Why This Comparison Exists
If you’ve started looking into password managers for your business, you’ve probably hit the same wall most people do: there are dozens of options, the feature lists look identical, and every vendor says they’re the best. The truth is, for a 5–50 person business in Australia, you really only need to consider a handful — and the right choice depends on your priorities.
We deploy and manage password managers for our managed IT clients across Melbourne, so we’ve seen what works in practice — not just what looks good in a feature matrix. This guide reflects that hands-on experience.
This article focuses on choosing the right one. If you’re still weighing up whether your business needs one at all, start with our guide: Why Your Business Needs a Password Manager.
What We Looked For
Every password manager on this list was evaluated against the criteria that actually matter for Australian small and mid-sized businesses.
The Six Best Password Managers for Business
1Password is the password manager we deploy most often for our managed IT clients, and for good reason. The interface is polished enough that staff adopt it without resistance, the admin console gives IT teams genuine visibility and control, and the integration with Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) means it slots into existing identity infrastructure without friction.
The Business plan includes shared vaults, custom groups, activity logs, and usage reports. Travel Mode lets staff temporarily remove sensitive vaults when crossing borders — a genuine differentiator for businesses with travelling employees. Watchtower continuously monitors stored credentials against known breach databases and flags weak or reused passwords.
For businesses that need compliance reporting or SIEM integration (Splunk, Datadog), 1Password supports log streaming on the Business plan — something most competitors reserve for enterprise tiers.
Strengths
- Intuitive interface — highest adoption rates we see in practice
- SSO with Microsoft Entra ID and Okta
- SIEM log streaming on the Business plan
- Travel Mode for border-crossing security
- Watchtower breach monitoring built in
- 14-day free trial
Limitations
- Most expensive option on this list
- Sharing passwords externally (outside the vault) is clunky
- Frequent session timeouts can frustrate users
Bitwarden is the strongest alternative to 1Password — and for budget-conscious businesses, it’s arguably the smarter choice. It’s fully open-source, regularly audited by independent security firms, and delivers every core feature a business needs at a significantly lower price point.
The Teams plan includes shared collections (Bitwarden’s term for vault folders), admin controls for master password complexity and sharing policies, and a built-in TOTP authenticator. The Enterprise tier adds passwordless SSO, passkey support, and SCIM provisioning for automated onboarding.
For businesses with strict data sovereignty requirements, Bitwarden also offers self-hosting — meaning your password vault runs entirely on your own infrastructure. That’s a genuine differentiator that no other mainstream option on this list provides.
Strengths
- Open-source with regular third-party security audits
- Significantly cheaper than 1Password
- Self-hosting option for data sovereignty
- Built-in TOTP authenticator
- Smooth migration tools from other managers
Limitations
- Interface is functional but less polished
- SSO and SCIM only on Enterprise tier ($6/user/month)
- No built-in dark web monitoring on Teams plan
Keeper is worth a close look if your business is in a regulated industry — finance, legal, healthcare — or if you anticipate needing privileged access management (PAM) down the line. Its admin console is one of the most granular available, with node-based access structures, enforced policies, and detailed compliance reporting.
The Business Starter plan at $2/user/month is the cheapest entry point of any serious business password manager. The main Business plan adds advanced reporting, SCIM provisioning, and team management features. Where Keeper really stands apart is KeeperPAM — an add-on that extends the platform into session recording, browser isolation, and secrets management for DevOps teams.
One thing to note: BreachWatch (dark web monitoring) and advanced reporting are paid add-ons, not included in the base plans. Factor those into your budget if you need them.
Strengths
- Most granular admin policies of any option listed
- Cheapest entry point ($2/user/month)
- Scales into PAM without switching tools
- No reported breaches of end-user vaults
- Strong compliance documentation
Limitations
- BreachWatch and reporting are paid add-ons
- Browser autofill occasionally fills unintended fields
- Interface is less intuitive than 1Password
NordPass comes from the same company behind NordVPN and has built a clean, modern password manager that works particularly well for small teams. The Teams plan supports up to 10 users at $1.99/user/month — the cheapest per-user price on this list if you’re a small office.
It uses XChaCha20 encryption (a more modern alternative to AES-256 used by most competitors), supports biometric unlock and USB security keys, and includes a built-in authenticator for TOTP codes. The admin console provides activity logs, password health scans, and breach detection across the team.
The Business plan ($3.99/user/month) scales to 250 users and adds SSO with Google Workspace and Microsoft Entra ID. For most 5–10 person businesses, the Teams plan covers everything you need.
Strengths
- Cheapest per-user price for small teams
- Clean, modern interface
- XChaCha20 encryption
- Built-in TOTP authenticator
- Broad browser and platform support
Limitations
- Teams plan capped at 10 users
- Account recovery is limited — lost master password can be unrecoverable
- Fewer enterprise integrations than 1Password or Keeper
Dashlane has positioned itself as the password manager for businesses that want to eventually move beyond passwords entirely. Their Omnix tier ($11/user/month) adds AI-powered phishing detection and proactive credential risk scoring — features that go beyond what a traditional password vault offers.
The standard Business plan includes password health scoring, per-user hygiene dashboards for admins, secure sharing that fills credentials without revealing the actual password, and SSO integration with Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, Duo, and JumpCloud. It also includes a VPN — an unusual inclusion for a password manager.
The main drawback is price. At $8/user/month for the Business plan, Dashlane is at the top end alongside 1Password — and SCIM provisioning and SSO are limited to higher tiers.
Strengths
- AI phishing alerts on Omnix tier
- Credential sharing without revealing passwords
- Admin-assisted master password recovery
- Built-in VPN
- Modern, fast interface
Limitations
- Premium pricing ($8–$11/user/month)
- SSO and SCIM limited to higher tiers
- The AI phishing features are new and still maturing
Proton Pass comes from the team behind ProtonMail and is built on the same privacy-first philosophy. It’s headquartered in Switzerland, operates under Swiss privacy law, and has a firm no-data-sales policy. If your business handles sensitive client data and privacy is a selling point to your clients, Proton Pass sends the right signal.
The standout feature is hide-my-email aliases — unique email addresses that forward to your real inbox, so you never need to give out your actual email when signing up for services. This reduces phishing exposure and makes it harder for attackers to build a profile of your accounts.
The Professional tier adds SSO and SCIM integration with Microsoft Entra ID and Okta. The Business Suite bundles Proton Pass with ProtonMail, Proton Drive, and Proton VPN — a full privacy-focused productivity stack.
Strengths
- Swiss jurisdiction and strong privacy stance
- Hide-my-email aliases reduce phishing exposure
- Bundles with ProtonMail and Proton Drive
- Automatic TOTP code completion
- Simple onboarding and offboarding
Limitations
- Fewer third-party integrations than established tools
- Autofill can occasionally miss form fields
- Relatively newer entrant — less proven at scale
Quick Comparison
| Manager | Starting Price | Best For | SSO | Self-Host |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Password | $7.99/user/mo | Best overall | ✓ | ✗ |
| Bitwarden | $4/user/mo | Best value & open-source | Enterprise tier | ✓ |
| Keeper | $2/user/mo | Compliance & PAM | Enterprise tier | ✗ |
| NordPass | $1.99/user/mo | Small teams (<10) | Business tier | ✗ |
| Dashlane | $8/user/mo | AI phishing & passwordless | ✓ | ✗ |
| Proton Pass | $4.99/user/mo | Privacy-first | Professional tier | ✗ |
Prices are in USD and based on annual billing as of October 2026. Check each provider’s website for current Australian dollar pricing.
What About LastPass and Google Password Manager?
Two names conspicuously absent from the list above deserve a brief mention.
LastPass was the market leader for years, but a significant breach in late 2022 — in which encrypted password vaults were stolen — damaged trust considerably. While LastPass maintains that well-secured vaults remain protected, many businesses have migrated to alternatives. If you’re already on LastPass with strong master passwords and MFA enabled, the immediate risk is manageable. For new deployments, we recommend the options above.
Google Password Manager is built into Chrome and Android. It’s convenient for personal use, but it lacks the team management, admin controls, audit logging, and offboarding capabilities that businesses need. It’s also tied to the Google ecosystem — a problem if your business uses Microsoft 365. For personal browsing it’s fine. For business, use a dedicated tool.
Before you commit to a manager, check how strong your current passwords are. Use our free Password Strength Checker to test your existing passwords, or generate new ones with our Password Generator — both run entirely in your browser with nothing stored or sent.
How to Choose the Right One
With six solid options on the table, here’s a practical decision framework.
The ACSC Essential Eight includes multi-factor authentication as a required control and recommends strong credential management throughout. A business-grade password manager directly supports Essential Eight compliance. Pair it with MFA and you’ve addressed the two most common causes of account compromise.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best password manager for a small business in Australia?
For most Australian small businesses, 1Password Business is the best overall choice. It offers excellent admin controls, SSO integration with Microsoft Entra ID, detailed audit logs, and an intuitive interface that makes staff adoption easy. Bitwarden is the best alternative if budget is the primary concern — it is open-source, independently audited, and significantly cheaper.
How much does a business password manager cost?
Business password managers typically cost between $2 and $8 per user per month, billed annually. NordPass Teams starts from $1.99/user/month for small teams, Keeper Business Starter from $2/user/month, Bitwarden Teams from $4/user/month, and 1Password Business at $7.99/user/month. Most offer 14-day free trials so you can evaluate before committing.
Is a free password manager safe enough for business use?
Free password managers like Google Password Manager or Apple Keychain are fine for personal use, but they lack the admin controls, audit logs, shared vault management, and offboarding capabilities that businesses need. Without centralised management, you have no way to revoke access when staff leave, no visibility into password health across the team, and no compliance reporting. Business plans are a small investment that closes significant security gaps.
Should I use Google Password Manager or a dedicated password manager?
Google Password Manager is convenient for individuals but is not suitable for business use. It lacks team vault sharing, admin-level access controls, audit logging, offboarding workflows, and compliance reporting. It is also tied to a single browser ecosystem. A dedicated business password manager gives your IT team the visibility and control needed to manage credentials securely.
Can I migrate from one password manager to another?
Yes. All major password managers support importing credentials from other tools via CSV export. Some — like Bitwarden and 1Password — also support direct import from specific competitors. The migration process typically takes a few hours for a small team and can be done with minimal disruption. Your IT provider can handle the migration, vault structure setup, and staff training as part of the rollout.