Disclosure. We make Paperlock, a document vault for iPhone, and it appears in the comparison table below. Paperlock is not a password manager, and for several of the jobs on this page a password manager is the better tool. We say which.
The short answer
Yes, you can keep a scan of your passport in a password manager, and for a few critical files it's a very good home. 1Password and Bitwarden encrypt your files so the file never travels unencrypted, sync them to all your devices, and offer ways to share with family or to get someone you trust in after an emergency. Few places are safer for the scan of a passport.
What a password manager does not do is read the document. It stores a file the way a safe stores an envelope: securely, and exactly as labeled. If you have six files, that's fine. If you have the insurance policy, the lease, the car title, three warranties, the kids' vaccination records and a year of receipts, you're back to naming and sorting everything yourself, with no reminder when the passport expires.
What each password manager does with files
1Password has a Document item type: choose New Item, then Document, then Add File. You can also attach a file to any existing item, so the scan of your health insurance card can live inside the login for your insurer's website. 1Password's help page says each person gets a set amount of file storage, and its security page says everything in your account is end-to-end encrypted. Files can be previewed and downloaded.
Bitwarden offers file attachments on paid plans. Its help page says they're available to Premium users and members of paid organizations, with a per-user storage allowance you can add to. Attachments are encrypted and decrypted locally, on your device, so the file never crosses the internet unencrypted.
Apple's Passwords app doesn't hold files at all, as far as Apple's own guide says. It covers passwords, passkeys, verification codes and Wi-Fi passwords. If you rely on it, your documents need a separate home.
Password managers vs a reading vault
| Password manager with files (1Password, Bitwarden) | Apple Passwords | Reading vault (Paperlock) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stores document scans | Yes; Bitwarden on paid plans | No files described in Apple's guide | Yes |
| Encryption | End-to-end encrypted (1Password); encrypted locally before upload (Bitwarden) | Not applicable to files | Encrypted on the phone; optional encrypted copy in your own iCloud (Plus, off by default) |
| Devices | Phones, computers, browsers | Apple devices | iPhone only (runs on iPad in compatibility mode); no Android or web |
| Sharing with family | Yes, shared vaults or share links (1Password) | Passwords and passkeys with a group | No sharing between users; you can export a document as a PDF and send it |
| Emergency access | Trusted emergency contact (Bitwarden, paid); family organizer can help recover an account (1Password Families) | Not covered here | None |
| Reads the document | No; it holds the file | No | Yes: type, sender, dates, amounts, expiry |
| Finding a file later | By the name and notes you gave it | Not applicable | Ask in plain English: "when does my passport expire?" |
| Expiry reminders | Not from the file itself | No | Opt-in: 30 and 7 days ahead; 6 months for passports and IDs |
| Stores passwords | Yes, it's the whole point | Yes | No |
Where password managers win
Be honest about this part, because it matters more than any feature list.
Sharing. A family needs the same insurance card on two phones. 1Password puts items in a shared vault that everyone in the family account can open, or sends a link that expires. Paperlock has no sharing between users at all; you can export a document as a PDF and send it, and that's the end of it.
Emergency access. If something happens to you, someone needs to get in. Bitwarden lets a trusted emergency contact request view access to your vault, attachments included, which is granted after a wait time you choose unless you reject it. On a 1Password Families account, the family organizer can start an account recovery for a member who's locked out. Paperlock has neither, and has no accounts to recover. If the person who'd need your documents is not you, that's a real gap; our digital emergency binder guide covers how to plan around it.
Every device. Password managers run on phones, computers and in browsers. Paperlock runs on iPhone.
One place for the login and the paper. The policy scan sitting inside the insurer's login entry is genuinely tidy.
Where a reading vault wins
It knows what the document says. Paperlock reads every document you save and works out what it is, who it's from, the dates, the amounts and when it expires, then titles and files it by itself. No folders, no naming. You can scan with the camera, import PDFs, or pull documents out of your photos.
You find things by asking. "When does my passport expire?" "What's the deductible on the car insurance?" "Find the receipt for the dishwasher." The answer comes back with the document attached, and if it isn't in your vault, it says so instead of guessing. Question-answering needs internet and runs partly on our servers over an encrypted connection; documents are processed just long enough to answer and aren't stored there. Basic search works offline.
Expiry reminders without typing a date. Once you turn reminders on, anything with an expiry gets alerts 30 and 7 days ahead, and passports and IDs also get one six months out. A password manager will keep the passport scan safe right up to the day you find out at the airport that it has expired.
It's built for the pile. Password managers are designed around a few hundred logins and a few precious files. A household's paperwork is dozens of documents a year, most of them boring until the day one isn't.
The security model is different, so compare it with clear eyes: documents in Paperlock are encrypted on the phone, the app locks with Face ID on open and after about a minute in the background, and passports and IDs show blurred thumbnails until you confirm again. Our guide to Face ID document security explains what that protects against and what it doesn't, and the glossary entry on encryption at rest explains the term.
Who should use which
- You mostly need passwords, plus a few files you'd want in an emergency: a password manager is enough. Put the passport, driver's license and the main insurance cards there and you're done.
- Your family shares documents, or someone else may need to get in: a password manager, for the sharing and emergency access. No reading vault on this page replaces that.
- You're on Android or work mostly on a computer: a password manager. Paperlock is iPhone only.
- Your problem is the pile (bills, policies, warranties, receipts, medical letters) and you want to find things and be reminded before they expire: a reading vault.
- You use Apple Passwords: it has no place for files, so your documents need a second app either way.
The setup that works for most households: both
Most people end up with a sensible split.
- The password manager holds passwords, plus the few files that matter in an emergency: passport, IDs, the main insurance cards, maybe a will or power of attorney. These are the files your partner or executor might need when you can't hand over your phone, and the password manager can get them there.
- The reading vault holds the paper pile: the policies, leases, bills, warranties and receipts you need to find, total up or be reminded about. In Paperlock you photograph them, it reads and files them, and you ask later. The free tier holds 25 documents, which is enough to see whether it suits you.
- Keep a backup plan for both. A copy of the irreplaceable documents somewhere you control is still wise; our guide to backing up important documents walks through it, and storing insurance documents on your phone covers the cards you'll actually need at a pharmacy counter.
Yes, the passport scan may end up in both places. That's fine. One copy is for someone else in an emergency; the other is for you, six months before it expires.
If you're comparing vault apps rather than vaults against password managers, see private document vault apps for iPhone and ways to lock documents on iPhone.