Dashlane vs Passbolt
A side-by-side look at Dashlane (the paid SaaS) and Passbolt (the open source alternative). Use this page to decide if the switch fits your team and workflow.
| Dashlane | Passbolt | |
|---|---|---|
| Tagline | Password manager with built-in VPN and dark-web monitoring. | Team-first password manager designed for collaboration. |
| License | Proprietary SaaS | AGPL-3.0 |
| Pricing | Premium $4.99/month; Friends & Family plans; Business $8/seat/month. | Free to self-host · optional paid hosted plan |
| Self-host option | No | Yes — difficulty 3/5 |
| Hosted cloud available | Yes (only option) | Yes |
| Desktop apps | Varies by product | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Mobile apps | Official apps typically available | iOS, Android |
Best for
Team-first workflows where sharing model and audit matter more than personal polish.
Passbolt strengths
- Fine-grained sharing between users and groups.
- PGP-based end-to-end encryption model.
- Active audits and security roadmap.
Passbolt weaknesses
- Onboarding involves PGP key setup per user.
- Enterprise features (SSO, SCIM, audit log) are paid-tier.
- Smaller ecosystem than Bitwarden.
What's the catch with Dashlane?
- Desktop apps replaced by web-only in 2022 — long-time users grumbled.
- VPN and monitoring bundle can feel upsell-heavy.
- Closed-source — you trust the vendor's claims.
Still unsure?
Check the full list of alternatives to Dashlane: see Dashlane alternatives, or learn more about Passbolt on its project page.
Other comparisons
Dashlane vs Bitwarden
A direct commercial-backed open source replacement with all the clients Dashlane ships.
Dashlane vs Vaultwarden
Running a Bitwarden-compatible server on a $5 VPS for personal or family use.
Dashlane vs KeePassXC
Die-hard local-first users who never wanted a cloud vault in the first place.
Recommended reading
When self-hosting goes wrong: seven failure modes and how to avoid them
An honest retrospective on the ways self-hosted setups break — not in theory, but in practice — and the small habits that prevent most of them.
Will the open source project you depend on still exist in three years?
Bus factor, maintainer burnout, funding models, and the signals that separate OSS projects that survive from those that quietly decay.
From SaaS to self-hosted: a 30-day migration playbook
A week-by-week plan to move one service off SaaS and onto your own server without breaking your team's workflow.