Proton Pass vs Bitwarden
Both have free plans that work on unlimited devices, so the choice is what you want next. Bitwarden if you want the lower price (Premium $1.65 a month billed annually) and open-source code you can self-host. Proton Pass if you want hide-my-email aliases, dark web monitoring, and the option to fold it into Proton Mail, VPN and Drive for $9.99 a month. On storing and filling passwords, with passkeys, on every platform, they are equivalent.
Side by side, from the two pricing pages
| Feature | Bitwarden | Proton Pass |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Unlimited devices; share with 1 user; Bitwarden Send | Unlimited devices; 10 aliases; 2 vaults; share with 2 |
| Individual paid | Premium $1.65/mo annual ($19.80/yr) | Pass Plus $2.99/mo ($35.88/yr; $4.99 regular shown) |
| Family | $3.99/mo, 6 users | $4.99/mo ($59.88/yr), 6 users |
| Email aliases | Email alias integration (third-party services) | Built-in hide-my-email: 10 free, unlimited on Plus |
| Authenticator | Premium | Plus and up |
| Code and jurisdiction | Open source, self-host | End-to-end, zero-knowledge, Swiss jurisdiction |
| Bundle | None | Proton Unlimited $9.99/mo: Mail, Calendar, VPN, Drive |
Two free plans that are actually free
This is the rare comparison where neither free plan is a trap. Bitwarden Free stores unlimited items on unlimited devices, manages passkeys, generates credentials, exports encrypted backups, shares with one other user and sends one-off secrets through Bitwarden Send. Proton Pass Free stores unlimited logins and cards on unlimited devices with passkeys, gives you two vaults, sharing with two others and 10 hide-my-email aliases. A person who never pays either company gets a working password manager from both; the alias count is the one feature that separates them at $0.
What the paid tiers buy
Bitwarden Premium, $19.80 a year, adds the integrated authenticator, encrypted file attachments, emergency access, vault health reports and priority support. Proton Pass Plus, $35.88 a year (its page shows $2.99 a month against a $4.99 regular price, so treat the lower figure as current rather than permanent), adds the built-in 2FA authenticator, unlimited aliases with custom domains, vault and link sharing, dark web monitoring, file attachments, emergency access and Proton Sentinel account protection. The authenticator, attachments and emergency access are in both; aliases, dark web monitoring and Sentinel are Proton's extras, and the $16 a year difference is the price of them.
The Proton bundle changes the maths
If you would pay for encrypted email or a VPN anyway, Proton Unlimited at $119.88 a year includes Pass Plus alongside Proton Mail, Calendar, VPN and Drive with 500 GB of storage. Bitwarden has no equivalent; it is a password manager and nothing else, which is also why its Premium price is so low. Compare the bundle against what you already pay for those services rather than against Bitwarden.
Code, hosting and jurisdiction
Bitwarden's page lists open-source security as a core feature and offers self-hosting for people who want to run their own server. Proton's page makes a different claim: zero-knowledge end-to-end encryption and Swiss data-privacy law, plus the Sentinel programme on paid plans. Both are legitimate positions; they appeal to different kinds of caution. Someone who wants to read the code and host it themselves is a Bitwarden customer. Someone who wants a privacy-first company in a strong jurisdiction to handle everything is a Proton customer.
Bitwarden
✓ Pros
- Lowest paid price here: $19.80 a year
- Open source with a self-hosting option
- Free plan includes Send and sharing with one user
- Families: six users for $3.99 a month
✗ Cons
- No built-in email aliases; relies on third-party alias services
- No bundle with mail or VPN
- Plainer apps
Proton Pass
✓ Pros
- 10 hide-my-email aliases free, unlimited on Plus
- Dark web monitoring and Sentinel on paid plans
- Bundles with Proton Mail, VPN and Drive
- 30-day money-back guarantee
✗ Cons
- Pass Plus costs $16 a year more than Bitwarden Premium
- The $2.99 price is shown against a $4.99 regular price
- No self-hosting
Verdict
Bitwarden for the lowest price and for anyone who cares about open source or self-hosting. Proton Pass for anyone who wants aliases built in, or who is going to buy Proton Mail or VPN and would rather have one bill. If you will never pay, it is a coin flip decided by whether you want aliases or Bitwarden Send.
Bitwarden
- Free plan Yes: unlimited devices and passwords, passkeys, generator, sharing with one other user, Bitwarden Send
- Premium $1.65/month billed annually ($19.80): authenticator (TOTP), file attachments, emergency access, vault health reports
- Families $3.99/month billed annually ($47.88): 6 premium accounts, unlimited sharing and collections
- Open source Yes, listed as a core feature ("open source security")
- Self-hosting Yes, self-host options listed
- Apps Browser, mobile and desktop apps
- Free trial Families plan has a free trial; Premium is bought outright
Facts from Bitwarden's pricing page, checked 2026-09-05.
Proton Pass
- Free plan Yes: unlimited logins, unlimited devices, passkeys, 10 hide-my-email aliases, 2 vaults, sharing with 2 others
- Pass Plus $2.99/month billed $35.88 yearly (shown against a $4.99 regular price): unlimited aliases, built-in 2FA, vault and link sharing, dark web monitoring, file attachments, emergency access
- Pass Family $4.99/month billed $59.88 yearly: everything in Plus for up to 6 users, admin panel
- Proton Unlimited $9.99/month billed $119.88 yearly: Pass plus Proton Mail, Calendar, VPN and Drive
- Encryption End-to-end, zero-knowledge; Swiss jurisdiction
- Apps Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux; web app; Chrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox, Brave extensions
- Guarantee 30-day money-back guarantee
Facts from Proton Pass's pricing page, checked 2026-09-05.
Frequently Asked Questions
They are the two password managers with free plans that work on unlimited devices, and they split on what you pay for next. Bitwarden is cheaper (Premium $1.65 a month annually against Pass Plus at $2.99) and offers open-source self-hosting. Proton Pass gives you hide-my-email aliases (10 free, unlimited on Plus), dark web monitoring, and the option to bundle Proton Mail, VPN and Drive for $9.99 a month. Pick Bitwarden for price and self-hosting, Proton Pass for aliases and the Proton bundle.
Both cover unlimited logins on unlimited devices with passkeys and a generator. Bitwarden Free adds sharing with one other user, Bitwarden Send and encrypted export. Proton Pass Free adds 10 hide-my-email aliases, 2 vaults and sharing with 2 others. If you want aliases, Proton; if you want to send secrets to people who are not users, Bitwarden.
Bitwarden Families is $3.99 a month billed annually for six users; Proton Pass Family is $4.99 a month billed $59.88 a year for six users. Both include the paid features for every member.
Proton describes Proton Pass as end-to-end encrypted with zero-knowledge encryption under Swiss jurisdiction; its pricing page does not use the phrase open source and offers no self-hosting. Bitwarden lists open-source security as a core feature and offers self-hosting. Proton publishes its apps' code elsewhere; check Proton's own open-source page for the current list.
Every price here was read from the two vendors' pricing pages on 2026-09-05. Proton's page shows Pass Plus at $2.99 a month against a $4.99 regular price, so the lower figure may be promotional; the linked page is the authority.