Passwords can be quite frustrating at times, creating a barrier between people and the services they wish to access. Many services have different password requirements, making it hard for users to keep up with all their passwords, particularly those they don’t use on a regular basis. Fortunately, there are password managers that help securely store and organize passwords to make life easier. There are many great choices available, including options like 1Password, Dashlane, and LastPass. Most password managers offer both free and premium versions of their services, with certain features only available to premium users. In most cases, this means that free users can only take advantage of the password manager on one device at a time. LastPass, however, has decided to remove this limitation for free users, allowing them to use LastPass on as many devices as they want to.
LastPass is not doing away with their premium service. They will continue to offer it to customers for $12 per year, however, they have moved multi-device support to the free version. There are still plenty of features that come with the premium subscription to justify its cost, such as the ability to share passwords with family and friends, added security through two-factor authentication with physical devices, and fingerprint support for the desktop version of the app. Randomized password generation and device syncing will remain free, as well as multi-device support. The goal is to allow LastPass to be used on as many devices as possible so that users get into the habit of using LastPass everywhere, while still charging a premium for more advanced features needed by those with a higher demand for security. This change also serves as a selling point, as it separates LastPass from its competition by offering something that other services do not currently offer. This may, however, prompt competing services to start offering similar options.
While companies are working on ways to get around passwords altogether, we aren’t quite there yet, but options like LastPass certainly make them easier to manage. If you’re already a LastPass Premium customer, your subscription will continue, and you will continue to have access to the advanced features as well. If multi-device support was the primary reason you were paying for the premium subscription, and you don’t need the additional features, simply do not renew your membership once it has expired and you will continue to have access to LastPass from any device. If you renewed your subscription within the last 30 days, you can have your fee refunded if you cancel now. Whether you use the free or the premium version of LastPass, however, you’ll need the app installed to make use of it on your mobile device, which can be found by following the Google Play Store link below.