Password icon is missing after iOS 18 update on my iPhone

In Settings, scroll to the bottom of the list. Look for a new icon for Apps. Click it.

All apps, including your passwords, are now alphabetically stored there. I do not like it at all, I am a creature of habit and muscle memory and this threw me off too.

But did it save the ones I had? Do I have to create all new ones now. Very inconvenient and a pain in the ***

With iOS 18, there is the new passwords app which securely stores all your passwords.

You can download the Password’s app here ⇢ Passwords App - App Store

Michael817 wrote:

What happened to my passwords on my iPhone after updating to iOS 18. There’s no more password icon on my phone it’s like all my passwords have been wiped clean off my phone

If you are (or were) running a third-party password management app, you will want to check with the app vendor.

Unfortunately for these cases, some third-party password apps, and some third-party secret-photos apps, have had an unfortunate habit of disappearing at iOS and iPadOS updates, as the third-party app vendor has withdrawn support for the app. Quite possibly without notice, too.

Access to these passwords stored in a third-party app might be retained on older Apple devices limited to running older iOS or iPadOS versions, where an abandoned or problematic app can potentially remain functional, and a migration or at least password-data or secret-photo-data export becomes feasible.

For the Apple password management, Apple preserves users’ passwords stored in Keychain locally, or stored in iCloud Keychain when enabled.

The existing Apple password-related user interface here — which was a mixture of Settings > Passwords, Keychain Access, Safari, and some other tools — has been consolidated into Passwords app across iPhone, iPad, and macOS.

Apple is incrementing migrating passwords and related stores to better security (using the so-called data protection keychain) as well, which has had some effects for Mac users familiar with Keychain Access features:

• Migrating Keychain Access secure notes to… - Apple Community

It was NOT automaticity downloaded. There was not an instruction to do so anywhere, or that passwords were moved. You're right, it a seperate Apple app download. Been struggling to access through General/password/passcode area. Why in the world would it be a separate download in App Store? Apple, not cool!

This answer does NOT address what happened to the Apple password icon in Settings (creating a total panic). We are not talking about third-party password apps.

Yes, as you described, passwords was turned on, but there was no place to let me actually see my passwords. I had to download the app since the icon which was originally in settings (which let me see my passwords as well as input new ones) was gone.

I have now got it fixed by downloading the app. It got populated with all my passwords.

So far the update to 18.1 has been more disappointing than anything. It’s too bad.

When I use maps, it doesn't label the street like it used to. When I use Outlook calendar and input a location for an event, it used to automatically come up with options to complete the address and then show a map with the location. Not anymore.

ChileD wrote:

This answer does NOT address what happened to the Apple password icon in Settings (creating a total panic). We are not talking about third-party password apps.

The current top-ranking reply above addresses both the third-party password apps that all too often brick themselves or disappear entirely at updates, and also addresses the arrival of the Apple Passwords app that has become available on iPhone, iPad, and macOS.

Why both? Which of those two cases was being referenced by the original post was unclear to me — prior to the Passwords app, the Apple passwords mechanisms didn’t have an app icon, but third-party password apps do — hence a reply that addressed both interpretations of the question. (And we usually find out about some new bricked or discontinued third-party password app by folks posting “where’s my passwords?” threads.)

As for changes “creating a total panic”, that concern is certainly understandable, though Apple has a long history of shuffling stuff around at big updates. In this reshuffling, passwords and passkeys storage, password security recommendations, and the integrated two-factor support all got reworked and combined into one app on each platform, and with some substantial improvements to the underlying keychain storage accompanying the new app.

Here is the Passwords app info for iPhone: Use passwords on iPhone - Apple Support

Apple usually provides an overview of the major changes in each new releases; a map of what got added, and what got shuffled. Here is the overview of the major new iOS features, including the Passwords app: What’s new in iOS 18 - Apple Support

I usually skim both the new features overview and then skim the whole users guide as various new features don’t make the overview, but that’s admittedly more reading than some would prefer. Apropos, the iOS 18 user’s guide does have a section on the Passwords app, too. Here is that user guide: iPhone User Guide - Apple Support

Please use your Apple store to locate APP: Passwords

Then you will be an independent icon: Passwords

this is a new way to check your passwords from now on using this new ICON: Passwords

Is it really any different from having them in settings?

Opening the passwords app is a one step process, as opposed to multiple steps getting to them in settings.

Keep in mind that doing an upgrade on an update on a device that’s not capable of handling the future software to come is gonna cause a lot of issues you know so that that’s the reason why that’s probably But everything if you read inside the new update it’s for privacy and protection so it’s there. It’s all about customization completely get to really know what you’re doing. Get to know your phone so you can customize it the way that you would like it that’s all.

ChileD wrote:

This answer does NOT address what happened to the Apple password icon in Settings (creating a total panic). We are not talking about third-party password apps.

What answer? I'm not sure what the confusion is? When iOS 18 was released, they made changes to several areas within iOS. One change was to remove Passwords from Settings and move Passwords into its own App. The moment you downloaded iOS 18, the app was placed on your last home screen. It holds ALL the passwords you had access to when it was still in Settings.

This is not a 3rd party Password app. It is Apple's Password app.

If you are on iOS 18, there is not setting for Passwords in Settings anymore. It is its own app and any of the passwords you have when it was in Settings, have been moved to the app itself. When you downloaded iOS 18, the app would have been downloaded to the last page of home page apps you have on your phone. It is an App with three keys on it.

Liiisaane19 wrote:

I can’t find my saved passwords on new update 18.

Find and open the Passwords app.

This is the icon:

if this is an iPhone, the Passwords app will be in your app library on the last page of apps, if nowhere else.

Here is how to: Use passwords on iPhone - Apple Support

Try this: Settings -> Passwords -> scroll to bottom, View Autofill Settings -> See if Password app slider is on.

iOS v18.1, iPhone 13 Pro.