Password Managers For Business 2024 Buyers Guide
Other Password Managers For Business:
The password managers space is competitive, and in addition to the above shortlist list, here are some additional tools we have tested:
- Authlogics: A real-time password manager solution that enforces password policy requirements.
- Avatier: All-in-one single sign on and password policy solution.
- Bravura Pass: Enables self-service management of passwords and other credentials.
- CyberArk: Comprehensive IAM solution including SSO, MFA, secure web browsing, identity compliance and workforce password management.
- EnPass Password Manager: Secure GDPR compliant password and passkey management.
- Google Password Manager: Browser-based password manager built into Chrome and Android.
- Apple Passwords: Apple’s password manager built into iOS, iPadOS, and MacOS.
- KeePass: Free and open-source password manager which securely stores passwords on one database.
- LastPass: A market leader in the password manager space. In 2023, LastPass disclosed two security incidents that affected customers due to vulnerabilities in third-party software.
- ManageEngine Password Manager Pro: Secure, on-prem password manager used by thousands of businesses globally.
- Norton Password Manager: Free browser-based password manager with passwordless support and a clear dashboard.
- SailPoint Password Management: Enterprise identity platform, including Zero Trust solutions, identity governance, and compliance management.
- Zoho Vault: Easy-to-use password manager, supporting folders, audits, and admin controls.
Password Managers For Business: Buyers Guide
We recommend that all organizations should be using a workforce password manager tool. But the market is competitive – and finding the right tool can be a challenge. In this short buyer’s guide, we’ll cover:
- How password managers work
- The benefits of password managers
- The challenges to watch out for
- Features checklist
- Recommendations
- Where the password manager market is heading
Why It Matters: The majority of data breaches are caused by weak or compromised passwords. Password managers help to enforce strong password policies and give admins more oversight into business password hygiene.
- 61% of data breaches are caused by compromised credentials (Verizon)
- Two-thirds of Americans reuse the same passwords across accounts (Google)
- The average person has over 100 passwords to remember (Nordpass)
What Do The Experts Say? Organizations need a password manager to sit alongside other identity controls like single sign-on.
- “SSO isn’t enough anymore. CISOs of businesses of all sizes recognize that they’ve got to start looking at and securing the applications that are not behind SSO. That really starts with using a credential manager,” John Bennett, CEO at Dashlane tells Expert Insights.
How Password Managers Work: Business password managers help end users to store their business credentials more securely.
- The core is a secure, encrypted password vault where users can store account credentials, one-time-security codes card information, and notes.
- Users access the secure vault using a master password, Passkey, or if desired a secure USB key provisioned by you. This should be reinforced with MFA.
- Within the password vault, users can sort passwords into folders and groups. They can also share passwords within their team.
- When a user creates a new account, the service automatically generates a secure password and stores this in the password vault.
For admins: Password managers enable password policy enforcement, management of secure passwords and teams, reporting into password health, and access controls, with the ability to share and revoke account access.
How It’s Deployed: Password managers are commonly delivered as cloud-based, SaaS subscription services, paid monthly or annually.
- The best tools integrate with your active directory service to allow you to easily onboard, offboard ana manage users.
What Are The Benefits? Password managers help admins to enforce secure password usage across the organization.
- Prevent password reuse: Admins can view reports and enforce policies to prevent users from reusing credentials across multiple sites.
- Discover compromised credentials: Many tools offer dark web scanning to alert admins when credentials have appeared in a data breach.
- Enforce password policies: Password managers can be used to help admins enforce policies around length and complexity.
- Promote security hygiene: These tools help end users take more responsibility over their own password security.
- Secure password sharing: End users are able to share passwords securely within the team, with full admin oversight.
What Are The Risks? There are some risks to be aware of when considering a password manager for your business.
- Ease of use: It’s important that your platform is easy-to-use. If it’s not, end users will continue to share passwords offline.
- Weak master passwords: If end users choose weak master passwords, malicious actors could compromise the vault. We recommend enforcing MFA, and if possible secure FIDO2 Passkeys (more on these later).
- Forgotten master password: Some password managers have no account recovery options if the user forgets their master password. This can have a big impact on productivity – it’s an important point to be aware of.
Can password managers be hacked? Yes, password managers can be hacked. Password managers keep all of your passwords in one place, and if you don’t have robust multi-factor authentication place for your password manager, it’s possible the secure password vault could be compromised.
Features Checklist: When choosing an email security solution, there are several features we recommend looking for:
- A user-friendly password vault
- Secure password sharing functionality, with shared passwords hidden
- Browser plug-in for automatic password collection and password auto-fill
- Support for FIDO2 passkeys
- Reporting of weak and re-used passwords
- Notification when passwords have appeared in a data breach
- Secure password generator when creating new accounts
- Password groups and folders
- Admin policies and reporting
- MFA & SSO for account access
Recommendations: Our advice for choosing a password manager is:
- Prioritize ease of use for end users. Password managers should be one of the few security tools that help end users rather than frustrate them.
- Look for granular admin controls to track, manage, and enforce secure password hygiene across the organization.
- Monitor the security of the vendor. Several vendors have had breaches and data loss incidents. Choose a password manager you trust.
- Integrations are important – look for a tool that can connect with your wider IAM stack.
- Look for support for FIDO2 passkeys. As SaaS services move towards passwordless authentication, managing passkeys within the password manager has added importance.
Where Is The Password Manager Market Headed? The main driver for change in the password manager space is the rise of FIDO2 Passkeys.
What Are FIDO2 Passkeys? Passkeys are a passwordless authentication technology that replace the use of passwords with the industry FIDO2 standard.
- Authentication is completed with a private key held on the local device, then matched with a public key registered the password manager.
- Combined with an extra verification step leveraging biometric controls, or a physical hardware token, this offers powerful security benefits and means the password cannot be forgotten or phished.
While Passkeys could end up replacing passwords altogether, they do have some drawbacks. Because the authentication token is stored on the machine, they can be tricky to use across different devices and operating systems.
- “Passkeys are such an amazing advancement in cryptography. It’s more secure, it’s phishing resistant, and on top of that, it’s actually a delightful user experience. But there’s a lot to be sorted out still,” says John Bennett.
For this reason, many password managers are beginning to store FIDO tokens within the secure password vault. This allows users to authenticate using their FIDO passkeys across multiple devices and operating systems.
The Bottom Line: When considering a password manager solution, make sure to consider where the future of passwords is heading, and how your chosen tool will support Passkeys as they continue to roll out.
Best Business Password Managers: Shortlist FAQs
Why should you trust this Shortlist?
This article has been technically reviewed by Craig MacAlpine, Expert Insights CEO and founder. Craig is an experienced cybersecurity expert innovator with over 25+ years’ experience in SMB cybersecurity. He has founded a number of other cyber security companies, including the email security company EPA Cloud (Acquired by J2 Global, NASDAQ:JCOM, in 2013).
This article was written by the Content Director at Expert Insights, who has been covering cybersecurity, including identity and access management, for over 6 years.
Research for this guide included:
- Conducting first-hand technical reviews and testing of 12+ business password managers.
- Interviewing dozens of executives in the identity and access management and password manager industry for first hand insight into the challenges and strengths of different password managers for business.
- Speaking to multiple organizations of all sizes globally about their identity services, specifically their password related challenges and features.
- Read a wide range of third-party and customer reviews from multiple outlets including executive industry reports.
This guide is updated at least every 3-months to review the vendors included and ensure features listed are up to date.
Who is this Shortlist for?
All organizations should have a robust password manager. In this article, we highlight dedicated password managers for SMBs, and platforms geared toward the enterprise, which integrate additional Identity and Access Management (IAM) capabilities such as user authentication and single sign-on. This list has been written with this broad audience in mind.
How was the Shortlist picked?
When considering business password managers, we chose providers based on the following criteria:
Features: Based on conversations with vendors, end customers, and our own testing, we selected the following key features:
- User Experience: How easy it is for end users to save, edit, access and share passwords and other secrets in the vault. Features like folders, groups, and 2FA support. The overall design, accessibility, and speed of the desktop and mobile applications. UX is a key consideration for business password managers.
- Admin Controls: Password managers should provide granular controls for admins to govern password policies, set rules around password sharing and rotation, and view reports into password health across the organization.
- Security: We have considered platform security, such as level encryption, support for user authentication standards like FIDO, integrations with third-party security providers, and SSO/SAML support. We’ve also taken into account data breaches, which is a significant risk for password management applications.
- Additional Features: Password managers often offer extra capabilities which add to the value of the platform. Dark web monitoring, secrets management, and two-factor authentication are common examples. We’ve also considered platforms, as sometimes password managers are delivered as a feature of a broader service.
- Pricing: The total cost of the service and pricing options available for businesses of all sizes. We have not taken the approach of assuming that cheaper is better, as in a business context the cost of a stolen credential can far outweigh the monthly cost of a password manager service.
Market Perception: We reviewed each vendor included on the Shortlist to ensure they are reliable, trusted providers in the market. We reviewed their documentation, third-party analyst reports, and, where possible, we have interviewed executives directly.
Customer Usage: We use market share as a metric when comparing vendors and aim to represent high market share vendors and challenger brands with innovative capabilities. We have spoken to end-customers, and reviewed customer case studies, testimonials, and end user reviews.
Product Heritage: Finally, we have considered where a product has come from in the market. We have looked at when companies were founded, their leadership team, their mission statements, and their successes. We have also considered product updates and how regularly new features are added. We have ensured all vendors are credible leaders, providing a solution we would be happy to use ourselves.
There are over 30 vendors in the enterprise / business password management market that we are aware of. This list is designed to be a short selection of the best providers for teams to consider.
Many leading solutions have not been included in this list, with no criticism intended.
