App comparison

Dashlane vs LastPass

Which is the better Password managers for Mac in 2026?

PublishedJanuary 1, 2026•UpdatedAugust 10, 2026

Dashlane

Password manager and digital wallet with dark web monitoring and VPN features.

Full review

Our verdict

How we compare apps

On Tahoe 26.x in August 2026 Dashlane is the better vault to recommend to a new Mac buyer between these two: newer phishing controls, cleaner Mac app and passkey UX outweigh its ~$96/year Premium sticker, while LastPass now competes mainly on low price and vault inertia after its 2022 breach. If your vault is already in LastPass and hardened, staying can be defended; starting fresh, start with Dashlane.

Read the quick answer

Which is better: Dashlane or LastPass?

LastPass is the top pick for most Mac users looking at Password managers. It is free and installs in one Homebrew command. Dashlane is the stronger choice if you want password manager. As of October 2026, both install with brew install --cask dashlane and brew install --cask lastpass.

TL;DR

Dashlane vs LastPass: On Tahoe 26.x in August 2026 Dashlane is the better vault to recommend to a new Mac buyer between these two: newer phishing controls, cleaner Mac app and passkey UX outweigh its ~$96/year Premium sticker, while LastPass now competes mainly on low price and vault inertia after its 2022 breach. If your vault is already in LastPass and hardened, staying can be defended; starting fresh, start with Dashlane.

Feature Comparison

Feature comparison between Dashlane and LastPass
Feature	Dashlane	LastPass
Price	See developer pricing	Free
Open Source	No	No
Replaces	—	1Password ($3.99/month)
Best for	password manager, security, passwords	password manager, passwords, vault
Install	brew install --cask dashlane	brew install --cask lastpass
Category	Security & Privacy	Security & Privacy

Quick Install

Dashlane

brew install --cask dashlane

LastPass

brew install --cask lastpass

Learn More

Dashlane Details

Full review, features, and FAQs

LastPass Details

Full review, features, and FAQs

In-Depth Overview

What is Dashlane?

Dashlane is a consumer password manager built around premium bundle design. As of August 2026 its personal tiers are Free (1 device, 25 logins), Advanced (~$4.99/month billed annually, ~$59.88/year) and Premium (~$7.99/month billed annually, ~$95.88/year) plus Friends & Family (~$9.99/month billed annually for 10 Premium seats). Even Advanced now gives unlimited devices, logins and passkeys; Premium adds Hotspot Shield VPN, phishing/dark-web protection and 2 GB encrypted storage. Dashlane's Mac app is fully native for Tahoe 26.x and Apple Silicon, with inline Safari autofill, menu-bar quick access and system passkey provider support. The company invests heavily in phishing protection that flags risky domains before autofill fires, which 2026 reviews highlight as a differentiator versus LastPass's more utilitarian hardening. Dashlane is cloud-only and closed source but independently audited.

What is LastPass?

LastPass by GoTo remains a high-install-base password manager with a long consumer history. As of August 2026 it offers Free (one device type — computers OR mobile, not both, plus limited sharing), Premium (~$3/month billed annually at ~$36/year, ~$4 monthly), Families (~$4/month billed annually for 6 including shared folders), Teams (~$4/user/month billed annually) and Business (~$6/user/month billed annually). Feature-wise LastPass covers unlimited passwords, passkeys, TOTP, 1 GB file storage on Premium, and emergency access, plus a browser-extension-first Mac flow and a lighter desktop app. The product's 2015 and late-2022 breaches — with encrypted vault backups exfiltrated — continue to appear in every 2026 roundup as a trust qualifier, even though LastPass hardened KDF iterations and forced resets afterward. On Tahoe 26.x LastPass is functional and shipped via browser extensions and a notarized app, but less Mac-native than Dashlane.

Detailed Feature Comparison

Mac App & Autofill

High importance

Dashlane

Excellent

Native Tahoe 26.x app with inline Safari suggestions, phishing-aware autofill warnings, credential health scoring and menu-bar access. Feels designed for the Mac rather than ported.

LastPass

Good

Extension-first; inline autofill works but lacks Dashlane's phishing pre-check overlay and Universal-style system fill. Desktop app is utilitarian.

Verdict: Dashlane is the more polished native Mac experience.

Phishing & Breach Protection

High importance

Dashlane

Excellent

Real-time phishing alerts and domain-spoof warnings before filling, plus dark-web monitoring with concierge breach outreach on Premium. Premium also includes Hotspot Shield VPN for untrusted networks.

LastPass

Good

Dark web monitoring and Security Dashboard on Families/Business, but no phishing-aware inline blocker or included VPN. Protection depends on you recognizing look-alike domains yourself.

Verdict: Dashlane's pre-fill phishing intelligence is meaningfully safer in 2026.

Passkeys

High importance

Dashlane

Excellent

Passkey creation, sign-in and health score for passkey-ready sites on paid plans, with system-provider integration on macOS. Sharing passkeys is straightforward in the Dashlane vault.

LastPass

Good

Passkey storage and browser sign-in available, but system-level provider rollout lagged Dashlane and metadata UX is plainer.

Verdict: Dashlane's passkey management on Mac is more guided.

Free Tier

High importance

Dashlane

Fair

Free is severely capped: 1 device and 25 logins — a demo that pushes you to Advanced. Not viable for phone+Mac life.

LastPass

Fair

Free capped to one device type (desktop OR mobile) since 2021 — better than Dashlane's 25-login wall for single-type users, but still blocks phone+Mac without Premium.

Verdict: LastPass's Free cap is slightly more livable; both are intentionally limited.

Pricing

High importance

Dashlane

Fair

Premium ~$95.88/year on annual, Advanced ~$59.88/year entry. Family via Friends & Family ~$119.88/year for 10. Value requires you to use VPN/monitoring; vault alone is expensive.

LastPass

Good

Premium ~$36/year, Families ~$48/year for 6. Undercuts Dashlane Premium by ~$60/year for vault-only use, with Teams/Business per-user pricing also cheaper than Dashlane Business ~$10/user/month.

Verdict: LastPass wins on sticker if you ignore bundling.

Breach History & Trust

Critical importance

Dashlane

Very Good

No mass encrypted-vault exfiltration on record; audited and widely recommended in 2026 as the premium alternative to breached managers.

LastPass

Poor

2015 and late-2022 breaches included theft of encrypted vault backups, leading to forced rotation and lingering distrust in 2026 buyer guides.

Verdict: Breach history is LastPass's heaviest liability versus Dashlane.

File Storage

Medium importance

Dashlane

Good

Premium includes 2 GB encrypted secure file storage (separate drive). Useful for ID scans and backups alongside the vault.

LastPass

Good

Premium includes 1 GB file storage, Families shares it. Smaller allowance than Dashlane, adequate for documents.

Verdict: Dashlane doubles the file headroom per vault.

Business & Admin

Medium importance

Dashlane

Good

Business tier (~$10/user/month) with SSO/SCIM and admin console; phishing risk dashboard appeals to HR-led rollouts.

LastPass

Good

Teams $4/user and Business $6/user with SSO, provisioning and sharing policies; cheaper per seat, though breach history adds procurement friction.

Verdict: LastPass is cheaper per seat; Dashlane offers more phishing controls — procurement decides.

Who Should Choose Which?

1The Security-Conscious New Mac User

Dashlane

No breach baggage, phishing-aware autofill and VPN for café Wi-Fi justify the higher bill over LastPass.

2The Existing LastPass Vault Owner

LastPass

If you have already rotated after 2022 and your folders are dialed, staying at ~$36/year is rational — just add 2FA and a strong master password.

3The Budget Student

LastPass

Cheapest path to sync phone and Mac; Dashlane Free's 25-login cap is unusable for coursework.

4The Household Sharing 8–10 Logins

Dashlane

Friends & Family 10-seat design matches large households and includes breach concierge for non-technical relatives.

5The Traveler on Public Wi-Fi

Dashlane

Premium VPN in the same subscription means one bill protects logins and traffic on hotel networks.

Migration Guide

Dashlane → Lastpass

Export Dashlane as CSV/encrypted, import via LastPass web vault Tools > Import. Re-check TOTP and file attachments; some Dashlane secure file items need re-upload to LastPass 1 GB store.

Lastpass → Dashlane

Export LastPass CSV from web vault, import in Dashlane web app (Preferences > Import). Verify folders map to collections and re-create passkeys where needed; enable phishing alerts and VPN after import.

Pro Tips

Both restrict bulk passkey export — budget time to re-enroll passkeys. Delete offline exports on an encrypted volume after verifying import.

Final Verdict

Overall Winner

Dashlane

7.9/10

Winner

6.4/10

Runner-up

Scores are Bundl.run editorial ratings out of 10 across 8 criteria (the feature comparison above), last reviewed August 2026.

Bottom Line: New Mac, new vault: pick Dashlane. Existing LastPass vault you already hardened and do not want to migrate: staying at ~$36/year is the budget defensible choice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is LastPass still safe in August 2026 after the breach?

LastPass remains alive and has hardened KDF iterations and processes since the 2022 encrypted-vault theft, but reviewers in 2026 still disclose that history and advise a strong unique master password plus 2FA. Many new Mac buyers choose Dashlane, 1Password or Bitwarden specifically to avoid that history.

How much does Dashlane cost versus LastPass in 2026?

Dashlane Advanced ~$4.99/month billed annually (~$59.88/year), Premium ~$7.99/month billed annually (~$95.88/year) with VPN/monitoring; LastPass Premium ~$3/month billed annually (~$36/year) and Families ~$4/month for 6. LastPass is cheaper; Dashlane bundles more.

Does Dashlane really include a VPN?

Yes on Premium: Hotspot Shield-powered VPN is bundled at no extra install step, activating alongside the vault on Mac and mobile. Advanced and Free do not include it, and Bitwarden or LastPass never include a VPN.

Which Free tier is more usable?

Neither is generous. Dashlane Free caps to 1 device and 25 logins — essentially a trial. LastPass Free caps to one device type (desktop or mobile, not both). Both are pushed to sell Premium/Advanced; LastPass's Free is slightly more livable for single-type users.

Will my passkeys move between them?

Not in bulk. Expect to re-register passkeys after switching vaults in either direction. Both support passkeys as of 2026, but export is gated by platform security design.

Which is better on macOS Tahoe 26.x?

Dashlane. Its Mac app and Safari extension feel native and include phishing warnings before autofill; LastPass works fine via extension but feels more utilitarian and lacks that pre-fill intelligence.

Can I try before I pay?

LastPass offers a Premium trial and a gated Free; Dashlane offers Free capped at 25 logins and paid plans with standard refund windows. Check each vendor's site for the current trial or money-back term in your region.

Does Bitwarden beat both on value?

Yes on price: Bitwarden Free is unlimited devices and logins and Premium is $19.80/year, undercutting both. Dashlane counters with bundle/UX, LastPass with low paid sticker. For vault-only value without bundle, Bitwarden often wins over both of these two.

About the Author

Alex Chen

Senior Developer Tools Specialist

Code Editors & IDEsTerminal EmulatorsVersion Control Tools

12+ years in software development · Former senior engineer at tech startups

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Sources & References

Key Verified Facts

Dashlane Advanced ~$4.99/mo annual and Premium ~$7.99/mo annual with Hotspot Shield VPN and dark web monitoring on Premium.[1][3]
LastPass Free limited to one device type; Premium ~$3/mo annual, Families ~$4/mo for 6.[4][5]
LastPass suffered encrypted vault theft in late 2022 and remains disclosed in 2026 roundups.[6][7]
Dashlane Free capped to 1 device and 25 logins.[2]

1
dashlane.comDashlane pricing — personal plans
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Advanced ~$4.99/mo; Premium ~$7.99/mo; Friends & Family ~$9.99/mo
2
dashlane.comDashlane Free limits
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Free 1 device, 25 passwords
3
dashlane.comDashlane Premium VPN and monitoring
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Hotspot Shield VPN and dark web monitoring included
4
lastpass.comLastPass pricing by plan
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Premium $3/mo; Families $4/mo
5
lastpass.comLastPass Free vs Premium device limit
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Free limited to one device type
6
theverge.comLastPass 2022 breach — encrypted vaults taken
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Encrypted vault theft aftermath
7
en.wikipedia.orgLastPass breach timeline
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
2015 and 2022 breach chronology
8
techradar.comDashlane vs LastPass — 2026 comparison
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
Source excerpt
Head-to-head feature comparison

Related Technologies & Concepts

DashlaneLastPassGoToHotspot ShieldAES-256PasskeysmacOS TahoeZero-Knowledge

Dashlane

LastPass

Our verdict

Feature Comparison

Quick Install

Learn More

In-Depth Overview

What is Dashlane?

What is LastPass?

Detailed Feature Comparison

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Dashlane

LastPass

Who Should Choose Which?

1The Security-Conscious New Mac User

2The Existing LastPass Vault Owner

3The Budget Student

4The Household Sharing 8–10 Logins

5The Traveler on Public Wi-Fi

Migration Guide

Dashlane → Lastpass

Lastpass → Dashlane

Pro Tips

Final Verdict

Dashlane

Frequently Asked Questions

About the Author

Explore More on Bundl

Sources & References

Key Verified Facts

Related Technologies & Concepts

Related Topics

Breach History & Buyer Trust

Phishing-Aware Autofill on Mac

Password Manager Free Tier Limits