NordPass vs Dashlane: Which One is Better?
We perform independent tests and thoroughly analyze password management services to find the best options for customers to store online credentials and other sensitive information.
We prioritize full transparency, which is why we provide detailed descriptions of our in-house testing procedures and methodologies.
Learn more
NordPass and Dashlane are great password managers with plenty of features and free versions. They are also very similar in a lot of categories, such as password sharing and password maintenance. But there are differences, too. Dashlane has a more user-friendly account recovery function, while NordPass has a more extensive password generator. NordPass also stands out by being a more affordable option.
In this article, our research team and I tested both providers’ features, functionality, and user experience to determine which one – Dashlane or NordPass – is better. You will find direct comparisons and other helpful information that will help you decide which option to choose.
Dashlane vs NordPass - an overview
Both Dashlane and NordPass have free versions, vast platform compatibility, and highly secure encryption protocols. However, NordPass has lower paid subscription costs and a wider operating system coverage. Before I delve deeper into each provider, here’s a quick summary of their basic features:
NordPass | Dashlane | |
⭐ Rating: | ||
🥇 Overall rank: | #1 out of #19 | #5 out of #19 |
🔥 Coupons: | NordPass coupon 58% OFF | Dashlane coupon 25% OFF |
💵 Price: | From $1.24/month | From $3.75/month |
✂️ Free version: | Yes, plus it includes a 30-day money-back guarantee | Yes, plus a 30-day money-back guarantee |
🔒 Encryption: | XChaCha20 | AES-256 |
🖥️ Platforms: | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux |
🌐 Browser extensions: | Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Opera, and Safari | Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge |
NordPass vs Dashlane: which one is more secure?
I have reviewed and tested NordPass and Dashlane’s security features to determine which of these password managers offers more security guarantees. I compared their encryption, multi-factor authentication options, password limits, privacy policy, and independent audits.
Security features | NordPass | Dashlane |
Data encryption | xChaCha20 | AES-256 |
MFA/2FA | MFA | MFA (mostly 2FA) |
Password storage limit | Unlimited for free and paid plans | 25 for the free plan, unlimited for paid plans |
Zero-knowledge policy | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Latest independent audit | SOC 2 Type 2 attestation in 2023 | No independent audits, ISO-certified since 2022 |
Encryption
Both Dashlane and NordPass have equally secure yet very slightly different encryption protocols. Dashlane employs a 256-bit AES algorithm to encrypt your data directly on your device. So no one and even their staff can’t access it. This cipher is an industry standard and widely used by many password managers for strong protection.
However, NordPass selected a more modern encryption algorithm – xChaCha20 – yet, no less reliable than the one used by Dashlane. According to the experts, it’s not only as safe as AES-256, but also up to three times faster.
Comparing the encryption solutions chosen by the two password managers, I would say that both of them provide reliable and secure options. Just keep in mind that NordPass encrypts data in a more efficient way and has less impact on your device’s system.
Multi-factor security
NordPass, compared to Dashlane, has a wider variety of authentication options. It not only supports confirmations via the email or a dedicated authenticator app, but also security keys. You can get one of the FIDO approved U2F devices, like Yubikey, iePass, BioPass, MultiPass, ePass and others. All of these options are available in both free and premium versions.
Dashlane also gives the possibility to use two-factor (2FA) and multi-factor authentication. You have an option to use different authenticator apps, like Google Authenticator or Authy, and even your Apple Watch. Additionally, it supports U2F with the Yubikey security key as well. Yet, it is only available for premium Dashlane subscribers.
Data storage
Unlike Dashlane, NordPass does not limit the password storage depending on paid or free subscription. Dashlane allows users to store up to 25 passwords for free, but offers premium subscription plans with no password storage limitations. However, if you want to upload encrypted files to secure notes, like documents or passport scans, you get 1 GB of storage space with a premium plan.

NordPass doesn’t limit password storage neither in its free version nor in the premium packages. Similarly, you can secure an unlimited number of notes, credit card details, etc. The only inconvenience is that File Attachment feature is available with Premium or Family plans. There’s also a limit of 50 attached files per item, with a maximum file size limit of 50MB.

Everyone else can upload or download data files through a NordLocker app. Even though you have to install it individually, it operates under the same Nord account you have for the NordPass. So, you don’t have to purchase any other subscriptions.
All in all, both Dashlane and NordPass have their advantages and limitations.
Privacy policy
If you’re concerned about your privacy, both NordPass and Dashlane operate under the zero-knowledge policy. In simple terms, they are unable to obtain your master password or access secured data within your vault. So, the only person who can see your sensitive information is you.
However, there is other private data that you might be asked to provide yourself when using the password manager. For example, Dashlane collects your email when you register and keeps a track of your IP address. Yet, you can easily hide your location with a VPN to minimize the amount of data shared with it.
Keep in mind that NordPass allows you to use its free version without entering credit card details, so it might be an excellent option for privacy-conscious users. Apart from that, it still collects some data just as Dashlane when opting for premium subscription packages.
Security audits
Independent security audits are essential for confirming the information that provider claims, but out of the two only NordPass has been independently audited. Dashlane has only conducted its own internal audits. However, Dashlane is ISO-certified since 2022, so they do meet strict security standards. Besides, Dashlane never had a security incident.
Overall, NordPass had four major independent audits, one each year since 2020. The first two were performed by Cure53, and NordPass passed them both. The remaining two were SOC 2 audits. SOC 2 Type 1 was performed in 2022 and ensures that the organization and its system comply with trust principles. This also resulted in NordPass receiving an ISO certification. The latest audit was in 2023 and resulted in SOC 2 Type 2 certification that confirms the operational efficiency of the organization’s systems. Just like Dashlane, NordPass has never had a security incident.
NordPass vs Dashlane: features overview
Both password managers offer useful features to help you with password importing, generating, and sharing. Yet, Dashlane is slightly more advanced and provides extra functionality for the users.
Features | NordPass | Dashlane |
Autofill | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Password importing | From LastPass, 1Password, Keeper, Dashlane, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, or as CSV file on all platforms | From RoboForm, LastPass, PasswordWallet, or as CSV file on web or Android app only |
Account recovery | ❌ No (not without a recovery key or another person’s email) | ✅ Yes |
Customizable password generator | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Customizable password sharing | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Data leak protection | ✅ Yes, Data Breach Scanner monitors your email and payment details for breaches. Users can select specific emails and credits cards, manage the status of each breach, and overview insights about each breach | ✅ Yes, dark web monitoring and real-time phishing alerts |
Email masking | ✅ Yes, NordPass provides alternative email addresses that forward the emails to your real email address for increased privacy | ❌ No |
VPN included | ❌ No | ✅ Yes (partnered with Hotspot Shield) |
Weak password monitoring | ✅ Yes, Password Health detects weak passwords and prompts you to update them. In addition, NordPass recently added the Exposed Passwords feature that scans the dark web for your passwords | ✅ Yes |
Passkeys | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Autofill
Autofill is a pretty basic feature that's included in every password manager. It allows you to fill in your login details and other information. Both NordPass and Dashlane offer this feature. However, NordPass has recently updated this feature to improve the process and make it more seamless. NordPass's Instant Login enables users to log in with one-click. It's on by default but can be disabled in settings. You can also choose the websites for which NordPass autofills your information. In addition, NordPass allows users to add more websites to the vault, which helps avoid duplicates.
Password importing
NordPass has slightly more password-importing options than Dashlane despite both password managers having convenient methods. Importing passwords with NordPass has never been easier. It has a dedicated Import section in the Settings where you can select the most suitable import option for you. This password manager supports switches from other tools, like LastPass, 1Password, Keeper, and even Dashlane itself.

Additionally, you can quickly upload your passwords from most popular browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Opera. There’s an option to either import them all together using a CSV file or individually.
Similarly, Dashlane supports imports from RoboForm, LastPass, and PasswordWallet, or bulk uploads with a CSV file, but through Android and web only. There’s no option to import passwords via iPhone, iPad, or macOS. Thus, when comparing the two password managers, I would say that NordPass has a better password-importing function.

Account and password recovery
Compared to NordPass, Dashlane definitely makes it easier to recover your account. While many password managers in general have very limited password recovery methods, Dashlane offers a useful solution. It allows you to create an emergency access to your vault for a dedicated person – an emergency contact. You can easily set who you want to give the access to in the settings.
So, in case you forget your master password, the emergency contact can ask for access to your vault. You will receive the confirmation email and if you don’t respond to it within the specified time, Dashlane will approve the access.
NordPass is slightly stricter with account recovery in order to maintain the highest security standards. The main way to regain access to your vault is to use the unique recovery key which is given during the account registration process. If you lose it, your passwords will be gone with it. However, if you have a trusted person, that person can receive Emergency Access rights, approve or deny your connection, but also have access to your passwords.
So, I would say that Dashlane provides easier and effective account recovery methods.
Password generator
Both NordPass and Dashlane have password generators which can help you create robust passwords to protect your accounts. They are easily customizable as you can select the lengths of passwords and include (or not) the capital letters, numbers, and symbols.

Even though Dashlane is pre-set to generate 12-character passwords, you can change that and get longer (40 characters) or shorter (4 characters) passwords. NordPass in this case allows extending the password length to a maximum of 60 characters which is quite useful if you want to protect financial accounts with extra strong passwords.

Additionally, it even allows you to generate pass-phrase passwords up to 10 words. They are usually separated with your chosen punctuation and can be relatively easy to remember, such as stare-angle-cohesions-theave.
So, overall NordPass has a more detailed password generator, but both password managers are great for creating strong passwords.
Password sharing
Both NordPass and Dashlane have a password sharing feature with adjustable permissions. Easy and secure password sharing is essential as all of us encounter situations where we might need to give access to one of our accounts to another person. So, instead of sharing the password through unprotected networks, you can do so via the password sharing feature.

It’s very easy with NordPass – select the password and type the recipient's email address. The shared password will be encrypted to ensure that it reaches the person safely. There are four permission types, too. Whoever you share the password with, can have the right to edit the login details, share with others, just view, or just autofill. You can also create Shared Folders and share them with others. This is a feature for Enterprise users alongside Items Transfer.
NordPass recently updated their sharing feature, introducing new sharing permissions. Users can now set the shared items to Can Share and Can View. Moreover, you can now select a timeframe for which the shared item will be available to view.
Dashlane also operates in a similar manner and you get an option to either give full access or limited access to your account which gives more flexibility.

Even though I would say that both password managers have excellent password sharing features, with NordPass being slightly more detailed s, there’s one catch – the recipient must register with a free account in order to access the shared password.
So, while both password managers share features, and NordPass even performs better in some categories, its lack of an included VPN and more difficult account recovery makes Dashlane the winner in this category.
Dashlane vs Nordpass: plans and pricing
While both NordPass and Dashlane offer similar plans, like the Free version, as well as Premium and Family packages, NordPass is a much more affordable option.
Plan | NordPass | Dashlane |
Free | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Premium | $1.24/month | $3.75/month |
Family | $2.68/month | $5.62/month |
Business | $3.59/month | $8.00/month |
Try NordPass | Try Dashlane |
Regardless of which plan you choose, NordPass is clearly cheaper. NordPass’ cheapest Premium plan is $1.24/month vs. Dashlane’s $3.75/month. While Dashlane’s Family plan covers more people (10 vs. NordPass’ 6), it’s clear that the divided subscription cost per person is still cheaper for NordPass.
Comparing Business plans proves that NordPass is cheaper, too. While Dashlane supports an unlimited number of employees, the subscription price of $8.00/month is per person. NordPass, too, has a monthly price per user, supporting from 5 to 250 employees, but costs only $3.59/month. Furthermore, you can get the NordPass Enterprise plan for $5.39/month per person, which has an unlimited number of supported users and is still cheaper than Dashlane.
Platforms, interface and ease of use
Both NordPass and Dashlane support a wide variety of operating systems and browsers, such as Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Chrome, Edge, Opera, Safari, and more. To determine how each password manager looks and operates on different platforms, our research team and I tested them on a Lenovo ThinkPad T14s device with Windows 11, MacBook Air M2 device with macOS 14.5 Sonoma, iPhone 7 device with iOS 15.7.1, and Nokia 6.2 device with Android version 11.
Personally, I would say that both password managers are equally easy to use, regardless if you have an app or a browser extension. I had no issue navigating either app and out of many password managers that our team and I have tested, I’d say NordPass and Dashlane have very user-friendly interfaces.
NordPass | Dashlane | |
Supported OS | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS |
Browser extensions | Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, Safari | Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, Safari |
Number of users | Up to 6 users | Up to 10 |
Desktop apps
You should not have any issues when getting either Dashlane or NordPass, as they have quick installation processes that only take a few minutes to complete. Both Windows 11 and macOS Sonoma desktop apps are user-friendly and pretty intuitive to use. However, NordPass has additional Linux compatibility. While for me, personally, it’s not an issue, I would recommend Linux users not to get Dashlane, as its web app does not exist in this operating system.

Nevertheless, you can set up Dashlane on Linux by using one of its dedicated browser extensions. So, theoretically there’s a way to use it on all popular platforms as well. Yet, NordPass might be a more convenient option.

As for the interface, it’s hard to decide which app looks better. They both are very similar in appearance, with both Dashlane and NordPass having login items at the center of the app and the Menu of features and functions clearly listed on the left of the app screen. If I had to pick one, I’d say NordPass is slightly more suited for complete beginners because of its larger item icons and very streamlined design, but that’s debatable.
Browser extensions
In terms of compatibility, Dashlane and NordPass have dedicated browser extensions for all most popular browsers, like Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera and Safari. They are designed to improve the functionality of the web applications to autofill and autosave passwords while you browse.

However, extensions by both password managers are tightly linked to the web apps and you can only add and generate passwords. If you want to access other features or modify settings, you will need to use the web application with both Dashlane and NordPass.

Mobile apps
NordPass has excellent mobile apps for Android and iOS devices. I investigated the compatibility using Android Nokia and iOS iPhone devices. What’s worth mentioning is that both of them are equally rich in features with almost no limitations. Other than more minimalist and phone-adapted design, there are no notable differences from the desktop app either, so you can easily add folders, save sensitive documents, and scan credit card details.

Dashlane also supports both Android and iOS operating systems. The dedicated mobile apps are not cluttered with unnecessary visualizations and are pretty intuitive to use. You can use an autofill feature, as well as the secure notes, or the in-built VPN.

Dashlane vs Nordpass: customer support
Both service providers have professional customer support with multiple help options for you to choose from. The most popular one is an online live chat that Dashlane and NordPass offer as well. I have tried reaching out and received a quick and helpful response to my question from both providers.
NordPass | Dashlane | |
Email support | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
24/7 live chat | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Phone support | ❌ No | ❌ No |
Community support (forum) | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
How-to guides/Knowledge base | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Social media support | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Additionally, they have extensive FAQ sections with detailed how-to guides where you can find answers to the most common queries. Apart from that, there is also a possibility to submit questions via email support option.
Personally, I prefer to use live chat, as it’s the fastest way to find resolution without me having to read through countless articles of materials. While both Dashlane and NordPass use bots to answer questions, only connecting you with a person if your issue is not resolved, I found both to be very helpful and rapid.
My entire interaction with Dashlane’s live chatbot lasted about 3 minutes, tops. I asked a question about setting up an account, was presented with a few suggested options, selected the one that matched my intentions, and received an instant and detailed response. The instructions provided to me were very clear, and I did not miss human contact at all, as my inquiry was effectively and rapidly resolved.

With NordPass, the whole interaction took slightly longer, as I was connected to a person almost instantly. The responses were polite, short, and to the point. I also got the answers I was looking for, so I think if you encounter any issues, you can freely contact customer support via live chat and get assistance.

NordPass vs Dashlane – which one should you choose?
To summarize, both NordPass and Dashlane are unlikely to disappoint their users. And despite NordPass leading in categories like pricing and platform compatibility, Dashlane holds its own by being a feature-rich and equally user-friendly password manager. As both of these providers have a free version, it all comes down to paid plans, and NordPass simply offers a better value for money.
Category | NordPass | Dashlane |
Features | ❌ While NordPass has an abundance of features, many of them are the same as Dashlane’s. However, NordPass has a more complex account recovery, and no free VPN is included | ✅ Dashlane shares a lot of features, such as adjustable password sharing, with NordPass, but has an easier account recovery and a free partner Hotspot Shield VPN |
Pricing & Plans | ✅ All of NordPass plans are cheaper than Dashlane’s, even when divided per user and for the same duration | ❌ While also having a free plan like NordPass, Dashlane is simply more expensive, even though it covers more users |
Security | ✅ NordPass has multiple security features, such as MFA, secure sharing, vulnerabilities detector, and xChaCha20 data encryption | ✅ Dashlane is just as secure as NordPass, with AES-256 data encryption, MFA/2FA options, a password vulnerabilities detector, and more |
User-friendliness | ✅ NordPass has a very clear user interface and easy-to-use features | ✅ Dashlane has a very similar, user-friendly interface to NordPass and simple app navigation |
Compatibility | ✅ NordPass covers more operating systems than Dashlane, offering an additional Linux compatibility | ❌ Despite covering the same web browsers as NordPass, Dashlane does not have Linux compatibility |
How I tested NordPass vs Dashlane
To accurately evaluate and compare NordPass vs Dashlane, I worked with our research team to test both password managers based on our trusted methodology. Together with our team, I investigated the functionality of NordPass and Dashlane features, security and privacy policies, pricing, app and extension usability, platform compatibility, and customer support responsiveness.
I investigated the security guarantees, such as encryption types, independent audits, and overall reputation (like lack of past safety incidents), to determine their safety. I also checked the functionality of features, how accessible they are, and how easy they would be to use for a complete beginner to determine which provider offers more to its users. Finally, I reviewed the apps, browser extensions, and pricing and contacted customer support to determine if NordPass or Dashlane is more user-friendly and has a better value for money.
Having collected enough data about each password manager in the same categories, I was able to compare the two, present you with accurate and up-to-date information, and determine which one is better and more worth your money overall.
FAQ
What’s the difference between NordPass and Dashlane?
While both NordPass and Dashlane are highly secure and user-friendly password managers, NordPass has more affordable paid plans and slightly more extensive platform compatibility. However, both password managers have a free version.
Is Dashlane better than NordPass?
No, Dashlane is not better than NordPass, since the former one offers great password management features at more affordable prices. However, Dashlane is still a great option if you don’t mind spending a few extra dollars as it offers an in-built VPN.
Can NordPass import from Dashlane?
Yes, NordPass offers the possibility to import passwords from Dashlane, as well as other password managers. That includes 1Password, Keeper, LastPass, Remembear, and RoboForm.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are markedmarked