Passkeys for User Retention: Why Keychain keeps Customers

Passkeys are becoming the default way consumers sign in - not because they're trendy, but because they're stored in the device credential manager (iCloud Keychain / Google Password Manager) and persist across device upgrades.

For growth teams, that creates a new retention lever: once a user creates a passkey, re-login friction collapses (often to a single biometric/PIN step) and users can return months later without password resets.

This post explains how passkeys drive user retention, what's replacing cookie-era re-engagement, and what to measure.

iOS and Android ship with credential managers (iCloud Keychain, Google Password Manager) that can store passkeys. Many services now prompt (and in some cases automatically upgrade) users to passkeys, making passkeys increasingly "ambient" on consumer devices. Nearly every smartphone is passkey-capable (Android + iOS ≈ 99%+ of mobile OS share).

A passkey is a digital credential, tied to a user account of a website or application and saved to the Apple, Google account or a user's password manager (e.g. 1Password, Dashlane). Unlike cookies, passkeys are created per site/app and aren't designed to track users across websites.

Each passkey is cryptographically bound to a specific website or app. They cannot be used for cross-site tracking making them a privacy-respecting alternative to cookies for maintaining user relationships.

On Apple devices, passkeys are stored in iCloud Keychain and can be viewed/managed in the Passwords app. Users can see which sites have passkeys and delete them if needed, though most consumers rarely think to do this.

On Android and Chrome, passkeys sync via Google Password Manager. Google has also enabled passkey sync across Windows and macOS, expanding cross-platform reach.

In recent decades, cookies played a crucial role for business-to-consumer (B2C) companies, allowing them to personalize the user experience with user-related information in websites and apps, such as storefront preferences for a single buyer. Enabling features such as adding items to shopping carts, saved preferences, and user account information, they were essential for facilitating e-commerce transactions.

However, several developments have weakened cookie-based re-engagement:

The requirement for active opt-in consent for non-essential cookies was established by the CJEU Planet49 ruling (C-673/17) in October 2019, later reaffirmed by Germany's Federal Court (BGH) in May 2020. Websites must now provide clear information about the cookies they use, their purposes, and obtain active consent before setting non-essential cookies.

Apple's Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) blocks many third-party cookies, limiting cross-site tracking and protecting user privacy.

Chrome tested restrictions and explored changes, but Google later announced Chrome will keep its current approach to third-party cookie choice and won't roll out a new standalone prompt. Meanwhile, Safari/WebKit has long had strong tracking prevention.

Net effect for growth teams: cookie-based re-engagement is less dependable, so account-based re-login UX matters more.

Google Analytics 4 includes adapted privacy settings such as analytics without cookies.

These developments complicate B2C companies' access to their customers. The solution? Shift from "track & retarget" to "make return login effortless."

Passkeys are often framed as a security upgrade, but they're also a retention mechanic. When a user creates a passkey, that credential is stored in their platform password manager - iCloud Keychain on Apple devices or Google Password Manager on Android/Chrome - and syncs across devices signed into the same account.

That means the "cost" of returning (after a week, a month or a device upgrade) is far lower than password-based auth, where forgotten credentials and resets are common friction points. And modern sign-in UX like passkey autofill (Conditional UI) makes returning sign-in feel like using autofill: fast, familiar and hard to mess up.

When logging in with passkeys, users don't need to remember a password and are automatically reminded which email they signed up with (usernameless login). They never enter the time-consuming process of password resets again, eliminating a major source of frustration.

Conditional UI enables immediate, speedy re-login even after months or years. The browser or OS presents the passkey option automatically when the user focuses the username field making sign-in feel like autofill.

Passkeys enable cross-platform logins (see Google's passkey sync for Windows and macOS), revolutionizing how users access accounts from different platforms. Unlike traditional passwords, passkeys won't get lost (as long as you have access to your iCloud or Google account) and users can easily log in even after months or years.

The ability to seamlessly log in across devices ensures customers can easily access their shopping carts and continue their unfinished orders without hassle. This enhanced re-engagement capability can significantly reduce cart abandonment rates.

Even if a user uninstalls an iOS or Android app, their credentials remain synchronized in the keychain. Passkeys live in the user's credential manager and typically remain available until the user explicitly deletes them in their Passwords/Passkey settings (something most consumers rarely think to do).

This seamless experience saves cognitive capacity and reduces clicks, making it easier for users to re-engage with an application effortlessly, even long after the initial interaction. This fosters a stronger bond between customers and a brand, leading to increased customer retention and loyalty.

1. After first successful login: User just authenticated, trust is established
2. After checkout: High-intent moment, user wants to return
3. On second visit: "Make next time one-tap"

With one-click accounts made possible by passkeys, you eliminate the hurdles often associated with account creation, leading to higher account quotas and mitigating user churn. Users no longer need to remember or come up with a password. A simple email address and Face ID is all that's required. This encourages more users to opt for regular accounts over guest accounts, or swiftly converts guest accounts into regular ones with a quick Face ID or Touch ID scan.

Always maintain password or magic link fallbacks for users who can't use passkeys (unsupported browsers, shared devices, etc.).

Implementing passkeys is one thing. Understanding how they impact your retention metrics is another. Corbado provides comprehensive authentication analytics and observability out of the box:

Track the metrics that matter for user retention:

• Passkey adoption rate: % of users who have created a passkey
• Re-login success rate: How often passkey logins succeed vs. fall back to passwords
• Time-to-auth: Measure how fast users complete sign-in with passkeys vs. passwords
• Password reset rate: Monitor the decline as passkey adoption grows

Corbado automatically tracks key authentication events:

• passkey_created: User successfully created a passkey
• passkey_login_success: User signed in with a passkey
• passkey_login_failed: Identify friction points in your passkey flow
• fallback_to_password: Understand when and why users fall back

Understand passkey adoption across your user base:

• Breakdown by OS (iOS, Android, Windows, macOS)
• Browser compatibility insights
• Credential manager distribution (iCloud Keychain vs. Google Password Manager)

This observability helps growth teams prove ROI and identify optimization opportunities in the passkey retention loop.

Passkeys present a powerful way to improve user retention by storing credentials in iCloud Keychain or Google Password Manager where they persist and sync across devices. They offer an alternative to cookie-era re-engagement, improving UX while increasing sign-up, re-login, and retention rates.

But implementing passkeys without analytics is flying blind. Corbado's solution gives you the observability to measure impact: track passkey adoption, monitor re-login rates and prove retention improvements with real data.

Yes. Passkeys can be unlocked with any device screen lock method, including PIN or pattern.

Yes. On iOS, users can manage passkeys in Settings → Passwords. On Android, through Google Password Manager. However, most users rarely delete passkeys manually.

No. Passkeys are site-bound credentials created per website/app. They cannot be used for cross-site tracking.

Yes. Passkeys stored in iCloud Keychain sync across Apple devices signed into the same Apple ID. Google Password Manager syncs passkeys across Android devices and Chrome browsers signed into the same Google account.

Conditional UI allows browsers to show passkey autofill suggestions in the username field, making sign-in as easy as selecting from a dropdown. This dramatically reduces friction for returning users.