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Level 1 · First steps2 min read

Set up a password manager: the first half hour

How to set up a password manager step by step: the main password, the recovery sheet, two-factor sign-in, the apps, and the first passwords to change.

Illustration: a check mark icon in a rounded tile, with the title Set up a password manager

Key points

  • The most important step is the main password: long, used nowhere else, and written down in a safe place.
  • Most makers cannot reset it. Prepare for its loss on the first day, with a recovery sheet or a trusted contact.
  • Then turn on two-factor sign-in, install the apps, and change the passwords of your email and your bank first.

The steps

  1. Create your account with a long main password. The US standards body NIST asks for at least 15 characters for passwords used alone, and says length counts more than special characters. Several random words are easy to remember and hard to guess. Use this password nowhere else.
  2. Save your recovery information. 1Password gives you an Emergency Kit, a PDF with your sign-in address, your email address, your Secret Key, and space to write your main password. It advises printing it and keeping it with your passport or in a safe deposit box. Bitwarden states that it cannot reset a forgotten main password. Its options are a password hint, a device that is still unlocked, a trusted emergency contact, or a passkey set up for logging in.
  3. Turn on two-factor sign-in for the password manager account, with an authenticator app or a security key.
  4. Install the apps on your phone and computer, and the extension in every browser you use.
  5. Move your passwords from the browser into the manager. The guide Move your passwords from your browser shows how.
  6. Change your most important passwords first. Start with your email, because it can reset all other accounts, then your bank, your shopping accounts, and social media. Let the manager create each new password.
  7. Lock your devices with a PIN, a password, or biometrics. The BSI points out that a main password offers only a minimum of protection and advises securing your devices as well.

What to do over the next weeks

You do not have to change every password on the first day. Each time you sign in somewhere, let the manager replace the old password with a new one. After a few weeks, most of your accounts have their own password.

Next step

The guide Password managers: free or paid? shows what free plans leave out.

The figures in this guide come from the archive and change with every data update. As of November 13, 2026.

Check it with the archive's data

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