Transferring Passwords From Google Chrome to a Dedicated App Just Got a Lot Easier
If you’ve used Google Chrome to store all your usernames and passwords, that’s great – much better than writing passwords on sticky notes and sticking them to your desktop or laptop monitor. Third-party password managers are even better (cross-platform in many cases), and the new Chrome setting now makes it easy to migrate all passwords stored in the browser to a new app.
As Android Police points out, Google Chrome already stores your saved username and password in its own password manager – if you let it. To view this list of passwords, go to Settings> Advanced> Manage Passwords. Once there, you can edit or delete your login information, or enable automatic login to save you the hassle of typing complex passwords for your favorite sites.
To export your login information to a CSV file, which you can then use to populate the new password manager app you are using, you need to enable the experimental feature in Chrome. Do not worry; the process is still much faster than manually adding all of your accounts. Ugh.
Here’s how to enable the password export feature:
- Open Chrome.
- In the URL bar, enter: chrome: // flags /
- Find “export password” in the search bar on the Flags page.
- Switch from “Default” to “Enabled”.
- Select Restart Now to restart Chrome.
- Go to Settings> Advanced> Password Management.
- Select Saved Passwords> Export.
- Enter your login details for your computer.
The most popular password managers like LastPass or 1Password to name two have detailed instructions that show you how to import a CSV file with the login information you created. And don’t forget to turn off Chrome’s Password Management feature if you’re using a new privacy app.