Chrome does not ask to save passwords: how to fix it

A good security practice is to have a unique, hard-to-guess password for each login you use. That’s fine in theory, but there’s no way we can remember all the logins we use daily. That’s why web browsers offer to remember them for you. So every time you need to log in to a website, it remembers it for you. But what happens when Chrome doesn’t ask to save the password?

First of all, you shouldn’t rely on your browser to remember logins. They are currently not considered safe enough. You would be much better off using a dedicated password manager. I’ll cover them a little more in a minute. First, let me address the original problem, making Chrome ask to save the password again.

Troubleshooting Chrome when it doesn’t ask to save passwords

The first thing you should do when Chrome stops asking you to save passwords is to make sure the setting to save passwords is not disabled. This shouldn’t happen unless you share access to your computer, but it’s a quick check so it makes sense to do it first.

1. Open Chrome and type ‘chrome://settings/passwords‘ in the URL bar.
2. Make sure Offer to save passwords It’s on.
3. See below never saved For the site you’re logging in, remove it from the list if it’s there.

You should see a list of Saved Passwords below the Auto Sign In section, which should show the most recently used logins you accessed through Chrome. The Never Saved section is a list of websites for which you have asked Chrome not to save your passwords. Check this list to see which site you’re on that doesn’t ask you to save your password, just in case.

If Chrome is set to require saving passwords and the particular website is not in the Never Saved list, we need to do some more troubleshooting.

Sign in and out of your Google account again

The password issue may be a sync issue between Chrome and your Google account. Although passwords are saved locally, they are also synced to the cloud.

Sign out of your Google account and sign in again. Please try to log in again.

Delete navigation data

Chrome cache can sometimes cause problems with the browser. This is not unique to Chrome and happens to all browsers and dozens of applications. To clear cache in Chrome, do this:

1. Open Chrome and select the three dot menu icon at the top right.
2. Select More tools > Clear browsing data…
3. Select all options to All the time and then him Delete data button.
4. Please try to log in to the website again.

Clear Chrome Passwords Folder on Windows

A more complicated solution requires you to find the existing password folder and delete two files. This should force Chrome to download new copies and reset the password process.

1. Navigate to ‘C:\Users\[Username]\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default‘ using File Explorer. Where do you see [Username]enter your Windows profile name.
2. Copy the two named files, Login details and Log in Data Journal and stick them somewhere safe.
3. Delete those two files from the folder shown above and wait to copy them again.
4. Perform the above process to delete browsing data, but select the Advanced tab from time to time Passwords and other login details.
5. Revisit a website whose login you know, enter your login details, and then close Chrome.
6. Copy the two files you saved somewhere safe to their original position. Chrome should have recreated the files but you should overwrite them with the originals.
7. Try again.

Check your log files

If you’re feeling brave or know what you’re doing, you might want to check your Registry files for problems. Please note that it is recommended to create a backup of your Registry before making any changes.

1. To create a backup, press Windows + R key, type “regedit” and press Get into.
2. Now click File > Export.
3. From here, select the Export rangechoose your location, name your file and click Save.

With that out of the way, let’s edit the Registry.

1. Go to Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Google\Chrome.
2. From here, right click on Password manager enabled and select Delete.
3. Close Registry Editor and restart Chrome before testing to see if it’s fixed.

Why a password manager is better than a browser

Using a third-party password manager like 1Password or LastPass is preferable to a browser. They tend to be more secure, more flexible, and can do much more than just save passwords. Making browsers save passwords instead of using a password manager really isn’t the best for privacy and security, here’s why.

For example, LastPass uses 256-bit AES encryption to store all your data, passwords, and associated sites. It is currently the most secure encryption standard available for public use and is deployed both on-premises and in the cloud. The exact details of Chrome encryption are very difficult to find, but probably do not exceed this.

LastPass and other password managers offer extensive options for creating passwords of almost any length and complexity. They also use salting to make them even safer. While Chrome offers help creating passwords, the options are more limited than Chrome.

Password managers can also store credit card data, social security and driver’s license numbers, offer two-factor authentication, and advanced vulnerability scanning, such as the LastPass Security Challenge.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that password managers are designed with the explicit purpose of keeping passwords secure and manageable, so encryption and usability are central components of their design.

There are many other great password managers available, see which one best suits your needs. The next time Chrome doesn’t ask you to save passwords, take it as a sign and try something else.

Save passwords

Saving and managing passwords in Chrome is usually not a problem, but when it happens, you now know some ways to remedy the situation. If a simple reset or logging in and out of your account doesn’t work, then you’ll want to try clearing some Chrome files or caches on your device.