CredenShare vs PrivateBin

The short answer

• Both encrypt in your browser, with the key in the link fragment, so the server can't read the content.
• PrivateBin is software you run yourself, or use through a public instance someone else runs. It's free and open source.
• CredenShare is a hosted service: nothing to install or patch, plus access logs, teams, integrations and Secure Requests.

Who this page is for: teams deciding between running PrivateBin and using a hosted credential-sharing service.

What does each tool do?

PrivateBin is open-source pastebin software. Pastes are encrypted in the browser, can expire from 5 minutes to a year (or never), can burn after reading, and can have a password. File upload is off by default. There are no accounts. A directory lists public instances run by various operators.

CredenShare is a hosted service for credentials: encrypted links that expire, an access log, Secure Requests, teams and integrations. Its SecurePaste covers encrypted text.

Where is your secret encrypted?

• PrivateBin pastes are "encrypted and decrypted in the browser using 256bit AES in Galois Counter mode", with the key after the # in the URL.

• CredenShare: Shares created in the web app, through the API or with the SDKs are encrypted in your browser or client with AES-256-GCM, using a key made for that share alone; the key travels in the part of the link after the #, which browsers don't send to servers. Shares created from Slack are the exception: they're encrypted on our servers.

CredenShare and PrivateBin side by side

PrivateBin details checked on October 23, 2026 against its own pages; see the sources below.

What does CredenShare add?

Nothing to run

No server to install, patch, back up or monitor. With PrivateBin, someone has to run the instance, or you trust whoever runs the public one you use.

A record of every handoff

Each share logs the time and IP address of every view, kept for 3 to 180 days depending on your plan (not on Free). When someone says the credential never arrived, you can check.

Credentials coming back to you

Secure Requests (Business and Enterprise) send a form with the fields you choose. The submitter's browser encrypts each answer to a key belonging to the request, and you can require them to sign in with two-factor authentication.

Teams and integrations

Teams share an allowance, with optional zero-knowledge custody (Business and Enterprise). Create shares from Slack (Plus and above), a browser extension for Chrome and Firefox, or code: a REST API, SDKs for Node, Python, Go and Rust, an MCP server for AI agents, and webhooks.

What does each cost?

PrivateBin is free software; the cost is the server and the time to run it. CredenShare: Free (3 shares a day); Solo $9.99/month (passcodes, access logs); Plus $49.99/month (5 seats, teams, Slack); Business $99.99/month (Secure Requests, API, IP allowlists). Yearly billing: $99.99, $499.99 and $999.99. See pricing.

Which should you use?

What to ask any secret-sharing tool before you trust it

1. Where is the secret encrypted? In your browser, or on the provider's servers after it arrives? Browser-side encryption means the provider never holds a readable copy.
2. Who holds the key? If it's in the link (after the #), the server can't decrypt without the link. If it's on the server, the provider can.
3. What happens to link previews? Email and chat scanners can open links. Can you allow two views, or start the clock at the first open?
4. Can you prove it arrived? Is there a record of each view, with a time and an IP address?
5. How long is data kept after expiry? What is deleted, and what metadata remains?
6. Can people send secrets to you? Without a request feature, credentials still arrive by email.
7. Where is it hosted, and can you self-host? That matters for data-residency rules.
8. Who on your team can see what? Admin visibility, team ownership, and what happens when someone leaves.

How do you switch from PrivateBin to CredenShare?

There's nothing to migrate: sharing links are short-lived by design.

1. Create a CredenShare account. The Free plan covers 3 shares a day.
2. Send your next credential with CredenShare: fill in the fields, set an expiry and a view limit, and add a passcode on a paid plan.
3. Invite your team (Basic and above), and add the Slack app, browser extension or SDKs you'll use.
4. Replace "send me your password" emails with Secure Requests (Business and Enterprise).
5. Let existing PrivateBin links expire on their own.

Where PrivateBin is the better choice

• Full control: you run the server and keep the data.
• No accounts, ever.
• Discussions on a paste.
• Free software.

Before you share a credential: a checklist

These apply whichever tool you use.

1. Send the link and the passcode through different channels. For example, the link by email and the passcode by text message.
2. Watch out for link scanners. Some email security filters and chat apps open links automatically, which can use up a one-view link. Send the link as plain text through a channel that doesn't pre-open links, or allow a second view with a short expiry.
3. Don't open the link to test it. On a one-view link, your test is the view.
4. Pick the shortest expiry that works. If you don't know when the recipient will act, a link that starts counting at the first open is safer than a long fixed window.
5. Rotate after the handoff when you can. The link expires, but the credential is still valid.
6. Keep the original in your password manager. A sharing link is a delivery method, not storage.

Verdict

If you want to run it yourself, PrivateBin is a well-built, browser-encrypted pastebin. If you'd rather not run anything, and you need logs, teams and requests around credential handoffs, CredenShare is built for it.

Related: CredenShare vs Yopass · CredenShare vs OneTimeSecret · All comparisons

Sources (checked October 23, 2026):

• PrivateBin: project site, GitHub, instance directory
• CredenShare: encryption, plans and limits

PrivateBin is a trademark of its owner. CredenShare is not affiliated with it.