Best KeePass for PC + iOS?

February 7, 2024 5:08 PM

I use KeePassXC on the PC and would like to use it on my iPhone and iPad. There are lots of options.

My ideal scenario is a KeePassXC compatible port for iOS that:

• can synch with my PC .kbdx file, which is currently available via the Internet through my Synology drive
• uses a secondary authentication method; on the PC this is a key file that I physically have on the machines where I use KeePassXC (my home PC and work PC) -- for security reasons if it uses a key file I would want it to be stored locally on the iPhone/iPad, not on the Internet
• if paid, has a one-time fee and is not subscription-based
• if free, is free as in beer and not an ad delivery vehicle

I'm not averse to switching platforms entirely if there's another password manager that works across platforms, but I do not want anything where the database resides on the provider's servers, or that is a subscription model as opposed to a single-cost purchase. No 1Password, NordPass, etc. I like the open source ethos of KeePass.

posted by Shepherd to Computers & Internet (7 answers total)

Have you already looked at the iOS choices out there?

This is a very common Keepass usage scenario -- synced file, multiple platforms. I do this on Linux and Android. Keepass is popular here and you might also find some answers under the "keepass" keyword here on AskMefi.

But I think your "secondary authentication method" is the key (ha) requirement here.
posted by intermod at 6:37 PM on February 7, 2024

I use KeePassium on my iPad. I use a Windows PC and an Android smartphone otherwise.
posted by invokeuse at 8:50 PM on February 7, 2024 [1 favorite]

I use keepass for my work passwords on a pc, and save as copy to my mac where i need occasional access and use keeweb. i do not use the sync option, just the browser app. i use it as a read-only copy on my mac, as this works for my workflow and keeps it simple: authoritative copy resides on work pc (backups dispersed).
posted by tamarack at 10:26 PM on February 7, 2024

Best answer: It is hard to give you a definitive answer based on your scenario, because it is your individual setup that differs from mine. But maybe I can help you to identify the iOS pass that are worth looking into.
For various reasons I needed SFTP for synching, which none of the free iOS apps supported at that time. I found KyPass for which I could pay once and didn't need an ongoing subscription. It works very well and has a good user interface including integration into the iOS password mechanism for safari and apps. KyPass can synch over many mechanisms but dropped SFTP/SCP recently. Because of that I moved to Strongobx. It is subscription based, it also has many features if not more and works without a hitch. It seems to support many second factors via various means and keyfiles seem to be stored locally.
posted by mmkhd at 5:33 AM on February 9, 2024

Addendum: Strongbox is normally subscription based, but also offers a one time lifetime purchase which is more expensiv. (I don't like subscriptions either but I have come to the conclusion that they are unavoidable.)
posted by mmkhd at 5:46 AM on February 9, 2024

Best answer: Password Safe was originally written by noted cryptographer Bruce Schneier and is free and open source. One interoperable implementation is pwSafe which is $2.99, once, for iOS and $14.99, once, for Mac.

pwSafe offers syncing through their own service (which I see you don't want, understandable), DropBox for an in-app purchase or iCloud Drive for free. I use iCloud Drive. You can also just use a local file on Mac or iOS, and it just looks like a regular file in Finder on Mac and is available in Files.app on iOS for manually syncing (e.g. AirDrop). Source code in a Zip (git repo would have been friendlier, huh?

Strongbox Safe is another Mac and iOS implementation that has a subscription for the Pro version (comparison) (source repository)

Strongbox Safe supports "Sync with every major cloud storage provider or your own server over WebDAV or SFTP. " As previous poster mentioned, it also supports KeePass password safes/databases. Dang! It seems to have better Mac Safari integration available. I might switch. Pro is $2.99/month, $19.99/year or $79.99 permanent for all your devices.
posted by ASCII Costanza head at 1:31 PM on February 11, 2024

Response by poster: After several modest attempts to figure out how to make this work without a subscription model, I've resigned myself to vanilla Keypassium and a calendared reminder to push my database to my devices monthly to ensure the passwords are more or less up to date. No magic bullet for my scenario of sharing the database via Synology Drive and having the app pull a keyfile from Files. But I appreciate all the attempts to help! Best answers were I felt like there were good solutions for not-me people that might be looking for something similar.
posted by Shepherd at 1:58 PM on February 18, 2024