Software
Mobile Apps
personally tested
Strongbox Password Safe
A KeePass Password Manager
- Introduction
- Developer/Supplier
- Purchase Date
- Purchase Price
- Rating
- System Requirements
- Languages
- Support
- Features
- Pros
- Cons
- Conclusion
- Alternatives
- Text auf Deutsch
Great Password Safe for iOS, iPadOS and macOS
Strongbox is an application for iPhone/iPad and Mac to store all your passwords securely protected by a master password. Strongbox supports the open source formats “Password Safe” and “KeePass”. It is a freemium application with extended premium options as well as very useful basic functions.
Developer/Supplier
Developer: Mark McGuill
Purchase/Installation Date
30.04.2019: Strongbox Pro (Personal Edition) 3 months free trial!
29.07.2019: Strongbox Pro (Personal Edition)
22.09.2022: Strongbox Zero (currently available for iOS/iPadOS only)
Purchase Price
Basic version: free and without advertising!
Strongbox Pro: 28,99 EUR one-time (price at that time, 2019)
In‑App Purchases
Strongbox Pro (Yearly): 21,49 €
Strongbox Pro (Monthly): 4,49 €
Small Tip: 11,99 €
Little Tip: 5,99 €
Monthly Tip: 2,99 €
Yearly Tip: 20,49 €
Medium Tip: 23,99 €
Large Tip: 59,99 €
Huge Tip: 119,99 €
Rating (1–5 Stars)
Rating: ***** 5 stars
System Requirements
iPhone, iPad and iPod touch with iOS 14.0 or newer. Mac with macOS 10.15 or newer.
Languages
Arabic, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian (Bokmål), Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Ukrainian. Chinese, Czech, Turkish, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Simplified Chinese
Support
By e-mail (English). Very nice contact with the competent developer who responds quickly!
Features
- Face ID, Touch ID or PIN code support for convenience & speed
- Online support for iCloud, Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, WebDAV and SFTP
- use the Files app for many other storage options
- store the safes securely only on your local device (Strongbox Zero)
- securely protected by proven industrial encryption methods
- search collection of passwords & secrets using powerful search function
- automatically complete new entries and automatically generate strong passwords
- automatically delete clipboard, entry history, field references, placeholders on a time-controlled basis
- Support for custom icons and FavIcons for KeePass
- Support for two-factor authentication codes (TOTP)
- Standard-compliant support of the proven “Password Safe” and “KeePass” formats
Pros
- apart from monthly/annual subscription, one-off payment also possible
- Open Source (programme code can be checked at any time)
- Existing password safes in “Password Safe” and “KeePass” format can be easily imported
- Password Safes easily exportable in “KeePass” format (regular backup!)
- clear, fast and easy to use despite large range of functions
- hard-working and very competent developer actively takes care of further optimisation
Cons
- none noticed
Conclusion
Best protection for your password secrets!
This product is under constant development.
Despite the huge range of functions, the user interface appears tidy and clear. Those who want to save the password database in the cloud or on a web space can choose the standard Strongbox version. And for those who prefer a version without online features, Strongbox Zero is the ideal choice.
Great: in addition to the subscription versions, which are unfortunately necessary for developers nowadays, there are also licences available for a one-off payment, because not everyone likes subscriptions.
I like the fact that you can give a tip as an in-app payment!
This way you can also say thank you occasionally as a one-time payer.
At Easter or later at Christmas, this is a good opportunity for satisfied existing customers, too. 
Alternatives
There are many good password managers and the main thing is that you use one! Demands and tastes are different and whether you like this or that password safe better also depends on what you used to use. Those who have used KeePassB on a BlackBerry Playbook or BB10 smartphone may prefer Andrei Popleteev's KeePassium – out of habit.
I had tried both and I had liked Strongbox better from the beginning, although its user interface was not as nice as it is now.
And then came the offline version Strongbox Zero – perfect for me!
Unless you only use Apple devices, this is not an obstacle. The KeePass database file is compatible with KeePass password managers for Android, Linux and Windows.
On Fairphone 3+ and Fairphone 4 5G, I used KeePassDX and exchanged the password files with those for Strongbox on iOS and macOS as soon as something changed. I had also exported the password file from Strongbox Zero and loaded it into KeePassDX on my new Pixel 7 Pro.
In the meantime, however, I use two user profiles on the Pixel 7 Pro and the manual synchronisation became too cumbersome for me. That's why I'm now testing the only platform-independent open source solution, Bitwarden. It can be used permanently free of charge for private individuals (without 2FA and TOTP). I don't want to do without 2FA, so I booked the annual subscription for 10 USD. This way, I can also use the integrated Authenticator function.
On the MacBook Air M2, I continue to use Strongbox for macOS.
I manually transfer password changes from the Bitwarden web interface to the desktop version of Strongbox. This way I have a second password manager as a backup. Double is better.