly revealing, and even some less obvious passwords are at risk of being guessed in a matter of seconds.

(Image credit: NordPass)NordPass: Support

NordPass has an extensive Help Center that covers a gamut of topics. From helping you start with NordPass, managing your passwords, or troubleshooting common issues, the Help Center is your first go-to resource. The articles are detailed, easy to understand, and provide step-by-step guidance, making them an invaluable self-service tool.

For more personalized support, NordPass users can reach out via email. Whether you're encountering a specific issue or have a question that needs to be covered in the Help Center, the NordPass support team is ready to assist. Users can expect thoughtful, precise, and prompt responses. This channel is beneficial for complex issues that require detailed explanations.

NordPass takes its user support significantly with its 24/7 live chat service. This option is perfect for users looking for instant assistance. Whether you're struggling with installing NordPass, facing syncing issues, or need guidance on setting up a family account, the live chat team is always at your disposal. The immediacy and efficiency of live chat support ensure that users can resolve their issues without significant downtime.

Recognizing the power of social media in today's communication landscape, NordPass also offers support through its social media platforms. Users can reach out to NordPass through channels like Twitter for quick questions or updates on service status. This not only makes support accessible but also allows users to stay connected and informed about any new features or updates.

The NordPass Community Forum is a platform where users can share tips solutions, and engage in discussions related to NordPass. While not directly managed by the NordPass support team, these forums are monitored, and staff occasionally chime in. It's a great place to learn from other users’ experiences and share your own, fostering a sense of community among NordPass users.

For users keen on understanding and navigating through potential security issues, NordPass provides security advisories. These advisories detail any discovered vulnerabilities and the company’s steps to address them. It's a testament to NordPass's commitment to transparency and security.

As you can see, NordPass goes above and beyond to ensure that their users receive the support they need when they need it. Through a multi-channel support approach, NordPass caters to the varied preferences and requirements of its user base, ensuring a smooth and secure user experience.

NordPass: The competition

NordPass is one of the most prominent password managers around and, as such, it faces loads of strong competition. Apps like LastPass are good alternatives with similar feature sets and pricing structures, and you'd be well-served by either of those tools.

If you'd like something more affordable but admittedly more basic, a product like mSecure will get the job done – it doesn't have the business options or the high-end features of NordPass, but it ticks mainstream boxes and it's cheaper.

If you’re after the security associated with a company that’s also made a name for itself in the VPN world, then Dashlane or Proton Pass would be good alternatives.

NordPass: Final verdict

We're impressed with what we've seen of NordPass during our testing, and we think it's a great choice for individuals and small-to-mid-sized companies. It balances an aesthetically pleasing design with some useful features and advanced security protection, and it holds up well when you compare it against anything else on the market.

Pricing is competitive, and it's nice to see a free tier available. Negatively, it doesn't have more advanced tools like Wi-Fi syncing and Dark Web scanning, but that shouldn't put you off unless you're looking for a password manager with every possible feature.

NordPass BusinessNordPass Business: Team and Admin features

Business users get a cloud-based admin console to control and regulate password management for their organizations.

As an admin, you can use this console to exercise comprehensive control over user access and permissions. You can also use it to manage and monitor user activities, and ensure that your business’ security policies are enforced consistently.

NordPass Business offers three distinct roles for users to help segregate duties, and control access within the organization.

The Owner has the most privileges, and can manage all aspects of the organization. Then there’s Admin who can access the admin panel, and most of its management functions, but cannot grant or revoke the owner’s rights. Finally, there’s the User whose access is restricted to the NordPass password manager app.

NordPass for Business lets you organize your users in groups, for instance, based on the departments, or projects in the company. You can then share an item with a group, which is automatically made available to all of the group’s members.

In addition to groups, users can also share anything they’ve saved in their vaults, including login credentials, passkeys, secure notes, and more, with other users as well. These shared items can be permission-limited, and there are multiple access levels a user can choose from. Users can hand out full edit permissions, or restrict access to just reshare, or view the shared details.

(Image credit: NordPass)

NordPass for Business also enables admins to define company-wide password policies to enforce strong password requirements. Admins can keep the length of the password between 8 and 60 characters, mandate the use of uppercase letters, digits, and special characters. They can also ensure users are made to change passwords either after 30, 60, 90,or 180 days.

To ensure adherence to the password policy, admins can monitor compliance from the admin panel as well. The panel also has an activity log that tracks actions, such as credential use, and admin panel activity, for every user. The log can be filtered for a particular time period, and/or user.

(Image credit: NordPass)NordPass Business: Integrations and Compatibility

NordPass for Business offers several integrations for organizations of all sizes.

The first and foremost of these is its support for several popular Single Sign-On (SSO) and the best identity providers, including Okta, Entra ID, Google Workspace, and Microsoft Active Directory Federation Service (ADFS).

These help NordPass for Business streamline the authentication process, and also enhance security by reducing the number of credentials your users need to manage. Once enabled, users in your organization can log in using their existing corporate credentials.

Remember though, the Business plan only includes support for Google Workspace SSO. If you need to plug in Okta, Entra ID, or ADFS, you’ll need to subscribe to the Enterprise plan.

To help ensure your company maintains compliance with industry standards, NordPass for Business integrates with platforms like Vanta, and Splunk. While Vanta helps fuse the password manager with your compliance workflows, the latter, which is only available as part of the Enterprise plan, feeds NordPass activity logs into the data analysis platform, for enhanced security monitoring and analysis.

The Enterprise plan also offers an Activity Logs API that enables organizations to integrate activity log data from the password manager with their own Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems and other tools. In addition to monitoring, and reporting for internal purposes, this also helps in compliance with standards like SOC 2, ISO 27001, and HIPAA. ​

NordPass Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

Just like its desktop apps and browser plugins for end users, the cloud-based admin panel of NordPass for Business has a clear, and intuitive user interface.

On first launch, the interface will list the most important tasks that must be completed, which is a wonderful way to help new admins take charge of their password management solution.

You’ll be asked to review your policies, both for passwords as we’ve described above, as well as for guest sharing. The latter must be explicitly enabled if you want to allow users in your organization to share passwords and other items with people outside your business, like partners, customers, or contractors.

You can also allow your users to export their passwords, and other items as a CSV file, from the policies section. One interesting option you should enable from under here is email masking. This feature allows your users to generate alternative email addresses to sign up for online services, concealing their true identity, and mitigating phishing attempts..

Next up, you should turn on SSO before you onboard and invite users from across your organization. All your users should also install the NordPass browser extension to import their passwords.

You can also choose to skip the process, and jump right into the Dashboard of the admin panel. From the dashboard you can review the number of users added or invited into the platform. For more control over the users, head to the Members section from where you can arrange users into groups, earmark their access levels, and even invite new ones, or remove existing ones.

Even without SSO, the process for onboarding users is rather straightforward. You can either invite users by specifically mentioning the email address of the users you want to invite, or uploading a CSV or text file with email addresses. Or, you can mention one or more domain names, and anyone with an email address from these domains will be able to join via an invite link.

In either case, the users will receive a link to create their NordPass for Business account, after which they’ll be added into the platform.

(Image credit: NordPass)

One of the most critical areas that you as admins must frequent is the Password Health dashboard. It helps identify weak, reused, or old passwords. There’s also the Data Breach Scanner that scans the dark web for compromised emails, or passwords linked to your company’s domain.

(Image credit: NordPass)

There’s also the Sharing Hub, currently under beta testing, that gives you details about all the shared items within your organization, whether they are shared internally, or externally.

All things considered, the admin panel is a logically laid out interface that gives a good overview of the use of the password management system by employees in your organization.

We've featured the best password recovery software.

What to look for in a password manager

The primary purpose of a password manager is to keep your passwords secure, so top-notch security features are non-negotiable. Look for a manager that offers strong encryption standards, such as AES-256, to ensure your data is safe from prying eyes. Two-factor authentication (2FA) can add an extra layer of security, requiring not just a password and username but also something only the user has on them, like a piece of information or a physical device.

A password manager should make your life easier, not harder. A user-friendly interface that allows you to easily store, retrieve, and organize your passwords can save you time and frustration. Whether it’s a desktop app, mobile app, or browser extension, ensure the user experience is smooth and intuitive.

In today’s interconnected world, we access our accounts from multiple devices like smartphones, tablets, and PCs. A good password manager should be compatible across various platforms and devices, allowing you to access your passwords, whether on an iPhone in the morning or a Windows PC in the evening.

One of the perks of using a password manager is that it can generate strong and unique passwords for you, bypassing the temptation to use easily guessable passwords. Look for a manager with a built-in password generator, which can create complex passwords that are tough for hackers to crack.

A password manager should streamline your browsing experience by automatically filling in your login information when you visit sites and apps. Additionally, look for an auto-save feature that prompts you to save new passwords as you create them, ensuring your password vault is always up-to-date.

While many free password managers offer basic features, investing in a paid version can provide enhanced security and additional features. Evaluate the pricing plans to find one that fits your budget and meets your security needs. Remember, the cost of a password manager is minuscule compared to the potential loss from a cyberattack.

Even with the most intuitive platforms, questions or issues can arise. Good customer support can be invaluable, offering help through resources like FAQs, forums, email support, or live chat. Before committing to a password manager, check out their support options.

Lastly, read the provider’s privacy policy to understand how your data will be used and protected. A trustworthy password manager should have a straightforward policy that ensures they do not misuse your data or provide it to third parties without consent.

Choosing the right password manager is a crucial step in securing your digital life. By considering these features, you can find a tool that not only keeps your passwords safe but also enhances your online experience. Remember, in cybersecurity, being proactive is always better than being reactive.

Ugreen M571 Vertical Ergonomic Mouse: two-minute review

(Image credit: TechRadar/Max Delaney)

The Ugreen M571 Vertical Ergonomic Mouse is an attractive, affordable alternative to more expensive options from brands like Logitech, making it a compelling option for those seeking ergonomic benefits without the price tag.

In contrast to traditional mice that often compel the wrist into a pronated (or palm-down) position, this model boasts a 57º near-vertical angle to it's 'sail'. This design encourages a neutral, handshake-like wrist position that I found significantly more comfortable when using a mouse for extended periods.

While the Logitech Lift is considered the best vertical mouse on the market, this Ugreen model offers a key point of differentiation – its size. Many vertical mice, including the Lift, have a small frame. I have bigger mitts, and my pinky finger is often sliding around on the desk with the mouse, rather than resting on it.

The Ugreen M571 offers a much wider base and larger frame overall, very reminiscent to the Logitech MX Vertical. This allows for stable movement across a wider range of hand sizes, as your entire hand, including your little finger, remains on the pointer. This Ugreen model's overall larger size doesn't make it unsuitable for smaller hands, though, as the main grip area is shaped to accommodate almost any hand size.

(Image credit: TechRadar / Max Delaney)

From unboxing (where you'll find little more than the mouse itself and a warranty booklet) to daily use, the experience with using this mouse is simple and straightforward. For me, that was a good thing. However, for those that do require more advanced functions, like the ability to customize their mouse for keyboard-free use, this will be a significant downside.

When I'm not tapping away on the keyboard, I generally only need my mouse for the most basic of uses and I found the M571 to be fantastic for my needs. Ugreen boasts that the mouse offers "99% silent click and scroll" and, while neither the clicks nor the scroller are truly silent, they are heavily subdued. It’s also incredibly easy to scroll and left or right click without changing the position of your hand or fingers, maintaining that ergonomic posture.

One key negative regarding its design is its cheap feel. Made entirely of hard plastic, this is most noticeable in its palm grip, which features only a rippled design instead of the rubberized grips found on some more expensive competitors. While it's not slippery, it's the same material as the rest of the mouse and I found this grip area could become greasy after long periods of use. I imagine this would become even more of an issue for those living in warmer climates.

Beyond its core ergonomic feel, the particular model of M571 I tested for this review (SKU number 55916) is a slightly cheaper option that only connects via the wireless USB dongle. Spending a bit more can get you a version with both Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless, which could be a must-have for anyone planning on using it with a laptop – particularly MacBook owners, which no longer have the necessary USB-A port you’d need to use the included 2.4GHz wireless dongle.

(Image credit: TechRadar / Max Delaney)

Convenience aside, I found the 2.4GHz connection to be reliable and, even in a busy tech-focused office space filled with dozens of wireless devices, I didn’t experience any interference with connectivity.

The mouse is powered by a single AA battery and after using it for several hours a few days a week for two months, I've seen no signs of depletion. This suggests the mouse should last for months of daily use before the battery will need to be replaced.

A slightly confusing design choice with the Ugreen Vertical Mouse is that it offers a dedicated mode for both Windows and Mac systems. This is toggled via a switch on the bottom of the device, and the changes affect the two side buttons that sit above the thumb rest. In Windows mode, those buttons control your browser’s forward and backward functions, but on Mac they switch applications. I tested exclusively on a Mac and found this feature quite useful for quickly switching to Slack to reply to teammates, though it still seems like a potentially unnecessary addition.

When it comes to the feel of the buttons, I found the main left and right clicks were soft and quite sensitive, although I could still lift and move the mouse without accidentally clicking. I personally liked their feel, despite them not providing a lot of tactile feedback.

The two thumb-side buttons are similar; they offer a satisfyingly deep press without feeling mushy. The scroll wheel is also slightly notched, rather than completely smooth, making it both harder to slip off and easier to control when making shorter scrolls that require a touch more accuracy.

The M571’s optical sensor offers up to 4,000 DPI tracking, making it suitable for any regular application and even arguably providing high enough sensitivity for fast-twitch gaming. You can also reduce the DPI to three levels (1,000, 1,600 or 2,000) for times when different levels of accuracy are required. This is easily done with one press of the middle button that sits below the scroller.

(Image credit: TechRadar / Max Delaney)

While I had no issues during my review period, the M571’s all-plastic construction and light weight do suggest that heavy daily users might see wear and tear sooner than with a more robust, pricier alternative. Witnessing the minimal wear on my colleagues' more expensive Logitech Lift, it’s clear that high-quality materials can be more important for a mouse than one might think. The M571’s finish could also get grimy after intense work or play sessions that result in sweaty fingers.

However, given its affordable price, it's hard to complain too much about these shortcomings. The M571 is an excellent option for those looking to try a vertical mouse for the first time without spending three or four times its price on a top-tier option. Costing just a fraction of the Logitech Lift, it offers fantastic value for some small concessions.

Ugreen M571 Vertical Ergonomic Mouse review: Price & availability

(Image credit: TechRadar / Max Delaney)

• Cheapest model: AU$34.99 for the 2.4GHz wireless via USB dongle
• £22.99 / AU$39.99 for the more advanced dual-connectivity model
• Similar model available in the US for $29.99

The Ugreen M571 Vertical Ergonomic Mouse is an incredibly affordable option, making it an excellent entry-level choice for those new to vertical mice. I personally prefer its feel compared to a regular mouse, though it won't be for everyone.

Its affordability makes it an even more attractive prospect, allowing users to try a vertical mouse before committing to a more expensive alternative. And, it's available to users across the world thanks to its wide availability on Amazon.

However, do note that the $29.99 model available in the US differs slightly from the model I tested, the Bluetooth-enabled version of which is available in both the UK and Australia. While it boasts the same specs – with both Bluetooth 5.0 and 2.4GHz connectivity – it features ridges in the thumb area that the others lack.

Ugreen M571 Vertical Ergonomic Mouse review: Specs

(Image credit: TechRadar / Max Delaney)Specifications

Interface

2.4GHz wireless via included USB dongle (other versions offer Bluetooth, depending on your region)

Ergonomics

57° vertical angle, right-handed ergonomic design

Buttons

5 (two main, two thumb and DPI control + scroller)

DPI

Up to 4,000 (four levels)

Power

1 x AA battery

Weight

106g tested (130g with AA battery)

Should you buy the Ugreen M571 Wireless Vertical Mouse?

(Image credit: TechRadar / Max Delaney)

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Value

Whether you opt for this dongle-only model or its Bluetooth-enhanced sibling, the value is undeniable. Offering solid connection, quiet clicking and excellent speeds for the price of a few coffees.

5 / 5

Design

Ergonomically, the design of this mouse was excellent. However, its larger frame might make it better suited for medium to large-sized hands and it's made with cheap material.

4 / 5

Perfomance

Offering 4 different DPI levels up to 4,000, this mouse is able to handle some fast-paced gaming as well as day-to-day work.

3.5 / 5

Overall

The Ugreen M571 Vertical Ergonomic Mouse is very good for its price, but it lacks features like remappable buttons, and its inexpensive build means it likely won't stand the test of time. Still, it excels as an entry point to using vertical mice.

4 / 5

Buy it if...

You experience wrist strain

I found the 57º vertical angle of this mouse genuinely effective at promoting a natural hand and wrist position, significantly reducing discomfort during long hours of use. It's well worth a try if you struggle with normal mice.

You're on a tight budget

This mouse offers excellent ergonomic benefits and versatile connectivity at a fraction of the cost of premium alternatives. Even if you don't necessarily want a vertical mouse, its value is hard to ignore.

You have larger hands

While I've used the Logitech Lift and other vertical mice with little issue, this mouse is made for medium to large hands, and I found it very comfortable to hold and use.

Don't buy it if...

You want a more versatile mouse

This is a very simple device, offering only the bare minimum functions while better situating your wrist for long sessions of use. However, some people may prefer to spend more on a mouse with additional buttons and functionality.

You require high-end durability

The plastic build, while contributing to its low price, may not hold up to years of heavy daily use as well as some higher-priced alternatives. It could be worth spending more upfront if you're confident a vertical mouse is suitable for you.

You prefer a rechargeable mouse

This mouse uses a single AA battery, meaning you'll need to keep spares or factor in replacements. However, the alkaline battery we tested with did last fantastically well.

Also consider

(Image credit: Future)

Logitech Lift

If your budget allows, the Logitech Lift offers a similar ergonomic vertical design with a more premium feel, a rechargeable battery and potentially better software customization for advanced users. It's often lauded for its comfortable fit for smaller to medium hands.

Read our full Logitech Lift Ergonomic Vertical Mouse review

Logitech MX Vertical Wireless Mouse Ergonomic

Yes, Logitech boasts another vertical mouse in its arsenal. It's a little long in the tooth, but this 2018 model is still an ergonomic mouse worth considering thanks to its comfortable design, multiple connection options and built-in four-month battery.

Read our full Logitech MX Vertical review

Logitech MX Master 3S

While not a vertical mouse, the MX Master 3S is a top-tier ergonomic mouse for productivity, featuring a sculpted design that supports the hand, an exceptional MagSpeed scroll wheel and extensive customization options. It's a pricier mouse, but offers a more feature-rich experience for those prioritizing productivity and advanced functionality.

Read our full Logitech MX Master 3S wireless mouse

GameSir T7 Pro Floral: one-minute review

The GameSir T7 Pro Floral comes from a third-party controller brand I rate very highly, and one I put right up there with the likes of 8BitDo and Victrix. Many of GameSir’s controllers feature in our buying guides, too, including best Xbox controllers and best PC controllers.

But that doesn’t mean every single one of the brand’s controllers are out-and-out bangers. While I like the GameSir T7 Pro Floral, I certainly prefer and would be more likely to recommend other pads from the brand, including the GameSir Kaleid and GameSir Tarantula Pro. Not because the Pro Floral is bad, far from it. It’s more that GameSir has put out so many quality pieces of hardware that this gamepad comes across as just a little less impressive.

It certainly doesn’t disappoint when it comes to looks, though. I’m a child of the early noughties, so eye-catching gaming hardware designs that look good enough to eat are right up my alley. Case in point, the GameSir T7 Pro Floral’s translucent icy blue finish - emblazoned with flowery imagery - is utterly stunning.

It’s helped by reactive RGB lights, too, which move around the controller depending on the direction of the sticks or which face buttons you press. GameSir always finds a way to include nice little aesthetic flourishes like this, and that’s no different on the Pro Floral.

Otherwise, the Pro Floral plays all the GameSir hits. It packs Hall effect sticks, a pair of remappable buttons on the pack, as well as trigger locks that let you swap between analog and digital presses. Said trigger locks can be a bit inconsistent, as the digital trigger presses didn’t register in some games I tested, but when they do work, they’re a welcome inclusion.

(Image credit: Future)GameSir T7 Pro Floral review: price and availability

• $49.99 / £49.99 / AU$89
• Available on GameSir's website
• Cheaper than the Xbox Wireless Controller

The GameSir T7 Pro Floral is available now for $49.99 / £49.99 / AU$89, and can be purchased directly from GameSir’s website. It’s similarly priced to other GameSir controllers such as the GameSir Kaleid ($49.99 / £59.99) and cheaper than the official Xbox Wireless Controller ($64.99 / £59.99). If you’re after a cheaper Xbox alternative, then I can definitely recommend checking out the Pro Floral, so long as you don’t mind the lack of wireless connectivity.

GameSir T7 Pro Floral review: Specs

Price

$49.99 / £49.99 / AU$89

Weight

7.7oz / 217g

Dimensions

5.71 x 3.66 x 2.32in / 145 x 93 x 59mm

Compatibility

Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC

Connection type

Wired (USB Type-C)

Battery life

N/A

(Image credit: Future)GameSir T7 Pro Floral review: design and features

As I mentioned at the top, the standout design choice of the GameSir T7 Pro Floral is its aesthetics. I’m a huge fan of the semi-translucent shell, and the icy blue buttons, thumbsticks, triggers, and d-pad complement the white gradient really nicely. The RGB lighting here is another excellent, if subtle, touch; different sections of the controller light up depending on stick direction, or which buttons you’re pressing. Something you probably won’t notice while gaming, sure, but I love the detail here.

There are some neat design flourishes for the buttons, too. The triggers, d-pad, and rear remappable buttons are fully transparent, while the sticks and face buttons are a pleasing light blue hue. The overall look here is a lot more carefully considered than cheaper pads that might just splash some artwork across the front and call it a day.

Otherwise, there’s not a ton to report in terms of design and features. The Pro Floral’s silhouette is almost identical to that of the Xbox Wireless Controller, and also features a 3.5mm headphone jack at the bottom of the pad. Meanwhile, those aforementioned trigger locks are located on the back, just above the two remappable buttons.

The Pro Floral does feel a good bit lighter than the Xbox Wireless Controller, though this may be because it’s not housing a pair of AA batteries or the Xbox Play & Charge Kit. While lightweight, it’s thankfully not flimsy or listless in the hands, still offering firm placement thanks to its textured grips.

(Image credit: Future)GameSir T7 Pro Floral review: Performance

In terms of actually using the GameSir T7 Pro Floral for gaming, it doesn’t really put a foot wrong outside of one key area, but I’ll get to that soon. It’s otherwise a very capable gamepad that provides longevity thanks to its drift-resisting Hall effect thumbsticks. Plus, the addition of two remappable buttons and trigger locks grants you some customizability for button shortcuts or if, say, you prefer instant digital trigger presses over a more fulsome analog squeeze.

I played a wide variety of games over my two weeks of testing the controller, including some of the best fighting games like Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8, racing games like Forza Horizon 5, and action titles like Lies of P, Nioh 2, and popular MMORPG Final Fantasy 14 Online.

Now, while the trigger locks are a nice addition, I did find them to be pretty inconsistent, even when compared to other GameSir pads like the Tarantula Pro. They worked where it mattered; I prefer digital presses for Final Fantasy 14 Online, for example, as it lets me access my secondary hotbar abilities faster. However, some titles did not register the presses while in digital mode at all, including Elden Ring Nightreign, and Hades 2. It’s worth noting that your mileage may vary here, but these are not the most reliable trigger locks out there.

Otherwise, the last thing you’ll have to contend with is the lack of wireless connectivity. This isn’t necessarily a complaint, as plenty of excellent GameSir controllers opt for a wired-only connection. It’s more a matter of preference; if you prefer going wireless, you might want to consider a controller that supports that, such as the GameSir Tarantula Pro or even the cheaper GameSir Nova Lite, which also works on PC.

(Image credit: Future)Should I buy the GameSir T7 Pro Floral?Buy it if...

You want a gorgeous controller
The Pro Floral brings one of the nicest-looking controller chassis I’ve seen in a while. The blue-to-white gradient is lovely, and that titular floral pattern isn’t something you see much of among game controllers. Its looks are a real winner.

Don't buy it if...

You want more reliable digital triggers
The biggest weakness of the Pro Floral is its trigger locks. While analog presses work just fine across the board, digital trigger presses are inconsistent and didn’t work in some games for me.

GameSir T7 Pro Floral review: Also consider

You should consider the following two similarly priced GameSir alternatives if the T7 Pro Floral controller isn’t quite what you’re looking for.

GameSir T7 Pro Floral

GameSir Kaleid

GameSir Nova Lite

Price

$49.99 / £49.99 / AU$89

$49.99 / £59.99 / AU$109

$24.99 / £19.99 / AU$39

Weight

7.7oz / 217g

7.5oz / 213g

7.2oz / 205g

Dimensions

5.7 x 3.7 x 2.3in / 145 x 93 x 59mm

6.1 x 4.21 x 2.4in / 156 x 107 x 60mm

6.1 x 4.1 x 2.4in / 155 x 104 x 61mm

Compatibility

Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC

Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC

Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PC

Connection type

Wired (USB Type-C)

Wired (USB Type-C)

Wireless (2.4GHz, Bluetooth), Wired (USB Type-C)

Battery life

N/A

N/A

10-15 hours

GameSir Kaleid
One of the best, most affordable Xbox controllers on the market. I love the feeling of its microswitch face buttons, which provide tactile and instantaneous presses. A pair of RGB strips flanking the controller is also an eye-catching flourish. It’s one of my go-to Xbox controllers, and I would recommend it over the Pro Floral if you’re torn between the two.

Read our full GameSir Kaleid review

GameSir Nova Lite
Single-handedly the best budget controller out there, the Nova Lite isn’t compatible with Xbox, but can be used on Switch, Switch 2, and PC. Wireless connectivity is also supported here in both 2.4GHz dongle and Bluetooth formats. And yes, it still packs a pair of Hall effect sticks despite the low price.

Read our full GameSir Nova Lite review

How I tested the GameSir T7 Pro Floral

• Tested across a period of two weeks
• Played a wide range of games in that time, on both Xbox and PC
• Compared to the Xbox Wireless Controller and GameSir Kaleid

I tested the GameSir T7 Pro Floral over the course of around two weeks. In that time, I played a wide variety of my favorite games on both Xbox Series X Digital Edition and PC. These include Tekken 8, Final Fantasy 14 Online, and Lies of P.

I went back and forth testing the Pro Floral against some of its contemporaries, including the Xbox Wireless Controller and the brand’s own Kaleid. I ended up preferring the Kaleid overall, thanks to its more tactile-feeling buttons. But if you’re an aesthetically minded player, then the Pro Floral’s lovely design might just do it for you instead. I can wholeheartedly recommend both at the end of the day.

First reviewed July 2025

Read more about how we test

Zoner Studio is a WIndows-only take on both Photoshop and Lightroom - not as powerful as either (although a slew of regular updates is changing that), but a good entry-level/intermediate photo editor and organizer that comes in at a fair price.

After a recent name change from Zoner Photo Studio X to Zoner Studio, to better reflect the broader usage, the company says, I took the latest version out for a spin to see how it measures up against some of the best Adobe Photoshop alternatives.

Zoner Studio: Pricing & plans

Zoner Studio is available for a monthly subscription of $5.99, or $59 for the year. A family plan, letting two or more users in the same household use the app, is available for $9.98 a month or $98 a year.

For me, the pricing here is a big plus. There may not be a free version available (although there is a welcome free trial), but the cost is low, especially when compared to Adobe’s Creative Cloud suite of apps. The Photoshop and Lightroom Photography plan is currently priced at $22.99 a month. Your other option would be a tool like Affinity Photo, which has a one-off cost of $70.

The main differences between Zoner Studio and its rivals is that Zoner is only available on Windows machines, and it leans slightly more towards entry-level and intermediate users compared to Affinity Photo and Photoshop’s professional-grade photo editor.

You can check out Zoner Studio by clicking here.

Zoner Studio: First impressions

(Image credit: Zoner // Future)Minimum requirements

Operating system: Windows 10 or Windows 11 64-bit

Processor: Intel or AMD CPU 64-bit with SSE 4.2 support

RAM: 8GB

Storage space: 2GB

Screen resolution: 1280 × 800

If you’re familiar with photo editing software, you’ll have no problems navigating Zoner Studio. And, if you’re not, it’s not especially tricky to figure out - for me, that’s part of the appeal of the app, making it pretty welcoming to new users who want to do more with their photographs.

The main part of the screen is devoted to your selected image, with files and folders beneath, which can be scrolled through with your mouse. It’s a nice touch, making navigation that much easier.

Where new users may come unstuck are the five options to the right of the screen. Manager, Develop, Editor, Print, and Video (ok, those last two are self-explanatory). So, a little exploration wouldn’t go amiss - Zoner does at least feature non-destructive editing, letting you experiment with new tools without irretrievably modifying the original file.

Basically, Manager is for organizing and tagging photos. Develop is Zoner’s take on Lightroom, where you can edit RAW images, and Editor is for all other tweaks you want to make to your media, like adjusting the color temperature, or sharpening images. It’s all nicely laid out and generally easy to find what you’re looking for - and most options are also replicated in menus along the ribbon, which contextually change depending on which mode you’re in.

Zoner Studio: In use

(Image credit: Zoner // Future)

Using Zoner Studio isn’t especially tricky, but it may still feel a little overwhelming if you’re new to image editing given the sheer amount of options available here. I’d also advise beginners to hover over the side-panel icons - there are a lot here, and not all of them are especially intuitive, so hovering your mouse will serve up a name and brief description of each.

Your photos automatically appear in Zoner, since there’s a file explorer tab to the left of the screen (there is an import function along the ribbon, too, but I never found the need to use this). These will appear on a timeline at the foot of the main panel. When you’ve selected your image, it can then be edited and adjusted via the Editor tab.

All the familiar tools are here, from cropping and rotating to adding watermarks or directional blurring. As expected, then, there are heaps of tools for toying with the exposure (shadows, contrast, and so on), white balance (temperature and tint), and color (like saturation). I also like the addition of the tone curve, as you’d find in Lightroom, for lightening or darkening an image, or bringing specific color channels to the fore.

(Image credit: Zoner // Future)

There’s also a Quick Edit option, which populates the panel with the core tools most photographers and designers use without needing to fumble through the menus. The editing process can further be streamlined with the likes of Quick Fix and, ideal for social media, Quick Filters. All of these work instantly, just a press of the button.

The software includes some AI-powered tools, all of which deliver good results impressively quickly. This includes AI Masking, found in the Develop tab. Choosing this gives you the option to let Zoner automatically select the photo’s subject, background, objects, or sky for fine-tuning. For anyone looking to streamline the workflow, these are must-use tools, and I was pretty pleased with the speed and accuracy here.

One of the stand-outs for me is the AI Background Remover, which I found generally works very well. Once completed, I could then add a color background or create a transparent one for compositing into other images. Occasionally, the process removed elements of the image subject - typically when on darker or a similarly colored backgrounds - but on the whole, I had no serious complaints with this one-click background removal tool.

Perhaps the biggest issue, at least for those looking to make the switch away from Photoshop, is the lack of support for .PSD files. Instead, the software uses its own .ZPS files, which functionally work the same with layers and effects. But there’s no way to import or export Photoshop files into the app.

Overall, Zoner Studio packs in a wealth of tools for photo editing. It will take some getting used to if you’re new (and absolutely no time at all if you’re familiar with any of the best photo editors). But if you don’t need .PSD file support, there’s plenty to like here, especially for the price.

Should I buy Zoner Studio?

(Image credit: Zoner // Future)Buy it if...

You’re new to photo editing: This is a great place to start if you’re new to editing images but want a good amount of powerful tools for bringing out the best in your photos.

You don’t want to spend too much: Zoner Studio is a lot cheaper than Adobe Photoshop or similar pro-grade packages.

Don't buy it if...

You want a basic app: If you’re just looking to crop or brighten images, you’ll find plenty of other options that won’t overwhelm.

You want a professional-level app: Similarly, if you want a pro-level software that delivers the very best results, you’ll get better results from the likes of Photoshop and Lightroom.

Review information

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: June 5, 2025

Even though I didn’t love anti-grav racer Fast Fusion as much as I wanted to, I still think you should absolutely buy it. Its $14.99 / £13.49 price tag on the Nintendo eShop is quite frankly a steal, and a very fair price considering what you’re getting from this Switch 2 launch game. There’s not a metric ton of content here, and it is an experience you can get the most out of in around 10-12 hours, but that low cost of entry is worth it for the presentation alone.

Fast Fusion is arguably the best-looking Nintendo Switch 2 launch game. It might not have the artful whimsy of Mario Kart World, but in terms of sheer graphical fidelity, developer Shin’en Multimedia has delivered in spades. To me, that comes as no surprise; I maintain that 2019’s The Touryst (also by Shin’en) is one of the most visually impressive games on modern hardware, and that’s definitely the case with Fast Fusion, too.

Another reason to buy the game is that its performance is basically bulletproof. Its Quality graphical setting, which I used for the majority of my play time in docked mode, holds 4K resolution at 60 frames per second (fps) at all times, even with some light ray-traced reflections enabled.

But even though Fast Fusion is certainly a looker, it unfortunately falls short as a racing game. While tracks look beautiful, they don’t offer much in terms of variety, usually boiling down to a handful of obstacles and one or two alternate shortcuts. AI drivers also employ an absurd amount of rubber-banding, sticking to your tail like glue even after an extended period of boosting.

I’m also not a fan of how the game handles progression, as unlocking new cups can require huge sums of currency. This has improved since launch, with patches increasing the amount of money you can earn in a championship, but you’ll still find yourself having to grind out an extra run or two just to have enough to unlock the next set of races.

Overall, Fast Fusion is a beautiful, ‘fun while it lasts’ racing game. A lack of online play definitely hurts its longevity, but given how cheap the game is at retail price, I can’t fault it too much for a lack of content, and I did have a decent time with it regardless. It's certainly not one of the best Switch 2 games, but it's hard to argue with the value on offer.

Double or nothing

(Image credit: Shin'en)

Fast Fusion is a futuristic, anti-gravity racer, inspired by subgenre legends like F-Zero and Wipeout. The goal is simple: enter a championship, drive faster than your opponents, get money for more vehicles and events, rinse and repeat.

Your vehicle is capable of boosting and jumping - the latter to avoid obstacles and grab boost tokens floating in the air. Said tokens fill up your boost meter, so collecting them throughout a race is imperative - especially as they also increase the amount of in-game currency you have.

The swap mechanic from Fast RMX also returns, which lets you change between blue and orange forms in order to make use of the same-colored boost pads littered throughout each track. Finally, boosting into an opponent who isn’t boosting will cause them to spin out, hampering their race and netting you some more tokens.

While content in Fast Fusion is light overall, there’s still a decent amount of it to check out. The main championship mode features five cups of three races, split across three speed classes. Local multiplayer (including GameShare) and time attack modes are featured, too.

There’s also Super Hero Mode, which is an additional challenge mode that mimics the F-Zero series’ style of play. Here, your boost gauge is also your health bar, and crashing or running out of health retires you from the race. It’s a pretty thrilling side mode and quite challenging, adding some much-needed replayability to Fast Fusion.

Two become one

(Image credit: Shin'en)

Easily my favorite part of Fast Fusion is its titular fusion mechanic. By accessing the Fusion Shop from the main menu, you can not only unlock new vehicles with currency, but also choose two to fuse together into one super-powered machine.

Every combination is accounted for, leading to an extremely impressive array of vehicles. They all have unique looks, liveries, and name amalgamation depending on your chosen two. Not all are made equal, though; the game will let you know how powerful the fusion is on a grading system. For example, a lower rank ‘C’ fusion will have worse stats, but cost less to fuse. Meanwhile, an ‘A+’ beast can get close to maxing out in performance, but will naturally cost more.

Best bit

(Image credit: Shin'en)

I love the titular ‘fusion’ mechanic in Fast Fusion. Combining two vehicles into one for a more powerful craft, it’s always interesting to see the results. Especially when it’s an amalgamation of both crafts, complete with a livery change and a hybridized name. There’s loads to see here, and experimentation is practically necessary in order to beat the more challenging championship events.

You’ll need to rely on the fusion system when tackling the game’s hardest speed classes, too. Not only do AI drivers rarely make mistakes, but they have some of the most egregious rubber-banding I’ve seen in a racing game in quite some time. You can fully maximize a track, hit every shortcut, and spend most of your time boosting, and you’ll still get at least two AI drivers zooming past you on the final lap.

And as I mentioned earlier, racing in general, despite being a futuristic anti-grav racer, feels disappointingly grounded. Vehicles are extremely grippy, and hitting a wall has practically no negative impact. Track design also plays it rather safe - there’s very little in the way of demanding corners like hairpins, meaning braking and tilting rarely get used outside of the final speed class. It’s a far cry from Wipeout or F-Zero GX, where you often really have to wrestle your machine around corners and you are heavily punished for colliding with walls.

Should you play Fast Fusion?Play it if...

You want a real showcase of the Switch 2’s graphical chops
Fast Fusion is stunning to behold, sporting a high level of graphical fidelity, rock-solid performance, and convincing motion blur and incredible weather effects. The low price of admission is worth it for all those ‘wow’ moments, especially if you own a 4K display.

You want a cheap game that’s actually worth it
The Nintendo eShop’s relationship with cheap games is a sloppy one, but Fast Fusion proves you can still offer a very compelling experience at a budget price.

Don't play it if...

You were hoping for bags of content
Overall, Fast Fusion will probably last you around 10-12 hours if you’re planning on doing absolutely everything. While that’s expected for the price, it certainly doesn’t have the longevity of F-Zero GX or Mario Kart World.

You want a true anti-grav racer
The vehicles in Fast Fusion may as well have wheels, given how overtly grippy they are. The ships all look very cool, but their handling doesn’t exactly scream ‘anti-gravity’.

Accessibility

There isn't much in the way of accessibility settings in Fast Fusion. You can fully rebind controls in the options menu to suit your preferences, as well as enable tilt controls via gyro aiming should you prefer. However, don't expect anything in the way of colorblind settings or other visual options.

How I reviewed Fast Fusion

I played 10 hours of Fast Fusion on Nintendo Switch 2, clearing all Grand Prix and Super Hero Mode content across the three speed classes, while also unlocking most vehicles and playing around a good bit with the fusion system.

I primarily played the game in ‘Quality’ mode, which offers 4K 60fps performance while docked, as well as some basic ray-traced reflections. I also tried out the ‘Ultra Quality’ mode, which increases fidelity further at the cost of a 30fps frame rate. While this mode does look utterly stunning, I much preferred the smoother performances offered by other graphics modes.

For gameplay, my gamepad of choice was the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller, while also using the Joy-Con 2 controllers while playing in handheld mode.

Released at the tail end of 2024 on Xbox Series X|S and Windows, action-adventure game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle quickly established itself as not only one of the year's best games, but an incredibly immersive, cinema-rivaling romp that perfectly captured the spirit of Spielberg's beloved trilogy. Surpassing expectations, the first-person game didn't deliver the Uncharted or Tomb Raider rip-off many assumed we'd get. Nor did it turn out to be a shooter similar to developer MachineGames' successful Wolfenstein games.

Review information

Platform reviewed: PS5 Pro
Available on: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Release date: April 17, 2025

While either of those approaches probably would have worked just fine, the Swedish studio and publisher Bethesda Softworks went off the beaten path – much like Dr. Henry Jones Jr. himself – to produce an ambitious, story-driven, sublimely satisfying experience that's on par with the archeologists' best big screen adventures. As a result, it's now one of the best PS5 games and best PS5 Pro games you can play.

A thrilling ride worthy of the films

(Image credit: Bethesda)

For those yet to don the fedora, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle spins an original canon yarn set in 1937, between the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade (remember, Temple of Doom serves as a prequel to Raiders). The globe-trotting tale finds Indy exploring the likes of Vatican City, Thailand, Egypt, and beyond in his quest to uncover the secrets and mysteries behind the titular Great Circle.

For fans, this means participating in plenty of relic-hunting, puzzle-solving, and Nazi-pummeling antics across incredibly detailed, semi-open world maps. But it's the deft pacing and organic implementation of these various elements that make the game shine brighter than the Ark of the Covenant. Puzzles hit the sweet spot between being challenging but never to the point that frustration overshadows the fun, while the combat – which sees you fighting fascists with everything from fly swatters to frying pans – is a visceral blast.

Best bit

(Image credit: Bethesda)

It feels fantastic wielding Indy's signature whip and pistol, but beating up baddies with every random object – from spatulas and brooms to candlesticks and various musical instruments – is a surprisingly satisfying way to thin the Third Reich's ranks, especially with the DualSense's bells and whistles upping the immersion.

On the subject of putting Hitler's heavies in their place, the game, of course, arms you with Indy's trusty pistol and bullwhip. But rather than regularly relying on these items, you use them smartly and sparingly, supplementing them with lots of sneaking around, stealth takedowns, and improvisational melee combat. Seriously, breaking a mandolin over a baddie's head never gets old.

This sort of balanced, organic approach also translates to puzzle-decryption and environmental exploration, as you'll rarely find yourself simply mimicking on-screen prompts, chasing down shiny symbols, or following icons. Instead, you'll rely on Indy's intuitive camera and info-packed journal to naturally progress through objectives.

And while the critical path will keep you busy, the expansive sandboxes are brimming with optional collectibles, secrets, and surprises worth seeking out. On that note, expect to discover plenty of manuals that help you upgrade Indy's abilities, an especially cool feature that forgoes the usual, game-y skill trees in favor of a leveling system that more naturally suits the character.

Whether you're cracking ancient conundrums or Nazi skulls, the game offers an absorbing visual and audio experience that seamlessly blends its first and third-person perspectives. Most of the action unfolds from the former, while the latter perfectly frames some platforming sequences – like climbing and swinging – as well as cutscenes. Toss in some epic set pieces and Troy Baker's spot-on Harrison Ford performance, and the Great Circle puts the whip in your grip like never before.

PS5 fortune and glory

(Image credit: Bethesda)

All that said, the game's original release did suffer from some graphical and performance issues, especially on the Xbox Series S. With this PlayStation 5 version - particularly when played on a PS5 Pro - however, those problems have been squashed like a crypt-inhabiting creepy crawly beneath Indy's boot.

Where many titles on both the standard PS5 and Pro consoles offer a choice between Performance and Fidelity modes, the Great Circle ditches those options for a beefy default that delivers both native 4K resolution at 60fps. Supported by advanced ray tracing tech – putting some of the prettiest lighting and reflection effects I've ever seen on screen – the result is an absolutely stunning, incredibly sharp visual presentation complemented by performance that feels as smooth as a poison-dipped date.

Of course, the PS5 release also cranks the immersion through the DualSense controller's nuanced haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, LED lighting, and touchpad effects. Whether feeling the building rumble of Raiders' iconic boulder trap, splintering a guitar over a goose stepper's head, or pulling your whip as it wraps around a foe's limbs, you'll never experience the same tactile sensation. Smaller touches, like the LED light flashing green when you apply a life-saving bandage, further make you feel like you're actually under the hat.

More than a mere port, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle on PS5 is easily the definitive version of the game, thanks to the various features, upgrades, and enhancements that this version built for Sony’s consoles brings to the adventure.

Should you play Indiana Jones and the Great Circle for PS5?Play it if...

You love the Indy films
Highly evocative of Indy's Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade era, The Great Circle offers an incredibly immersive action-adventure romp that's as close as you'll come to a playable Indiana Jones movie. A must-play for fans of the franchise.

You have a thirst for adventure
While the Great Circle puts you under the hat like never before, you needn't be an Indy nerd to enjoy it. The rewarding mix of deep exploration, puzzle-solving, collectible-gathering, and improvisational combat will satisfy any fan of the genre’s thirst for adventure.

You've been waiting for the best console version of the game
PlayStation owners may not have gotten Indy's latest interactive adventure when it arrived late last year, but the wait was worth it. While the Great Circle impressed on Xbox platforms, its PS5/PS5 Pro release is the prettiest, most immersive console version of the game.

Don't play it if...

The content didn't get you cracking the whip the first time
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle receives notable graphics and performance upgrades on the PS5/PS5 Pro, but its content is identical to that of the Xbox and PC versions released last year. If you're looking for different or new content – like the upcoming Order of Giants DLC – you won't find it here.

Accessibility

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle goes pretty deep in terms of accessibility features, offering a solid suite of options for those looking to tweak and tinker. Both the size and color of the user interface elements can be adjusted, while subtitles and closed captions can also be personalized to your preferences. Camera modes, like motion blur and screen shake, can also be turned on or off.

There are also protanopia, deuteranopia, and tritanopia color filter modes for color blind players, as well as various HUD adjustment settings. The game also offers a number of difficulty settings for both its action elements, which can tweak enemy quantity and behavior, as well as adventure aspects, which can adjust puzzle difficulty and toggle objective markers.

How I reviewed Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

I played Indiana Jones and the Great Circle for over 40 hours, with about a third of that time invested in optional activities and additional exploration. I reviewed the game on the PlayStation 5 Pro, but also put several hours into the Xbox Series X version to compare the visuals and performance. I also tested all the new DualSense-specific features. I played on my budget model TCL 4K display with HDR enabled. For audio, I used my television's onboard stereo speakers, but also tested with PlayStation's Pulse Explore earbuds.

First reviewed May-June 2025

TerraMaster F4: 30-second review

Terramaster has effectively carved out a niche in the NAS world with a combination of well-constructed hardware that supports a feature-rich environment and is aggressively priced.

As a result, it has attracted many home and small business customers who wouldn’t pay Synology, Asustor, or QNAP prices, but wanted solid equipment to manage and distribute data.

The F4 SSD isn’t the first SSD-based NAS that TerraMaster has produced, but it immediately stands out as something distinctly mainstream, significantly cheaper than the majority of products in this sector.

This small box can mount four PCIe Gen 3 NVMe drives, providing a total capacity of 32TB, and then distribute them over the network using a 5GbE LAN port.

The core of this solution is an Intel N85 processor, and it comes with 8GB of DDR5 memory, which is easily upgradable to 32GB by the user.

It utilises TerraMaster’s own TOS 6.0 operating system, although you don’t invalidate your hardware warranty if you use a third-party NAS OS, such as TrueNAS SCALE, Proxmox, etc.

With all this flexibility for a modest price, what’s the catch here?

The issue with this system is that the CPU’s power is on the low side, and therefore, it wouldn’t be ideal for running multiple simultaneous applications, Docker containers, or virtual machines.

At best, this hardware is best for primary tasks with perhaps a secondary role, but accept that file serving will take much of the power in this machine.

However, even with those limitations, this is a neat and helpful platform for those who want a tiny, silent and efficient NAS solution.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)TerraMaster F4: Price and availability

• How much does it cost? From $400/£380
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? Direct from the makers or through an online retailer

Unlike some brands, TerraMaster is widely available and also sells its hardware directly from its website.

The asking price for the only available SKU is $399.99 on Amazon in the United States and £379.99 on Amazon in the United Kingdom. That’s $200 less than the larger F8 model, and half the price of the F8 Plus.

That’s dramatically cheaper than the Ugreen NASync DXP480T, which costs about double this and still only takes four NVMe drives. However, that machine has a much more powerful i5 platform, a 10GbE LAN port and Thunderbolt.

The Asustor Flashstor 6 FS6706T is slightly more expensive, offering a six-drive option with increased processing power and dual 2.5GbE LAN ports, but it comes with only 4GB of memory.

Closer to the Ugreen option in price is the QNAP TBS-464-8G for $589.99 from Amazon, powered by the Intel Celeron N5105/N5095. The downside of that option is, other than the price, that the 8GB of RAM is not upgradable.

However, not all competitor devices are sold as NAS. One competitive alternative is the Minisforum MS-01-S1260 Mini Workstation, a mini PC that utilises the Core i5-12600H processor, supports three M.2 2280 drives, and features dual 2.5GbE LAN ports and USB4.

In a barebones configuration where the customer must provide an operating system, RAM, and storage, the MS-01-S1260 can be purchased for just $399.99 on Amazon, and there are SKUs that feature more powerful Core i9 CPUs.

Excluding mini-computers overlapping NAS territory, the TerraMaster F4 is the cheapest mainstream branded SSD NAS around, and represents excellent value for money.

But, only if the use case doesn’t require significant amounts of processing power.

• Value: 4 / 5

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)TerraMaster F4: Specs

Item

Spec

CPU:

Intel N95 (4 cores, 4 Threads)

GPU:

Intel Graphics (16EU)

RAM:

8GB DDR5 expandable to 32GB

SATA Storage:

N/A

M.2 Storage:

4x M.2 NVMe PCIe 3.0

Ports:

2x USB3.2 Gen2 USB-A (10Gbps)

1x USB3.2 Gen2 USB-C (10Gbps)

1x HDMI 2.0b

Networking:

1x RJ45 5GbE LAN

OS:

TOS 6.0

Maximum Capacity:

4x 8TB M.2 NVMe (32TB)

RAID Modes:

TRAID, TRAID?, Single, JBOD, RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID5, RAID 6, RAID 10

PSU:

12V 4A 48W

Dimensions:

138 x 60 x 140 mm (LxWxH)

Weight:

600g

TerraMaster F4: Design

• Chimney layout
• Easy access
• Simple and silent

The design and layout of this machine seem vaguely familiar, as it employs a concept similar to that of the Beelink Me mini system I recently reviewed.

What they share is a cooling solution where the case acts as a chimney, drawing cool air from below, gathering heat as it rises over the motherboard and M.2 storage before being expelled out of the top.

In the F4, the air is propelled by two almost silent 50mm fans on the bottom, and the book-like form factor is arranged with the M.2 slots on one side and the processor and memory on the other.

What’s slightly different is that the front face of the unit, where it says TerraMaster F4, is clearly not the end that should be facing you. As all the ports and the power button are at the opposite end, which is the rear.

What’s great about this unit over some other NAS is how easy it is to get inside to add drives and upgrade memory. A single thumbscrew on the rear releases the outer skin, allowing it to slide off easily.

With this plastic shell removed, the M.2 slots and the memory are available, and this doesn’t require any tools. However, TerraMaster does include a screwdriver, which is useful for those easy-to-misplace M.2 screws, and thankfully, some spares are included in the box.

I’m surprised that the designers didn’t use a sprung plastic retainer, like those on the Asustor Flashstor 6 FS6706T, as it would have made this design entirely tool-free.

According to TerraMaster, the M.2 slots are designed for up to 8TB drives, and there is sufficient room for modules with integrated heatsinks to be used. What I recommend is that if you use any double-sided modules, you should add a heatsink to them, as there’s no thermal pad connecting them to the case, which is mostly made of plastic.

For those wondering what the best drives to use are, TerraMaster has a good selection of approved brands and models in stark contrast to the own-brand path that Synology has recently taken.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

Interestingly, I used an idiosyncratic mix of brands in my testing, some of which weren’t on this list, but I didn’t have any issues. The only ones the makers suggest to avoid are S500PRO modules by Fanxiang, and that’s across all their NAS boxes that can accept M.2 modules.

The only limitation on physical size for the F4 is that all drives must be NVMe and 2280, as there are no retainer positions for 2260, 2242, or 2230 drives.

If I were deploying one of these on a budget, I’d be considering using a drive like the Crucial P3, where the 4TB model can be found for under $220. Using these, a system with 16TB of storage can be constructed for close to $ 1,200, and as SSD NAS go, that’s cheap.

The strength of this design lies in its relatively low power consumption and vertical tube topology, which make for a simple-to-deploy and nearly silent NAS.

For those who would like a small NAS to sit on their desk, perhaps to keep a live backup of a running system, the F4 is ideal in many respects.

• Design: 4 / 5

TerraMaster F4: Features

• Intel N95 CPU
• No ECC memory
• Only 9 PCIe Lanes

When Intel first introduced the Atom series of processors, many wondered why customers would purchase such low-power systems. These days, platforms that are scaled back to run 24/7 or deliver just enough performance for the primary task are common.

The Intel N95 is where low-power computing took Intel, and it’s not anything you would ideally wish to use on a desktop computer.

While it does have an integrated GPU with sixteen execution units, this processor is more limited by its four-core CPU, which doesn’t support hyperthreading. Four cores on Windows 11 would be a nightmare, but for the custom Linux platform of TOS 6.0, it is sufficient. Additionally, with 8GB of RAM, expandable to 32GB, it is also more than enough for file-serving duties.

However, the wall and running into that barrier are never too far away with the N95, and this isn’t a system that would enjoy being pre-loaded with demanding applications. Those who put Plex on it don’t expect it to do that and also run a torrent client, a mail server and three Docker containers, because it won’t be smooth sailing.

Precisely where the N95 runs out of road entirely depends on how demanding the apps are, but if you want to run many applications, then there are alternatives that use more powerful Intel and AMD processors that will be better choices.

The other limitations of the N95 are that it can only address a single memory module and has limited PCIe Express lanes. There is only one memory channel, and thankfully, TerraMaster engineers used a DDR5 module on it to maximise bandwidth.

Intel claims it can address up to 16GB, while TerraMaster says 32GB, but whichever is correct, they both agree it doesn’t support ECC memory, unfortunately.

I believe, and this may be misinformation, that the standard memory model of the N95 allows only 16 GB. The additional 16GB of memory can be used for things like virtual machines.

If you don’t intend to use VMs, then putting more than 16GB in the F4 is probably pointless.

Even 16GB is a good amount of memory for a small server, especially when you consider that the drives in this unit don’t require much caching to perform well.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

A bigger issue is the PCIe lanes, since these dictate exactly how much data can flow through the system and to externally connected devices.

With only nine PCIe 3.0 lanes, there isn’t enough bandwidth for the SSDs to have the full X4 lanes that modern NVMe drives are designed for. Two of the slots have been downgraded to X2, while the other two remain at X1. Therefore, it’s a futile exercise to populate these slots with modules meant for PCIe 4.0, since they will be downgraded to PCIe 3.0 by the system.

Being pragmatic, achieving 1GB/s from two drives and possibly 2GB/s from two others is still well beyond the performance required to saturate the 5GB/s of the single LAN port fully.

As there were no PCIe lanes left to add a card slot, the only way to get more network bandwidth is by using USB adapters. There are relatively inexpensive 5GbE adapters that can utilise USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, but I cannot personally confirm whether they would work on this platform.

Again, if you want better than a single 5GbE LAN connection and more PCIe lanes for faster drives, then this probably isn’t the NAS for you.

Overall, the F4 makes the most of its hardware, but this machine won’t break any records for having excess performance on tap or for its responsiveness.

• Features: 3 / 5

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)TerraMaster F4: Software

• TOS 6.0
• Applications
• Yes to TrueNAS and UnRaid

For those who started with TerraMaster early on, and I’m happy to say that includes me, the evolution of the TerraMaster OS, or TOS, has been impressive.

Now in its sixth incarnation, this is a pretty mature platform that offers a wide range of functionality and applications.

While it doesn’t quite reach the levels of polish that Synology prides itself on, the feature set of TOS 6.0 ticks plenty of boxes.

One interesting change of direction that TerraMaster isn’t unique in taking is a shift away from first-party applications to those that are installed either as Docker-packaged containers or as virtual machines. Some compiled TOS apps, such as Qtorrent and Plex, are available on the TerraMaster application store. However, you can install later versions of these tools by finding the Docker container and using it instead.

While TerraMaster isn’t competing with the likes of QNAP and Synology for the number of available apps on its platform, there is more than enough for the majority of customers, and it isn’t a closed environment that requires approved tools.

TOS 6.0 isn’t for everyone, but TerraMaster is one of those NAS makers that is entirely customer-focused and is happy for their hardware to be used with TrueNAS Scale, UnRaid, Proxmox, or any other NAS OS the owner wishes. You won’t receive software support from TerraMaster if you opt for this approach, but hardware issues are still covered during the warranty period.

It’s interesting to see that TerraMaster and Ugreen are both pitching the ‘NAS-your-way’ approach, whereas other brands seem less confident about allowing alternatives into their playgrounds. This direction appears opposed to where Synology is heading, where the turnkey solution comes with much stricter limits on what you can and can’t do.

This is certainly more customer-friendly, but will it lead to a future where NAS makers no longer bother with a branded OS and instead offer a pre-loading service of a popular third-party OS? Only time will tell.

In short, TOS 6.0 offers a plethora of features that cover the majority of tasks that NAS commonly use, and if these don’t quite match your needs, the ability to run Docker containers and VMs is a viable answer.

• Software: 4 / 5

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)TerraMaster F4: Final verdict

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

There are good things about the F4, and some other things that aren’t wonderful.

Unless you kludge a NUC into a mini server, this is undoubtedly one of the most affordable SSD NAS options available. However, being realistic, the cost of the F4 is likely to be dwarfed by that of the M.2 modules unless you only install 1TB or smaller drives in it.

If you can afford to populate this with 8TB modules, or even 4TB, then you might get more performance in return by investing in an Asustor or Ugreen SSD NAS.

The other issue here is that the Intel N95 limits the system’s capabilities somewhat, as it lacks the performance to handle multiple apps or Docker containers. It also dictates that there is no USB4/Thunderbolt, which on other systems can be used to locally network to a host PC while the LAN ports support other users.

The natural space this device occupies is either as a network location for live synchronisation or as a directly connected external storage system. In both these scenarios, the 5GbE LAN port can deliver and retrieve data at over 500MB/s, making it as fast as a USB 3.2 Gen 1 attached SSD. The lure is that it can offer capacities much larger than even the biggest USB-connected SSDs, which typically only offer 8TB as their largest option.

Outside of this use, justifying the investment becomes tougher, since this doesn’t have the power to be an all-purpose NAS or the LAN connections to handle a 10GbE network.

Should I buy a TerraMaster F4?

Value

Inexpensive, if you ignore the M.2 modules

4 / 5

Design

Elegant chiney cooling and easy access

4 / 5

Features

5GbE LAN, 8GB of RAM, but only a four-core CPU

3 / 5

Software

TOS 6 has plenty to like

4 / 5

Overall

Some improvements, removed features at twice the price

4 / 5

Buy it if...

You need a live local backup
With a 5GbE LAN port and up to 32TB of local storage, this could be the perfect device for live synchronising files from a desktop or workstation PC. The only caveat is that the unit must be either directly connected or used with a 5GbE network infrastructure.

You need a flexible solution
The app selection on ADM 5.0 is extensive and covers all the possible requirements, and for specialist user there are always Docker containers or VMs.

Don't Buy it if...

You need massive capacity
Even using 8TB SSDs, the four slots limit the practical space this NAS can have. If you use redundancy, that could be 24TB or less. Since a single conventional hard drive can have that much, this isn’t ideal for those with large datasets.

You need a flexible solution
The app selection on ADM 6.0 is extensive and covers all the possible requirements, but with only four cores running, more than a couple of demanding tasks isn’t a realistic option. If you want a more flexible NAS, then there are more powerful systems.

Also Consider

Asustor Flashstor 12 Pro FS6712X
An older Asustor machine that can take twelve M.2 drives, giving a maximum potential of 96TB, should you have the funds for that many 8TB drives.

What this unit lacks is processing power, as it's powered by an Intel Celeron N5105. That chip also means it only offers USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports for connecting external storage.

Read our full Asustor Flashstor 12 Pro FS6712X review

Ugreen NASync DXP480T Plus
A beautifully engineered NVMe NAS that takes 2280 drives of all sizes in its four slots.
Twice the cost of the F4, it features an integrated heatsink design, a single 10GbE LAN and Thunderbolt 4.0 ports.
Given its feature set, this is a viable alternative, admittedly with the same potential capacity.

Read our full Ugreen NASync DXP480T Plus review

For more storage solutions, we've reviewed the best NAS hard drives and the best NAS devices.

Getax ZX10 G2: 30-second review

Getac is one of those companies that likes to keep the names of products the same while changing the underlying hardware. Thankfully, with the new ZX10 release, someone decided to add “G2” to differentiate it from the prior version, even if they are remarkably similar in many respects.

On one level, this is a standard 10.1-inch Android tablet designed for business users who require stock control or a shop floor with mobile computing needs.

What separates this from a typical Android tablet is that it is designed to handle a high level of abuse or a challenging environment without issue, and it features hot-swapable batteries to ensure it is always ready for the next shift.

Like the original ZX10, the focus of the hardware is to provide a powerful SoC, while being less interested in peripheral features, such as the cameras.

What it offers above the prior G1 is a more powerful platform with increased memory, storage, a brighter display, and WiFi 6E communications.

Oddly, it’s running Android 13, not a cutting-edge release, but an improvement over the Android 12 that its predecessor used.

The build quality and accessory selection are second to none, so it’s no surprise that the device’s cost is relatively high. However, even at this price, it might make it into our selection of the best rugged tablets.

A question that business users might reasonably ask about this hardware is how many cheap tablets could we go through for each one of these?

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)Getax ZX10 G2: price and availability

• How much does it cost? From $1200 / £1175 (plus tax)
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? From a Getac reseller

Unlike many of the tablets we typically discuss, the Getac ZX80 doesn’t come with a standard price tag, as each device is tailored to meet the specific needs of its owner. The review unit we assessed is likely to start at over $1200 in the USA, not factoring in any accessories, service agreements, or upgrades.

The UK price is a whopping £1175.00 plus VAT, making it one of the most expensive 10-inch tablets around.

Options such as different sensors, cradles, additional batteries, and external chargers can substantially raise the total cost. If your finance department is already wary of Apple equipment pricing, they might need to brace themselves for the investment in this equipment.

That said, the durability of this design, combined with a three-year bumper-to-bumper warranty, implies that most customers should expect good service from this device.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

• Value score: 3/5

Getax ZX10 G2: Specs

Item

Spec

Hardware:

Getac ZX10 G2

CPU:

Qualcomm Dragonwing QCS6490

GPU:

Adreno 643

NPU:

Qualcomm Hexagon Processor

RAM:

8GB

Storage:

128GB

Screen:

10.1-inch TFT LCD 1000 nits

Resolution:

1200 x 1920 WUXGA

SIM:

Dual Nano SIM 5G+ MicroSD option

Weight:

906g (1.99lbs)

Dimensions:

275 x 192 x 17.9mm (10.8" x 7.56" x 0.7")

Rugged Spec:

IP67 and MIL-STD-810H

Rear cameras:

16.3MP Samsung GN1 Sensor

Front camera:

8MP Samsung GD1

Networking:

WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2

OS:

Android 13

Battery:

4870mAh (extra slot for 2nd battery)

Getax ZX10 G2: Design

• Sturdy construction
• Unusual layout
• High brightness screen

Getac has extensive experience in making rugged equipment, and the ZX10 G2 is a prime example of how the lessons its engineers have learned are implemented in their recent designs.

The tablet is constructed with a metal chassis encased in a nearly impenetrable reinforced polycarbonate outer shell that has a subtle texture, making it easy to handle.

On paper, the new design is slightly lighter than its G1 predecessor, but that difference is likely due to the battery design, as the screen remains the same 10.1-inch-sized panel as before. This one is slightly brighter at 1000 nits over the 800 nits in the first ZX10.

Getac engineers prefer a form factor that is decidedly skewed towards right-handed users, with the five buttons, including power and volume controls, located on the right front face of the tablet.

The lanyard-connected stylus is also on the right, although you could rotate the tablet to bring that and the buttons to the left.

But if you do that, then you can’t use the harness accessory, as it uses two metal studs that project proud of the top left and right corners.

The bottom edge of the tablet features an edge connector for docking the unit when it is not in use, and pass-through antenna connections.

The physical connection points along this axis are significant enough that they will lock a hinged keyboard accessory to the ZX10, turning it into an Android laptop.

Another feature of Getac hardware that I appreciate is that the ports that could potentially be impacted by moisture are hidden behind a sealed door that clicks into position when shut.

I’ve seen way too many rugged tablets that use rubber plugs for water/dust proofing, and they will ultimately perish. These Getac covers will last much longer, if not for the working life of the machine.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

On our review hardware, the top edge featured a 1D/2D imager barcode reader, which was linked by default to one of the two custom buttons on the left. The other button takes a picture with the camera, but these can be altered to fit the specific use case.

Getac offers smartcard readers and NFC if you specifically need those technologies.

Like the ZX80 I previously reviewed, the screen has an anti-glare coating that makes it relatively easy to see the display even in bright sunlight. However, the filter that applies to the image softens it in a way that won’t attract drone pilots, as it tends to blur the finer details in the image, such as thin branches or wires.

This is a shame, because the 1000 nits of brightness this LumiBond display outputs ticks a lot of boxes for outdoor use in other respects.

On the rear is a slot for the stylus, two slots for batteries, and an access panel for mounting a smartcard reader. The SIM slot is inside the top battery slot, and the MicroSD card slot is in the lower battery bay. I’ll talk more about the batteries later, but the ability to charge them using an external charger and then swap over without rebooting the machine is extremely useful.

Overall, the ZX10 G2 has many positive aspects for industrial and military users who may be looking for a dedicated data capture device or a service support system.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

Design score: 4/5

Getax ZX10 G2: Hardware

• Powerhouse SoC
• Limited storage
• Dual battery options

When I reviewed the ZX80, it used a Qualcomm SM7325, aka the Snapdragon 778G 5G Mobile Platform, and again, with this machine, Getac engineers have gone with a Qualcomm SoC.

The Qualcomm Dragonwing QCS6490 is specifically designed for high-performance edge computing. It features up to 8-core Qualcomm Kryo CPUs, an integrated Qualcomm Adreno 643 GPU, and a robust AI engine (NPU + DSP), capable of achieving up to 12 TOPS.

In use, this makes the ZX10 remarkably responsive and reactive to user input, and the machine is capable of local data processing should the mission require it.

In the review machine, it came with 8GB of LPDDR5 memory and 128GB of storage, of which only about 80GB was available after a handful of test apps were loaded.

The amount of storage does seem low, and the Getac specifications do hint that a 256GB model is available for those who don’t want to expand storage using the MicroSD card slot.

Our review machine only had a single 4870mAh battery installed, enabling the total capacity to be doubled with the addition of a second. Getac also offers an enhanced high-capacity battery that can be installed in either slot, delivering a minimum of 9740mAh. While switching to those will offer considerably longer running times, it will also make the tablet more cumbersome to carry.

In the accessories, there is an external battery charger that can keep extra batteries ready for use. Having a policy where, at the start of each shift, the batteries are swapped and placed in the charger should help avoid dead tablets.

I prefer the dual battery arrangement over the external and internal battery model used in the ZX80, because, in theory, this machine never needs to be recharged directly if it isn’t convenient. And, because each battery can be changed independently, it makes it much easier to enhance the running time with either a single extended battery or two.

If the purchaser makes the right accessory purchases, the ZX10 should be able to operate almost indefinitely, and even if away from mains power, a small collection of extra batteries should keep it operating for days at a time.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

• Hardware score: 4/5

Getax ZX10 G2: Cameras

• 16.3MP sensor on the rear
• 8MP on the front
• Two cameras in total

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

The Getac ZX10 G2 has two cameras:

Rear camera: 16.3MP
Front camera: 8MP

As with other Getac hardware, the specification doesn’t detail what the sensors are for the front and rear cameras. However, even without that input, I can say with some certainty that these aren’t the best sensors I’ve seen on a tablet, and they’re a notch below what an entry-level phone was delivering in 2020.

While the Android distribution was compiled for several 16MP sensors, my prior experience suggests that the rear sensor is the Omnivision OV16a10, and the front sensor is the Omnivision OV8856.

Those assertions are based on the ZX80 cameras, as these seem identical.

The one positive feature of the rear Omnivision OV16A10 is that it records 4K video at 30 fps, although there are no frame rate controls available at this resolution. In fact, the camera application has relatively few controls, and it lacks special shooting modes.

Being simple isn’t a bad thing if the system takes care of things like exposure and focus, but the camera app here does practically nothing, even though it has an AI processor sitting idle that could easily identify the subject of an image and how best to capture it.

With still image control, you have a resolution selection and digital zoom, as well as the ability to turn the flash on or off.

To be direct, nobody using this equipment is likely to be distracted from work by the temptation to enhance their photography skills.

Like the ZX80 and its sensors, the images from these cameras are workable, but only if any image is acceptable. However, the camera doesn’t balance light or colour well, and the digital zoom is an abyss of graininess.

Evidently, no special attention was paid to the cameras on this hardware or the capture application, as it was lifted directly from a prior product without any changes.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)Getax ZX10 G2 Camera samplesImage 1 of 10

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(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

• Camera score: 2/5

Getax ZX10 G2: Performance

• Decent SoC
• GPU is game-friendly
• Slow charging battery

Tablet

Getac ZX10 G2

Getac ZX80

SoC

Qualcomm Dragonwing QCS6490

Snapdragon 778G 5G

Adreno 643

Adreno 643

Mem/Storage

8GB/128GB

8GB/180GB

Battery Capacity

mAh

4870

4060 + 4870

Geekbench

Single

1142

1137

Multi

3044

3056

OpenCL

2877

2891

Vulkan

3159

3159

GFX

Aztec Open Normal

47

44

Aztec Vulkan Normal

51

49

Car Chase

44

41

Manhattan 3.1

76

59

PCMark

3.0 Score

9360

9521

Battery Life

8h 27m

15h 24m

Charge 30

Battery 30 mins

31%

18%

Passmark

Score

14639

15029

CPU

6902

7097

3DMark

Slingshot OGL

7777

7781

Slingshot Ex. OGL

6761

Maxed

Slingshot Ex. Vulkan

Maxed

Maxed

Wildlife

3387

3411

Steel Nomad.L

312

310

The obvious comparison for me was to the smaller ZX80 model, which uses a similar platform and delivers nearly identical performance.

Even if you are uninterested in either of these two machines, these results demonstrate that the Dragonwing QCS6490 performs at the same level as the Snapdragon 778G 5G, also by Qualcomm. As they both feature the same memory architecture, core counts and GPU, this isn’t hugely surprising.

Where things get interesting is when we explore battery life, since the ZX10 had only a single 4870mAh battery, whereas the ZX80 had an internally integrated 4060mAh battery plus an external 4870mAh battery.

That extra internal capacity nearly doubles the operating time of the ZX80, although it can’t replace the internal battery, which must be recharged in situ. Had Getac provided the second battery for the ZX10, I’d be surprised if its inclusion would not exceed the run time of the ZX80 by at least an hour, and probably longer.

One result here is highly misleading, and that’s the recharge percentage after 30 minutes. Given the capacity of the ZX80, it recovered approximately 18% of its total 8930mAh, or 1607 mAh. Conversely, the recovered power on the ZX10 was 1,510mAh. Given that the ZX80 has two batteries, not one, it’s safe to conclude that there’s no charging improvement over the ZX80 in the ZX10.

This is a weakness of this design, since it takes more than 90 minutes to fully recharge a 4870mAh battery, and it would be safe to assume double that if you have the second battery. The draw on the power supply is only 20W, which is why it isn’t faster.

I’ve seen phones and tablets with 25000mAh batteries that can recharge much faster than this using 66W power supplies. Getac may have taken the view that slower charging will extend battery life, and therefore, is in the customer’s interest. However, I found it curious that the Chicony-branded PSU included with the machine is rated for 20V at 65W, even though it can only take a third of that power when recharging.

Overall, this is a powerful tablet that offers performance beyond what most tablet makers are currently providing, with the possible exception of the Unihertz Tank Pad 8849 and its Dimensity 8200 platform.

• Performance score: 4/5

(Image credit: Getac)Getax ZX10 G2: Final verdict

I liked this design substantially more than the Getac ZX80, as I think it better balances the user experience with the capabilities. However, it’s not without some issues, most noticeably that it’s launched with a three-year-old version of Android.

Also, Getac doesn’t see camera sensors as a selling point, as the ones in this tablet are below what you might expect in a budget phone.

The strengths here include a solid computing platform, interchangeable hot-swap batteries, and a fantastic selection of accessories for docking and carrying the tablet throughout the day. It also comes with a warranty where Getac won’t argue with you about accidental damage for three years.

However, the cost of well-made and engineered equipment, which can withstand being in a warehouse or garden centre, is disturbingly high.

It’s a matter of convincing those senior people who control budgets that devices like the Getac ZX10 G2 ultimately save money with fewer issues and downtime, since the investment is likely to be substantial when deploying these into any decent-sized business.

Should I buy a Getax ZX10 G2?Getax ZX10 G2 Score Card

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Value

Expensive for an Android tablet

3/5

Design

Built to take knocks and keep working

4/5

Hardware

Powerful SoC, dual hot-swap batteries, tons of accessories

4/5

Camera

Poor sensors and grainy results

2/5

Performance

Powerful platform but slow charging

4/5

Overall

Highly durable, but you pay for the privilege

4/5

Buy it if...

Your environment is harsh
Most brands claim IP68, IP69K dust/water resistance, and MIL-STD-810H Certification, but this equipment is built to withstand much more than these dubious endorsements.

It comes with a three-year warranty that includes coverage for accidental damage, which is a testament to the abuse these devices can withstand.

You need a powerful platform
The processor in this Android tablet is at the top end of what is available and delivers a stellar user experience. With this much power available, it’s possible to locally process data before sending it to the Cloud.

Don't buy it if...

You are working on a budget
The price of the tablet is high, and once you’ve included a keyboard, extra batteries, an off-line battery charger and other accessories, the total package might run to $2000 or more. There are more affordable options that offer you more for less.

You need decent photography
The camera sensors in this device are like going back to the past for most Android phone and even tablet users. The results aren’t good, and it’s a weakness in the Getac tablets that I’ve observed so far.

Also Consider

Unihertz Tank Pad 8849
Larger and slightly heavier than the Getac ZX10 G2, this is a powerful Android tablet featuring an impressive 21000 mAh battery and the latest 50MP Sony IMX766 camera sensor. Although it may not offer the accessory selection of the ZX10 G2, at around $600, it’s nearly half the price and a better all-around performer.

Read our full Unihertz Tank Pad 8849 review

Getac ZX80 Rugged Android Tablet
Another super-robust design from Getac aimed at tough environment use. It uses a different Qualcomm SoC, and has a wide selection of accessories, including replaceable batteries.

However, like its ZX10 G2 brother, it’s on the expensive side, so it’s not an impulse purchase.

Read our Getac ZX80 Rugged Android Tablet hands on

For more durable devices, we've reviewed all the best rugged phones, the best rugged laptops, and the best rugged hard drives

EVenture Limited subsidiary Hide.me is a Malaysia-based company that has been making waves in the VPN business since 2011.

Hide.me currently boasts around 2,600 servers in 91 different locations worldwide. That's a pretty decent spread that'll be more than enough for most users, but NordVPN blows it out of the water when it comes to coverage, with servers in a whopping 118 countries.

Several protocols are available to choose from, including the super-speedy WireGuard and battle-tested OpenVPN, and IKEv2, SoftEther, and SSTP are in the mix, too. It's also nice to see that Hide.me offers DNS, IP, and IPv6 leak protection, and that port forwarding is there for anyone who needs it (perhaps while doing a spot of torrenting).

Hide.me is compatible with most of today's biggest and best platforms. Apps are available for Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Linux. You'll also be able to use Hide.me on smart TVs, consoles, and routers, as well as enjoy 10 simultaneous connections. If you need help getting set up on any of these devices, or just want help picking out the best server, 24/7 live chat is happy to help.

MultiHop lets you connect from one location and exit from another to prevent tracking (Image credit: Hide.me)

Advanced features include MultiHop VPN, allowing you to connect to one location and exit from another. This makes it even more difficult for anyone to trace back and identify you.

Hide.me claims to support P2P on most servers. We verified this by connecting to five different locations and had hassle-free torrenting in each case.

We also like that Hide.me is clear about its unblocking capabilities, listing the platforms it's able to access on its site. This is great news for fans of Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Prime Video, and more, and sets Hide.me apart from other services that rely on vague promises that they're not always able to live up to.

While there have been some recent updates and improvements, they're more focused on enhanced the existing Hide.me service rather than adding new and innovative tools. It's why Hide.me can't quite keep up with innovators like NordVPN and ExpressVPN, but they're still worthwhile improvements. In particular, upgrading the servers from 1 Gbps to 10 Gbps is exciting, and Hide.me labels which servers have received the upgrade in its list. It's the kind of transparency we love to see.

Hide.me pricing

Hide.me's monthly plan is fairly priced at $9.95. Most providers charge somewhere in the $10-$13 range, although a few are significantly cheaper (Mullvad asks around $6).

The annual plan is available for an above-average $5.82 a month. Hide.me used to throw in 2TB of Internxt cloud storage, but no more. Now, it's the VPN only. Most providers are a little cheaper at around $4-5 for annual subscriptions, and a few cost even less (you'll pay a monthly $3.33 for Private Internet Access, $2.08 for FastestVPN).

The two-year plan offers the best value at $3.45, but even here, there's money to be saved elsewhere. Atlas VPN's three-year plan costs $2.08 a month, for instance. Looking at the totals, paying $89.95 to Hide.me gets you coverage for two years with two months free – but three years of protection (with three months free) at Atlas VPN costs $71.52.

You can pay for your plan by credit card, PayPal or even with cryptocurrency (Image credit: Hide.me)

Regardless of the plan length you go for, you'll find a number of ways to pay for your subscription. This includes the usual credit and debit cards, PayPal, Bitcoin, Google and Amazon Pay, and others – though the exact list varies from location to location.

If you fork out for a Hide.me plan and ultimately decide that it's not for you, don't panic! All plans are covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee that'll let you reclaim your cash without any quibble or questions. However, this only applies to users who haven't previously received a refund from Hide.me.

Plus, for folks who'd rather not part with a single penny, the free version of Hide.me is better than ever. It now boasts servers in 8 countries, which is pretty generous for a free VPN, and doesn't demand that you make an account and hand over your personal details. Most impressively, however, is the fact that Hide.me free doesn't impose any data limits or monthly caps on your usage - you can stay connected for as long as you like.

Of course, there are downsides to consider, including a lack of streaming support, port forwarding, and multihop functionality.

Hide.me keeps no logs on its users (Image credit: Hide.me)Privacy

Hide.me has a strict no logging policy. The company claims, "We do NOT keep logs of your VPN sessions, browsing behavior, websites you visit, or any activity related to your VPN connection. In addition, we NEVER store VPN connection logs and timestamps that match your incoming and outgoing IP address or session duration."

Hide.me does briefly record your randomly generated username and internally assigned (non-public) IP address when you connect, but this is only for troubleshooting purposes, and the company says even this troubleshooting log is securely wiped every few hours.

Hide.me says it will comply with court orders received by recognized legal authorities with jurisdiction over them. But again, that's to be expected, and if the logs don't show anything significant, that won't matter at all.

The company claims this is supported by a comprehensive audit, and that 'Hide.me has been certified as the most anonymous VPN service in the industry.'

It turns out that the audit dates from 2015, though. There's little information on the scope of the audit and no report you can read. Hide.me deserves real credit for realizing the importance of audits so long ago – some providers still don't get it, even today – but we think it's probably time to take another, something more thorough and transparent, where everyone can read the full results.

In the meantime, there's a simple metric we use to get a feel for how any provider is handling your privacy, and that’s how many trackers and third-party cookies are used on its website. The Blacklight privacy inspector gave us the answer; none at all. That's not unique - Mullvad, Proton VPN, Windscribe, and a handful of others are also tracker-free - but it's unusual, and suggests Hide.me is making a real effort to maintain your privacy.

This is the user interface of Hide.me's Windows app (Image credit: Hide.me)Apps

Hide.me's Windows app has a clear and straightforward interface. A large Enable button plugs you into the nearest server, the full location list (countries, expandable to cities in some cases) is just a click away, and a navigation bar has buttons for the streaming service, app settings, and more.

Hide.me displays its available servers in a list instead of on a map (Image credit: Hide.me)

The flexible location list can sort your options by name, or use ping time to show the fastest servers at the top. Begin typing a city or country name in the Search box and the list updates to display any matches (typing MIA cuts the list to just Miami, for instance.) A Favorites system enables grouping your most-used servers together for speedier access later.

A Streaming tab connects you to the best locations to unblock streaming platforms in a lengthy list of countries: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States. That's nine countries added since our last review. Impressive!

We found Hide.me's connections times to be fair. Typically, we were able to connect to a server within 1 or 2 seconds, which meant we weren't waiting around. There doesn't appear to be a connection timeout, however, and we encountered a few instances where Hide.me was stuck on its "initializing service connection" animation for minutes at a time.

Digging into the details, it looked like Hide.me's Windows service had failed, and the app wasn't able to restart it. That can happen, but the top providers do a better job of handling it. ExpressVPN's Windows app recognizes a service failure immediately, for instance, without leaving you waiting for minutes. Then, it either fixes the problem all on its own or tells you what to do next.

Typically, though, connections ran smoothly, with the app making good use of notifications to keep you informed about what it's doing. Switch back to your other apps, and Hide.me will let you know when you’re protected, and when you’re not.

Hide.me's MultiHop feature gives you another option, good news when you need the best possible privacy. Choose an entry server of New York, say, and that's where you'll connect, but you'll be redirected through Hide.me's network to your pick of exit servers. Websites will think you're in the UK, and even if an attacker manages to compromise the London server, they won't be able to link the activity to your account as you've accessed it using the New York server, not your own IP.

You can tweak many aspects of Hide.me's VPN service in its settings menu (Image credit: Hide.me)Settings

There's real depth here. The app supports no less than five protocols (WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, SoftEther, SSTP), for instance, with a stack of configuration options including IKEv2 stealth mode, custom and random ports, tunnel via IPv4 or IPv6, and the option to enable Bolt (Hide.me's custom speedup technology). More on that later.

That's just the start. While most VPN apps ignore IPv6 entirely, or at best give you an option to disable it, Hide.me offers complete support and control. You can have the app connect via IPv4 only, IPv6 only, prefer IPv4 but use IPv6 as a fallback, or prefer IPv6 but use IPv4 as a fallback. That'll probably get you better speeds if you can use IPv6, and Hide.me's ability to handle both protocols reduces the chance of data leaks.

The advanced features continue everywhere you look. For example, split tunneling support enables defining which apps use the VPN, and which will use your regular connection. Plus, the client doesn't just have a single on/off kill switch setting to define what happens if the connection drops. It can run customs scripts, too. You get it to close apps, run others, whatever you like. You can also define whether scripts are run as the current user or an administrator.

Hide.me allows you to search for specific features in Settings, and will highlight them to point them out clearly (Image credit: Hide.me)

There's a lot to explore, and sometimes we couldn't remember where to find a particular setting. Fortunately, the app has a settings Search box. If you know you want to customize the Best Location feature, just type 'best' in the Search box, click the link, and the app will take you to the right page, and even highlight the option for you. A neat touch we've not seen with anyone else.

The Mac app looks pretty much identical to the Windows version, but doesn't have all its advanced features (Image credit: Hide.me)Mac app

We were glad to see that Hide.me's apps are similar across all platforms. The Mac app, in particular, is practically a clone of the Windows version, with the exception of a few small visual details.

Connection times were much faster than we saw on Windows, and we didn't have any connection failures. Real-world use was otherwise much the same. The app was easy to use, there were no unexpected drops, and everything worked more or less as we'd expect.

There's a decent set of advanced options, too. WireGuard, OpenVPN, and IKEv2 protocol support, a kill switch, auto-connect when you access untrusted networks, and split tunneling. If any of this technology doesn't quite deliver, you can even raise a ticket from within the app.

There are a lot of advanced Windows features that haven't made it to the Mac. There's no VPN-wide custom DNS option, no custom MTU, no way to tweak how Best Location is chosen, no IPv6 tunnel option, no IKEv2 configuration tweaks, and no real kill switch configurability beyond on or off.

If you're not interested in VPN technicalities, then none of that is likely to matter very much, and this is still a quality Mac app. It's not difficult to use, performance is good, and it has far more features than most.

Hide.me provides some impressive mobile apps (Image credit: Hide.me)iOS app

Most VPNs focus their development time on desktop apps, and iOS users in particular are expected to be grateful for whatever scraps are left. Fortunately, no one told Hide.me that this is the way things are supposed to be. Its own iOS offering is surprisingly powerful.

This isn't visible initially, because the app has the same simple and appealing interface as the rest of the range. It has the blue and white color scheme, a big connect button, and not a whole lot else. Don’t let that fool you, we tapped a few buttons and quickly got a feel for just what the app can do.

The Location picker has all the features we saw on the desktop, including the Favorites, the Streaming and Multihop lists, the search box, sorting, and more. You probably won't need all of that, but just the ability to bring favorite servers to the top of the list can make your VPN life so much easier.

IOS apps typically have almost no settings, but this one outperforms some of the Windows competition. There's support for IKEv2, OpenVPN UDP, OpenVPN TCP and WireGuard, for instance. The app can automatically connect when you use Wi-Fi or mobile networks. There's a kill switch. You can choose a custom DNS server. You even get to control whether the tunnel uses IPv4 or IPv6, assuming you've a reason to care and if you don't, no problem, the app has sensibly chosen defaults.

The feature list is still a little shorter than the desktop apps (no split tunneling, for instance), but that's inevitable, iOS just doesn't allow anything like the same level of system control. Despite that, this is a top-notch iOS app. It's easy to use and way more configurable than most of the competition.

Hide.me's Android app is very similar to the iOS version, but also includes split tunneling (Image credit: Hide.me)Android app

Hide.me's Android app didn’t spoil the excellent record for cross-platform consistency. Hide.me has paid real attention to detail with app design, and essentially the Android edition has the same appealing interface and capable location list as the rest of the family.

A better-than-most feature list includes WireGuard, OpenVPN, and IKEv2 support, auto-connect for unsecured networks, and a custom DNS option.

The Android app beats iOS with split tunneling, where you're able to define which apps use the VPN tunnel, and which don't. But it does lack some functionality. For example, it doesn't allow you to decide whether to use IPv4 or IPv6.

Overall, this is an impressive mix of power and ease of use. You don't have to register to use Hide.me's free plan, or hand over any personal details – just install it from your app store, explore the various screens, and see how it works.

And if you don't understand something, or there's some other problem? You can even raise a ticket from within the app. Now that's what we call convenient.

Hide.me provides a kill switch, and it's highly configurable, but not without issues (Image credit: Hide.me)Kill switch

We checked out the Windows app kill switch by manually closing WireGuard, OpenVPN and IKEv2 connections and everything worked as it should – our internet access was blocked right away, a notification warned us about the problem, and the app reconnected within seconds.

The kill switch didn’t always work when we switched locations, though. The app appears to close the first connection, then try to connect to the new server, and our device was sometimes able to use its regular internet connection until the tunnel was re-established.

This is unlikely to be a big issue for most users. If you’ve decided to switch locations, that’s a very strong indication that you’ve finished your torrenting, your online banking or whatever else you’re trying to protect, and a few seconds of unprotected internet access may not matter at all.

It is still a weakness, though, and one that could be a concern in the most privacy-critical situations.

Hide.me promises a lot on the unblocking front, but it delivers, too (Image credit: Hide.me)Privacy tests

Hide.me's Windows apps boast plenty of protocols, but are they set up for maximum security? We can't see every detail of what's going on, but checking app configuration files and logs provides some useful information.

The results were broadly positive, with OpenVPN using AES-256-CBC encryption and SHA256 authentication. IKEv2 connections provided the same reliable AES-256 shield, while SoftEther appeared to use its standard (and very acceptable) default settings.

The app's WireGuard and OpenVPN files were more than a year old, which means they're missing plenty of patches and bug fixes. This is unlikely to have any real practical impact on your privacy, but we'd like to see Hide.me update these more often, just to keep any risks to a minimum.

We spotted a slightly dubious design decision with the app's OpenVPN connections, as it saved our username and password to disk in plain text. This also isn't that big a deal (if you've got malware reading files, Hide.me's logins are the least of your worries), but it's unnecessary, and most apps do a better job of concealing your credentials.

Once we got connected, Hide.me excelled on the privacy front, with IPleak.net, DNSleak.com, and DNSleaktest.com confirming that it correctly shielded our IP, allocated us a new address from our chosen country, and blocked DNS leaks at all times.

Virtual locations

Most VPNs have very long location lists, but their servers aren't always where you expect. If they're in a country that maybe has poor internet connectivity, then a provider will often host them elsewhere.

This can often be a good idea. If a VPN offers a Monaco location, and allocates you a Monaco IP address when you connect, but the servers are really in a super-fast French data center just a few miles away, should you care very much? We'd say no.

But what if you're in Cambodia, and you connect to a Cambodia location, but the server is really located in New York? That's likely to deliver a big and very unexpected performance hit.

We tested ten Hide.me locations to get a feel for what the company is doing.

In most cases, Hide.me's servers turned out to be in the advertised locations and some appeared to be virtual locations but weren't far away. Still, we found a couple of notable exceptions. Hide.me's Mexico location appears to be hosted on the US east coast, and its Morocco servers are closer to Quebec or Ontario.

This may not be an issue for everyone. The servers correctly give you Mexican and Moroccan IP addresses, so they’ll work just as you expect, and if you're in North America, having servers closer by might improve performance.

Providers should be transparent about their use of virtual locations, though, in order that potential customers can make up their own minds. Hide.me doesn’t highlight which locations are virtual, or tell users where they really are (which ExpressVPN does), and we'd like to see that change.

Netflix and streaming

Most VPNs claim they can help you access geoblocked websites, and Hide.me is no exception, with the company promising that you'll 'avoid annoying censorship.'

And this turned out to be correct, as Hide.me got us access to Netflix in the US, UK, Australia, Canada and Japan.

It scored with our other test US platforms, too, working with both Amazon Prime Video and Disney Plus.

The good news kept coming, too. Not only did Hide.me unblock BBC iPlayer, ITV and Channel 4 in the UK, but it delivered with Australia’s 9Now and 10 play, too.

That’s a perfect 100% unblocking score, a great result. Hide.me did just as well in our last review, too, which suggests the company didn’t just get lucky – it’s working hard to unblock everything possible, and then make sure those services stay available long-term.

(If you plan on testing Hide.me for yourself, keep in mind that you only get this level of success from the paid product – the free plan doesn't support unblocking streaming sites.)

We used several different speed testing services to help determine Hide.me's performance (Image credit: Speedtest.net)Performance

We assess VPN speeds by running multiple automated speed tests using several platforms including SpeedTest's website and command line app, Measurement Lab, and Cloudflare.

Hide.me’s data center results were pleasantly unexpected. WireGuard speeds reached a decent mid-range of 580Mbps and switching to regular OpenVPN got us an above average 260Mbps. Using OpenVPN with Hide.me's Bolt got us an amazing 950Mbps.

That's a huge achievement, but there's an important point to keep in mind. Bolt is only available in the Windows app. If you're using Bolt on any other platform, performance is going to be more ordinary, though still very acceptable for most purposes. Would you really be upset if your VPN 'only' managed 580Mbps? Didn't think so.

Hide.me review: Final verdict

Hide.me boasts some seriously impressive speeds and works like a charm when it comes to unblocking services – narrowly missing out on a perfect score. However, other big-name providers have more intuitive apps and a better roster of features, meaning Hide.me remains a half-step behind the competition.

Windscribe is one of the best all-rounders in the VPN market. It's got some handy privacy-boosting tools, the speeds you need to enjoy HD streaming, and apps for pretty much every platform out there. So, even though it can't quite match up to today's best VPNs, it's still worth checking out if you're on the hunt for something new.

During our hands-on testing, we were impressed by Windscribe's core features and unblocking power, but we did run into issues with its UI. So, to help you figure out if Windscribe is your match made in heaven, we put its approach to privacy, server network, and overall value for money to the test. Keep reading, and let's dig in.

Features

Windscribe boasts a generous spread of servers across 69 countries, and 134 cities, all over the world. That's a decent spread that'll suit most people's geo-spoofing needs, but it's worth noting that NordVPN has it beat with coverage in 118 countries.

There's a Windscribe for every device out there, too, which is exactly what we like to see from today's most modern providers. Windscribe is compatible with Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Linux, with feature and UI parity remaining consistent across all of its apps. Plus, if you're looking for a more lightweight option that still packs a privacy-boosting punch, there are also browser extensions available for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.

In terms of VPN protocols, Windscribe ticks all the right boxes, offering a choice between IKEv2, OpenVPN, and WireGuard. Industry-standard AES-256 encryption also ensures that your web traffic is kept safe from cybercriminals and snoopers, while stealth technologies try to obfuscate your VPN usage, perhaps allowing you to get online even in countries that actively block VPN traffic.

ROBERT is Windscribe's DNS-backed tool to help users block ads, malware, trackers and more (Image credit: Windscribe)

The powerful apps look great and are easy to use for beginners but also include many advanced features including split tunneling (on the desktop as well as mobile devices), MAC address spoofing (a clever way to reduce the chance of being tracked), versatile auto-connect rules, full IPv6 support, and even a command line interface to automate the VPN from scripts.

ROBERT is Windscribe's DNS-based tool for blocking ads, malware, trackers, and various internet content types like gambling, porn, fake news, clickbait, and so on. How effective is it? We'll take a look later.

There's no 24/7 support but Windscribe does have a decent web knowledge base and a helpful support chatbot. You can raise a ticket if you need more advice, and in our experience, replies are detailed and helpful.

New features include Encrypted Client Hello (ECH) that can bypass SNI filtering so others can't try to view or maybe block the domains you're trying to access.

While many VPNs offer no control over DNS at all, Windscribe allows you to define which DNS to use when the VPN is connected or disconnected. The latest addition includes support for DNS-over-HTTPS, and as Windscribe also runs Control D (a very configurable DNS service, with a free plan) we expect to see more related features appear over time.

The Android app has a new ‘Decoy Mode’ which is an interesting privacy feature (Image credit: Windscribe)

In addition to paid plans, Windscribe also offers a very generous free plan (Image credit: Windscribe)Windscribe pricing

Windscribe's free plan offers a generous 10GB of data transfer a month if you register with your email address, and 2GB if you don't. You're limited to 11 countries – North America, across Europe, and Hong Kong – but that's still far better than some (Hotspot Shield and a few others don't give you any choice of locations at all).

Upgrading to a commercial plan gets you unlimited data and access to all 110 locations.

One of our favorite things about Windscribe is the fact that it gives users unlimited simultaneous connections to play with. So, if you have a lot of devices you need to protect, or want to share your account with friends and family, you only need to pick up a single subscription. It's great value for money that you don't see everywhere.

Prices are fair. Monthly billing is only $9 – many VPNs charge $10-$13. Pay for a year upfront and the price falls to an equivalent $5.75. That's not cheap but it's within the range we expect for a premium VPN, and it's still far lower than some. ExpressVPN and Hide.me both ask $8.32 a month on the annual plan, NordVPN charges $8.29 from the second year.

If low prices are top of your priority list, though, there's money to be saved elsewhere. As we write this, Private Internet Access has a three-year plan that's only $2.03 a month for the first term, while Ivacy's five-year offering is only $1 a month. Sure, we don't like long-term contracts either, but look at the totals. Hand over $69 to Windscribe and you get one year of protection. Give Ivacy $60 and you're covered for five.

Windscribe does offer a 'Build a Plan' scheme that cuts costs by allowing you to buy only the locations you need for $1 each. Each location adds 10GB to your free bandwidth allowance, and your plan must have a minimum of two locations.

For example, providing your email address gets you 10GB of data a month. Add the US and UK locations, and you'll get 30GB of data for $2 a month. You can upgrade to unlimited data for another $1, or a total of just $3 a month, and that's billed monthly. No need to sign up for years.

If you only use a VPN for occasional short trips, say, that looks like a great deal. Surfshark's monthly-billed plan is more than four times as expensive at $13, for instance – okay, that's the full service with all the locations, but if you don't need them, who cares?

Another option, ScribeForce, enables signing up a group of users (a business, a family) with the same account. There's a five-user minimum, but you'll pay just $3 each, billed monthly, for access to the full and unrestricted service.

Unusual add-ons include static IP addresses. Adding a US or Canadian residential IP costs $8 a month (data center IPs are $2) and could greatly improve your chances of accessing any blocked sites, and enable connecting to IP-restricted business and other networks. Once you have a static IP, you can also enable port forwarding in the Windscribe web console.

Whatever your preference, Windscribe supports payments via card, PayPal, Bitcoin, and other cryptocurrencies via CoinPayments.net, along with gift cards and assorted other options via Paymentwall.

Windscribe doesn't have the lowest headline prices, then, but it's fairly priced for the features on offer, and there are huge savings to be made if you're covering multiple users.

There is a small catch in Windscribe's money-back guarantee, which only covers you for three days and if you've used less than 10GB of traffic. So, if you think that might be an issue, download and try the free version before you buy to make sure it delivers what you need.

Windscribe protects your privacy with AES-256 encryption and doesn't keep logs (Image credit: Windscribe)Privacy and logging

Windscribe's privacy features include strong AES-256 encryption, SHA512 authentication, a 4096-bit RSA key, and support for perfect forward secrecy (keys aren't re-used, so even if a snooper gets hold of a private key, it will only allow them to view data within one session).

The apps use multiple techniques to reduce the chance of data leaks, including redirecting DNS requests through the tunnel to be handled by the VPN server, and optionally using a firewall to block all internet access if the connection drops.

We checked Windscribe's performance on a Windows 10 system using the websites IPLeak, DNSLeakTest, and DoILeak and found no DNS or other leaks.

Windscribe claims its ROBERT DNS filter can protect your privacy by blocking trackers, but how well does it work? We connected to our nearest server, then tried accessing 156 common trackers, and ROBERT blocked 147. That's one of the best results we've seen. ROBERT did even better at keeping us away from malicious sites, and the ad blocker scored an excellent 93% (most VPN ad blockers managed 40-90%.)

We enabled the Windows app's firewall (similar to a kill switch) and began using various tricks to forcibly close the VPN connection and see what happened.

We found the app didn't display a notification to warn that we'd been disconnected. If it wasn't able to reconnect immediately, that might leave the user with no internet, and no idea why.

This situation probably won't last long, though, as the app tries to reconnect as soon as it spots the problem, and we were typically online again within a few seconds. This may be a small usability issue, but in privacy terms, the client worked perfectly, handling every oddball situation we threw at it and always protecting our traffic.

Windscribe's stance on logging is covered in a clearly written and refreshingly short privacy policy which explains what the company does and doesn't collect.

There's a tiny amount of very minimal long-term logging, but it's limited to the total bandwidth you've used in a month (essential to manage usage on the free plan), and a timestamp of your last activity on the service to allow identifying inactive accounts.

The system collects some connection details – username, VPN server connected to, time of connection, bandwidth used during the session, number of devices connected – but these are held in the VPN server's RAM only, and are lost when the session closes.

Other than that, there is no logging of connections, IPs, timestamps or browsing history. Or as the privacy policy puts it, 'we do not store any logs on who used what IP address, so we cannot tie user activity to any single user.'

Here is some of the data from Windscribe's transparency report (Image credit: Windscribe)

As there is no data on your activities, Windscribe points out that there's nothing to share. This is backed up by a transparency report which covers the numbers of DMCA and Law Enforcement data requests over the year, and in both cases states that: 'Exactly zero requests were complied with due to lack of relevant data.'

This is all good, but we would like to see Windscribe go further. Many VPNs have had their systems publicly audited to check for logging or other privacy issues, and that gives far more reassurance to potential customers than comforting words on a website. We hope that Windscribe (and all other VPN providers for that matter) will soon do the same.

In June 2023, Windscribe's Co-Founder and CEO, Yegor Sak, was hit with a lawsuit in connection with alleged offences committed by an unknown user. Fast forward to April 2025, and the case was dismissed in court due to a lack of evidence, becoming a landmark victory for no-log VPNs as law enforcement bodies increasingly pressure VPNs to keep lawfully accessible records of user records.

In the meantime, it's worth remembering that Windscribe gives you 2GB of data per month, for free, without requiring an email address or any other personal data. If you're just looking to protect email and basic browsing, and can live with the data limit, this automatically gets you more guaranteed anonymity than you'll have with almost everyone else.

Speed testing is an important part of any VPN review (Image credit: Speedtest.net)Performance

Our performance tests involved connecting to the nearest Windscribe locations from both a UK data center and US location, each with 1Gbps test connections. We then measured download speeds using benchmarking services including SpeedTest (both the website and command line app), Cloudflare, Measurement Lab, and more. We ran each test using at least two protocols and in both morning and evening sessions.

Crunching the numbers revealed excellent OpenVPN speeds of 270-330Mbps, more than twice what we see with many providers.

Switching to WireGuard accelerated speeds to a blistering 950Mbps+, essentially maxing out our test connection. That puts Windscribe alongside NordVPN, Surfshark, and IPVanish at the top of our performance charts.

We can only measure the speeds for our test locations, of course, and you may see different results. If performance is a top priority for you, using the free version gives you the chance to check local speeds (from the 11 free locations) without as much as handing over your email address.

Alternatively, Windscribe's 'Build A Plan' option could give you a month of unlimited traffic to a couple of locations for only $3, a low-priced way to run all the intensive speed testing you need.

Windscribe was able to unblock Netflix for all but one of the regions we tried (Image credit: Netflix)Netflix and streaming

Connecting to a VPN server in another country may, in theory, allow you to access content you wouldn't otherwise be able to view.

Unfortunately, it's not always that simple, as many content providers now attempt to detect and block visitors they think are using a VPN.

To test a VPN's unblocking abilities, we log into at least three Windscribe servers in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, and Japan, then try to access local Netflix content and other streaming services.

Windscribe scored full marks in our UK tests, getting us into BBC iPlayer, ITV, and Channel 4.

The perfect record continued in Australia, as we managed to stream TV from 9Now and 10 Play.

Windscribe followed up by unblocking US Disney Plus, and allowing us to stream whatever we liked. The good news finally ended with US Amazon Prime Video, which detected our VPN use and locked us out.

Windscribe still managed to end on the highest of high notes, though, by unblocking every Netflix library we tried: the US, UK, Australia, Canada, and Japan.

Failing only one of our test sites is a very impressive result. If only a 100% track record will do, though, ExpressVPN, NordVPN, Private Internet Access, ProtonVPN, PureVPN, and Surfshark all unblocked every one of our test services in their last review.

• Save yourself a packet with our exclusive Windscribe offer here

Windscribe fully supports P2P and torrenting (Image credit: BitTorrent)Torrents

VPN providers generally don't boast about their torrent support, and it can be a challenge to figure out what you're allowed to do. TunnelBear was so quiet about its P2P policy that we had to email tech support to ask.

Windscribe is much more open and transparent. Just point your browser at the company's Status page and you'll see its full list of locations, which of them support P2P (most) and which of them don't (India, Lithuania, Russia, and South Africa, at the time of writing).

Your options are just as clear in the Windscribe apps. Locations where torrents aren't allowed are marked with the same crossed-out 'P2P', but select anything else and you can download whatever and whenever you like.

We don't like to take a provider's website promises for granted, even when they're from a VPN we trust, so we tried downloading torrents from three P2P-approved servers. Everything ran smoothly, and our downloads completed with no connection or performance issues at all.

Factor in Windscribe's free plan and various anonymous payment options (cryptocurrencies, gift cards), along with its decent performance levels, and the company makes a great torrenting choice.

Windscribe offers clients for most major platforms (Image credit: Windscribe)Client setup

Tapping the 'Get Started' button on the Windscribe site took us to the Download page. The website detected and highlighted the best choice for our laptop – the Windows client and Chrome extension – but there were also links to downloads for Mac, Android, and iOS, extensions for Firefox and Edge. Plus guides to cover setup on routers, Linux, Kodi, Amazon Fire TV, and other devices.

Still not enough? No problem. Paying customers get tools to build custom configuration files for OpenVPN, WireGuard, and IKEv2. These can be used to manually set up connections with third-party apps, routers, and more.

Installing the Windows app is easy. You're able to create an account just by entering a username and password, which gets you 2GB of data a month. Hand over your email, too, and you get 10GB. Tweet about Windscribe, just once, and you get an excellent 15GB a month forever (not just a one-off.)

To put all that in perspective, TunnelBear's generosity stops with a 2GB monthly data allowance, and Avira Phantom VPN's free package gives you a tiny 500MB.

• Check out our exclusive Windscribe offer

Windscribe's Windows app features a smartly designed interface (Image credit: Windscribe)Windows app

Windscribe's Windows app has real visual panache, with rounded corners and classy flag backgrounds (check the screenshot above) to highlight your current location.

It's more cluttered than most, with plenty of text, icons, and buttons crammed into a very small space, but there's also been real thought put into the design and overall it works well. Hover your mouse over an icon, for instance, and a tooltip explains what it's about.

Windscribe's full location list shows you countries to begin with, which can be expanded to view available servers (Image credit: Windscribe)

The app displays your current protocol and port, always helpful, but it's not just a static label. Click it and you can change the protocol and settings to whatever you need. The app even offers to set the protocol as a default for that network. So, if you have to use one protocol to get online at the library and another at the coffee shop, you don't have to change them manually. Once you've connected, allow the app to save your settings for that network, and it'll automatically connect next time.

Tapping Locations displays the full location list. This opens with a list of countries and you can expand any of these to view its available servers. Each server has a latency indicator to help you find the fastest option. You can also mark countries as Favorites, displaying them at the top of the list for zero-scroll reconnections later.

The Windows client has lots of useful expert-level settings (Image credit: Windscribe)

The interface is very configurable. You can order locations by alphabet, latency, or location. You can even display latency as bars or figures, have the interface docked or a free-floating window, display notifications for events or hide them, and the list goes on.

There are many interesting connectivity features, and these are often as tweakable as the UI.

Windscribe gives you plenty of choices when it comes to VPN protocols (Image credit: Windscribe)

Supported protocols include WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, Stealth, and WStunnel, connection times were speedy at 1-2 seconds, and the app uses helpful notifications to tell you when you're connected, and when you're not.

OpenVPN is securely configured with AES-256-GCM encryption and SHA512 authentication. We couldn't find any issues with Windscribe's WireGuard setup, and it's good to see IKEv2 connections that don't store your credentials and are configured to use maximum-strength encryption so that they're not vulnerable to theft.

Split tunneling allows you to decide which traffic is routed through the VPN, and which bypasses it. Unlike most VPNs, this isn't just for apps, you can set up rules for specific IP addresses and host names, too.

Unusual extras include the ability to set up your device as a Wi-Fi hotspot (if your OS and network adapter supports it), or as a proxy gateway for use by TVs, gaming consoles, or anything else that can work with a proxy server.

One surprising feature is that Windscribe's desktop clients can import custom OpenVPN and WireGuard configuration files from other providers, and then display those servers alongside their own. If you use another VPN but its app is underpowered, you might be able to use Windscribe's instead. You don't need a subscription.

There's a lot to like here, especially for advanced users who like to tweak every aspect of their VPN. If you can find the settings you need, that is. We got lost several times scrolling up and down, clicking various icons, opening drop-down lists, and generally trying to figure out what's what.

If you're happy with the basics, the good news is you won't even see most of the complexities unless you go looking. As long as you can choose a country from a list and click a Connect button, Windscribe's apps will work just fine.

Windscribe's Mac app is an impressive piece of work (Image credit: Windscribe)Mac app

If you're a Mac user then you'll doubtless be very familiar with VPN providers largely ignoring all your needs, saving their best features for Windows and leaving you with the bare minimum. But here's some good news: Windscribe hates that approach just as much as you do, and its Mac app is as close a match to the Windows edition as anyone could expect.

Take the interface, for instance. There are no pointless variations, no 'do it this way on Windows, but that way on Mac' rules to remember. It's the same stylish look, the same icons, the same main menus, and almost the same options, all in the same order.

Mac VPN apps generally don't have as many advanced features as Windows, mostly because Apple's security model doesn't give them as much control over your device. Seems like no-one told Windscribe this, though, because its Mac app has all the key features we saw on Windows: WireGuard support, the firewall (kill switch), custom DNS settings, MAC spoofing, split tunneling, port and protocol options, network allow-listing, proxy support and more.

If your VPN needs are simple, or you're just not interested in the low-level tech, all this power might sound intimidating. No need to worry, though: unless you click the Menu icon and go exploring, you'll never even know these options are there.

Whether you fine-tune every setting or ignore them entirely, the Mac app is generally very easy to use. Tap the On/Off button and you're speedily connected to your nearest server, then tap again to disconnect, and there's a list of other locations if you need them.

The app still looks a little more complex than some of the competition, just because it has more icons, buttons and status information. But, generally, it's a well-designed mix of functionality and ease of use, and a must-see for any Mac user looking for a little extra power.

The mobile apps are good, too (Image credit: Windscribe)Mobile apps

Windscribe's Android app follows a similar design to the Windows version, with the same gorgeous background flags, the big On/Off button, and details on your new IP and preferred protocol.

A list of countries (expandable to city level) makes it easy to find the server you want. You can switch to list Favorites and specialist Streaming locations. There's also a Custom Config list that might enable using other VPN servers with Windscribe's interface and features.

A comprehensive Preferences screen comes absolutely stuffed with features. The Connection panel alone enables choosing between WireGuard, OpenVPN UDP, TCP, IKEv2 or Stealth, and selecting your preferred port, as well as choosing which apps use the VPN, and which don't (split tunneling). It also provides integration with Android's Always-On feature to let you set up a system-wide kill switch, or enable GPS spoofing, define a packet size, allow or block local network traffic, and more.

A Network Whitelisting tool enables automatically connecting to Windscribe whenever untrusted networks are accessed while ignoring others. So, for instance, you can configure the service to automatically connect when you access Wi-Fi on the train, but stay offline when you're at home or work.

Windscribe's iOS app earned bonus points immediately for an unusual privacy plus. The app detects your external IP and network but can blur them, ensuring you won't give away clues to your identity if you share a screenshot.

Although the app can't match the Windows edition for power, it still has wide protocol support, kill switch, and ad, malware, and content blocking. That's already outperforming most iOS apps, but it's Windscribe's more unusual options that really help it stand out from the crowd. Most VPN apps can't access servers from another provider, for instance, or allow you to set a preferred protocol depending on the network you connect to.

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Windscribe even offers browser extensions for most popular web browsers (Image credit: Windscribe)Browser extensions

Windscribe's Chrome, Edge, and Firefox extensions provide a quick and easy way to connect to the VPN from your browser. This has its limitations – they're simple proxies and only protect your browser traffic – but if you only need the VPN for basic browsing tasks, they're your most convenient and straightforward option.

The extensions make an immediate positive impression, courtesy of a stylish interface along the lines of the desktop and mobile apps. The basic operations work much as you'd expect. Autopilot mode enables connecting to the best location with a click, you're able to choose countries or individual cities from a list, and set your most commonly used cities as Favorites.

There are some nifty privacy features with the extensions (Image credit: Windscribe)

Need more? The extension can block WebRTC leaks, fake your GPS location, time zone, and language to match your chosen Windscribe server, keep switching your browser user agent to make you more difficult to track, stop websites begging you to let them show notifications, and even delete first or third-party cookies when you close the tab.

The browser extensions support Windscribe's ad and malware-blocking tool ROBERT, even for free users. Known malicious and phishing sites, bandwidth-sapping ads, trackers, social media widgets, and other nasties can all be exterminated in a click or two.

The sheer volume of options can make the extensions look complicated but Windscribe does a lot to help. A small start-up tutorial explains which buttons do what, and a useful additional introduction is that the many settings each have a sentence or two describing what they're all about.

Put it all together and this is a very capable extension that delivers far more than you'll get with other VPN providers, and even many standalone Chrome privacy extensions. Don't just take our word for it – the excellent 4.7 rating on the Chrome store suggests most users agree.

Windscribe has a knowledgebase but it's rather lacking (Image credit: Windscribe)Support

If you have any technical troubles, Windscribe's support site is a good place to begin looking for answers. Resources start with collections of articles on common topics, including 'getting started' guides, technical troubleshooting, billing questions, and some general FAQs.

These tutorials don't always have the range and depth we'd like, but they more than cover the basics. The Android setup guide doesn't just say ‘go install the app at Google Play', for instance, as we often see with lesser providers. It quickly explains what a VPN is for, gives a link to the Play Store, an alternative direct APK download if you need it, and covers the setup and usage basics, complete with helpful screenshots.

If your problem isn't covered by the website, you can always contact support directly via a ticket system (there's no live chat). In our experience, replies can sometimes take around a day to arrive. When they do, they're friendly, accurate, and complete. We think they're generally well worth the wait.

Windscribe review: Final verdict

Windscribe is a likable VPN, with good-looking and powerful apps, expert-level features, and one of the most generous free VPN plans around. The array of advanced options and settings means this probably isn't the best choice for newcomers or anyone only looking for the VPN basics. If you're unsure about Winscribe, there's an easy and risk-free way to find out for sure. Just install the free version and see how it works for you.

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