Copy Safari Passwords to New Mac: Overcoming the Challenge

Are you planning to switch to a new Mac and want to transfer your existing Safari passwords? You're not alone! I faced a similar challenge recently, and after some trial and error, I'm excited to share my findings with you.

Using Migration Assistant, which helps transfer data from one Mac to another, can be a convenient way to move your Safari passwords. However, I discovered that the creation dates of my keychain entries were lost during the process. This was a significant drawback, as these dates are crucial for sorting out how old my keychain entries are.

To overcome this issue, you may want to consider exporting and importing your Safari passwords using Safari Preferences > Passwords. This method allows you to transfer your passwords in CSV format, which can be easily imported into other password managers.

Another option is to convert your existing keychains to a different password manager. Unfortunately, Apple's support representatives were unable to provide helpful advice on this topic. After conducting extensive research, I found that many online resources offer little guidance on how to transfer Safari passwords between devices with different system versions (e.g., 11.6 to 12.4).

The problem seems to lie in the security measures implemented by Apple's iCloud Keychain, which affects the Local Items keychain where most of your passwords are stored. Attempting to manually copy the ~/Library/Keychains folder doesn't work either, as Keychain Access fails to recognize the Local Items keychain.

To set up a new Mac (e.g., Mac Studio with 12.4) using Migration Assistant and transfer data from an older iMac (11.6.6), be aware that the 'Local Items' keychain may not contain all of your passwords. In my case, I lost almost all of my passwords during the migration process.

While iCloud Keychain is a convenient option for synchronizing your passwords across devices, it may not be suitable if you prefer to keep your password data local. Fortunately, there are alternative methods available to transfer Safari passwords between Macs, and we hope that this article will inspire further research and solutions for those facing similar challenges.

Copy safari passwords to new mac