Google Chrome Saved Passwords – How to View, Export, Edit Passwords Mac, Windows, Android, iPhone
Google Chrome can remember passwords of websites you visit. Chrome browser offers to save passwords as you use websites to make your user experience more enjoyable and shopping online more convenient. For example, if you are shopping online or logging into a site on which you have a membership, then Chrome can save those usernames and passwords for you. If you are allowing Chrome to save passwords, the browser will prompt you each time to save or update the login credentials.
You can also choose to never save passwords for certain websites. For example, you may want to opt to never save passwords for banking websites or save credit card site logins. To stop Chrome from saving login credentials for sensitive websites, select Never when prompted to save a password.
If you do opt to have chrome save passwords, you can view them at any time. This is helpful if you want to see a password or need to use it on another device but don’t want to sync or reset your passwords. I wrote about where Chrome saves passwords for Mac and Windows devices.
Where Does Google Chrome Store Passwords?
Chrome password manager users have the option of synching their login credentials across devices including laptops, tablets, and smartphones. As long as you are logged into your Google account, Chrome will save your login information and make it available on any device. Because of this feature, you should never log into your Google account or sync accounts on a device you don’t own. It is easy to access and read all your Chrome saved passwords from any device where a Google account is logged in. Google Chrome users can view and manage login information for all the websites Chrome offered to save passwords for. Anyone who visits your password management page will see a plaintext version of every saved password.
You can use Google Chrome to manage passwords, but because it is so easy to access them you should enable two factor authentication (2FA) or a password manager to help keep them secure. However, when using Google 2FA, if a hacker gains access to your Gmail account, they have access to the whole kingdom as it can be used to recover Chrome passwords.
How Chrome Stores Passwords
Synching with Google’s cloud services stores more data than just passwords. Chrome users can also store and sync bookmarks, browsing history, autofill information, saved credit cards for shopping, and preferences.
Where Google Chrome Passwords are Stored Mac and Windows?
Chrome Password manager works with Windows, Mac, Chrome OS, Linux, iPhones, and of course Android devices. It can be used across any device and on any platform because passwords are stored in the cloud.
Saved passwords can be viewed in a variety of ways.
How to See Chrome Passwords
- Open Chrome web browser on your laptop
- Click the three dots in the upper right corner of your screen to drop down a menu
- Click Settings
- Click Passwords
On the screen you will see a list of usernames and passwords that you have saved using Google Chrome. The passwords will be hidden.
Chrome Saved Passwords File Location
Chrome passwords are saved locally as a password backup. Your Google Chrome password file is located on your computer at C:\Users\$username\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default. Substitute your username in to locate your password on your desktop or laptop computer. Your sites with stored passwords are listed in a file named Login Data. You can read the email address used for an account, but not the password. The passwords are encrypted. For that information, you will have to export your passwords from Chrome or go to the webpage to manage them.
How to Export Chrome Saved Passwords
Chrome saves passwords locally on your computer too. This file can be exported in .csv format and saved as a backup.
- Open Chrome web browser on your laptop
- Click the three dots in the upper right corner of your screen to open a drop-down menu
- Click Settings
- Click Passwords
- Click the three dots in the upper right corner of the Passwords screen. However, over the three dots to see More actions
- Click Export passwords
- Enter your Windows username and password
- Click OK
Your passwords will be exported as a .csv file. Save them to your device to view them. Your passwords will be visible to anyone who has the exported file.
