Detailed Expert Review
RoboForm has a reputation for being one of the best password managers for users on a budget, so I decided to download it onto my PC, iPhone, and Android so I could give it a try and find out for myself if it was true.
Overall, I’m really impressed with RoboForm. It’s well-designed, easy to use, and intuitive, with a lot of standard password management features, like:
- 256-bit AES encryption.
- Two-factor authentication (2FA).
- Password auditing.
RoboForm’s additional features are really well-made — third-party 2FA apps like Google Authenticator easily sync up to RoboForm, and I had no trouble sharing passwords and notes between different users and accounts. RoboForm’s form-filling features are also a unique time saver, making it possible to navigate complex web forms with a single click.
However, RoboForm doesn’t have some of the extra features that other competitors like Dashlane and Keeper offer. RoboForm has no breach monitoring, encrypted storage, or one-click password changer for weak passwords.
That said, RoboForm is a bit cheaper than many premium competitors (and even cheaper with this 42% off discount), with affordable premium plans for both individuals and families.
I spent the last few weeks testing all of RoboForm’s features — measuring its security, its usability, and its overall value. Here’s what I found out.
RoboForm Security Features
RoboForm stores user passwords on its servers, which allows for multi-device syncing, password sharing, and remote vault access. This also means its servers have to be protected with the strongest encryption algorithms possible. RoboForm keeps user data private with end-to-end 256-bit AES encryption, which is the same super-high level of encryption used by many banks and militaries around the world.
“End-to-end encryption” means that only the device which originated the encryption has the “key” which can decrypt it — so even in the case of a breach or government subpoena, your passwords can only be read on your device.
In addition to these security protocols, RoboForm provides most of the security features I expect from a high-quality password manager. The program can be a little overwhelming at first, especially for new password manager users — so I’ve broken down each of RoboForm’s main features here:
- Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
- Password Generator
- Security Center
- Application Passwords
- Secure Sharing
- Automatic Form-Filling
- Bookmark Storage
Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
2FA enhances security by requiring you to provide a second form of verification along with your Master Password before you can access your vault.
RoboForm syncs up with 2FA apps like Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator, and Authy — these apps generate temporary one-time passwords on your device which become invalid after 30-60 seconds. This ensures that only a user with physical access to your device can log into your account, preventing hackers from remotely accessing your password vault.
RoboForm synced easily with Google Authenticator in my testing — once I had scanned the QR code and synced up RoboForm with Google Authenticator, I was able to log into my vault with the one-time passwords that Google Authenticator generated.
Unfortunately RoboForm only allows 2FA compatibility in the paid version — RoboForm Everywhere. Users looking for a free password manager with 2FA compatibility should check out LastPass.
RoboForm Everywhere also offers biometric 2FA logins for mobile devices, as well as fingerprint or face scanning for any Windows computer with Windows Hello (which is Windows 10’s built-in biometric login system). This means you can access your account using only your face or fingerprint — no Master Password required.
I’d like to see RoboForm offer compatibility with USB token authenticators like YubiKey — competitors like Dashlane and Keeper offer this advanced security functionality, so that only users with a physical USB token can access their password vault.
Still, RoboForm’s 2FA is highly secure and very convenient, but it’s only in the premium version.
Password Generator
RoboForm’s password generator helps users create strong, unique passwords. By default, RoboForm generates passwords that are 16 characters long, excludes similar characters, and contains uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
You can change the character count (up to 512 characters), character type, and more by clicking on Advanced Settings.
RoboForm’s password generator is well-made and easy to use — it’s just as good as the password generators from competitors like Dashlane and LastPass, and it’s completely capable of creating unique passwords that are impossible to guess.
Security Center
The “Security Center” is RoboForm’s password auditing tool. It analyzes every password in the password vault and gives an overall security score based on the:
- Number of reused passwords.
- Number of duplicate logins.
- Strength of each password.
The Security Center uses an open-source algorithm to evaluate passwords. This algorithm — called “zxcvbn” — has been proven to be more accurate than most password strength tools when it comes to analyzing how likely it is that a certain password can be hacked.
Once RoboForm assessed my security score, it was time to update my old passwords. To change weak passwords, I had to log into each site manually and generate a new, secure password using RoboForm’s password generator. This took me a pretty long time — I would love to see RoboForm implement an automatic password changer like Dashlane’s, which allows users to change their passwords across over 500 popular sites with a single click.
RoboForm’s Security Center is a pretty good tool, but it’s missing something that competitors like 1Password provide — password breach monitoring. Breach monitoring tools scan breach databases and dark web forums for your leaked login information, financial statements, and other personally identifying information. These up-to-the-minute scans and notifications can help you change your passwords and delete sensitive accounts before your data can be hacked.
I’d love to see RoboForm upgrade their Security Center to include breach monitoring, but as it stands, it’s still a powerful password strength tool that can help you make your password vault more secure.
Emergency Access
There are 3 worst case scenarios for password manager users:
- They become incapacitated.
- They lose their Master Password.
- They lose their device.
RoboForm gives you the option to select an emergency contact that can view your data in case of a crisis. If you suddenly become incapacitated for any reason or you lose your device, you can grant another person access to your account.
Similarly, if you ever forget your Master Password — which you REALLY shouldn’t do — you can ask your emergency contact to access your password vault on your behalf.
To set up Emergency Access, enter the trusted person’s email address and select a waiting period — from 0 (immediate access) to 30 days. This means that your emergency contact won’t be able to open your password vault until the waiting period is over.
The Emergency Access feature offers a few good precautions in case you change your mind about giving your emergency contact access to your account. If the emergency contact requests access before the waiting period is up, you can decline the request, but once the waiting period expires, the emergency contact will gain full access to your password vault. However, you can revoke Emergency Access at any time, even when your emergency contact already has full access to your RoboForm data.
If you lose your Master Password, your emergency contact can download all of your RoboForm information as a .CSV file. When you reinstall RoboForm — this time with a Master Password that you can remember — you can re-upload that .CSV and get all of your data and settings back.
RoboForm’s Emergency Access is a great way to ensure that user data is accessible in an emergency situation — and it makes it easy to recover logins if you forget your Master Password.
Application Passwords
RoboForm doesn’t just save passwords of online logins — it can save passwords for the apps on your desktop and mobile device, as well. When I logged into my iTunes account on my desktop, RoboForm automatically popped up a dialogue box, offering to save the password.
Unfortunately, RoboForm’s application password feature is not perfect — for example, Skype’s internal sandboxing protections make it impossible for RoboForm to auto-fill Skype logins on macOS and iOS devices. This is a frustrating limitation, but I didn’t find any other notable exceptions to RoboForm’s application password feature in my testing.
Saving desktop application passwords is a really useful extra feature that some competitors like Bitwarden and NordPass don’t include. This added functionality from RoboForm provides security against screen loggers, and it can save a ton of time for anybody using secure applications on their computer.
Secure Sharing
RoboForm users can share passwords, form templates, and notes with anybody else that uses RoboForm. This is a great tool for families and teams. I was disappointed that I could only send one password at a time using the free version, but RoboForm Everywhere includes unlimited sharing between users, so you can share folders with several passwords, notes, and form templates all at once.
There are 2 options for sharing a single password — Sharing and Send.
With Sharing, any changes made to the shared login details are automatically synced with the recipient, while Send allows users to send a password once without the recipient having access to future password changes.
RoboForm also allows users to share folders that contain multiple logins and notes. Folders can be shared with 3 different permission settings:
- Login only. The recipient can use the logins, but can’t edit or share the passwords.
- Read and write. The recipient can both view and edit the items in the shared folder.
- Full control. The recipient can view and edit items as well as change permission levels.
The permission settings are ideal for offices or families where different users need different levels of access. The only password manager I’ve used with a better password sharing feature is 1Password — there’s a more intuitive interface, and I think it’s easier to use.
That said, RoboForm’s password sharing is still a really well-made feature. It functions perfectly and is still really easy to share data between users.
Automatic Form Filling
RoboForm started as a form-filling software and only later moved into password management. Because of that, RoboForm’s web form-filling capabilities are among the best when compared with rival password managers.
RoboForm offers 7 different templates for form-filling, as well as the option to customize your own template. These are the different options:
- Person
- Business
- Passport
- Address
- Credit Card
- Bank Account
- Car
- Custom
RoboForm also allows users to save multiple templates within a single identity. For example, I made a couple of different identities, one with my business address, credit card, and checking account, and another one for all of my personal needs. These identities have a ton of room for different details — I was able to include information like contact numbers, email addresses, and my Skype ID.
Once I created my identity in RoboForm, I could auto-fill that information into web forms by selecting the correct template in the browser extension.
RoboForm was able to fill out some extremely complex web forms with almost zero errors. I simply selected the template in the browser extension, clicked auto-fill, and watched all of the fields for my address, credit card, and contact information fill in automatically.
I would love to see competing brands like Keeper and Dashlane take some notes on RoboForm’s form-filling features. But until they do, I’m confident in saying that RoboForm has the best form-filler of any other password manager.
Bookmark Storage
RoboForm’s Bookmarks feature is similar to a web browser bookmark, but it saves bookmarks to any device that has RoboForm installed. It’s available through RoboForm’s browser extension for computers and mobile devices.
Bookmark sharing is really convenient when you want to quickly access your favorite sites across different devices and browsers. Because I use Safari on my iPhone and Chrome on my PC, RoboForm’s bookmark sharing is a real time saver — it’s made it easy for me to share my research and important links between my phone and computer while I’m either out of the house or working at home.
RoboForm is one of the only major password managers to offer this unique feature, and it’s one of my favorite things about RoboForm.
Plans and Pricing
RoboForm has 3 different pricing tiers — a free version, a premium version, and a family plan.
All 3 plans are available for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS systems, and they’re all a good price when compared to premium competitors like Dashlane and Keeper.
RoboForm Free — Decent Features, Not the Best
RoboForm Free is decent — offering unlimited passwords for a single device, along with features like:
- Automatic web form filling.
- Auto-saving and auto-filling online and application passwords.
- Password auditing.
- Secure password sharing.
RoboForm Free is a pretty good product, but there are better free options out there, especially for users looking for multi-device sync or 2FA compatibility. Competitors like LastPass Free include multiple devices, unlimited password storage, and 2FA.
Still, RoboForm Free is a great entry-level password manager. If you’re curious about using the premium version of RoboForm, the free version is a great place to get started.
RoboForm Everywhere — Best Plan at a Great Price
RoboForm Everywhere provides a lot of really great features for a better price than many competitors, including unlimited password storage across unlimited devices.
RoboForm Everywhere also includes:
- Two-factor authentication (2FA).
- Secure folders for sharing multiple logins.
- Emergency access.
- Priority 24/7 customer support.
RoboForm Everywhere is already a great value, and if you choose a multiple-year contract, you’ll receive a discount — there are discounts for 3 and 5-year contracts. It’s a pretty great deal, especially because RoboForm is already cheaper than most competitors. Plus, RoboForm Everywhere offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try it out risk-free.
RoboForm Family — Same Plan with 5 Accounts
RoboForm Family provides all of the same features as RoboForm Everywhere, along with unlimited password storage on unlimited devices for 5 separate accounts.
RoboForm Family is a pretty good deal, but it’s not the best choice for families — 1Password’s family plan includes breach monitoring, advanced 2FA options, and family-friendly vault sharing options.
However, RoboForm Family is cheaper than 1Password, and RoboForm still provides a lot of great features. As with the Everywhere plan, you get a discount if you opt for a multiple-year contract, and there’s a 30-day money back guarantee, so your family can decide together if RoboForm is the best password manager.
Ease of Use and Setup
Setting up RoboForm was super easy for me. RoboForm’s website automatically suggested the proper format to download for my Windows PC. Once I got the program opened on my computer, the installer automatically selected extensions for compatible browsers.
After installing RoboForm, I was prompted to create a RoboForm account and a Master Password. There’s no way to recover your Master Password — common among most password managers — so I made sure mine was memorable.
RoboForm can import existing password vaults from most password managers, along with web browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Opera, and Microsoft Edge.
NordPass was the last password manager that I used, and unfortunately RoboForm doesn’t have an automatic import option for NordPass. This wasn’t a big problem — I simply exported my NordPass vault as a .csv file, and imported the .csv into RoboForm manually. Once imported, all of my passwords appeared in the “Logins” section, organized alphabetically.
RoboForm’s desktop interface is divided into 3 parts. The column on the left lists various sections — such as Logins, Bookmarks, and Security Center. To the right of that, two additional columns display the contents of those categories.
The desktop application doesn’t look very “cool” or modern, but it’s easy enough to navigate, and it gives you a lot of options for storing and sharing passwords and setting up web form templates.
RoboForm’s browser extension is where I spent the majority of my time with this program.
After logging into a new site, RoboForm’s browser extension popped up and offered to save the new login to my password vault. Once my login for that site was saved, I was able to click the Logins tab in the browser extension, select the site I wanted, and RoboForm automatically signed me in and opened the website in a new tab.
RoboForm also did a good job of auto-filling passwords on saved sites. A convenient little RoboForm icon appears in the corner of saved login fields — just clicking once on the icon automatically fills in the email and password.
RoboForm’s auto-filling and auto-saving are among the best — I almost never saw any errors or missed login fields in my testing, much better than a lot of other password managers.
RoboForm Mobile App
RoboForm’s mobile password manager is available on iOS and Android devices. I downloaded the app for my iPhone from the App Store, signed in with my Master Password, and I immediately had access to all of the saved login information from my RoboForm desktop application.
If you’re new to RoboForm, you can create a new account through the mobile app, which will take you through the same setup procedure as the desktop software.
I only had to type in my Master Password once — after that, I chose to set up a fingerprint ID login. RoboForm also offers to let users log in with face ID or a PIN login.
Once I had my login set up and I had imported my password vault, I went into my iPhone’s settings and enabled RoboForm to perform Password Auto-Fill. Whenever a saved login popped up, I was given the option to select RoboForm and select the correct login from my vault.
This simple auto-filling made RoboForm’s mobile app one of my favorite password managers I’ve used on my iPhone. I had a similar level of success using RoboForm on my Android tablet.
Overall, RoboForm’s mobile app provides seamless password management for both iOS and Android devices.
Customer Support
RoboForm’s customer support is excellent. Free users get access to RoboForm’s responsive email support team, which is available 24/7/365. The company’s representatives typically respond very quickly — it took them just 30 minutes to get back to me during weekday US business hours. That’s the fastest response I’ve ever received from a password manager’s customer support team!
Paying customers receive priority email support, as well as live chat and telephone support. Live chat is available 9-5pm EST, Monday-Friday, and phone support is available during those same hours by request. When I sent them a message asking about why Skype wasn’t auto-filling, the live chat support was responsive and helpful.
That said, it took a decently long time waiting on hold for a phone representative to receive my call. I’d like to see a quicker phone response time from RoboForm in the future, but most password managers don’t even offer phone support — and quick email responses are practically unheard of for password manager companies.
Other support channels include RoboForm’s Help Center and the RoboForm Manual. RoboForm’s Help Center is really well-made, with clear instructions on how to use all of RoboForm’s functions, usually illustrated with screenshots.
RoboForm’s customer support team is great. They offer detailed and helpful guidance for a wide variety of technical issues with good availability and quick response times.
Is RoboForm Really Good Enough?
RoboForm is a completely secure and effective password manager, with some really helpful special features. While it lacks some of the premium extras provided by competitors like Dashlane and Keeper. RoboForm’s 256-bit AES encryption, 2FA compatibility, and vault auditing tools ensure that this product will keep passwords as secure as possible.
Plus, RoboForm’s form-filling capabilities are by far the best on the market, making it easy to auto-fill even the most complex web forms.
For the most part, RoboForm’s customer support is excellent — offering phone and live chat support during US business hours and email 24/7.
I wasn’t super impressed with RoboForm’s user interface — it lacks the visual polish of competitors like RememBear and Dashlane, and I would love to see RoboForm include a breach monitoring tool in their Security Center.
Still, the high-quality security features and affordable price make RoboForm one of my top choices, especially for users on a budget. Plus, all of their plans come with a 30-day money back guarantee, so you can give RoboForm a try and find out for yourself if this product is right for you.
Frequently Asked Questions About RoboForm
Is RoboForm safe?
Yes. Password managers like RoboForm actually increase user security in a variety of ways.
RoboForm protects user data on their servers using end-to-end 256-bit AES encryption to ensure that nobody — not even RoboForm’s developers — can access user logins. RoboForm also supports 2FA using biometric scanning as well as one-time password authenticators like Google Authenticator.
RoboForm also increases user security in a few different ways, such as:
- Generating complex passwords. RoboForm’s password generator can generate completely random passwords up to 512 characters long, which means each password can stand up to most forms of brute-force attack.
- Auto-filling. Auto-filling passwords keeps them from being tracked by keyloggers and screen loggers that can record anything you type or enter on your screen.
- Password auditing. RoboForm’s Security Center feature analyzes every password in your vault, flagging weak and repeated passwords.
RoboForm is a 100% secure password manager — not only will it keep your information secure, it actually upgrades security for users that don’t already have a password manager.
Does RoboForm have a free version?
Yes. RoboForm Free is one of my favorite free password managers on the market. It offers unlimited password storage on a single device, as well as form-filling capabilities, password auditing, and secure password sharing with other RoboForm users. It’s pretty good, but like any free password manager, it has some annoying limitations.
Because it only offers coverage for a single device, that means you won’t be able to share passwords between your phone and computer, which is a deal-breaker for most password manager users. However, if you only have one internet-connected device, this is no problem.
LastPass Free is my favorite free password manager, offering unlimited password storage on unlimited devices, along with secure password sharing, biometric login, and password auditing.
Where does RoboForm store passwords?
RoboForm stores user passwords in secure cloud servers, using 256-bit AES encryption. Storing passwords in the cloud enables users to sync their passwords between devices, and it also allows the RoboForm browser extensions to auto-fill and auto-save passwords.
RoboForm also offers the option for local data storage. Advanced users with their own secure servers can make use of this feature, which potentially offers even greater security — but it can be dangerous if you don’t have the security expertise to keep your network secure.
Does RoboForm work with Chrome or Firefox?
Yes, RoboForm’s browser extension is compatible with a variety of browsers — I personally tested RoboForm with Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Opera, and I found that it synced easily between all of them. Important functions like auto-fill, auto-save, and password generation were all totally effortless.
