{
  "slug": "google-password-manager",
  "name": "Google Password Manager",
  "maker": "Google",
  "category": "passwords",
  "verdict": "o",
  "answer": "Only if you turn on on-device encryption. By default, Google holds the key to your saved passwords. Once you set it up, only you can unlock them.",
  "title": "Is Google Password Manager encrypted? Who holds the key",
  "description": "Google holds the key to your saved passwords unless you turn on on-device encryption. Passkeys are sealed with your PIN or screen lock.",
  "parts": [
    {
      "key": "pass",
      "status": "o",
      "words": "Only you, once you turn it on",
      "note": "Google holds the key by default; on-device encryption hands it to you, and Google says it will set this up for everyone over time.",
      "sources": [
        1
      ],
      "label": "Your passwords"
    },
    {
      "key": "share",
      "status": "n",
      "words": "Google can read it",
      "note": "A shared password lands as a copy in your family member's Google Account, where Google holds the key unless they use on-device encryption.",
      "sources": [
        1,
        2
      ],
      "label": "Shared passwords"
    },
    {
      "key": "pq",
      "status": "x",
      "words": "Not yet",
      "note": "No post-quantum protection for saved passwords announced as of 25 October 2026.",
      "sources": [
        1
      ],
      "label": "Post-quantum"
    }
  ],
  "extra_parts": [
    {
      "key": "passkey",
      "label": "Passkeys",
      "icon": "pass",
      "status": "y",
      "words": "Only you",
      "note": "Google says passkeys are always end-to-end encrypted, unlocked with your screen lock or your Google Password Manager PIN.",
      "sources": [
        3,
        5
      ]
    }
  ],
  "keys": "Google holds the key by default, stored in your Google Account; with on-device encryption, only you do.",
  "can_see": "By default, your saved passwords and the sites they're for, though Google says its leak checks never reveal your usernames or passwords to it.",
  "business": null,
  "fix": {
    "title": "Turn on on-device encryption, once",
    "steps": [
      "Go to passwords.google.com and sign in.",
      "Click Settings.",
      "Under On-Device Encryption, click Set up, then follow the steps."
    ],
    "after": "Takes a minute, and it can't be turned off later. You'll unlock your passwords on new devices with your Google password or a phone's screen lock, so keep your recovery phone number and email up to date."
  },
  "fix_line": "Turn on on-device encryption: passwords.google.com › Settings › On-Device Encryption › Set up.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "id": "can-google-see-my-passwords",
      "q": "Can Google see my saved passwords?",
      "a": "By default, yes. Google's help page says the key to your passwords is stored in your Google Account, and Google uses it to unlock them when you view them and to check them for leaks [1]. Google describes this as you trusting it to hold the key [1]. Its leak checks are different: Google says they're built so it never learns your usernames or passwords [4].\n\nOn-device encryption changes who holds the key. Google says that once it's set up, no one besides you can access your passwords [1]."
    },
    {
      "id": "what-is-on-device-encryption",
      "q": "How does on-device encryption work in Google Password Manager?",
      "a": "You lock your passwords and passkeys with a key you keep, and unlock them with your Google password or the screen lock of an eligible phone or tablet [1]. Google says it will set this up for everyone over time, but for now you may need to turn it on yourself [1].\n\nIt can't be undone. If you lose your Google password and every device you could unlock with, you lose your saved passwords [1]."
    },
    {
      "id": "are-shared-passwords-encrypted",
      "q": "Are passwords shared with family encrypted?",
      "a": "You can share a password only with someone in your Google family group, and they get their own copy, saved in their Google Account [2].\n\nThat copy follows their settings. Unless they've turned on on-device encryption, Google holds the key to it, as it does for any saved password [1]."
    },
    {
      "id": "are-google-passkeys-encrypted",
      "q": "Are Google Password Manager passkeys end-to-end encrypted?",
      "a": "Yes. Google says passkeys in Google Password Manager are always end-to-end encrypted, with a key that's only on your own devices [5]. The Google Password Manager PIN, made when you create your first passkey on a computer, iPhone or iPad, makes sure no one, not even Google, can access your encrypted data [3]. On Android, your phone's screen lock does that job instead [5]."
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Get started with on-device encryption",
      "publisher": "Google",
      "url": "https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/11350823",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Manage passwords in Chrome",
      "publisher": "Google",
      "url": "https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95606",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Manage your Google Password Manager PIN",
      "publisher": "Google",
      "url": "https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/16608973",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "How Chrome protects your passwords",
      "publisher": "Google",
      "url": "https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/10311524",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Security of Passkeys in the Google Password Manager",
      "publisher": "Google",
      "url": "https://security.googleblog.com/2022/10/SecurityofPasskeysintheGooglePasswordManager.html",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    }
  ],
  "changes": [
    {
      "date": "2026-10-25",
      "text": "First published."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "apple-passwords",
    "1password",
    "bitwarden",
    "chrome"
  ],
  "url": "https://isitencrypted.com/google-password-manager/",
  "checked": "2026-10-25"
}