A Beginner’s Guide to Passkeys: How to Set Them Up, Use Them, and Sync Across Devices

Updated 12/31/25 – clarified platform and browser support:

If you’re tired of remembering complex passwords or worrying about phishing attacks, passkeys offer a simpler, safer alternative. Major platforms like Google, Microsoft, Apple and Yahoo now support passkeys, and they’re designed to replace passwords entirely. In this guide, we’ll explain what passkeys are, how to set them up, and how you can use them across multiple devices—even for the same account.

A passkey is a modern, more secure alternative to traditional passwords. Instead of remembering a string of characters, you use the same methods you already use to unlock your devices to sign in to websites and apps — such as your fingerprint, facial recognition, or screen lock PIN/password.

How It Works

Passkeys are built on the WebAuthn standard and use public-key cryptography. When you create a passkey, your device generates a unique pair of cryptographic “keys”:

The Public Key: Shared with the website or app you’re using.
The Private Key: Stored securely on your device (and never shared).

When you sign in, the website sends a digital “challenge” to your device. Your device uses the private key to sign the challenge and sends it back. Since the website has the matching public key, it can verify your identity without ever seeing your actual biometrics or a password.

Why Passkeys Are Better

Phishing Resistant: Since there is no password to type or steal, hackers can’t trick you into giving it away on a fake website.
Less Worry About Data Breaches: If a company’s passkey database is hacked, they only have your public keys, which are useless to attackers without your physical device.
Simplicity vs Passwords: You only have to know your account username – which is typically your email address. During account creation you don’t have to abide by complex password rules (like “must be unique and include a symbol and a number”), nor write down or manually save the passkey for the account.

Where Are They Stored?

Most passkeys are stored on your device and synced through your cloud account (like Microsoft Password Manager, Apple/iCloud Keychain, Google Password Manager, or passkey managers such as LastPass or Bitwarden). This means if you get a new computer or device, your passkeys move with you automatically with your cloud account, so you aren’t locked out of your accounts. They are then available for signing into your accounts via supported web browsers and apps. See chart below for specifics.

What websites support Passkeys?

Major email providers Google, Microsoft and Yahoo now support passkeys. Many major retailers such as amazon.com, besybuy.com and costco.com also support passkeys. However, banks and brokerages – likely where most of your money is kept – have been slow to adopt passkeys. Here’s a non-comprehensive list of websites that support passkeys: passkeys.directory

How to set up a passkey for each of your online accounts

Navigate to the website where you want to set up a passkey for future logins — Sign in the way you normal do using your username and password. After signing in you may be prompted to create a passkey. If so, skip to #3.
Go to the account’s profile/security settings — For example, in your Google Account, look for Security > Passkeys.
Click “Create a passkey” — The website will guide you through setup.
Choose where to store the passkey — Your device will usually suggest saving it to your platform’s password manager (Google Password Manager, Apple’s iCloud Passwords & Keychain or Windows Hello/Microsoft Password Manager). Which web browser you are using may also affect the option(s) of where to store the passkey. You may also be prompted to create a 6-digit code which is used to save, sync or recover your passkey to/from the cloud – memorize it or write it down!
Verify yourself — Confirm with your device Face ID, Touch ID, or PIN/password to finish creating the passkey.

💡 Tip: You don’t have to create just one passkey for each of your accounts. You can (and should) create a passkey for the same account on multiple devices. However, often saving a passkey to one device automatically saves to your other devices via your cloud account. For example saving a passkey to the Google Password Manager saves to all of the devices where you’re logged into your Google account (Chrome Browser on PC/Mac/Android and an Android mobile device)!

How to Use a Passkey

When you sign in to a website or app:

Type in your account username (often your email address).
Instead of typing a password, choose the option to sign in with your passkey.
You’ll approve the login using your device login – Face ID, fingerprint, or PIN/password.
The site verifies your identity with your device’s private key.

That’s it—no password to remember or type!

Another option is to use a passkey stored on your smartphone to sign in on a computer.

**Does a passkey need to be used every time you use a website or app?**

No. You’ll typically only be prompted to use a passkey in these situations:

First time logging in on a new device or browser.
After clearing cookies or signing out of a website.
After a long period of inactivity or if the session expires.
To authorize a security-sensitive action, like changing account settings.

Using Passkeys Across Multiple Devices

As long as you are signed into the same Apple, Google, Microsoft or 3rd party password manager account on all of your devices, passkeys are designed to sync securely between your devices:

Apple devices: Your passkeys sync through iCloud Passwords & Keychain across iPhone, iPad, and Mac, and with the Safari browser.
Google devices: Passkeys sync via Google Password Manager across Android and Google Chrome browser.
Windows devices: Passkeys sync via Windows Hello/Microsoft Password Manager and Microsoft Edge browser.

This means you can create a passkey on your phone and use it on your laptop (as long as both devices are linked to your account and syncing).

✅ You can also create separate passkeys for the same account on each of your non-cloud synced devices. This is useful if you want a fallback in case you lose a device.

Can I Still Use a Password?

If you’ve set up a passkey, most services still let you sign in with your password as a backup—at least for now. But the goal is to make passwords unnecessary. The more you use passkeys, the less you’ll need to rely on passwords (or worry about them being stolen).

Are Passwords Gone For Good?

Passwords are not gone for good—yet—but they are on their way out, slowly. Here’s the current landscape:

✅ Passkeys are gaining traction fast

Tech giants like Apple, Google, and Microsoft now support passkeys across their ecosystems.
Major platforms (like Amazon, PayPal, and eBay) are beginning to offer passkey login options.
Passkeys are phishing-resistant, easier to use, and can sync across devices using platforms like iCloud Keychain or Google Password Manager.

❌ But passwords aren’t dead

Most websites still rely on passwords as the default or fallback login method.
Passkey adoption is uneven—many banks, some retailers, and niche services haven’t implemented them yet.
Passwords are often still required for account recovery, legacy systems, or initial passkey setup.

🔁 We’re in a transition period

Think of this like when credit cards began using chips instead of magnetic stripes. Both worked for a while, but one was clearly the future.
Right now, most users are in a hybrid mode: using both passwords and passkeys depending on the service.

What needs to happen for passwords to truly die off?

Widespread support: More services need to offer passkey login.
User education: People need to trust and understand how to use passkeys.
Fallbacks without passwords: Services need secure alternatives for account recovery that don’t fall back to traditional passwords.

Bottom line and Final Thoughts:

Passwords aren’t gone yet—but they’re being replaced. Passkeys are a major step forward in online security and convenience. They:

Can’t be phished (you’ll never type them in a fake website).
Are stronger than passwords.
Sync securely across your devices.
Let you create multiple passkeys for the same account, on different devices.

If you’re ready to simplify your online life and improve security, setting up passkeys is a smart move. Just make sure you’ve turned on device backups (like iCloud Passwords & Keychain or Google account sync), so you don’t lose access to your passkeys if a device is lost or replaced. Contact Computer Techs if you’d like help setting up passkeys to help secure your most important accounts.

Passkey Compatibility & Storage Matrix

As of December 2025, if you use multiple platforms (such as Windows & Mac or iOS) – using the Chrome browser on your device signed into your Google account is the most compatible and cross-device/platform method of saving and using passkeys. See the chart below for details.

Device / OS	Safari	Chrome	Microsoft Edge	Firefox
Windows (10/11)	N/A	System: Windows Hello Cloud: Google Password Mgr 3rd Party: Extensions	System: Windows Hello Cloud: Microsoft Account 3rd Party: Extensions	System: Windows Hello Cloud: Not supported 3rd Party: Extensions
macOS (Ventura+)	System: iCloud Keychain 3rd Party: System API	System: iCloud Keychain Cloud: Google Password Mgr 3rd Party: Extensions	System: iCloud Keychain Cloud: Microsoft Account 3rd Party: Extensions	System: iCloud Keychain Cloud: Not supported 3rd Party: Extensions
Android (14+)	N/A	System: Google Password Mgr 3rd Party: Android System API	System: Google Password Mgr 3rd Party: Android System API	System: Google Password Mgr 3rd Party: Android System API
iOS / iPadOS (17+)	System: iCloud Keychain 3rd Party: System API	System: iCloud Keychain Cloud: Google Password Mgr* 3rd Party: System API	System: iCloud Keychain 3rd Party: System API	System: iCloud Keychain 3rd Party: System API

*Requires setting Chrome as your default Autofill provider in iOS Settings.