That’s how 1Password worked back before it got Dropbox/server sync support. You’d sync your Mac client with the iOS client or vice versa over WLAN. The problem

That’s how 1Password worked back before it got Dropbox/server sync support. You’d sync your Mac client with the iOS client or vice versa over WLAN. The problem is that it isn’t a seamless process. You have to initiate a sync on one client or the other. Do you have situations where you might be on your phone and not have the latest database from your laptop or desktop — or two laptops could be out of sync if they aren’t on the same network. OK, so you set clients to sync at specific intervals in the background — this can work but still might miss things and you’ve now got a client that is constantly polling another. The reason for the external server is access continence, because any good password manager will keep the databases encrypted regardless of where they are stored. I mean, you want the server the database is on to be secure too — not to mention any browser extension that might exist — but the database itself is the most important part. A YubiKey or a portable version of KeepassX is probably the best option for the paranoid, IMHO, over local sync (especially something like Bluetooth). Of course, for mobile access you’ll need to be able to plug a USB key into your phone. That’s probably not a problem on Android and hopefully with iOS 13, it’ll be a better iOS option too.