1Password and LastPass both offer browser-extension-based password management, but they've diverged sharply since LastPass's 2022 breach exposed the encrypted vaults of millions of users. 1Password has never had a comparable breach. LastPass's free tier now limits users to one device type (mobile OR desktop, not both), while 1Password has no free tier at all — it starts at $2.99/month for individuals. For teams, 1Password's Travel Mode and Secret Key architecture give it a genuine security edge. LastPass is cheaper for organizations already locked into its ecosystem, but the reputational damage from the breach makes it a hard sell for security-conscious buyers in 2024 and beyond.
Quick comparison
| Feature | 1Password | LastPass |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $3/mo | Free plan |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Open source | No | No |
| Self-hostable | No | No |
| G2 rating | Not listed | Not listed |
| Best for | security-first teams, businesses with compliance requirements, and anyone who wants Travel Mode and the Secret Key model | individuals or small organizations that need a functional password manager at low cost and are comfortable with LastPass's post-breach posture |
| Starting price | $2.99/month (individual, billed annually) | Free plan available; Premium at $3/month |
| Free plan | No | Yes (limited to one device type) |
| Open source | No | No |
| Self-hostable | No | No |
| Travel Mode | Yes — hide vaults when crossing borders | No |
| Secret Key (two-factor encryption) | Yes | No |
| Security breach history | None comparable | Major breach in 2022 exposed encrypted vaults |
| Best for | security-first teams and businesses | budget-conscious individuals and small teams |
Security model
1Password's security architecture is meaningfully different from LastPass's. 1Password uses a two-secret key derivation model: your master password alone is not enough to decrypt your vault — an account-specific Secret Key is also required. This means even if 1Password's servers are breached, the attacker gets encrypted data that's practically useless without the Secret Key that never leaves your devices. LastPass uses a single master password model. In December 2022, LastPass confirmed attackers exfiltrated encrypted customer vaults. Because LastPass relies solely on master password strength, any user with a weak master password was at serious risk. 1Password also offers Travel Mode, which lets you hide entire vaults when crossing borders — a feature with no LastPass equivalent. For individuals and teams where security is non-negotiable, 1Password's architecture and breach-free track record are decisive.
Ease of use
For first-time password manager users, LastPass is slightly easier to pick up. Its free plan lets people try the full feature set before paying, and the browser extension works similarly to 1Password's. 1Password requires more deliberate onboarding: you must save your Secret Key during setup, and new devices require both credentials. That friction is the point — it's part of the security model — but it adds steps that can confuse non-technical users. 1Password's Families plan is excellent for household sharing with its guest account model, and the app design has been consistently praised for clarity. LastPass's mobile app and browser extension are both solid. The gap in usability is narrow; the gap in onboarding complexity for business rollouts is wider, where 1Password's Teams and Business plans include structured provisioning tooling.
Sharing and team controls
1Password's Teams and Business plans offer Vaults as the sharing primitive: you create a vault, assign it to a group, and control read/write/manage permissions per group. Admin controls include activity logs, granular vault access reports, and policies for password strength and two-factor authentication. LastPass uses Shared Folders for team sharing, which works but is less granular. LastPass's Teams plan ($4/user/month) caps at 50 users before you must move to Business at $6/user/month. 1Password's Teams Starter Pack is $19/month for 10 users (flat), scaling to per-seat after that. For organizations with complex permission needs — contractors, departments, compliance audits — 1Password's model is cleaner. LastPass's Sharing Center for individuals is fine, but at the team level, 1Password's vault structure is more maintainable at scale.
Pricing and value
LastPass wins on price at entry level — it has a free tier, and 1Password does not. LastPass Premium is $3/month billed annually for individuals, matching 1Password's individual plan cost. The real price gap opens at the family and team levels: LastPass Families is $4/month for up to 6 users, while 1Password Families is $4.99/month for up to 5 users — similar. At team scale, LastPass Teams is $4/user/month vs. 1Password Teams at roughly $4-5/user/month, again close. The calculus shifts when you factor in the breach risk: if a LastPass incident leads to credential rotation across your organization, the remediation cost can exceed years of 1Password subscriptions. For teams that need travel controls, Secret Key security, or have compliance requirements, 1Password's higher price is justified. For individuals on a budget with low threat models, LastPass's free tier is genuinely useful.
Platform coverage
Both tools cover all major platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. 1Password has strong CLI support and developer tooling — a 1Password CLI for scripts and CI/CD, SSH key management, and an integration with VS Code. These are meaningful for developer teams who want to store API keys and secrets alongside passwords. LastPass has integrations with SSO providers (Okta, Azure AD) on business plans, which is a genuine advantage for enterprise IT. 1Password also integrates with identity providers but adds Secrets Automation for engineering teams — a paid add-on that lets applications retrieve secrets without hardcoding them. If your team is primarily non-technical, the platform coverage is a wash. If you have developers who need secrets management alongside password management, 1Password is ahead.
Reputation and trust
This is where the comparison gets blunt. LastPass has suffered multiple security incidents: a source code breach in 2022, followed by a separate attack that exfiltrated encrypted customer vaults and metadata including URLs. LastPass's CEO communications during the incident were widely criticized for being slow and opaque. 1Password has not had a comparable incident and was notably cited by security researchers as an example of a better architecture specifically because its Secret Key model would protect users even in a LastPass-style breach. For any team processing sensitive business credentials, employee data, or customer-adjacent information, the trust gap between these two products in 2024 is substantial. Switching from LastPass to 1Password after the breach is now a common IT project, which itself signals how the security community has voted.
Pricing deep-dive
1Password
- Individual: $2.99/month billed annually
- Families: $4.99/month for up to 5 users, billed annually
- Teams Starter Pack: $19/month for up to 10 users, billed annually
- Business: ~$7.99/user/month billed annually (SSO, advanced reporting, 5 guest accounts per user)
- Enterprise: custom pricing with SIEM integrations, custom roles, and dedicated support
LastPass
- Free: $0 — limited to one device type (mobile OR desktop, not both)
- Premium: $3/month billed annually — all device types, 1GB encrypted file storage, emergency access
- Families: $4/month for up to 6 users, billed annually
- Teams: $4/user/month billed annually (up to 50 users)
- Business: $6/user/month billed annually — SSO, advanced MFA, dark web monitoring
Pricing verdict: LastPass is cheaper at entry and offers a free tier that 1Password doesn't. But the price gap between paid tiers is small — often $1-2/user/month — and the security architecture difference is large. For individuals who simply need a free password manager and have a low threat model, LastPass Free works. For anyone making a deliberate security purchase, 1Password's pricing premium is modest relative to its Secret Key model and breach-free history.
How to migrate from LastPass to 1Password
What real users say
1Password: 1Password users consistently praise the clean interface, reliable autofill, and confidence in the security model. The Secret Key setup trips up new users occasionally. At scale, admins appreciate vault-based permission management. The main complaint is cost — there's no free tier, which limits personal trial before commitment.
LastPass: LastPass users pre-2022 praised its browser extension reliability and the generous free tier. Post-breach sentiment shifted: many users report staying on LastPass due to switching inertia rather than active preference. Common current complaints include the free tier's one-device-type restriction feeling like a bait-and-switch, and lingering distrust of how LastPass communicated the breach.
Sources: Synthesized from official pricing pages, vendor docs, security community discussions, and post-breach coverage from 2022-2024.
Final verdict
Choose 1Password if...
- You need a password manager with a provably stronger security architecture — the Secret Key model means a server-side breach can't directly expose your vault.
- Your team travels internationally and needs Travel Mode to hide sensitive vaults at border crossings.
- You have developers who need secrets management (API keys, SSH keys, CI/CD credentials) integrated into the same tool as team password sharing.
Choose LastPass if...
- You need a free password manager today and are comfortable with the one-device-type restriction on the free tier.
- Your organization is already deeply embedded in the LastPass ecosystem with shared folders and SSO configuration, and the migration cost outweighs the security upgrade for your threat model.
- You need LastPass's specific SSO integrations (Okta, Azure AD) on the Business plan and have evaluated that the risk posture is acceptable.
Consider neither if: Consider Bitwarden if you want open-source transparency and self-hosting at near-zero cost — it's audited, actively maintained, and free for personal use. Consider Dashlane if you want built-in VPN alongside password management. Consider Keeper if you need FedRAMP or government-grade compliance certifications.