I was a long-time Bitwarden user, until a year or so ago when I started migrating my passwords first to Firefox/LibreWolf, and recently from there to a KeePass database I can transfer and use with whatever password manager application is compatible with KeePass’ file format. It seems I was accidentally on time, as it’s come out over the last few days that Bitwarden is probably going down the drain soon. In February, the company got a new CEO, and in March, it doubled its Premium price, announcing the hike deep in a feature announcement.
The new CEO seems to be a bellwether for what’s to come for Bitwarden. He’s a merger and acquisitions guy, with a history of gutting companies and selling them for parts, and changes to Bitwarden’s website also indicate where it’s headed.
The phrase “Always free” disappeared from the personal password manager page in mid-April. It used to sit prominently under the plan selector. The free plan still exists — for now — but the commitment language is gone.
And then there’s the values rewrite.
Bitwarden used to define its culture with the acronym GRIT: Gratitude, Responsibility, Inclusion, and Transparency. After May 4th, that changed. GRIT now stands for Gratitude, Responsibility, Innovation, and Trust.
Inclusion and Transparency are out. Innovation and Trust are in.
↫ Patrick Boyd
The “Always free” motto quietly reappeared on the site after its removal was uncovered and went viral on Fedi.
The change in CEO, the changes in values, and the removal (and reappearance) of Bitwarden’s well-known and oft-repeated commitment to its free plan have all been quiet. No announcements, no blog posts, no posts on social media – but they did change a four-year old blog post by Bitwarden’s former CEO to change that GRIT acronym. You don’t need to be an honors student to figure out where this is going, and what the new CEO’s plans are for Bitwarden.
Do as I did, and get your passwords out of BitWarden. I strongly suggest using an open format that can be used by any compatible password manager, with KeePass’ formats being the obvious choice. This way your passwords are truly yours, and not dependent on someone’s continued commitment to free plans or proprietary services that can unexpectedly change hands. Bitwarden is licensed under the Apache 2.0 license, but with all of the above, one has to wonder how long that’s going to remain a thing.
