KeePassium vs pass
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted password managers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
KeePassium
KeePass-compatible password manager for iOS and macOS
VS
pass
The standard Unix password manager built on GPG and git
| Feature | KeePassium | pass |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Password Managers | Password Managers |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Swift | Shell |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | binary | bare-metal, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,663 | ★ 4,200 |
| First released | 2019 | 2012 |
| Replaces | 1Password, LastPass | 1Password, LastPass |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is KeePassium or pass better?
Neither is universally better. pass has the larger community, while KeePassium is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are KeePassium and pass free and open-source?
Yes. KeePassium is licensed under GPL-3.0 and pass under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run KeePassium and pass with Docker?
KeePassium: check the project docs for container support. pass: check the project docs for container support.