KeePass vs KeePassXC
KeePass and KeePassXC answer the same question the same way: passwords in an encrypted file on your own device, with no account, no server and no company. Both are free, open source and maintained from Germany. KeePass has the longer record, since 2003, and a plugin ecosystem. KeePassXC adds native apps for three desktop systems and an ANSSI security visa.
Choose KeePass if
you value more than two decades of continuous maintenance by one author, want the large plugin ecosystem around the original, and are comfortable with a dated interface.
Read the KeePass reviewChoose KeePassXC if
you want native builds for Windows, macOS and Linux from the project itself, passkeys and Auto-Type in the vault, and a client that a state cybersecurity agency has formally evaluated.
Read the KeePassXC reviewKeePass and KeePassXC side by side
| KeePass | KeePassXC | |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Dominik Reichl | KeePassXC Team (legal contact: Janek Bevendorff) |
| Headquarters | Germany | Weimar, Germany |
| Founded | 2003 | 2016 |
| Jurisdiction | No service — the file is yours | No service — the file is yours |
| Where the data sits | A file on your own device | An encrypted KDBX file on your own device; no KeePassXC cloud |
| Pricing | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Free tier or trial | Free | Free |
| Certifications and checks | GPL, no service involved | ANSSI CSPN security visa (version 2.7.9, 2025) |
| Source code | Open source (GPL v2) | Open source (GPL-2 or GPL-3) |
| Usually replaces | 1Password, LastPass, Dashlane | 1Password, LastPass, Bitwarden |
| Position in our Password Managers guide | #7 of 9 | Listed, not ranked |
Both are listed in our European Password Managers guide. The table is built from the same directory data as those entries; how we check it is described in the editorial process.
Where KeePass and KeePassXC differ
Across the four points below, KeePass has the edge on 1 point, KeePassXC on 1 point and 2 are a tie. A count like that is a summary, not a verdict: the point that matters to you may be the one the other product wins.
Independent examination
KeePassXC holds a CSPN security visa from the French agency ANSSI for version 2.7.9 on Windows 10, valid from 17 November 2025 to 17 November 2028: a state-run evaluation with a published result. KeePass is open source under GPL v2 but cannot show an equivalent outside examination. Note that the visa covers one version on one platform, not every build.
Edge: KeePassXC
Track record
KeePass has been written and maintained by Dominik Reichl since 2003, more than two decades without interruption, which for security software is a strong signal. KeePassXC is a community project whose copyright line dates the team to 2016. Both are small, non-corporate efforts with a named individual as contact; on sheer longevity KeePass is ahead.
Edge: KeePass
Platforms and features
KeePassXC publishes native builds for Windows, macOS and Linux from the project itself, with Auto-Type and passkeys alongside the vault. KeePass relies on a large plugin ecosystem and on compatible clients for every platform that read the same file format, and its interface is described as dated. Which approach suits better depends on your operating system and your patience for plugins.
No clear winner on this point.
Sync, backup and sharing
Here the two are the same by design. Neither runs a cloud, so you sync the file through storage you already trust and keep your own backups; lose the file without one and the vault is gone. Team sharing is awkward in both, and there is no support contract with either. Nothing separates them on this point.
No clear winner on this point.
When neither KeePass nor KeePassXC fits
Both assume one person managing one file. A team that needs shared credentials on its own server is better served by Psono, or by Passbolt, which encrypts each shared credential to every authorised user's GPG key. Neither KeePass nor KeePassXC makes that comfortable.
KeePass vs KeePassXC: questions
Both keep passwords in an encrypted file on your own device, with no service behind it. KeePass is the older project, maintained by Dominik Reichl since 2003 under GPL v2. KeePassXC is a community project dating from 2016, under GPL-2 or GPL-3, with native Windows, macOS and Linux builds, passkeys and an ANSSI security visa.
Yes. Both are free and open source with no paid tier and nothing to upgrade to. There is also no vendor in the commercial sense: no support contract, no service level and no cloud. Sync and backup are your own arrangement, through whatever storage you already trust.
In practice none applies to your data, because there is no service: the vault is a file that stays on your own machine, so there is no provider to ask about. Both projects are maintained from Germany, KeePass by Dominik Reichl and KeePassXC with a legal contact in Weimar.