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1Password – Tips and Tricks for Everyday Use

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I have been using 1Password for over three years now, and I believe that’s long enough to share my favorite 1Password tips and tricks, which I think you will also like.

However, I wish I had such a list when I started using the software for the first time. It would have saved me some time and frustration.

Some of the tips and tricks are mine, while others were collected from all over the internet. Over the years, 1Password users learned how to either improve or speed up specific tasks when working with 1Password.

I will start from the basics and expand the list to cover security, work with accounts, and finish with a few great tips and tricks about organizing your data in 1Password.

Did you know that you can try 1Password for FREE for 14 days to decide if it is for you?

You can also visit the 1Password website and check the latest offers there.

I’m sure you will find a great deal.

Finish the 1Password setup.

Check the default settings after installing 1Password on your computer, browser, or mobile device. For example, I like to customize my shortcuts or change the appearance to dark. Don’t be afraid to test different settings to check if they are more appropriate for you.

Download the applications.

Download the desktop version of the 1Password software for your operating system. Although you need both the desktop software and the browser extension, most more advanced tasks are performed in the desktop version of 1Password.

Get the browser extension.

You will primarily interact with the 1Password browser extension when using the software. The extension takes care of auto-populating the forms with your credentials or creating and saving credentials for the new accounts.

Any editing or more advanced work should be done in the desktop version of 1Password.

Watch the video above to see how to install the browser extension.

Make sure to print your Emergency Kit and keep it in a safe place at your home. The 1Password Emergency Kit is a PDF document that stores the 128-bit Secret Key and your master password.

The Emergency Kit is a backup option when you can’t sign in to your 1Password account.

Screenshot of the 1Password Emergency Kit.
Screenshot of the 1Password Emergency Kit.

Add your 1Password.com 2FA QR code to the Emergency Kit.

If you have secured your 1Password.com online account with Two-Factor Authentication, take the screenshot of the QR code or note the Secret Key and add it to your Emergency Kit.

You may also like: Should I use Two-Factor Authentication?

If you ever lose your phone with Google Authenticator on it, you will use the Emergency Kit to rescan your 2FA code, and you are ready to go.

1Password Emergency Kit with 2FA QR Code.
2FA QR code added to the 1Password Emergency Kit.

The 1Password Emergency Kit is in PDF format. Take the screenshot of the document, then take the screenshot of the 2FA QR code you have set for your 1Password.com online account and combine them together.

You can do this in any type of image editing software, MsWord or even Google Docs. Once done, print it and keep it in a safe place.

Import your existing Passwords.

The 1Password allows you to import the password from a CSV file.

You may also like: Chrome – How to View, Backup, and Restore Your Passwords.

If you have been using your favorite browser or other Password Manager to store your credentials, use the export option to export the passwords to a CSV file, which you can then use to import your passwords back to 1Password.

Check the video below where I have explained how to import Passwords to the 1Password manager from the Chrome browser.

Don’t forget to delete the CSV file after you have imported the passwords.

Deleting Chrome CSV file from the desktop.
Deleting exported Chrome CSV file with passwords.

Delete passwords from the browser after importing them to 1Password.

Make sure to delete the passwords stored in your browser once you finished importing them to 1Password. There is no need to keep your passwords in the browser or any other location while using 1Password.

Screenshot of the Saved Passwords in the Chrome browser.
Deleting passwords saved in the Chrome browser.

If you want to be extra cautious, you can keep the CSV file you have exported from your browser in the 1Password manager.

Ramp up your Security.

Add 2FA codes to 1Password.

The option to store Two-Factor Authentication codes in 1Password is one of my favorites so far.

For years I have been using Google Authenticator to store my 2FA codes which, as you may know, did not offer any backup option whatsoever, resulting in complete disaster if your phone was lost or stolen.

I have created a short video below demonstrating the process of adding 2FA codes to the 1Password either by scanning the QR code or manually typing the Secret Key. You can also read my other article where I have described the process of adding 2FA codes to 1Password in detail.

Make sure to use this option anytime the service offers Two-Factory authentication, it will make your life so much easier.

Create Security Questions in the 1Password.

I bet you didn’t know about the Security Questions tip.

The option to add custom fields in the 1Password app is an excellent feature by itself, but the option to add the Security Questions field, which then generates phrase-based answers for you, is fantastic.

It has never been a great idea to have Security Questions in the first place, in my opinion. The problem is that usually, it is easy to guess the direct answer to these questions, making them useless and dangerous.

But unfortunately, some online services still require and force users to configure this type of security option. That’s why the 1Password Security Question custom field is so helpful.

With a button click, the 1Password will automatically generate random phrase-based answers to these questions, making them much more complicated or even impossible to guess.

Creating security questions in 1Password.
Adding Security Questions in 1Password.

The video below demonstrates how to create the Security Questions in the 1Password manager.

Store your important files.

I keep forgetting that I can store physical files in my 1Password.

Think about important files or documents to which you may need quick access. Below is just a few examples of files you can store in 1Password.

  • Passport scans.
  • Driving license scans.
  • Receipts for purchases.
  • Health insurance cards.

The 1Password includes 1GB of storage for individual accounts, 1Password Families, and Teams, and the single file size is limited to 2GB.

Enable 1Password Watchtower.

For some reason, the 1Password Watchtower is disabled by default after installation.

The Watchtower will notify you about password breaches and other issues with your saved items in 1Password.

1Password watchtower warning message.
Watchtower in the 1Password manager displaying the warning message about inactive Two-Factor Authentication.

Make sure to enable this feature after the installation.

Suppress Watchtower 2FA Warning Message by adding a tag.

The clever way of using tags to suppress the Watchtower 2FA warning message is one of my favorite 1Password tips and tricks.

But let me explain first why you would want to do this.

The Watchtower is designed to warn you about data breaches and other problems with the items you have saved in the 1Password. One of the options Watchtower will warn you about is the missing 2FA code in the account you currently have in 1Password, which offers this type of security feature.

The idea is that the warning message will force you to visit the affected account, configure the 2FA security option, and add the 2FA to the 1Password.

The thing is that many people keep some of the 2FA codes in Google or Microsoft Authenticators, and they don’t want or bother to add the Secret Key to the 1Password as well.

That’s where the option to suppress Watchtower alerts about missing 2FA codes for these accounts is so helpful.

  • To make the 2FA warning message go away, add a 2FA tag to the affected account.

Organize your 1Password data.

Keep your data organized by using tags and vaults. After a few years of using 1Password, you will end up with a large number of accounts. Using tags will make searching for accounts much easier.

I currently have over 300 items secured in my 1Password. With so many items to look after, tags are the best way to organize them.

The 1Password tags are a simple way to mark your item with a phrase that describes the item. You can tag similar or related items with the same tag, making them easier to find.

Screenshot of tags being used in 1Password manager.
Adding tags to an account in 1Password manager.

For example, if you have a few bank account details, you can tag them with the phrase ‘Bank,’ making it easier to find all related accounts simply by searching for the word Bank.

  • Add tags to related items like Bank Details, Work or Personal items, etc.

Tags are excellent but often overlooked features in 1Password.

Use Nested Tags.

The nested tags are great for categorizing related items even further.

Let me explain.

Let’s say you keep your registration documents for your and your wife’s car in the 1Password. You can tag both of these items with a CAR tag, but the search will return both items when searching for this phrase, and perhaps you wanted to find only your wife’s car documents.

That’s where Nested Tags come to the rescue.

Screenshot of nested tags being used in 1Password manager.
Adding a nested tag to an account in 1Password manager.

Add the CAR tag for related items followed by a slash and then another phrase that will further differentiate these items.

  • Car/Wife
  • Car/Mine

Next time you search for CAR-related items, you will have an option to select either the items that belong to you or your wife.

Use Markdown Syntax in the 1Password.

The Markdown Syntax is a simple way to add rich text formatting to your Secure Notes in 1Password. You can create bullet lists, make the text Bold or Italic or create a quotation.

Below is the table which will help you to learn the Markdown Syntax.

StyleMarkdown Syntax
Heading# Heading 1, ## Heading 2. ### Heading 3
Bold**Bold**
Italic_italic_ or *italic*
Strikethrough~~Strikethrough~~
Dividing line
● Bulleted list* List item
Use asterisks (*), hyphens (-), or plus signs (+)
1. Numbered list1. List item
| Quotation> Quotation
Code`Code`
1Password Markdown Syntax

If you know any other 1Password tips and tricks which I may have missed, please let me know, and I will update this post. I hope you have found this post helpful, keep using your Password Managers and stay safe.


My Favorite Software and Hardware.

I appreciate your visit to my blog. I trust that you found the information helpful. To help you further, I'd like to share the software and hardware that I personally use and find valuable. These links are affiliated, meaning that if you make a purchase, I will receive a small commission without any additional cost to you. For more details, please refer to my Disclosure. To be transparent, the software listed is what I have installed on my computer, and the hardware mentioned is what I use to secure my online accounts and store my passwords.

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