Sharing a password with a friend, family member, or colleague can be as simple as typing it into an email and hitting send. But this common shortcut puts that account (and any others that share that password) at risk.
Emailing passwords to share Netflix logins with your flatmate or work accounts with a coworker is an easy habit to fall into, but there's a much safer way to do it. A password manager like LastPass lets you share logins securely with encryption that keeps your information private. In this guide, you'll learn why email isn't safe for passwords and discover the best alternatives to protect your accounts.
Why you shouldn't share passwords through email
When you send a password by email, it sits in your sent folder and the recipient's inbox indefinitely. Anyone who gains access to either account can see that password in plain text. That could be a hacker, someone who tricked you with a phishing email, or even just a person peeking at an unlocked phone.
Email travels across multiple servers before reaching its destination. Along the way, your password could be intercepted, copied, or stored in ways you can't control. It's like writing your bank PIN on a postcard and dropping it in the mail.
Once you hit send, you lose control of that password completely. You can't take it back, and you have no way of knowing if the recipient forwarded it to someone else or copied it somewhere insecure.
How a password manager like LastPass helps you share passwords safely
A password manager encrypts your passwords before they ever leave your device. When you share a login with someone through LastPass, the password is encrypted so that only you and your recipient can see it.
Password managers also let you share logins without revealing the actual password. Your spouse can log into the streaming account, but they never see the characters that make up the password. This keeps your passwords secure even when you're sharing access.
And because recipients never see the actual password, you stay in control. If you break up with your partner or your roommate moves out, you simply revoke their access. No need to change every shared password.
Quick guide: 6 best alternatives to sharing passwords through email
- LastPass: The best password manager, according to G2 global grid reports
- Bitwarden: Encrypted sharing links that expire after a set time
- 1Password: Shareable links that work even if the recipient doesn't have the app
- Dashlane: Supports sharing between up to 10 family members
- Keeper: Offers time-limited sharing links that expire automatically
- NordPass: Features 4 permission levels for shared items
The 6 best alternatives to sharing passwords through email
1. LastPass: The best password manager for beginners
LastPass makes it easy to share passwords securely, even if you've never used a password manager before. Set up takes just minutes, and then you can start sharing passwords the safe way with friends and family.
With a Families plan, you can share individual passwords or entire folders with up to 6 people. Want to share all your streaming logins with the household? Create a folder, add the passwords, and share it with everyone. Each family member gets their own private encrypted vault where shared items appear automatically.
You can also hide password text from recipients. A colleague covering your shift can log into a shared work account without seeing the actual password, so you don't have to reset it afterward. And if circumstances change, you revoke access with one click.
LastPass features
- One-to-many sharing: Share passwords or folders with multiple people at once
- Emergency Access: Let trusted contacts request vault access if something happens to you
- Hide password option: Recipients can use logins without seeing the actual password
- Security Dashboard: Get alerts when shared passwords are weak or compromised
- Dark web monitoring: Find out if your passwords appear in data breaches
- Autofill: Fill in login forms automatically across all your devices
- Passkey support: Create, store, and manage passkeys, which sync across all your devices
LastPass pros and cons
Pros:
- "Easy to manage shared passwords across groups, and very simple to share and retract access to passwords." –verified review
- "The ability to share passwords seamlessly with family is invaluable, as it facilitates secure and easy access to shared accounts." – verified review
- "Being able to share between employees in our department has been a massive boon. We use this constantly every day." –verified review
Cons:
- "Sometimes it gets the wrong web address so you have to pay attention to make sure the account is connected to the right site." –verified review
- "Occasionally, the mobile extension doesn't automatically fill in the passwords but it's a minor thing." –verified review
2. Bitwarden: Encrypted sharing links that expire after a set time
Bitwarden offers a free plan that lets you share passwords with one other person. It's open source, which means its code is publicly available for anyone to review and verify its security.
The Send feature creates encrypted links you can share with anyone, even people who don't use Bitwarden. These links expire automatically after a time period you choose, from one hour up to 30 days.
Bitwarden features
- Bitwarden Send: Share passwords through encrypted links that expire automatically
- Cross-platform sync: Access your passwords on any device, including desktop and mobile
- Collections: Organize shared passwords into groups with different access levels
(Platform features reflect the information available on the Bitwarden website as of the publication date.)
Bitwarden pros and cons
Pros:
- "You can create shared libraries with the organization so that all your coworkers can have access to them as well." –verified review
- "It's fantastic to securely and standardly share access passwords with colleagues in a single repository." –verified review
- "We use it to sync our passwords and OTP with each other. It's so convenient to not have to receive text or calls for 2FA codes anymore." –verified review
Cons:
- "The autofill functionality in browsers, while functional, occasionally requires manual intervention." –verified review
- "Compared to other competitors Bitwarden is behind on the UX/UI and can feel a little clunky at times." – verified review
- "Proper configuration with a browser addon and biometry requires a bit of documentation reading." – verified review
3. 1Password: Shareable links that work even if the recipient doesn't have the app
1Password lets you create shareable links that work with anyone, even if they don't have the app. You choose when the link expires (from one hour to 30 days) and can restrict access to specific email addresses.
You can also share individual items with anyone, even if they don't use 1Password. Just create a link and choose when it expires. This is handy for one-off situations where you need to send someone a password quickly.
1Password features
- Shareable links: Send passwords to anyone, with links that expire when you choose
- Unlimited vaults: Organize passwords into separate vaults for different purposes
- Watchtower: Get alerts when your passwords are weak or appear in data breaches
(Platform features reflect the information available on the 1Password website as of the publication date.)
1Password pros and cons
Pros:
- "The interface is user-friendly, even for someone who's not very tech-savvy." –verified review
- "You can have different vaults, some shared with your teammates, others with the whole company, and one personal." –verified review
- "It allows secure password sharing with other users." –verified review
Cons:
- "Shared vaults and sharing passwords could be easier to search and manage." –verified review
- "The learning curve is a little confusing, especially with the different setting menus." –verified review
- "They don't offer a free version or live-chat support." –verified review
4. Dashlane: Supports sharing between up to 10 family members
Dashlane's sharing options let you choose between Full Rights (recipients can view, edit, and reshare) or Limited Rights (recipients can only use autofill without seeing the password). This gives you control over exactly how shared passwords get used.
The Friends & Family plan covers up to 10 people, making it a good fit for larger households or extended families. Each person keeps their own private vault with complete control over what they share.
Dashlane features
- Two permission levels: Choose between full access or autofill-only for shared items
- Family plan for 10: Share with up to 10 family members or friends
- Encrypted sharing: Passwords are scrambled so only you and recipients can see them
(Platform features reflect the information available on the Dashlane website as of the publication date.)
Dashlane pros and cons
Pros:
- "It automatically saves and fills passwords, syncs across devices, and includes features like a password health check and secure sharing." – verified review
- "Additionally, being able to securely share a password with an assistant or colleague is extremely helpful." –verified review
- "My favorite function is the ability to share passwords throughout my company. It makes it easy and secure." –verified review
Cons:
- "The sharing is complicated and hard to make work as intended." –verified review
- "The autofill browser field pops up when I don't want it to, and it's sometimes difficult to clear it." –verified review
- "I don't like having to open the full website to manage my password vault." –verified review
5. Keeper: Offers time-limited sharing links that expire automatically
Keeper's One-Time Share feature lets you share passwords with anyone, including people who don't use Keeper. You set how long the link stays active (from one hour up to 90 days), and the link only works on the device that first opens it.
The Family Plan gives each of the 5 members their own private vault. You control exactly which passwords to share and can give view-only, edit, or resharing permissions for each item.
Keeper features
- One-Time Share: Create expiring links to share passwords with anyone
- Emergency Access: Let up to 5 trusted contacts access your vault if something happens to you
- Flexible permissions: Control whether recipients can view, edit, or share items
(Platform features reflect the information available on the Keeper website as of the publication date.)
Keeper pros and cons
Pros:
- "One time password share links are really helpful for our teams." –verified review
- "When someone leaves or changes roles, revoking their access is quick and doesn’t require resetting all the passwords." – verified review
- "It's a very easy to use, secure password manager, with built in two factor authentication capabilities and the ability to share passwords externally with non-subscribed users." –verified review
Cons:
- "The interface was a bit confusing at first, it just took me some getting used to." –verified review
- "Shared folders and sharing passwords with other shared folders is not as awesome as we would like." –verified review
- "Occasional syncing issues between devices, which can be a bit frustrating when trying to access passwords on the go." –verified review
6. NordPass: Features 4 permission levels for shared items
NordPass offers 4 permission levels when sharing: Can edit, Can share, Can view, and Can autofill. The autofill-only option lets recipients log in without ever seeing the actual password.
You can set sharing to expire automatically after one hour, one day, one week, or one month. This works well for temporary situations where someone only needs access for a limited time.
NordPass features
- Four permission levels: Choose exactly what recipients can do with shared items
- Time-limited sharing: Set expiration times from one hour to one month
- Family plan: Get 6 accounts with full premium features
(Platform features reflect the information available on the NordPass website as of the publication date.)
NordPass pros and cons
Pros:
- "I appreciate how NordPass Business simplifies and secures password sharing within my team." – verified review
- "It securely stores all your passwords in one place and makes sharing access with colleagues simple and safe." –verified review
- "Adjusting passwords for employees with the dashboard is very straightforward." –verified review
Cons:
- "Groups and folders are good for organizing, but make it difficult to provide additional access on individual records to specific employees." –verified review
- "Sometimes, NordPass Business experiences sync issues, where it takes a while for changes to propagate across to users." –verified review
- "Sometimes the autofill function doesn't work (even though it's authorised)." –verified review
Why LastPass is the best password manager for beginners
If you've been emailing passwords because it seemed like the easiest option, LastPass makes secure sharing just as quick. You can share a password in a few clicks, and the recipient gets it instantly in their own vault.
LastPass is consistently rated as one of the most user-friendly password managers, which is why it leads the G2 global grid reports. You get all the security features you need, like hidden passwords, one-to-many sharing, and emergency access, in an interface that feels familiar from day one.
Ready to stop putting your accounts at risk? Try LastPass today and start sharing passwords the safe way.
