The macOS Golden Gate 27.3 beta adds a Passwords app lock timeout setting, so you can choose how long the app stays unlocked on your Mac. In macOS 27.2 and earlier, the app locks after 3 minutes of inactivity and offers no way to change it.
The new Automatically lock menu in Passwords Settings lets you shorten the wait to 1 minute, stretch it to 10 minutes, or tie it to your Mac instead of a timer. You can try it in the developer beta or the public beta.
The Passwords app lock timeout now has five settings
pdfu found the new menu in the beta and posted it on X. To change it, open Settings in the Passwords app and pick an option next to Automatically lock.
The Automatically lock menu has five choices:
- After 1 Minute of Inactivity
- After 3 Minutes of Inactivity
- After 10 Minutes of Inactivity
- When Mac Locks or Sleeps
- Never
The three inactivity choices work like the old timer with a shorter or longer wait. A 1-minute timeout means you unlock the app more often, while a 10-minute timeout leaves your saved passwords open longer if you step away from your Mac.
When Mac Locks or Sleeps ties the app to your Mac, so it locks together with your screen instead of on its own timer. Never means the app no longer locks by itself, so your saved passwords stay visible to anyone who sits down at your unlocked Mac.
The Passwords app had no lock setting until this beta
Apple added the standalone Passwords app to the Mac in macOS Sequoia in September 2024. Owners kept asking on Apple’s support forums how to make it stay unlocked longer, and the replies in those threads said no setting existed.
The new menu is in the macOS Golden Gate 27.3 beta, which reached developers on November 3 and public beta testers on November 5. The same beta also adds Safari vertical tabs, along with Live Activities in the menu bar for Apple Music, Clock and Voice Memos.
The developer beta is build 26C5035r. To install it, open System Settings, click General, choose Software Update and opt into the macOS Golden Gate betas.
Every Mac that runs macOS Golden Gate uses Apple silicon, so Intel Macs stay on macOS Tahoe and do not get the setting. macOS Golden Gate 27.3 is expected in December, after macOS Golden Gate 27.2 reached everyone on October 26.
