The most useful tool in my dev setup is a password manager

Short summary

Password managers solve critical developer workflow problems: encrypting SSH keys, injecting secrets at runtime without exposing them in .env files, and defending against supply-chain malware and AI agents reading credentials. 1Password and Bitwarden differ significantly—1Password has a first-class SSH agent and op:// environment variable references; Bitwarden is free, open-source, and self-hostable. The security payoff is real: defeats npm package attacks and AI agents fishing for secrets.

• •Password managers protect dev workflows: SSH keys encrypted, secrets injected at runtime, not exposed in plaintext files
• •1Password has superior developer integration (op run, built-in SSH agent); Bitwarden is free and open-source
• •Real security benefit: defeats npm supply-chain attacks and AI agents leaking credentials via .env reads

Generated with AI, which can make mistakes.