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Every year, security researchers publish lists of the most commonly used passwords. Every year, the results are almost identical. Despite decades of warnings, billions of breached records, and headline-grabbing attacks, millions of people still protect their most sensitive accounts with passwords that can be cracked in under one second. If you are serious about improving your password security, understanding what not to do is just as important as knowing what makes a strong password.
This article presents the 20 most common passwords of 2026, explains the patterns behind them, and gives you a clear action plan if you find yours on the list.
The 20 Most Common Passwords
The data below is compiled from analysis of leaked credential databases, breach aggregations, and annual reports from security firms including NordPass, Hive Systems, and the Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report.
| Rank | Password | Estimated Crack Time | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 123456 | Less than 1 second | Number sequence |
| 2 | 123456789 | Less than 1 second | Number sequence |
| 3 | qwerty | Less than 1 second | Keyboard walk |
| 4 | password | Less than 1 second | Dictionary word |
| 5 | 12345678 | Less than 1 second | Number sequence |
| 6 | 111111 | Less than 1 second | Repeated digits |
| 7 | qwerty123 | Less than 1 second | Keyboard walk + numbers |
| 8 | 1q2w3e | Less than 1 second | Keyboard pattern |
| 9 | abc123 | Less than 1 second | Alphabet + numbers |
| 10 | password1 | Less than 1 second | Dictionary word + digit |
| 11 | 1234567 | Less than 1 second | Number sequence |
| 12 | 12345 | Less than 1 second | Number sequence |
| 13 | iloveyou | Less than 1 second | Common phrase |
| 14 | 000000 | Less than 1 second | Repeated digits |
| 15 | letmein | Less than 1 second | Common phrase |
| 16 | monkey | Less than 1 second | Dictionary word |
| 17 | dragon | Less than 1 second | Dictionary word |
| 18 | qwerty1 | Less than 1 second | Keyboard walk + digit |
| 19 | sunshine | Less than 1 second | Dictionary word |
| 20 | master | Less than 1 second | Dictionary word |
Every single one of these passwords can be cracked in under one second using modern hardware. Not minutes. Not hours. Fractions of a second.
Why “123456” Refuses to Die
The password 123456 has held the number one spot in six of the last seven years of published research. It is the default choice for people who view password creation as an obstacle rather than a safeguard. Its persistence tells us something important: convenience will always win over security unless the system makes security the easier path.
This is not a problem unique to careless individuals. People are managing an ever-growing number of accounts – the average is now well over 100 – and human memory was never designed to store dozens of unique, random character strings. The real solution is not to shame people for choosing bad passwords but to give them tools that make good passwords effortless. That is precisely why password managers exist.
The Patterns Behind Weak Passwords
When you study lists of common passwords across years and regions, clear patterns emerge. Understanding these patterns helps explain both why people choose them and why attackers exploit them so easily.
Number Sequences
Six of the top 20 passwords are pure number sequences: 123456, 123456789, 12345678, 1234567, 12345, and 000000. They are easy to type, easy to remember, and the first thing any cracking algorithm tries. Number-only passwords are particularly weak because the character space is just 10 digits, giving even a long numeric string very low entropy.
Keyboard Walks
Keyboard walks are patterns formed by pressing adjacent keys in sequence. qwerty, qwerty123, 1q2w3e, and qwerty1 all fall into this category. People choose them because they feel random – the letters do not spell anything obvious – but they are among the first patterns loaded into every password-cracking dictionary.
To understand how attackers exploit these patterns systematically, read our guide on how password cracking works.
Dictionary Words
password, monkey, dragon, sunshine, master, and letmein are all plain English words or common phrases. These are eliminated within milliseconds by dictionary attacks, which cycle through entire wordlists before even attempting brute force. Adding a single digit to a dictionary word – like password1 – adds almost no security. Cracking tools routinely append digits 0 through 9 (and common years like 2025 and 2026) to every dictionary word.
Common Phrases and Pop Culture
iloveyou and letmein represent another category: short phrases that feel personal but are universally popular. Other passwords that consistently appear in broader top-100 lists include starwars, batman, football, pokemon, and whatever the current year happens to be. Pop culture references feel unique to the person choosing them, but millions of people have the same idea.
The reasons people gravitate toward these patterns are deeply rooted in human cognition. Our article on the psychology of passwords explores why our brains are fundamentally bad at generating randomness, and why we keep making the same mistakes.
Names and Dates
While names and dates do not always appear in the top 20 global lists (because they vary by region), they are among the most commonly cracked passwords in targeted attacks. An attacker who knows your name, your children’s names, your birthday, or your anniversary can try those combinations in seconds. Social media has made this information trivially accessible.
How Fast Can These Passwords Be Cracked?
Modern password cracking uses GPU clusters that can test billions of password guesses per second. Here is what that looks like in practice:
- A 6-character lowercase password: 308 million combinations. Cracked in under 1 second.
- An 8-character password with mixed case and numbers: 218 billion combinations. Cracked in about 1 minute.
- A 12-character password with full complexity: 19 quadrillion combinations. Could take several months.
- A 5-word random passphrase: Exceeds 60 bits of entropy. Would take years to centuries.
Every password on the top-20 list falls into the first category or is directly present in cracking dictionaries, which means they are cracked even faster than brute force alone would suggest. When your password is literally in the dictionary, the attacker does not need to guess – they just need to look it up.
For a deeper dive into how length and character variety affect resistance to cracking, see our guide on understanding password complexity rules.
The Reuse Problem
A weak password is dangerous. A weak password used on multiple accounts is catastrophic. Research consistently shows that approximately 94% of people reuse passwords across multiple services. When one account is breached – and data breaches happen constantly – attackers use automated tools to try the stolen credentials on hundreds of other services. This technique, known as credential stuffing, is responsible for a large portion of account takeovers.
If your password is 123456 on a throwaway forum, it is bad. If that same password protects your email, your bank, and your cloud storage, a single breach anywhere gives attackers access everywhere.
This is why password reuse is considered one of the most dangerous security habits today. We cover this topic in depth in our article on why you should never reuse passwords.
What To Do If Your Password Is on This List
If you recognized any of your current passwords in the table above, do not panic – but do act now. Here is a step-by-step plan:
1. Change Your Most Critical Passwords First
Start with the accounts that would cause the most damage if compromised:
- Email accounts – these are the keys to every other account, since password resets go through email
- Banking and financial accounts
- Cloud storage – Google Drive, iCloud, Dropbox
- Social media – especially if you use social login for other services
2. Use a Password Manager
You cannot fix a password problem by trying harder to memorize better passwords. The math does not work in your favor when you have 100+ accounts. A password manager generates truly random, high-entropy passwords for every account and stores them securely so you never have to remember them.
PanicVault’s password audit feature can scan your stored credentials and flag any that match known breach databases or common password lists. It tells you exactly which accounts need attention, ranked by risk.
3. Generate Strong Replacements
For each password you change, use your password manager’s built-in generator. Aim for:
- At least 16 random characters for standard accounts
- A 5-word random passphrase for your master password
- Unique passwords for every single account – no exceptions
PanicVault’s password generator creates both random character strings and EFF-wordlist-based passphrases, so you can choose the format that works best for each situation. For detailed guidance on building strong passwords, see our strong password guide.
4. Enable Two-Factor Authentication
Even a strong password is only one layer of defense. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on every account that supports it. An authenticator app (like Google Authenticator or Authy) is preferable to SMS-based 2FA, which is vulnerable to SIM-swapping attacks.
5. Run a Breach Check
Check whether your email addresses have appeared in known data breaches using services like Have I Been Pwned. If they have, change the passwords for those accounts immediately – especially if you were reusing passwords at the time of the breach.
PanicVault integrates breach checking directly into its audit workflow. It compares your stored password hashes against known breach databases using a k-anonymity model, which means your actual passwords are never transmitted.
Why These Lists Barely Change Year to Year
The persistence of weak passwords is not a failure of education. Most people know that 123456 is a bad password. The problem is structural:
- Too many accounts: No one can manage 100+ unique strong passwords mentally.
- Low perceived risk: People underestimate how often breaches occur and how automated exploitation has become.
- Password fatigue: After creating an account just to make a single purchase, people default to the easiest possible password.
- No immediate consequences: Unlike leaving your front door open, a weak password does not feel dangerous until it is exploited.
The solution is not better education alone – it is better tools. Password managers remove the burden of creation and memorization entirely. When generating a strong, unique password takes one click, there is no reason to type qwerty123 ever again.
The Bigger Picture: Passwords Are Not Going Away
Despite the rise of passkeys, biometrics, and other passwordless authentication methods, traditional passwords remain the dominant form of authentication in 2026. Most services still require them. Most backup authentication methods still rely on them. Even passkey-enabled accounts typically keep a password as a fallback.
This means password hygiene is not optional and will not be for years to come. The 20 passwords on this list represent the lowest-hanging fruit for attackers. Moving away from them – and toward unique, randomly generated credentials managed by a dedicated tool – is the single most impactful step you can take to improve your security posture.
Summary
The most common passwords of 2026 are the same ones that have topped these lists for years: 123456, password, qwerty, and simple variations. Every one of them can be cracked instantly. If any of your passwords resemble those on this list, change them now.
The path forward is straightforward:
- Use a password manager to generate and store unique passwords for every account
- Run a password audit to identify weak, reused, or breached credentials
- Enable two-factor authentication on every account that supports it
- Never reuse a password – let your password manager handle the complexity
PanicVault makes this process simple: generate strong passwords, store them in your encrypted vault, and audit your credentials against known breaches – all without a subscription, and with your data always under your control.
