Coauth vs 1Password: a free 1Password alternative for small teams.
1Password is a great password manager. This is not a takedown. It answers one narrow question: what is the lightest way to share a few logins, passwords or passkeys, with a small team, without rolling out a suite or paying for every seat?
For sharing logins with a small team, here is the honest difference.
| Coauth | 1Password | |
|---|---|---|
| Free to share a login with a team | Yes, up to 3 people | No free plan; from $24.95/mo for up to 10 |
| Start without an account (sharing needs a free account) | Yes | No |
| Single shared login, no suite to roll out | Yes | No, full suite |
| Removing a member rotates the key | Yes | Removes access |
| Built for sharing logins with a team | Yes | General purpose |
| Zero-knowledge encryption | Yes | Yes |
| Company-wide management, SSO, policies | No | Yes |
1Password details from public information; prices from its own pricing page, checked October 15, 2026. Coauth is free for a team of three, then one flat price.
Pick the right tool for the job.
Choose Coauth when
- ›You need to share a few logins, passwords or passkeys, with a small team.
- ›You want it free for up to three people, then one flat price, with nothing to roll out.
- ›You want removing someone to rotate the team key, so nothing shared afterwards reaches them.
Choose 1Password when
- ›You want company-wide password management, not one shared login.
- ›You need SSO provisioning, policies, secrets automation, and audit at org scale.
- ›You want mature desktop and mobile apps with vendor support behind them.
Coauth vs 1Password, answered.
Is Coauth a replacement for 1Password?
No. 1Password is a full password suite for an entire organization. Coauth does one thing: share logins with a team, free for up to three people. If you need company-wide management, keep 1Password.
Can Coauth share a passkey I already saved in 1Password?
Not directly: Coauth cannot import a passkey saved in 1Password. To share access through Coauth, add a new passkey to that account through Coauth, which seals it to each teammate. Many sites let an account have more than one passkey.
Is Coauth really free?
Free for up to 3 people, then $5/mo flat. The free plan covers 1 team of up to 3 people, you included. Past that, Pro is $5 a month or $49 a year, however many people you add. You can try Coauth without an account for your first 3 passwords; sharing needs a free account.
Which should I pick?
If you want to share a few logins with a small team, free for three and one flat price after that, with a revoke that rotates the key, Coauth fits. If you are standardizing password management for the whole company, 1Password fits.
Watch a login get shared in 26 seconds.
Share logins with your team. Free for 3 people.
Install Coauth and share your logins with your team, free for up to 3 people. When someone leaves, remove them, the team key rotates, and you change any password they used.