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Cybersecurity · head to head

Passbolt vs Spot AI

Passbolt logo

Passbolt

Cybersecurity

Open-source password manager for teams with self-hosted or cloud deployment

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Spot AI logo

Spot AI

Cybersecurity

Cloud video intelligence that runs on your existing cameras through an on-site recorder

From
$99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Passbolt has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Passbolt pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.; Spot AI at roughly $99 per camera per month the all-in rate is high against a perpetual VMS licence: 200 cameras is around $240,000 a year, recurring, where an on-premise system would be largely a one-time cost.
  • They diverge on capability: Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, Spot AI covers Camera agnostic.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Passbolt and Spot AI actually diverge.

Attributes where Passbolt and Spot AI differ
AttributePassboltSpot AI
Starting priceFree$99/month
Pricing modelopen-sourcePer camera per month, all inclusive
Free tierYesNo
Platformsweb, windows, mac, linux, apiWeb, iOS, Android

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Passbolt

  • Password sharing and folders
  • Groups and role-based access
  • Browser extensions and CLI
  • Open API
  • LDAP provisioning and SSO
  • Activity audit log

Only in Spot AI

  • Camera agnostic
  • Intelligent Video Recorder
  • AI video search
  • Operational analytics
  • Cloud management
  • Alerting and clip sharing
  • All-in per-camera pricing

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Passbolt

  • Self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereigntynot Spot AI
  • Provisioning vault access from an existing LDAP/AD directorynot Spot AI
  • Sharing credentials across engineering or IT teams via folders and groupsnot Spot AI
  • Automating credential retrieval through the CLI or open APInot Spot AI

Spot AI

  • A manufacturer with hundreds of existing cameras that wants cloud search without replacing any of themnot Passbolt
  • A logistics operator investigating dock door delays and trailer dwell time from footagenot Passbolt
  • A retail chain reviewing incidents across dozens of stores without a VPN into each sitenot Passbolt
  • A safety team detecting forklift near-misses and missing personal protective equipment automaticallynot Passbolt

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Passbolt

  • Pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.
  • Community Edition lacks SSO and LDAP provisioning, which many organizations need for onboarding at scale.
  • Self-hosting the Community Edition requires infrastructure and maintenance effort compared to fully managed competitors.
  • Enterprise-tier support and HA consulting require custom, quote-based pricing rather than transparent rates.

Spot AI

  • At roughly $99 per camera per month the all-in rate is high against a perpetual VMS licence: 200 cameras is around $240,000 a year, recurring, where an on-premise system would be largely a one-time cost.
  • Reusing existing cameras saves capital but caps quality; AI analytics on a fifteen-year-old analogue camera produces correspondingly poor results and no software fixes the optics.
  • Per-camera monthly billing scales linearly with camera count, so adding coverage is always expensive and there is no volume point where marginal cameras become cheap.
  • The on-site IVR is a single point of failure per location, so an appliance fault takes that site's recording and cloud access with it until it is replaced.
  • It is a subscription with no perpetual option, so an organisation that stops paying loses the platform entirely and is left with cameras and no management system.

Pricing, plan by plan

Passbolt

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • Unlimited users
    • Password sharing and folders
    • Role-based access control
  • Pro Edition$4.9/month
    • Minimum 10 users, billed annually
    • LDAP/AD provisioning
    • Single sign-on
  • Enterprise Edition$undefined/month
    • High availability and disaster recovery consulting
    • White-glove migration
    • Custom feature development

Spot AI

$99/month
  • Spot AI$99/month
    • Reference rate of roughly $99 per camera per month
    • Includes the on-site IVR appliance, cloud software, AI and support
    • Monthly, annual and multi-year terms available

Which should you pick?

Choose Passbolt if

  • You need password sharing and folders.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, windows, mac, linux, api.
  • You also want groups and role-based access.
Passbolt review

Choose Spot AI if

  • You need camera agnostic.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want intelligent video recorder.
Spot AI review

Questions people ask

Is Passbolt or Spot AI better?
Neither clearly leads. Passbolt starts at Free and Spot AI at $99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Passbolt or Spot AI?
Passbolt has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Passbolt and $99/month for Spot AI.
Does Passbolt or Spot AI run on more platforms?
Passbolt runs on web, windows, mac, linux, api. Spot AI runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Passbolt for free?
Yes. Passbolt has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Spot AI starts at $99/month.
What is Passbolt best used for?
Passbolt is most often used for self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereignty, provisioning vault access from an existing ldap/ad directory, sharing credentials across engineering or it teams via folders and groups, automating credential retrieval through the cli or open api. Of those, self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereignty and provisioning vault access from an existing ldap/ad directory are not what Spot AI is typically brought in for.
What can Passbolt do that Spot AI cannot?
Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, Groups and role-based access, Browser extensions and CLI, Open API. Spot AI covers Camera agnostic, Intelligent Video Recorder, AI video search, Operational analytics.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Passbolt: Is Passbolt free to use?

Yes. The Community Edition is free forever with unlimited users, including password sharing, folders, groups, role-based access, browser extensions, a CLI, and an open API.

Source
Spot AI: Do I have to buy new cameras?

No. That is the main point of the product: the IVR appliance connects to existing IP and analogue cameras.

Passbolt: What does the Pro Edition cost and add?

Pro Edition costs $4.90 per user per month billed annually, with a 10-user minimum, and adds LDAP/AD provisioning, single sign-on, account recovery escrow, activity audit logs, and next-business-day support.

Source
Spot AI: What does it cost?

The reference rate that recurs across pricing breakdowns and Spot AI materials is roughly $99 per camera per month, bundling the appliance, cloud software, AI and support.

Passbolt: What license is Passbolt distributed under?

All Passbolt editions, including Pro and Enterprise, are distributed under the AGPL v3 open-source license.

Source
Spot AI: Is there a perpetual licence option?

No. It is subscription only, and the platform stops working when the subscription does.

Spot AI: Will AI analytics work on my old analogue cameras?

They will run, but detection quality follows image quality. Old low resolution cameras produce poor analytics results.

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