Set Up Bitwarden Safely

Create your Bitwarden vault online

Use your laptop or desktop browser to set up your master vault account cleanly:

1. Open your web browser cleanly: Launch Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, or Safari. Type bitwarden.com directly into the address bar to prevent phishing clones.
2. Click Get Started: Click the blue Get Started button in the top corner.
3. Enter your primary email address: Use your most secure personal email. Ensure you have two-step verification enabled on this email account.
4. Create your Master Password: Enter the strong 4-word passphrase you designed. Retype it in the confirmation box.
5. Add a Master Password Hint (Be careful!): Write a subtle clue that only you understand (e.g. "Animal, instrument, astronomical object, number"). Never write the actual password or words in your hint!
6. Write it down offline: Take a real pen and a notebook. Write down your master passphrase and keep that piece of paper in a secure, private drawer in your bedroom.
7. Verify your email address: Bitwarden will send a confirmation email. Open your inbox, find the verification link, and click it to confirm your identity.

Install the browser extension on your computer

1. Open your browser's official store (Chrome Web Store, Edge Add-ons, or Firefox Add-ons).
2. Search for Bitwarden Password Manager. Check that the verified publisher is Bitwarden Inc.
3. Click Add to Chrome (or Get) and accept installation.
4. Click the puzzle piece icon in your top browser bar and click the Pin icon next to Bitwarden so the blue shield icon stays permanently visible.
5. Click the blue shield icon and log in with your email and master passphrase.
6. Under Bitwarden Settings > Security, set Vault timeout to 15 Minutes or On Browser Restart, and choose Lock (not Log out). Turn on Unlock with PIN or Unlock with biometrics (Windows Hello / Touch ID).

Save existing logins and generate new passwords

Start moving your accounts into Bitwarden one by one:

1. Add an existing login: Click the Bitwarden extension shield icon, click the plus sign (+) in the top-right corner, select Type: Login, type the name of the service (e.g. Amazon), your username/email, and your current password, then click Save.
2. How to generate unhackable new passwords: Whenever you sign up for a new website, click the Generator tab at the bottom of Bitwarden.
3. Set the slider: Slide the length bar to 16 or 20 characters. Turn on uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and special symbols (!@#$%^&*).
4. Let Bitwarden generate: Bitwarden produces a code like 9x#K2$vP9!mL7q@Z. Click Copy, paste it into the website registration box, and click Save inside Bitwarden immediately.
5. Never reuse passwords: If a hacker steals a password from a gaming forum, they cannot use it on your banking or email because every single site has a totally unique 16-character key!

Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) on Bitwarden itself

Because your vault holds all your passwords, you must lock its front door with two-factor authentication:

1. Open your browser and sign into the Bitwarden Web Vault at vault.bitwarden.com.
2. Click your circular profile icon in the top right corner and click Account Settings.
3. Click the Security tab on the left menu, then click Two-step login along the top.
4. Under Providers, find Authenticator App and click the blue Manage button.
5. Type your master password to verify identity. A black-and-white square QR barcode will appear on your screen.
6. Pick up your smartphone, open Google Authenticator or Microsoft Authenticator, tap +, and scan the QR barcode displayed on your computer monitor.
7. Read the six-digit number currently showing for Bitwarden on your phone, type it into the confirmation box on your computer, and click Enable.
8. Save your recovery code: Bitwarden will show an emergency Recovery Code. Write this down on the same paper where you wrote your master password. If your phone breaks, this code lets you into your vault.