Microsoft finally makes passkeys viable thanks to Edge on Windows 11 — you can finally sync them across devices

You'll soon be able to sync passkeys to the cloud using Edge and your Microsoft Account, meaning you'll be able to share them across devices going forward.

Microsoft has announced an update coming to its Edge web browser on Windows 11 that introduces support for syncing passkeys to the cloud via your Microsoft Account for use across multiple devices. "We’re thrilled to share that passkeys can now be securely saved and synced across your Windows desktop devices using Microsoft Password Manager in Edge," says Microsoft.

Passkeys are a relatively new way of secure way of storing login information for online accounts and apps using the 'Fast IDentity Online 2' (FIDO2) open standard. Passkeys don't require a password, instead relying on your device's built-in security methods such as fingerprint, face unlock, or numeric PIN. It makes signing in quicker, binding login information directly to the device.

Frustratingly, most platforms that can handle passkeys don't support syncing them across devices. This means that if you ever lose that device, you lose the ability to sign into that account unless you have a recovery method set up. I've often factory reset my PC and forgot to back up my passkeys, resulting in me losing access to some online accounts.

That's finally changing with Microsoft Edge, which will now let you sync passkeys using your Microsoft Account. That means you can sign into Edge on any Windows 11 PC, and have your passkeys carried with you across devices so that you never lose access to them, even if you lose access to one particular device.