The best authenticator apps for Mac in 2026
For most people the best authenticator on a Mac is already there: Apple’s Passwords app is free, built into macOS Sequoia and later, and keeps your codes beside your passwords on your iPhone too. If you want a separate app, Ente Auth and Proton Authenticator are free, open source and run on Mac, iPhone and Android. If you already pay for 1Password or Bitwarden, use its codes. Pick Crest, our app, if you want your codes in the notch and typed in for you on the Mac.
Last updated: October 2026
Written by the developer of Crest, one of the apps below, on 13 October 2026. Every price, platform and feature of the other apps was read that day on the maker’s own page or App Store listing, listed under Sources at the end; we did not install them. Crest comes last: it is the newest app here, it runs on Macs only, and most people should start with a free one.
Does Apple have an authenticator app?
Yes, though it isn’t called that. Since macOS Sequoia, iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, Apple’s Passwords app keeps two-factor verification codes and suggests them when a site asks. There is no separate app called Apple Authenticator. To set up a code on a Mac, Apple’s guide gives these steps:
- On the site, turn on two-factor sign-in with an authenticator app, choose to use a setup key rather than the QR code, and copy the key.
- Open Passwords, select the account for that site, click Edit, then Set Up Code.
- Paste the key into Setup Key and click Use Setup Key.
- Click the verification code to copy it, and paste it on the site to finish.
Next time the site asks, click the suggestion, or copy the code from Passwords. Passwords can also sit in the menu bar as a mini version of the app (in its settings, Show Passwords in Menu Bar). In Chrome, Apple’s iCloud Passwords extension makes codes too and sets one up when you right-click a QR code; it needs macOS Sonoma or later, and on 13 October 2026 its Chrome Web Store page showed 7,000,000 users and 2.3 out of 5 from 2.7K ratings.
What Apple doesn’t document: its guide never mentions a QR code on the Mac (a November 2025 forum answer points to a Choose QR code Image button in Passwords on macOS Tahoe, for a screenshot of the code), and its import page takes passwords from a CSV file, with no word about codes. If adding codes by setup key suits you, you may not need anything below.
| Price, read 13 October 2026 | Mac app | iPhone app | Sync | How the code gets in | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Passwords | Free, built in | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | iCloud Keychain | Suggested when a site asks |
| Ente Auth | Free | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | End-to-end encrypted | Not said on its page |
| Proton Authenticator | Free | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | With a Proton Account | Not said on its page |
| 2FAS Auth | Free | Browser extension only | ✓Yes | Cloud or manual backup | The extension asks your phone |
| Step Two | Free; Unlimited $9.99 | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | iCloud | Safari extension |
| OTP Auth | $5.99 on Mac, free on iPhone | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | Encrypted iCloud sync | Safari extension |
| 1Password | From $2.99 a month, billed yearly | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | Across your devices | Fills it in on a Mac |
| Bitwarden | Premium, $19.80 a year | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | Cloud sync | Its browser extension fills it |
| Crest | $24.99 once or $2.99 a month | ✓Yes | ✗No | Between Macs, end-to-end encrypted | Offered in the notch, typed in |
Apple Passwords Free, built in
Apple’s Passwords app keeps verification codes beside your passwords and passkeys, and suggests the code when a site asks. It comes with macOS Sequoia, iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and later, and syncs through iCloud Keychain to your other Apple devices. The setup steps are above.
Best at: free, already on your Mac and iPhone, with nothing new to install or trust.
Watch-outs: on a Mac, Apple’s guide adds codes by setup key only, a 2024 user report says it refused a Google Authenticator export, and its Chrome extension rates 2.3 out of 5.
Best for: most people with an iPhone. Apple’s guide
Ente Auth Free, open source
Ente Auth is a free, open source authenticator (AGPL-3.0) with apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and the web. Its page says your codes “sync across all your devices, end-to-end encrypted”, offers bulk import from other 2FA apps, and says its cryptography has been externally audited.
Best at: free, open source, and the same codes on every device you own, Mac and phone alike.
Watch-outs: its page says nothing about filling codes in for you.
Best for: one free app on your Mac, iPhone and Android. ente.com/auth
Proton Authenticator Free, open source
Proton Authenticator is free on Android, iPhone, Windows, Mac and Linux, and open source like all of Proton’s apps. You can use it without a Proton Account; with one, it syncs your codes across devices, and its page promises end-to-end encrypted backups. It imports from Google Authenticator, 2FAS, Aegis, Bitwarden Authenticator, Ente Auth and LastPass Authenticator.
Best at: free, and it names six apps it imports from.
Watch-outs: sync needs a Proton Account, and its page says nothing about filling codes in for you.
Best for: leaving Google Authenticator or 2FAS for a free app on every device. proton.me/authenticator
2FAS Auth Free, open source
2FAS is a free, open source phone app with a browser extension for Chrome, Brave, Firefox, Edge, Opera and Safari. There is no Mac app: on your Mac, the extension sends a request to your phone, you accept it there, and the phone sends the code back. It offers cloud and manual backups.
Best at: free, and the code arrives in the browser without typing it.
Watch-outs: your phone has to be at hand for every code, and on the Mac it only helps in the browser.
Best for: keeping your codes on the phone, with help in the browser. 2fas.com
Step Two Free · Unlimited $9.99
Step Two is a simple authenticator for Mac and iPhone, also on Setapp, and one of the desktop alternatives Twilio names for Authy users. The Mac App Store lists it as free, with an in-app purchase called Unlimited for $9.99. It backs up and syncs your codes through iCloud and has a Safari extension. The Mac version’s latest App Store release is 4.0, dated 19 December 2022, and it needs macOS 13.1 or later.
Best at: a native Mac app, free to start, with one small in-app purchase.
Watch-outs: the Mac version’s latest App Store release is dated December 2022.
Best for: a Mac app kept in step with an iPhone through iCloud. steptwo.app
OTP Auth $5.99 on Mac · free on iPhone
OTP Auth is $5.99 on the Mac App Store, and its iPhone app is free. The Mac app lists encrypted iCloud sync, a Notification Center widget, a Safari extension “for pasting passwords into websites”, Touch ID or a password to open it, and encrypted backups. Its latest Mac release, 2.18.0, is dated 3 October 2023.
Best at: one payment, a Notification Center widget and Touch ID.
Watch-outs: the latest Mac release is dated October 2023.
Best for: a Mac and iPhone pair for a one-time price. Mac App Store
1Password From $2.99 a month, billed yearly
1Password is a password manager that also keeps your one-time codes. It sets one up by scanning a QR code from your screen or clipboard, and on a Mac, its guide says, “1Password automatically fills your one-time password” when you fill in your username and password. Individual is $2.99 a month billed yearly, an offer for a new customer’s first year, and $3.99 normally; Families is $4.49, or $5.99 normally. The trial is 14 days, with no card.
Best at: the code fills in with the password, in one step.
Watch-outs: a subscription, and your codes live with your passwords, which some people prefer to keep apart.
Best for: people who already pay for 1Password. 1password.com
Bitwarden Premium, $19.80 a year
In Bitwarden, the password manager, making two-factor codes needs Premium, $19.80 a year, or a paid organization. Its browser extensions and its iPhone app (iOS 18 and later) fill the code in for you. The separate Bitwarden Authenticator app is free and open source, but it runs on iPhone and Android only.
Best at: a low yearly price if you also want a password manager.
Watch-outs: free Bitwarden doesn’t make codes, and the free Authenticator app has no Mac version.
Best for: people who keep their passwords in Bitwarden. bitwarden.com
Crest $24.99 once or $2.99 a month
Crest is our app: a MacBook notch app whose Pro tier includes an authenticator. When a site asks for a code in Safari, Chrome, Arc, Brave or Edge, Crest offers it in the notch and types it in for you; anywhere else, Control-Option-K opens your codes. It adds a site from the QR code on your screen, a setup key or a picture, imports from Google Authenticator, 2FAS, Aegis and 2Stable, keeps your codes behind Touch ID, and can sync them between your Macs, end-to-end encrypted.
Crest Pro comes with Take and Minutes, our other two apps: $24.99 once, with updates through Crest 7, or $2.99 a month. Signing in gives you 7 days of it free, with no card. See the plans.
Best at: the code typed in for you, and moving from Google Authenticator or 2FAS in one import.
Watch-outs: Mac only, with no iPhone app, and paid after the free week. If Pro ends, your codes keep working and you can export them.
Best for: people who sign in on their Mac all day and want the code typed in. How it works: Crest’s Authenticator
How to choose
- One free app on your Mac and iPhone: Apple Passwords if everything you own is Apple; Ente Auth or Proton Authenticator if you also use Android or Windows.
- Already paying for a password manager: use its codes. 1Password fills them in on a Mac; Bitwarden needs Premium for them.
- Open source: Ente Auth, Proton Authenticator and 2FAS publish their code.
- The code typed in for you, kept apart from your passwords: Crest, if you don’t need your codes on a phone.
- Leaving Google Authenticator: pick an app that reads its export; Crest and Proton Authenticator do. How to move your codes.
- Leaving Authy: Twilio says Authy has no export, so whichever app you pick, you add each account again. Move off Authy, site by site.
Should two-factor codes live in your password manager?
There are two honest answers. Keeping codes in your password manager is convenient: one app, one unlock, and the code fills in with the password. Keeping them in a separate app means one vault never holds both halves of a sign-in. Neither choice is wrong. Pick the one you’ll keep using, and either way save each site’s backup codes somewhere safe.
Not on a Mac
- Google Authenticator: Android, iPhone and iPad only; its App Store listing names no Mac. Move your codes to a Mac app.
- Microsoft Authenticator: Microsoft says it “is not available for PC or Mac”.
- Authy: Twilio ended the desktop apps on 19 March 2024, and the phone apps carry on. What to use instead.
Sources
Everything about the other apps was read on 13 October 2026 on these pages; none of them was installed or run for this page. Prices change, so check before you buy.
- Apple: Use verification codes in Passwords on Mac, About the Passwords app, Show Passwords in the menu bar, Import passwords and the iCloud Passwords extension for Chrome. User reports on Apple’s forum: a Google export QR code refused (September 2024) and the Choose QR code Image button (November 2025).
- Ente Auth, Proton Authenticator, 2FAS and its browser extension.
- Step Two on the Mac App Store and steptwo.app; OTP Auth on the Mac App Store and for iPhone; 1Password’s one-time passwords guide and pricing; Bitwarden’s integrated authenticator, pricing, Authenticator app and downloads.
- Google: Get verification codes with Google Authenticator (its Android and its iPhone and iPad versions) and the Google Authenticator App Store listing.
- Microsoft: Download Microsoft Authenticator.
- Twilio: User guide: End-of-Life (EOL) for Twilio Authy Desktop app (updated 12 September 2025), the Twilio Authy App Store listing and authy.com/download.
- Crest: version 6.5.0 of 13 October 2026, its release notes, and its own source code and on-screen words, which is where every Crest detail here comes from. What the sync server keeps is in our privacy policy.
FAQ
Is there a free authenticator app for Mac?
Yes. Apple's Passwords app is built into macOS Sequoia and later. Ente Auth and Proton Authenticator are free, open source and have Mac apps.
Which authenticator app works on both Mac and iPhone?
Apple Passwords, Ente Auth, Proton Authenticator, Step Two, OTP Auth, 1Password and Bitwarden all have both. Crest runs on Macs only.
Does Apple have an authenticator app?
Yes, though it isn't called that: the Passwords app in macOS Sequoia, iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and later keeps verification codes and suggests them when a site asks.
Is Google Authenticator available on Mac?
No. It runs on Android, iPhone and iPad. Move your codes with its export to a Mac app that reads it, such as Crest or Proton Authenticator.
What happened to Authy Desktop?
Twilio ended the Authy Desktop apps for Mac, Windows and Linux on 19 March 2024. Authy's phone apps still work.
Can I use Microsoft Authenticator on a Mac?
No. Microsoft says it is not available for PC or Mac.
Which authenticator app fills the code in for you on a Mac?
1Password fills codes in with your password, Bitwarden's browser extension does with Premium, Apple Passwords suggests the code when a site asks, and Crest types it in from the notch in Safari, Chrome, Arc, Brave and Edge.
Try the Authenticator free for 7 days
Download Crest with no account, then sign in inside Crest: every Pro feature, the Authenticator included, is yours for 7 days with no card. After that, Crest Pro, Take and Minutes are $24.99 once, with updates through Crest 7, or $2.99 a month. If Pro ends, your codes keep working and you can export them.
Download Crest for macOS Get all three apps, $24.99macOS 14 Sonoma or later · signed and notarized by Apple · 7-day refund
Keep reading: Crest’s Authenticator · Google Authenticator on a Mac · Authy Desktop alternatives · Clipboard history on a Mac · Crest overview