Dashlane vs Keeper: Which Password Manager Should You Choose?

In today‘s digital world, we all struggle to create, remember and manage the dozens of passwords we need to access our online accounts. From email and banking to shopping and social media, almost every site requires us to log in with a username and password. Security experts recommend using a unique, complex password for each account to prevent a single data breach from compromising all your logins. But how can anyone possibly remember so many passwords?

The solution is to use a password manager. These apps securely store all your logins in an encrypted vault, automatically fill in your username and password when you visit a site, and can even generate secure new passwords when you sign up for a new service. Two of the most popular and highly-rated password managers are Dashlane and Keeper. In this post, we‘ll compare these tools head-to-head to help you decide which one is the best fit for your needs.

Platforms and Browser Support

A crucial factor in choosing a password manager is making sure it works across all the devices and platforms you use. Both Dashlane and Keeper offer broad support:

Desktop platforms: Dashlane and Keeper both provide desktop apps for Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome OS. It‘s a tie.

Mobile devices: Both have mobile apps for iOS and Android. Keeper pulls ahead by also supporting Windows Phone, Kindle, and Blackberry devices.

Browsers: The two password managers offer extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Microsoft Internet Explorer and Edge. Again, it‘s a tie.

Winner: Keeper. Although both services work on mainstream operating systems and browsers, Keeper also supports some niche mobile platforms that Dashlane does not.

Filling and Generating Passwords

The core purpose of a password manager is to make logging into your online accounts effortless while encouraging the use of strong, unique passwords. Let‘s see how Dashlane and Keeper stack up.

Both apps allow you to add existing passwords to your vault in several ways – by typing them in manually, capturing them as you log into a site, or importing from your browser or another password manager. Once you have passwords stored, Dashlane and Keeper can both automatically fill in your username and password when you visit that site‘s login page.

However, Dashlane offers more flexibility by letting you customize the auto-fill behavior for each site. For example, you may wish to require typing the master password for sensitive logins like your bank, while allowing other sites to log in automatically. Keeper lacks this per-site customization.

Winner: Dashlane. The ability to tweak auto-fill settings for each login gives you more control over the balance of security and convenience.

When you sign up for a new online service, both Dashlane and Keeper can generate a strong, random password for you. You can adjust the length and types of characters to include. Since you don‘t have to remember the password yourself, you can create passwords that are as long and complex as the site allows, making them virtually impossible to guess or crack.

Winner: Tie. Dashlane and Keeper offer comparable password generation capabilities.

Security

Entrusting all your passwords to an app requires confidence that your data will be protected from unauthorized access. Dashlane and Keeper provide multiple layers of defense:

Master password: All of your vault data is encrypted, and can only be unlocked with your master password. Both apps allow you to use a nice long passphrase for maximum security.

Two-factor authentication: For an additional line of defense, you can enable 2FA, requiring a special one-time code in addition to your master password to access your vault. Dashlane offers 2FA for all accounts, with more options for premium subscribers. With Keeper, 2FA is only available on paid plans.

Self-destruct: Keeper has a unique feature that will erase all your vault data after five failed password attempts. This prevents a thief from trying to hack your master password by guessing over and over.

Winner: Tie. Both password managers take security seriously with strong encryption and 2FA support. Dashlane‘s 2FA for free users is a plus, while Keeper‘s self-destruct mode is a nice "extra".

Form Filling and Secure Storage

Besides passwords, Dashlane and Keeper can help fill in other types of information in web forms, like your contact details and credit card numbers. Simply save the information in the app, and you‘ll be able to select it from a menu when you encounter a web form that needs those details.

Dashlane goes quite a bit further, offering dedicated sections for IDs, receipts, secure notes, and other data types. There are pre-built templates for things like driver‘s licenses, passports and software licenses that make it easy to store a wide variety of sensitive information securely and access it from anywhere. You also get 1GB of secure file storage with a paid plan.

While Keeper does have a general "Identity & Payments" section for personal info and an attachments feature, it lacks the structured templates that make Dashlane so flexible. Keeper‘s file storage is an add-on that costs extra.

Winner: Dashlane. The depth of its form filling and structured secure storage vaults make it clearly superior for organizing many kinds of data beyond passwords.

Password Sharing

There are times you need to share a password with a family member, coworker, or employee. Dashlane and Keeper allow you to share individual passwords or entire folders of logins with other users, without exposing the actual password to them. This maintains security while enabling collaboration.

While Dashlane reserves advanced sharing features for its business plan, Keeper includes robust sharing with family and personal plans as well. You can choose read-only or full rights when sharing an item.

Winner: Keeper. Flexible, secure sharing is available on all Keeper plans, not just business accounts.

Security Audit

Over time, some of your passwords may become weak or compromised due to data breaches, hacks, or your own mistakes (like reusing passwords). Dashlane and Keeper will monitor your passwords and warn you of problems.

Both apps include a Security Audit that identifies weak, repeated, and compromised passwords in your vault and guides you to update them. Dashlane also has a separate Identity Dashboard that monitors the web for unauthorized use of your personal info.

Keeper takes auditing a step further with BreachWatch – it actively scans the dark web and hacking forums for signs that your passwords have been stolen. However, it‘s an extra-cost add-on. With Dashlane, dark web monitoring is included for free.

When you need to update a breached password quickly, Dashlane can automate the process for many popular sites. Keeper always requires visiting the site and changing the password yourself.

Winner: Dashlane. While both offer in-vault security analysis, Dashlane includes dark web monitoring and automated password changes for no extra charge.

Pricing and Value

Dashlane and Keeper have very different pricing structures:

Dashlane:

• Free plan: Stores up to 50 passwords on one device
• Premium plan: $39.96/year for unlimited passwords, devices and 2FA
• Premium Plus plan: Adds credit monitoring, identity restoration and insurance for $119.98/year
• Team and business plans from $48/user/year

Keeper:

• Free plan: Unlimited passwords on one device
• Keeper Password Manager: $29.99/year – unlimited devices, BreachWatch, security audit, 2FA
• Added Packs: $9.99-$19.99/year each for secure file storage, BreachWatch, KeeperChat private messenger
• Family Plan: $59.97/year for 5 users
• Business plans from $45/user/year

Comparing the free offerings, Keeper is more generous, with no limits on the number of passwords. In the mid-range, Keeper‘s basic $30 plan undercuts Dashlane Premium, but Dashlane includes some features that cost extra with Keeper, like BreachWatch and file storage, so it may be a wash for some users. At the high end, Dashlane‘s identity protection plan has no direct comparison.

Winner: Tie. Dashlane offers more for your money in some scenarios, while Keeper has an edge for users who want a low-cost or free option without giving up core functionality.

Final Verdict

After thoroughly testing both Dashlane and Keeper, I‘m convinced they are two of the best password managers available. They make it easy to securely store your login credentials and other sensitive data, and to access your information from almost any device. Strong security, convenient autofill, and actionable password auditing are standard with either app.

However, for most users, I believe Dashlane is the better overall choice. Its superb desktop apps, flexible form filling options, included file storage and dark web monitoring, and unique automated password changing give it an edge over Keeper in terms of power and value. The one exception would be if you primarily use less common mobile platforms like Windows Phone or Blackberry – Keeper‘s support for those devices could be a deciding factor.

My recommendation: take advantage of both services‘ 30-day free trials and see for yourself which one is the best fit for your digital life. With a password manager as good as Dashlane or Keeper in your corner, you‘ll never need to worry about forgetting a password or getting locked out of an account again.