Although the best-known password manager utilities once all came from one-product companies, major security software makers have since joined the field. Kaspersky Password Manager performs most of the expected password management tasks, plus it offers a permanent free version and includes useful document scanning tools. However, the service is missing other common features, such as login sharing and password inheritance. It also suffers from an inconsistent form-filling experience and a web extension that’s basic, at best.
Pricing and Versions
At $14.99 per year, Kaspersky is among the least expensive paid password managers. A paid account allows you to store an unlimited number of entries and access them on as many devices as you want. For comparison, Keeper Password Manager & Digital Vault and Sticky Password Premium both cost $29.99 per year, while LastPass Premium costs $36 per year. Dashlaneis even more expensive at $59.99 per year. All of these are list prices, of course, and they’re often discounted. We note that Kaspersky’s fine-print identifies the $14.99 price as “Introductory Pricing for New Customers.” Still, that price hasn’t changed since the product’s initial release.
Budget-conscious users will be glad to know that Kaspersky offers a permanent free version of its password manager. Although you get all the capabilities of the paid version, you can only store up to 15 total items in your vault, be they logins, credit cards, notes, or documents. That may not be a big deal if you only want to use Kaspersky Password Manager to store credentials for a few accounts, but most people will run up against that limitation quickly. It’s nevertheless a good way to test out the software.
Other free password managers do not have that limitation but are missing other features found in the paid versions. For instance, LastPass’s free version allows you to store as many entries as you want, but doesn’t include online storage space, emergency access, or one-to-many sharing. MyKi is a free option with no limits on how many passwords you can store, but it has limited form-filling capabilities.
Getting Started and Importing Passwords
To set up your Kaspersky Password account, download its app for Windows, macOS, Android, or iOS. We tested the experience on a Windows 10 laptop, a Google Pixel 3 running Android 10, and Chrome via Kaspersky’s web extension.
Once you install Kaspersky Password Manager on your chosen platform, you need to create or log in to your My Kaspersky account by providing an email address and password. Then, you create a master password. A master password should be strong and unguessable, but you still need to remember it. Kaspersky rates your master password’s security strength as you type it, which is helpful.
Kaspersky now supports two-factor authentication (2FA) logins, which greatly increases the security of your vitally important password collection. You need to log in in to your My Kaspersky Account online to set it up. Kaspersky requires you to add your phone number as one of the methods, but does support app-based authentication, for example, via Google or Microsoft Authenticator, on some platforms. Most password managers let you set up 2FA with an authenticator app, and some even support authentication via hardware keys from YubiKey or Titan, which we would like to see Kaspersky add.
During the application setup, you have the option to install the Kaspersky browser plug-in on Chrome, Edge, or Firefox. Once you do, Kaspersky launches a preparation page for getting started with the extension. On that page, it explains how to turn off your browser’s built-in password-, payment-, and address-storing features.
It should make be easy for people to switch from one password manager to another; Kaspersky has decent, but not class-leading, import options. It can import from older versions of itself, 1Password, Dashlane, KeePass, LastPass, and Symantec Norton Identity Safe, as well as from Chrome, Firefox, or Internet Explorer. Other password managers, including Enpass, LastPass, and KeePas can import from more competitors.
Organizing Passwords
Kaspersky Password Manager’s Windows application has an effective design, with a pleasing green, white, and gray color scheme and clearly outlined elements. We didn’t experience any performance issues with the application.
The app’s left-hand menu lists nine choices: All Entries, Passwords For Websites, Applications, Bank Cards, Images, Addresses, Notes, Password Check, and Settings. In the Settings section, you can configure the app’s startup behavior, change the auto-lock settings, and toggle auto-fill settings for different form types. Kaspersky lists all of its browser extensions available for download. All of the software’s import and export tools live in this section, including those for creating local backup copies of your data. You can also export a text file with your passwords. If you go that route, we recommend printing the file, storing the paper copy in a safe place, and then securely deleting the digital copy.
A search bar at the top-right conveniently narrows the list as you type, showing only items that match what you’ve typed. If you have a ton of saved logins, you can click a star icon to make your most-used ones show up on the Favorites tab.
The All Entries section is where you see everything you have saved in your account. You can toggle between a List and Tile View. The List view shows a left-hand column with entries in each section, with a big panel to the right with the selected item’s details. The Tile view displays folders and items as rectangular tiles, without details of the selected item.
To organize your passwords and other saved items, you can create as many folders as you like and drag related items into them. However, these folders are only visible from the All Entries section of the interface. So, you can’t, for example, view the folder structure in the Passwords For Websites section or create folders specifically for entries in that section. Kaspersky doesn’t support nested folders the way LastPass Premium, Sticky Password, and Roboform do.
In each section, you can add or edit items manually. You can copy any entries to your clipboard for manual filling, too. If you are looking for the password generator tool, you can find it from the Application Settings menu at the bottom right, along with an option to manually sync your account data.
Password Capture and Replay
You need to install Kaspersky Password Manager’s browser plugins to fill web logins. As expected, Kaspersky captures your credentials when you log in to a secure site. We found that it handled both normal and standard two-page logins like Gmail’s just fine. Dashlane, Keeper, LogMeOnce, and several other products let you assign an item to a folder at capture time, but not Kaspersky.
When you return to a site with saved credentials, Kaspersky fills in what it has. If you’ve saved more than one set of credentials, it displays your choices in a menu near the login field. Kaspersky combines logins for the same site under the same entry, but lets you add names for each account, which is useful for keeping them organized.
Click Kaspersky’s extension in the toolbar to see a menu of your saved logins. As with most password managers, choosing one of these entries launches the website and logs you in. You can start typing in the search box to find an item quickly. If you use the main application to organize your logins into folders, those folders become submenus in the browser extension’s menu.
Security Check
Getting all your passwords into the password manager is an important step, but if they’re all “Fido,” you haven’t accomplished a lot. To take full advantage of a password manager, you must upgrade all those weak and duplicate passwords. Kaspersky helps with that process.
For a security check of your stored passwords, click the Password Check menu item in the desktop app. This section lists any problematic passwords. For each password (or set of duplicates) Kaspersky reports whether the password is nonunique, weak, or both. The app also checks your password against the Have I Been Pwned database.
If the password is weak, you should change it. Kaspersky provides a Change Password button that takes you directly to the affected site. When Kaspersky detects a typical password-change page, with one field for the old password and two for the new, it helps you create a strong new one via the password generator. Just click the key icon in the new password filed to generate a new one. Then, you can update the saved entry with just one click.
Kaspersky defaults to creating 12-character passwords, which is on the short side. We usually recommend 16 characters or more. Since you don’t have to remember the password, you should make it reasonably long and complex. You can request a password of any length up to 99 characters, but doing so doesn’t change the default. On the plus side, Kaspersky defaults to generating passwords using all four types of characters: uppercase letters, lowercase letters, digits, and symbols. Myki Password Manager & Authenticator defaults to generating 30-character passwords, which is impressive.
As for putting the new password into play, Kaspersky leaves that task to you. The most help it gives is an option to copy the new password to the clipboard, so you can paste it into the website’s password-change page. For security, it clears that data from the clipboard after a short time.
LastPass, Keeper, and Dashlane, among others, offer actionable password strength reports, too. They list all your passwords, ordered by strength, with links to go make necessary changes, LastPass and Dashlane take this concept one step further, with automatic password updating for supported websites; LogMeOnce Password Management Suite Ultimate also automates updating passwords. Keeper eschews automated password changes because those don’t jibe with the company’s strict zero-knowledge policy.
Filling Forms
Like many password managers, Kaspersky includes the ability to save personal details and payment options and use them to fill web forms. You can define as many addresses as you need, saving details such as a name, physical address, email address, and phone number. If necessary, you can add multiple email addresses and phone numbers. 1Password offers far more identity options and the ability to create custom fields. RoboForm Everywhere allows multiple entries for any data field.
You can also add one or more bank cards. In addition to basic information like the card number, CCV, and cardholder name, Kaspersky includes slots for details such as the issuing bank, that bank’s customer service numbers, and your PIN. Bank cards display as a card image, using the color and bank name you selected. Dashlane goes one step beyond this, adding the logo for the chosen bank to the image.
When you ask Kaspersky Password Manager to fill bank card data on a website, our Kaspersky contact says it checks whether the site is a phishing site and if it is secure. The software also displays a confirmation window with the full URL of the page. This helps you avoid giving away that data on a fraudulent site. Without the convincing images and realistic page appearance, you’re more likely to notice if a URL says “bankofarnerica” rather than “bankofamerica.” Obviously, you should avoid giving payment details to sites that aren’t spelled correctly.
When you come to a web form that needs address or bank card information, Kaspersky should just fill the relevant information (after verifying it). In testing, this auto-fill feature didn’t work everywhere on the web. It correctly filled details on online shopping checkout pages in which there was an address field, but it didn’t work with some other form-filling test sites. For example, although we had filled the first name, last name, and email details for an address entry, Kaspersky did not fill fields for that data on pages that lacked an address field.
Application Passwords and Secure Notes
Most password managers stick to handling passwords for your numerous secure websites. Kaspersky, like Sticky Password, LastPass, KeePass, and a few others, can manage your application passwords. However, Kaspersky doesn’t auto-enter your saved passwords the way KeePass and LastPass do. Rather, you must copy and paste the essential information.
Kaspersky can save non-electronic secrets like padlock combinations and identification numbers in the form of secure notes. You just enter your unformatted information and Kaspersky keeps it safe. You can access these secure notes from any device. LastPass takes this concept further, with predefined templates for various types of secure notes, among them health insurance data, software licenses, and Wi-Fi passwords. 1Password allows markdown formatting in its notes on its macOS and mobile app.
Secure Storage
Kaspersky includes encrypted cloud storage for several document types, such as Driver’s Licenses, Passports/IDS, Bank Cards, Insurance Cards, and Contracts. There’s also an Other category for miscellaneous uploads. As mentioned, the free edition allows you to maintain a total of 15 items (logins and documents combined). A paid account grants you unlimited storage. Kaspersky converts all images to the JPEG format. Oddly, an image we uploaded and categorized as a Bank Card did not show up in that dedicated section in the desktop interface. Keeper Password Manager & Digital Vault and LastPass also include storage options.
The most interesting thing about Kaspersky’s storage capability is the ability to automatically analyze files on your computer and hoover up documents. You review the list and check off those you want to protect. You can conveniently categorize them before import. After uploading them to secure cloud storage, Kaspersky offers to delete the insecure originals, bypassing the Recycle Bin for security. In past tests, it picked up images even with confusingly formatted text. We are impressed by this feature and haven’t seen anything similar in competing products. Our contact at Kaspersky said that this search retains no information about your files.
Other Platforms and Web Access
Kaspersky Password Manager keeps everything in sync whether you install it on a Windows, macOS, Android, or iOS devices. The Windows and macOS editions are roughly parallel, and the mobile editions come as close as operating system constraints allow. We appreciate the cross-platform consistency.
As with many mobile password managers, both Kaspersky’s Android and iOS apps open websites in a proprietary browser. However, you can configure it to fill data in Chrome (on Android) and Safari (on iOS). Like LastPass and 1Password, Kaspersky supports TouchID and FaceID authentication on iOS devices and fingerprint logins on Android phones. On both platforms, you can snap photos directly to encrypted online storage. You can also snap payment cards, but Kaspersky doesn’t convert the image into a payment card entry, the way Keeper does.
Passwords, addresses, and other saved items are accessible online within the My Kaspersky portal. You need both your My Kaspersky account credentials and the master password you created to log in on the web. You get full access to view and edit your passwords and other data here. Make sure you configure the timeout settings on the web application; you wouldn’t want to leave your passwords unprotected.
Kaspersky’s web extensions (available on Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Internet Explorer) are lackluster, since you can’t actually copy information from most entries, let alone directly edit their details. Clicking on a Bank Card or Address, for example, just opens the desktop application. You can click on passwords to navigate to and log in to saved sites, but that’s about it. Other password managers’ extensions allow you to copy details and manually fill forms on a page.
Sharing and Inheritance
Dashlane, LastPass, Keeper, and LogMeOnce let you securely share login data with other users. RoboForm, Password Boss Premium, and several others deal with the problem of passing on your credentials in the event of your demise. Kaspersky lacks both password sharing and inheritance features. To compete with contemporary password managers, Kaspersky desperately needs to add these features.
Basic Password Management
Kaspersky Password Manager’s user interface is pleasant and easy to understand and we like how it scans for and stores documents. However, Kaspersky doesn’t include password sharing or inheritance options, nor does it support hardware-based 2FA. We’d like to see improvements to its organization features, more consistent form-filling performance, and enhanced capabilities for its web extensions. If you got the password manager as a component of Kaspersky Total Security or Kaspersky Security Cloud, you can rely on it for basic password management. For a little more cash, you can get far more powerful password management.
Keeper Password Manager & Digital Vault offers secure storage for important files in a clean, simple user interface. Dashlane, too, sports an easy-to-use interface, despite its wealth of advanced features. Both of these go well beyond Kaspersky’s feature set, and both are PCMag Editors’ Choice products for password management. Our top picks for free password managers are LastPass and MyKi, both of which offer full-featured capabilities and top security features.
Editors’ Note: We are aware of the allegations of Kaspersky Lab’s inappropriate ties to the Russian government. Until we see some actual proof of these allegations, we will treat them as unproven, and continue to recommend Kaspersky’s security products as long as their performance continues to merit our endorsement.
Kaspersky Password Manager Specs
| Import From Browsers | Yes |
| Two-Factor Authentication | Yes |
| Fill Web Forms | Yes |
| Multiple Form-Filling Identities | Yes |
| Actionable Password Strength Report | Yes |
| Application Passwords | Yes |
| Digital Legacy | No |
