What is the best Dashlane alternative?
Dashlane has long been a popular choice for password management, but limitations on pricing models, sharing, and transparency make it less than ideal for many people and businesses. Crucially, Dashlane has no free plan, a major barrier to accessibility.
If you’re looking for an open-source solution that delivers strong privacy and greater value, there are alternatives to Dashlane that might be a better fit for you.
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About Dashlane
Dashlane is an established password manager headquartered in the US that serves both individuals and organizations. Known for its user-friendly and intuitive interface, Dashlane offers robust features such as credential storage and management, dark web monitoring, phishing alerts, and VPN access.
For businesses, Dashlane provides identity and access management through comprehensive administrative tools and its proprietary credential security platform Omnix, enabling teams to monitor employee credential security and proactively detect risks. Given its advanced capabilities and pricing, Dashlane tends to be better suited for large organizations that require extensive risk management and security oversight. While it delivers robust protection and convenience, Dashlane is only partially open-source, meaning some of its core infrastructure and code cannot be independently audited for verification.
Why consider an alternative to Dashlane?
While Dashlane is widely used, it also comes with various drawbacks in terms of features, cost, and transparency, making it a less appealing choice for many individuals and smaller businesses.
No free plan
Dashlane discontinued its free plan as of September 15, 2025. Existing free accounts are now view-only, forcing affected users to upgrade to a paid subscription simply to regain account functionality, and prospective users can only try out Dashlane for 14 days before needing to upgrade.
Costly pricing
For organizations looking to balance security with cost, Dashlane’s pricing structure is both inflexible and disproportionately expensive. Its entry‑level Password Management plan costs roughly three times that of competitors, and there is no cheaper tier for basic needs, forcing small and budget-constrained teams to pay for unnecessary features. Even the higher‑tier Enterprise bundles, which add advanced controls, are priced significantly higher against comparable feature sets from other password managers. As a company scales, these premiums can escalate into thousands of dollars annually without delivering any unique value.
Restrictive sharing flexibility
Dashlane’s lack of sharing flexibility is a major drawback, with sharing limited to only within its ecosystem. This makes it difficult to share credentials with family, friends, or collaborators who use other tools. And for businesses, this creates extra friction when working with external partners, contractors, or clients, often forcing users to adopt workarounds, which can compromise security.
No email aliases
Dashlane does not offer built-in support for creating or managing email aliases, a feature that helps keep your real address private and significantly reduces spam. For individuals, this means having less control over online privacy when signing up for new accounts or newsletters. For businesses, it means there’s no easy way to protect company domains, compartmentalize identities, and track data leaks.
Limited transparency
Only parts of Dashlane’s mobile apps are public, while the rest of its core service, including its backend and extensions, are closed-source. Customers have to rely on Dashlane’s claims and selective audits instead of fully verifiable, community-reviewed code. Additionally, Dashlane is based in the US and runs on AWS infrastructure. This can conflict with organizations that have strict privacy, data sovereignty, or infrastructure-control requirements.
What to look for in a Dashlane alternative
When choosing a Dashlane alternative — or any other password manager — it's important to evaluate factors such as privacy protections, usability, and long-term value.
This means opting for alternatives that are fully open-source with self-hosted infrastructure, and ideally based in jurisdictions that align with data compliance regulations such as GDPR and HIPAA for businesses in highly-regulated sectors. Ease of use and convenience are also paramount; a password manager that includes quality-of-life features such as secure sharing outside of its ecosystem and email aliases is much easier to adopt for both personal and professional use. And since Dashlane has phased out its free plan, look for options that do offer free tiers, affordable and scalable plans, and are specifically designed to accommodate evolving needs, particularly for growing teams.
How does Dashlane compare to other password managers?
 undefined |  undefined |  undefined |  undefined |  undefined | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Free tier plan | Limited to one device | |||||
Protected by Swiss privacy laws | ||||||
Includes privacy ecosystem | ||||||
Operates its own servers | ||||||
Open source | ||||||
Proactive account protection (Sentinel) | ||||||
Built-in hide-my-email aliases | ||||||
Built-in 2FA | ||||||
Password health checks & breach monitoring | ||||||
Secure sharing | ||||||
External sharing (with non-users) | Limited* | |||||
SSO and SCIM integration | ||||||
Admin console & user management | ||||||
Security policies (password rules, access controls) | ||||||
End-to-end encryption |
* You can’t share individual items directly from your vault, but you can generate a temporary link for a secure note using a Bitwarden Send account.
Top password managers
1Password
1Password stands out for its strong security foundation and polished interface, with features such as built-in authenticator and passkey support, password health monitoring, and convenient sharing, alongside granular policy controls, single sign-on (SSO) authentication, and automated provisioning.
However, 1Password also has no free plan, requiring all users to pay for premium features from the get-go. Reviewers have also cited a steeper learning curve using 1Password compared to lightweight password managers, making it more complex to adopt for both personal and business use. It is also closed-source, which means users aren’t able to verify the security of the apps. Additionally, businesses with strict data sovereignty needs may have concerns with using 1Password, as it is headquartered in Canada and utilizes US-based infrastructure.
LastPass
As one of the more established password managers, LastPass boasts a wealth of password management and administrative features, including secure credential sharing and passwordless login.
However, LastPass’s history of security breaches is a significant concern for many organizations, with credentials stolen from users in 2022 being linked to a series of cyberheists as recently as January 2024. LastPass doesn’t offer built-in two-factor authentication, putting the onus of extra security on the user to download and set up a separate app. Additionally, sharing flexibility is limited only to other LastPass users, and being a closed-source product, LastPass’s proprietary code is not publicly auditable, requiring users to simply trust their security implementation.
Bitwarden
Bitwarden's strengths are centered on value and openness, with a free plan for personal use that supports password sharing and robust security features such as 2FA and biometric logins. Its affordable business pricing also includes enterprise features like SSO, SCIM support, and the ability to set organization-wide policies. Bitwarden is also fully open source, which is appealing for those that prioritize transparency and customizability or require self-hosting.
On the other hand, Bitwarden’s non-intuitive user interface and utilitarian design make ease-of-use and adoption a challenge. Sharing credentials can also be complex for non-technical users and those unfamiliar with Bitwarden’s terminology. Bitwarden also offers less flexibility for storing specialized item types with only five predefined item types — users who want other types have to create their own custom fields.
Why Proton Pass is the better alternative to Dashlane
With a host of features, cost-effective pricing, easy-to-use interface and strong privacy protections, there’s no other Dashlane alternative that can match up to Proton Pass. Here’s why Proton Pass is better than Dashlane:
Accessible and affordable
Unlike Dashlane, Proton Pass still offers a true free tier that allows users to adopt and test the service fully before deciding to upgrade. Our premium plans are also flexible and budget-friendly with various billing options that especially benefit small businesses, startups, and nonprofits.
Greater sharing flexibility
Dashlane restricts sharing to its user base, but Proton Pass enables you to securely share credentials with anyone, even if they do not use Proton. This drastically simplifies day-to-day use, whether it’s sharing accounts with family to streamlining cross-organizational collaboration with contractors, clients, and external partners. Most importantly, this flexibility never compromises security: all shared data remains end-to-end encrypted and zero-knowledge protected.
Shield your identity with hide-my-email aliases
Proton Pass, unlike Dashlane, offers built-in support for email aliases, automatically generating unique aliases that mask your real email address when signing up for new online accounts. This feature is vital in reducing spam and preventing phishing attacks and data breaches. Free users receive 10 aliases, and premium users enjoy unlimited identity protection.
Protect your data with open-source security
All Proton apps and extensions are fully open source, offering significantly more transparency than Dashlane’s only partial open-source release. Proton also publishes independent third-party security audits, allowing public verification of its security claims. Furthermore, Proton owns and operates its own infrastructure, avoiding reliance on third-party cloud providers. By hosting its services in Switzerland and other privacy-focused jurisdictions, Proton Pass offers businesses enhanced data sovereignty and compliance assurances that US-based solutions simply cannot match.
Protect your data with open-source security
All Proton apps and extensions are fully open source, offering significantly more transparency than Dashlane’s only partial open-source release. Proton also publishes independent third-party security audits, allowing public verification of its security claims. Furthermore, Proton owns and operates its own infrastructure, avoiding reliance on third-party cloud providers. By hosting its services in Switzerland and other privacy-focused jurisdictions, Proton Pass offers businesses enhanced data sovereignty and compliance assurances that US-based solutions simply cannot match.
Proton Pass is part of a secure ecosystem
When you choose Proton Pass as your Dashlane alternative, you also unlock a suite of end-to-end encrypted tools. For teams, this means consolidating multiple security tools under a single trust-based provider.
Proton Mail
Protect all your business communications and ensure every message stays private with a secure email service.
Calendar
Easily organize your professional schedule and streamline meeting planning with a calendar built for privacy.
Drive
Keep your files safe and collaborate on docs in real time. Store, manage, and share securely with encrypted cloud storage.
Proton VPN
Secure your business’s network traffic instantly with a powerful VPN. Safeguard sensitive data, enable safer remote work, and defend against snoops and hackers.
More than 100 million people and 50,000 businesses trust Proton to protect their data
ZDNET
Best free password manager for privacy. Proton pass is a well-designed secure password manager with a handful of unique features. Best free password manager for privacy. Proton pass is a well-designed secure password manager with a handful of unique features.
Linus Tech Tips
Proton has a password manager that got really good, and really quickly. It has support for making burner emails, or aliases, two-factor support, passkey support, and recently, gained the ability to lock your account with a different password than your account password.
Digital Trends
Overall, I’d recommend Proton Pass as the best password manager, especially if you’re looking for a free low-cost paid that’s most intuitive and offers the easiest sharing.
Switch from Dashlane to Proton Pass
Start using Proton Pass as a powerful, free alternative to LastPass in a few clicks.
Step 1:
Open Dashlane and export your data
Step 2:
Import your data to Proton Pass. That’s it!
Frequently asked questions
- Why is Proton Pass the better alternative to Dashlane?
- How can I move my credentials from Dashlane to Proton Pass?