Published: January 16, 2025
Passkeys are a safer and more user-friendly alternative to passwords. They enable users to sign in to apps and websites by unlocking their device screen–with a biometric sensor (such as a fingerprint or facial recognition), PIN, or a pattern. With passkeys, users no longer need to remember or manage passwords, and worry about phishing. With passkeys on Google Password Manager (GPM) being available on iOS and iPadOS, Chrome syncs passkeys across all operating systems.
Passkeys on Google Password Manager are now available on iOS 17 or later
Chrome users on iOS 17 or later (and iPadOS 17 or later) can now create passkeys on Google Password Manager and synchronize them across all other platforms where Chrome is available.
Previously, passkeys created on Google Password Manager on Android, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS were not available on iOS or iPadOS. Similarly, passkeys created on iOS or iPadOS were saved to Apple Passwords (formerly iCloud Keychain) and not synced to other platforms. While Apple Passwords syncs passkeys across Apple devices under the same Apple account, it does not extend compatibility to other platforms.
Passkeys now sync on Chrome across all platforms and devices
With this update, Chrome on iOS 17 or later now supports creating and saving passkeys directly to Google Password Manager, ensuring they synchronize seamlessly with other platforms linked to the same Google Account.
Platform | Google Password Manager | Apple Passwords |
---|---|---|
Windows | ✅1 | - |
macOS | ✅ | ✅ |
iOS/iPadOS | ✅2 | ✅ |
Android | ✅ | - |
Linux | ✅ | - |
ChromeOS | ✅ | - |
This change means Chrome with the same signed-in profile can synchronize passkeys on the Google Password Manager across all platforms and devices.
How to use passkeys on iOS
To use passkeys on Google Password Manager on iOS 17 or later, set Chrome as an autofill provider in Settings. With this setting, users can use passkeys saved to Google Password Manager on any apps and browsers on the device.
To do so:
- Open System Settings on a device that runs iOS 17 or later
- Navigate to General > AutoFill & Passwords
- Under AUTOFILL FROM, toggle Chrome to enable autofill
How it works
When a user sets up passkeys in Google Password Manager (GPM) on Android, they're automatically protected by the same method they use to unlock their phone, such as a fingerprint or screen lock. To enable users to access saved passkeys on iOS, we're using Google Password Manager PIN (GPM PIN).
Passkeys are end-to-end encrypted and can't be accessed by anyone. Not even Google. Because of this users will need to remember and use their GPM PIN to restore access to their passkeys on a new device.
To start using passkeys on a new device, users must enter their GPM PIN or the unlock method of their Android device. Once synced, passkeys can be used across supported apps and websites.
When saving their first passkey to GPM on iOS, users will be asked to create a GPM PIN.
Learn more about passkeys
With this update, Google Password Manager syncs passkeys across all devices that use Chrome with the same Google Account. Now is the time to replace passwords with passkeys. Learn more about passkeys with these resources:
- Watch a short video to learn passkeys: Understand passkeys in 4 minutes
- Learn passkeys in Google ecosystem: Passwordless login with passkeys
- Learn passkeys on the web: Passkeys | Chrome for Developers