Most Common Passwords of 2018

Once again, in the most common passwords of 2018, SplashData returns with the 2018 Worst Passwords of the Year list. This list was determined after evaluating over 5 million passwords that have leaked online in the last year.

Most Common Passwords of 2018 by SplashData

The numbers in parentheses denote the position change in the password list. New refers to a new position on the list, 0 refers to the same position (unchanged), positive numbers mean the entry has gone up, and finally, a negative number means the entry went down the list.

1. 123456 (0)
2. password (0)
3. 123456789 (3)
4. 12345678 (-1)
5. 12345 (0)
6. 111111 (New)
7. 1234567 (1)
8. sunshine (New)
9. qwerty (-5)
10. iloveyou (0)
11. princess (New)
12. admin (-1)
13. welcome (-1)
14. 666666 (New)
15. abc123 (0)
16. football (-7)
17. 123123 (0)
18. monkey (-5)
19. 654321 (New)
20. !@#$%^&* (New)
21. charlie (New)
22. aa123456 (New)
23. donald (New)
24. password1 (New)
25. qwerty123 (New)

Comparison of the Most Common Passwords from 2011 to 2018 by SplashData

Since 2011, SplashData has published a list of the 25 most common passwords each year. The list is based on data examined from millions of passwords leaked in data breaches, mostly in North America and Western Europe, year over year.

Rank	2018	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011
1	123456	123456	123456	123456	123456	123456	password	password
2	password	password	password	password	password	password	123456	123456
3	123456789	12345678	12345	12345678	12345	12345678	12345678	12345678
4	12345678	qwerty	12345678	qwerty	12345678	qwerty	abc123	qwerty
5	12345	12345	football	12345	qwerty	abc123	qwerty	abc123
6	111111	123456789	qwerty	123456789	123456789	123456789	monkey	monkey
7	1234567	letmein	1234567890	football	1234	111111	letmein	1234567
8	sunshine	1234567	1234567	1234	baseball	1234567	dragon	letmein
9	qwerty	football	princess	1234567	dragon	iloveyou	111111	trustno1
10	iloveyou	iloveyou	1234	baseball	football	adobe123	baseball	dragon
11	princess	admin	login	welcome	1234567	123123	iloveyou	baseball
12	admin	welcome	welcome	1234567890	monkey	admin	trustno1	111111
13	welcome	monkey	solo	abc123	letmein	1234567890	1234567	iloveyou
14	666666	login	abc123	111111	abc123	letmein	sunshine	master
15	abc123	abc123	admin	1qaz2wsx	111111	photoshop	master	sunshine
16	football	starwars	121212	dragon	mustang	1234	123123	ashley
17	123123	123123	flower	master	access	monkey	welcome	bailey
18	monkey	dragon	passw0rd	monkey	shadow	shadow	shadow	passw0rd
19	654321	passw0rd	dragon	letmein	master	sunshine	ashley	shadow
20	!@#$%^&*	master	sunshine	login	michael	12345	football	123123
21	charlie	hello	master	princess	superman	password1	jesus	654321
22	aa123456	freedom	hottie	qwertyuiop	696969	princess	michael	superman
23	donald	whatever	loveme	solo	123123	azerty	ninja	qazwsx
24	password1	qazwsx	zaq1zaq1	passw0rd	batman	trustno1	mustang	michael
25	qwerty123	trustno1	password1	starwars	trustno1	0	password1	Football
Rank	2018	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011

Most Common Passwords of 2018 Observations

The top 2 slots in the worst passwords of the year remain unchanged for the 5th year in a row. They are still “123456” and “password.” The next 5 spots go to number patterns like “123456789” and “111111.”

“Hackers have great success using celebrity names, terms from pop culture and sports, and simple keyboard patterns to break into accounts online because they know so many people are using those easy-to-remember combinations.”

Morgan Slain, SplashData CEO

SplashData hopes that creating these common password lists will at least prompt readers to take security a little more seriously and create stronger passwords. A strong password isn’t everything, but it’s up there for important things you must do.

“Our hope by publishing this list each year is to convince people to take steps to protect themselves online. It’s a real head-scratcher that with all the risks known, and with so many highly publicized hacks such as Marriott and the National Republican Congressional Committee, that people continue putting themselves at such risk year-after-year.”

Morgan Slain, SplashData CEO

Additional Sources:

• The most popular passwords of 2018 revealed: Are yours on the list? by WeLiveSecurity
• The 25 Most Popular Passwords of 2018 Will Make You Feel Like a Security Genius by Gizmodo

To compare against last year’s passwords, check out our previous Most Common Passwords of 2017 post.