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Cybersecurity · head to head

Passbolt vs Unleash

Passbolt logo

Passbolt

Cybersecurity

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Unleash logo

Unleash

Software Development

Open-source feature flag and experimentation service

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Passbolt pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.; Unleash the Pay-As-You-Go plan is priced per seat, which can get costly for larger teams.
  • They diverge on capability: Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, Unleash covers Feature flags.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Passbolt and Unleash actually diverge.

Attributes where Passbolt and Unleash differ
AttributePassboltUnleash
Pricing modelopen-sourcefreemium
Platformsweb, windows, mac, linux, apiweb, api, linux
CategoryCybersecuritySoftware Development

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Unleash

  • Feature flags
  • A/B/n testing
  • Custom targeting
  • SDKs
  • SSO
  • Audit logs

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 Unleash
  • Provisioning vault access from an existing LDAP/AD directorynot Unleash
  • Sharing credentials across engineering or IT teams via folders and groupsnot Unleash
  • Automating credential retrieval through the CLI or open APInot Unleash

Unleash

  • Gradual and progressive feature rolloutsnot Passbolt
  • Running A/B/n experiments tied to flagsnot Passbolt
  • Self-hosting feature management for compliance needsnot Passbolt
  • Enterprise SSO-controlled feature flag governancenot 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.

Unleash

  • The Pay-As-You-Go plan is priced per seat, which can get costly for larger teams.
  • Self-hosted Enterprise requires a minimum of 5 seats and an annual contract.
  • Additional API traffic beyond the included quota is billed per million requests.
  • Advanced SLAs and dedicated customer success are reserved for the custom Enterprise tier.

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

Unleash

Free
  • Pay-As-You-Go$75/month
    • Cloud-hosted
    • 53M API requests/month included
    • Unlimited feature flags, projects and environments
  • Custom Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Cloud, self-hosted or hybrid
    • Premium support options
    • 99.99% uptime SLA

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 Unleash if

  • You need feature flags.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api, linux.
  • You also want a/b/n testing.
Unleash review

Questions people ask

Is Passbolt or Unleash better?
Neither clearly leads. Passbolt starts at Free and Unleash at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Passbolt or Unleash?
Passbolt starts at Free and Unleash at Free.
Does Passbolt or Unleash run on more platforms?
Passbolt runs on web, windows, mac, linux, api. Unleash runs on web, api, linux.
Can I use Passbolt for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 Unleash is typically brought in for.
What can Passbolt do that Unleash cannot?
Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, Groups and role-based access, Browser extensions and CLI, Open API. Unleash covers Feature flags, A/B/n testing, Custom targeting, SDKs.

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
Unleash: What does Unleash cost?

Unleash offers a Pay-As-You-Go cloud plan at $75/seat/month with a 14-day free trial, plus a custom-priced Enterprise plan for self-hosted or hybrid deployments.

Source
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
Unleash: How is usage metered?

The Pay-As-You-Go plan includes 53M API requests per month, with additional traffic billed at $5 per million requests thereafter.

Source
Passbolt: What license is Passbolt distributed under?

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

Source
Unleash: What does Unleash integrate with, and is there an API?

Unleash provides an API and 25+ official SDKs across languages, along with SSO integrations via SAML 2.0 and OpenID Connect.

Source
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