Even though Apple is notorious for exclusivity, some of it is just bad rap. Apple makes it really easy to use iCloud services like iCloud Photos, iCloud Drive, or iCloud Passwords on your Windows PC.
Being able to access the passwords you stored in your iCloud keychain on your Windows PC is a real blessing. You can even use strong passwords suggested by Safari without giving another thought to them as they’ll be readily available on your PC; manually having to enter those strong passwords can be torture. Moreover, you don’t even need any other password manager with iCloud Passwords on your PC.
And not only can you access your iCloud keychain passwords on your PC, but you can also directly store new passwords you create on your PC to iCloud Keychain. So, all new passwords will also be available on your Apple devices like iPhone, iPad, or Mac without going through the hassle of saving them again. Here’s how to use iCloud passwords in Chrome (or, even Edge) browser.
Set Up iCloud for Windows
If you’ve never used iCloud for Windows before, you’ll need to first download and install the iCloud app. Fortunately, it’s extremely easy to download iCloud in Windows 10 or 11. You can get the app from the Microsoft Store.
Before setting up iCloud on your Windows PC, make sure that iCloud is set up on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac and you should be signed in with your Apple ID.
Note: To use iCloud Passwords on a Windows computer, your account must have two-factor authentication on and the device receiving the security code must be running iOS 14, iPadOS 14, or macOS 11 or later installed for iPhone, iPad, or Mac respectively.
Open the Microsoft Store on your PC and search for iCloud. The listing for iCloud in the Microsoft Store will appear. Click the ‘Free’ button to download and install the app. The latest version of the app will install.
Note: To use iCloud Passwords, you need iCloud for Windows version 12 or later for Chrome and iCloud for Windows 12.5 or later for Edge. So, if you already have iCloud installed, make sure you’ve updated to the latest version of the app.
Once the app installs, run it. It might take a few minutes for iCloud to run when starting it for the first time after installation.
Then, sign in to iCloud with your Apple ID and password. Since you have two-factor authentication on, you’ll need the code received on your iPhone or iPad to complete the login.
Once you log in to your Apple ID, iCloud will ask whether you want to send diagnostic information to your Apple ID. You can choose to send or not send it, it’s a personal choice. And whatever you choose can be modified later at any time.
Finally, the setup page for iCloud will appear. Here, you’ll choose the features you want to use on your Windows PC. To use passwords, check the box next to ‘Passwords’ and click ‘Apply’.
Install iCloud Passwords Extension
Once you’ve set up iCloud for Windows or if you already had it set up, the next step is to install the browser extension for iCloud passwords.
Open the Chrome Web Store by going to chrome.google.com/webstore and search for ‘iCloud Passwords’ in there. Once you get to the extension page, click on the ‘Add to Chrome’ button to install it. You can also install the iCloud Passwords extension from the Edge Add-Ons store on the Microsoft Edge browser.
A confirmation prompt will appear. Click the ‘Add extension’ button to confirm and install the extension.
The icon for the extension will appear in the extension menu. You can pin it to the address bar. Open the extensions menu by clicking the extension’s icon (puzzle piece).
Then, click the ‘Pin’ icon next to iCloud passwords from the list of your browser extensions.
Enabling iCloud Passwords on your Windows PC
Even when you set up iCloud for Windows and install the Chrome extension, you still need to approve from an Apple device before you can use iCloud Passwords on your Windows PC.
Open the iCloud for Windows app again and click the ‘Approve’ button next to Passwords.
A sign-in request to your Apple ID will appear. Enter the details for your Apple ID and password and click the ‘Sign in’ button.
You’d receive the approval code for sign-in on your Apple device: iPhone, iPad, or Mac running macOS BigSur or later, whichever device you generally receive two-factor authentication codes on.
Enter the code in the iCloud for Windows app and iCloud Passwords will be approved.
Then, see if the option for ‘Passwords’ is still checked. if not, check it and click ‘Apply’ again.
iCloud Passwords are all ready to be used on your Chrome browser.
Using iCloud Passwords to Autofill Passwords in Chrome
Finally, it’s time to use iCloud Passwords for what we’re all here for – to autofill passwords on websites.
Note: When the iCloud Passwords browser extension is enabled, the browser’s built-in password manager will be turned off.
When you’re on a website you have a saved password for, you can use the iCloud Passwords extension to autofill the password. On the website, click the icon for iCloud Passwords extension from the address bar (or the extensions menu if you haven’t pinned it).
If it asks for a code, enter the 6-digit code that the iCloud for Windows app shows at the bottom-right corner of your screen.
The accounts for which you have saved passwords for the website will appear. Click the account you want to use.
The username and password information will appear in the related fields and you can sign in.
To know if you have a password saved for the website, look out for the extension icon. The state that the extension icon is currently in will indicate the password status.
| Icon | Description |
 | When the extension icon is blue, it means you have a saved password for the website. Click the extension icon to access it. |
 | This icon indicates that you have the password saved for the website but you need to enable the iCloud Passwords extension to access it. Enabling the extension requires you to enter the 6-digit passcode in the extension that the iCloud for Windows app generates. |
 | You either do not have any saved passwords for the website or the extension cannot fill any fields on the current website. |
 | iCloud Passwords or iCloud for Windows is not enabled. Make sure that you’re signed in to your Apple ID in the iCloud for Windows app and you have enabled the extension. |
Adding a New Password
iCloud Passwords doesn’t just let you access the passwords in the iCloud keychain on your Windows PC. You can also add new passwords that’ll update across your Apple devices that use iCloud Keychain.
Simply create a new account on the website you want to on your Chrome (or Edge) browser on the Windows PC.
Then, enter the 6-digit verification code in the iCloud Passwords extension, if prompted.
Otherwise, you’d directly see the option to save the password to iCloud in the extension pop-up dialogue. Click ‘Save’ to add the credentials to your iCloud keychain.
Updating an Existing Password
If you’ve changed a password on a website but the iCloud keychain still has the old password, you can also update it from your Windows PC. The option to update the old password will appear when you log in to that site again.
Sign in with your username and new, updated password on the website in Chrome.
If the extension needs to be enabled, the dialogue box for entering the 6-digit verification code will appear. Enter the code.
Otherwise, a prompt for updating the password in the extension will appear. Click the ‘Update Password’ option to update the password in the iCloud keychain.
Managing iCloud Passwords on a Windows PC
If you’re using the app version iCloud for Windows 12.5 or later, then you can also use the iCloud Passwords app to manage the passwords in your iCloud account.
Go to the Search option from the taskbar and search for the iCloud Passwords app. The app listing will appear; open it.
iCloud Passwords app will require you to sign in to Windows Hello before you can open it. So, depending on your sign-in method, you’d need your FaceID, TouchID, or PIN to access the app and its data. Windows Hello Sign-in will appear every time you open the app, even if you just closed it a second ago, to protect your privacy.
The app will show all your saved passwords. You can view and copy passwords or manually add, update and delete passwords in your iCloud account using the iCloud Passwords app.
Viewing and Copying Passwords
Although using the browser extension is the best way to use iCloud Passwords in Windows, maybe you need to sign in to a desktop app for a website and don’t remember your username or password. The iCloud Passwords app can help with that.
Open the iCloud Passwords app and enter your Windows Hello credentials. The passwords in your iCloud Keychain will appear. Either click a website or search for it to access the credentials.
The credentials will open in the right half of the window. You can see the username and website right away. To see the password, hover on the hidden password dots. The password will only be visible when you’re hovering on it to protect it from any prying eyes.
Note: If you explicitly choose to not save a password in iCloud, the website and username will appear in the list but it’ll say “Never saved” in the password field.
To copy the website, username, or password, go to the ‘Copy’ option in the top-right corner of the window and click it.
Options will appear underneath it. Click the option you want to choose.
You can also right-click on the username or password and select ‘Copy username’ or ‘Copy password’ from there.
Adding a Password
You can also manually add new passwords from the iCloud Passwords app and it’ll be updated in your iCloud Keychain.
Click the ‘+’ icon next to the search field in the top left part of the window.
A dialog box for adding a new password will appear. Enter the information for the website, username, and password in the respective fields. Then, click ‘Add Password’.
Updating a Password
You can also manually update any passwords from the iCloud Password desktop app. Make sure you only update the information if you have already changed it from the website. Because updating a password in iCloud Passwords doesn’t update it on the website. Open the account information you want to update.
Then, click the ‘Edit’ option from the options on the top-right part of the window.
Update the username or password, and click the ‘Update Password’ button.
Note: The accounts with passwords “never saved” cannot be edited. You can only delete them.
Deleting a saved account
To delete an account you have saved to iCloud Passwords, open the account information in the app.
Then, click the ‘Delete’ icon in the top-right corner.
A confirmation prompt will appear. Click ‘Delete’ to confirm.
There you go! That’s everything you need to know to use iCloud Passwords on your Windows PC. Now, you can safely use all your iCloud keychain passwords on Windows without any hassle.
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