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

Check out the instructions below

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!

web-browser-extension-initial-login

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:”

web-browser-extension-settings

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!

Download Logos

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.

web-browser-extension-login

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 passwords and other items

Enable autofill when logging in

Manage and organize your vault

Add to your vault

Add passwords and more to Bitwarden

web-browser-extension-vault

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.

web-browser-extension-add

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.

Browser Extension URI Example

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.

Autofill

Autofill your passwords

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:

  • Keyboard shortcuts

    Ctrl/CMD + Shift + L → Auto-fill, press again to cycle through matching logins

  • Right click in a username/password field

    Select Bitwarden from the context menu and then auto-fill

  • Tap the Bitwarden extension to copy a username/password individually

Load your passwords automatically as you browse

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.

Enable biometrics

For fast access to your credentials, setup a PIN or biometrics (TouchID/FaceID) to unlock your vault.


Vault management tips

Vault Switching with the All Vaults filter

Bitwarden enables you to easily switch between your personal vault and any shared vaults you may have joined, such as the one shared by your team or organization. To navigate between different vaults you belong to, open the browser extension and click the “All Vaults” filter at the top.

browser-extension-account-switching-example

The Tab screen

While surfing the web, you can easily access the vault items associated with the current website you’re on from within the Tab screen in your browser extension.

browser-extension-tab-screen

Organize 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 vault .

Disabling your browser-based password manager

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.

Level up your cybersecurity knowledge.

Subscribe to the newsletter.


© 2024 Bitwarden, Inc. Terms Privacy Cookie Settings Sitemap

This site is available in English.
Go to EnglishStay Here