Passbolt vs Spectre / Master Password
| Tagline | Open-source password manager for teams with granular sharing and PGP encryption | Algorithm-based stateless password generation with no sync required |
| Category | Password Managers & Secrets | Password Managers & Secrets |
| Replaces | 1Password, LastPass, Dashlane | 1Password, LastPass, Dashlane |
| GitHub stars | 6.1k | 16 |
| Language | PHP | C |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Self-host difficulty | 3/5 Moderate | 1/5 Minimal |
| Deploy options | Docker Docker Compose Kubernetes Manual | Manual |
| Managed hosting | ||
| Last updated | 12 days ago | 1 year ago |
| View repo | View repo |
Where each falls short
The honest trade-offs — what you give up with each, versus the proprietary tools they replace.
Passbolt
- Several features (SSO, directory sync, MFA policies, tags) are gated behind paid Pro/Cloud editions
- Relies on browser extensions; mobile app maturity lags 1Password/Dashlane
- Initial setup (GPG server keys, SMTP, HTTPS) is fiddly compared to consumer apps
- No personal/consumer focus — geared toward team credential sharing
Spectre / Master Password
- No vault means no ability to store free-form secure notes or non-password credentials
- Regenerating a password after a site breach requires manually tracking version counters
- No browser extension with auto-fill in the official CLI implementation
Bottom line
Choose Spectre / Master Password if you want the lower-effort setup; choose Passbolt for the larger community and ecosystem. Passbolt has seen more recent development. Open each guide below for deploy steps and the full feature gap.
Passbolt
Open-source password manager for teams with granular sharing and PGP encryption
Spectre / Master Password
Algorithm-based stateless password generation with no sync required