Tags vs Categories

darrenNZ

I've looked for an explanation of Tags on the 1Password website but I still don't really understand them and I feel as if I'm missing something blindingly obvious. :|

All of my passwords are filed under categories like Logins, Email Accounts, Passwords etc.

If I need to find an entry I'll either search for it by name or click categories or use favourites.

What's the point in using tags? As a test I setup a few tags but I don't really see the point; it doesn't make things any quicker.

Can I optimise my workflow by using tags and if so how?

jessyc

Hi @darrenNZ,

That's a great question!

Tags are useful to "group" elements that are under different categories but are somehow connected. It's a simple and flexible way to categorize and filter your data.

For example, I'm currently working on a business project with a friend, and I'm responsible for all the digital stuff. I used the tag [name of the project] to get quick access to all the Logins, Bank account and Notes related to our project, regardless of categorization.

I could technically put all this data in a separate vault and forget about tags (or rethink my tagging logic within each vault), but I prefer to work with tags and only one vault – it simply makes more sense to me at this point. But that's very personal I guess, and a vault setup might be more suited to your needs!

I might decide to move it to a separate vault in the future, as I imagine things could get messy when I reach a certain number of elements. The most obvious and common thing to do would be to have separate "Personal" and "Work" vaults.

darrenNZ

Thanks for the explanation.

I only use one vault for everything so I guess tags are primarily useful if you've got multiple vaults or want custom names because you can't rename the default groups.

Even if I had multiple vaults I'd probably use the All Vaults option to search for my entries.

I'll stick with my present setup now that I know tags don't really fit with my workflow. :)

AGAlumB

@darrenNZ: Honestly, I think the biggest "weakness" of tags is that they are too flexible, and therefore difficult to get started with. They can be used pretty much any way you want, but that can be daunting. So I think it's helpful to, as jessyc mentioned, think of them in terms of grouping things For example, I have tags for the names of credit cards I use to pay for things. Then, I tag Logins, Memberships, and other items with the appropriate credit card names. That way, if I get a new card, I have a list I can quickly go through to update my payment details on Amazon or whatever. But that's literally just one example. It's really up to you. :)