Do you struggle to remember passwords to your online accounts? While password managers could help, Windows 11’s 22H2 build gets support for passkeys, which lets you ditch passwords in favor of a hassle-free and secure login experience on your PC.

Windows Passkeys for windows 11

What exactly are passkeys, though, and how do you set up and use them? Stick around, and we’ll tell you everything you need to know about using passkeys on Windows 11.

What is a Passkey?

A passkey is an account verification method that eliminates reliance on passwords during the sign-in process. Instead, it lets you use your device’s PIN or biometric authentication to log in to your accounts.

On Windows 11, this means you can use Windows Hello, which can either be your PIN or biometrics (face, fingerprint, or iris) to sign in to your accounts across various apps and services on your PC that support passkeys.

Since Windows Hello information is linked to a Microsoft account, you need to be signed in to your PC with your Microsoft account to use passkeys.

Why Should You Use Passkeys Over Passwords?

A passkey holds several benefits over a password.

  • It simplifies the login process so you can access accounts on your computer a lot more quickly.
  • Since a passkey eliminates the requirement to remember complex and strong passwords, it reduces your chances of getting logged out of your accounts by repeatedly mistyping or entering the wrong passwords.
  • Compared to a password, a passkey is way more secure. Not only is it less susceptible to brute-force attacks, but it’s also safe from phishing attacks.

How to Set Up a Passkey on Windows 11

Before you can set up and use passkeys on your Windows 11 PC, make sure you have Windows Hello set up. Then, follow the steps below to set up a passkey.

Although you can set up a passkey for any online account or service that supports it, we’ll demonstrate how to set a passkey for a Google account on Windows 11 in this guide.

  1. Visit the My Account page in Chrome or Edge.
  2. Log in to your Google account (for which you want to set up a passkey).
  3. Click on Security in the left sidebar.
  4. Select Passkeys and Security Keys on the right pane.
    Passkeys and Security Keys option on the Google Account page.
  5. When Google prompts you to enter your account password, type it in to verify yourself.
  6. On the following page, click the Create a Passkey button.
    Create a Passkey button on the Google Account page.
  7. You’ll now see a Windows Security window on your screen, asking you to authenticate yourself. Use your PIN or biometrics to do this.
    Verifying identity using Windows Hello to create a passkey for Google account on Windows 11.
  8. Upon authenticating successfully, you’ll see a message informing you that the passkey is saved successfully on your PC.
    Passkey save confirmation on Windows 11.
  9. Hit OK to close the window.

Using the steps similar to those above, you can set up passkeys for any of your online accounts (that support it) and save them to your Windows 11 PC for quick and secure logins. All your saved passkeys are saved to the passkey manager in Windows 11.

Also See: WhatsApp Passkeys: How to Use It on Android or iPhone

How to View and Delete Passkeys on Windows 11

Once you’ve created passkeys for different online accounts on your PC, you can verify if they were saved successfully using these steps:

  1. Open the Settings app on your PC.
  2. Select Accounts, and on the right pane.
  3. Scroll down and select Passkey Settings.
    Passkeys Settings on the Windows 11 Settings app.
  4. On the Passkeys page, you’ll find a list of all your saved passkeys under Saved Passkeys. You can even search for a passkey by typing the site’s name in the search box below.
    A list of saved passkeys in the Windows 11 Settings app.
  5. If you want to delete a passkey, click the three-dot button next to it and select Delete Passkey.
    Deleting a passkey from Windows 11's passkey manager.
  6. Hit the Delete button when prompted to confirm the deletion.

Also See: Ultimate Google Passkeys Setup Guide

How to Use Passkeys to Log In to Accounts on Windows 11

With passkeys set up and saved on your Windows 11 PC, logging in to your accounts is easy enough. Here’s what the authentication process looks like for signing in to a Google account:

  1. Go to the Google sign-in page.
  2. Enter your email address in the Email or Phone field and hit Next.
    Google sign-in page on Windows 11.
  3. When asked to enter the account password on the next screen, click on Try Another Way.
    Try Another Way option on Google sign-in page.
  4. Select Use your Passkey option.
    Use Your Passkey option on Google sign-in page.
  5. You’ll now see a Windows Security prompt on the screen, asking you to authenticate yourself. Use your device PIN, facial recognition, or fingerprint recognition, to verify yourself.
    Signing in using passkey for Google account on Windows 11.
  6. Alternatively, if you’ve set up biometric-based authentication method on your PC, look at your its camera or scan your fingerprint on the fingerprint sensor to authenticate.

As soon as the authentication is successful, Google will sign you in and take you to your account page.

Windows Passkeys Aren’t Perfect Right Now, but Trying Them Wouldn’t Hurt

Entering passwords to log in to your online accounts is a thing of the past. Check out which accounts support passkeys and set up passkeys for them on your Windows 11 PC to quickly access them without any hassle.

Bear in mind, though, that passkeys are still in their nascent stages. As a result, you can’t completely give up on passwords yet due to the lack of adoption and cross-platform compatibility of passkeys. That said, you can start using passkeys for supported accounts on your Windows 11 PC to get a taste of what it’s like to use them and decide whether or not their convenience overshadows the limitations.

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