Activate Bitwarden with these quick steps!
Finish setup to secure your digital life:
① Pin the browser extension for easy access
② Log into the extension
③ Adjust settings for convenience
1. Pin the browser extension for easy access
Go to your browser’s extension menu () and locate Bitwarden.
Click the thumbtack icon to pin the Bitwarden extension
Now the Bitwarden icon should always be visible. The icon will change to show if you’re logged out, your vault is locked, or if you have any saved logins for the page you’re visiting!
2. Log into the extension
Click on the Bitwarden icon to open the extension.
Log in with your email address and master password you made when you created your account.
Note: If you set up your account on a specific server, adjust your log in location in the drop down for “Logging in on:”
3. Set vault timeout and unlocking preferences
Open the extension and click on Settings
In the Security section, adjust the options to your preferences
You can choose settings that reduce how often you need to enter your master password.
Vault timeout ↗ - Choose when your vault times out
Vault timeout action ↗ - Choose what happens when your vault times out
Lock - the vault locks without logging out
Log out - logs you out completely
Unlock with PIN ↗ - Choose any PIN to quickly unlock the vault instead of using the master password
Unlock with biometrics ↗ - Unlock using your fingerprint of facial recognition. Requires the Bitwarden Desktop App
For even more convenience, download the Bitwarden mobile app to use Log in with Device, so next time you don’t need a master password to login!
More download options
You can access your Vault from anywhere in the world at vault.bitwarden.com. You can also download and install Bitwarden on any desktop, device, and browser.
Get the most out of your browser extension
Now that you‘ve installed the browser extension, tap the Bitwarden icon in your toolbar to create an account or log in. Skip ahead for tips on how to:
Add to your vault
Add passwords and more to Bitwarden
To add a new vault item, tap the (+) button at the top right of the browser extension, then choose from four types of vault items: Logins, Cards, Identities and Secure Notes.
For example, when you add a login item, you will be prompted to enter a username and a strong password for the account. Pro tip: click the generate icon () to have a strong password created for you.
From there, Bitwarden will automatically grab the URL from the current website and store it with the vault item. It’s important to ensure the correct login page URL is added to the vault item in order to enable auto-fill, and to help prevent phishing attempts.
Now that you have successfully added a login vault item, the pain of manually entering login credentials is now a thing of the past. Autofill is at your fingertips, and you can choose from several methods to activate it:
Inline autofill menu
Use the convenient pop-up that comes from clicking on a username or password filed, or click the Bitwarden icon that appears thereKeyboard shortcuts
Ctrl/CMD + Shift + L→ Auto-fill, press again to cycle through matching loginsOpen the extension
Click on the "Fill" button on the vault item for automatic filling, or use the copy buttons to paste items manuallyRight click in a username/password field
Select Bitwarden from the context menu and then auto-fill
To automatically load your passwords as soon as you navigate to an account in your vault, open your Bitwarden browser extension and go to your Settings menu. From there, select “options” (under the Other category) and enable Auto-fill on page load.
For fast access to your credentials, setup a PIN or biometrics (TouchID/FaceID) to unlock your vault.
Use Folders to organize the items stored in your personal vault. To create or modify a folder, navigate to Folders in the Settings menu. Use Collections to organize credentials shared in your family or business organization. To create or modify a collection (based on user permissions), visit the Bitwarden web app.
To get the most out of Bitwarden, don’t forget to disable your browser’s ability to manage credentials and let Bitwarden handle the heavy lifting. This update will also protect against the security vulnerabilities introduced by browser-based password managers.
Easily switch between multiple Bitwarden accounts, such as your personal account and a work account. This helps keep your personal and work lives separate while also staying fully secured. Up to five accounts can be added for switching, with one active at any time.
