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Passkeys are revolutionizing authentication by eliminating passwords and providing a seamless login experience. However, achieving high passkey adoption requires more than just implementation - it demands optimizing login flows to ensure users consistently choose passkeys over fallback methods like passwords or OTPs. This article explores best practices for increasing passkey login rates and highlights strategies used by major enterprises to drive adoption.
Why Passkey Adoption Matters More Than Implementation
Simply enabling passkey registration isn’t enough. The true measure of success is the passkey login rate - the percentage of total sign-ins completed using passkeys. A high passkey login rate reduces password resets, lowers SMS OTP costs, and enhances security.
Many companies report millions of passkey credentials, but if users default back to passwords, the security and UX benefits are lost. The key to success is optimizing the login experience to make passkeys the default authentication method.
Key Strategies to Increase Passkey Adoption
1. Use Automatic Passkey Login (Identifier-First Flow)
- When users enter their email, automatically check if a passkey exists and trigger the login flow.
- This reduces friction and increases passkey usage by making it the default option.
- Amazon, Microsoft, and Google use this approach to boost adoption.
2. Implement Conditional UI for Seamless Authentication
- Conditional UI suggests passkeys automatically, reducing extra clicks.
- This works especially well on mobile, where passkeys can be autofilled.
- Google and Amazon leverage this to enhance the user experience.
3. Ensure a Smooth Fallback Experience
- If users abort the passkey prompt, provide clear retry options.
- Amazon shows a passkey button immediately after a failed attempt.
- Google nudges users to retry passkeys instead of defaulting to passwords.
4. Optimize the Passkey Button Approach
- If automatic login isn’t feasible, provide a prominent ‘Sign in with Passkey’ button.
- This is effective but often results in low adoption without proper visibility.
- myGov’s passkey login rate remains low because it relies solely on this method.
5. Enhance User Awareness and Trust
- Clearly communicate the security and convenience of passkeys.
- Provide onboarding nudges and reminders to encourage passkey usage.
Case Study: How Leading Enterprises Drive Passkey Adoption
- Amazon: Uses automatic passkey login and fallback handling, ensuring users retry passkeys before reverting to passwords.
- Microsoft: Implements automatic login but avoids Conditional UI due to internal security policies.
- Google: Uses auto-login but initially lacked Conditional UI, later incorporating it for better adoption.
- myGov: Uses a separate passkey button, resulting in lower passkey adoption compared to other companies.
The Corbado Approach: One-Tap Passkey Buttons & Passkey Intelligence
For enterprises struggling to achieve high passkey adoption, Corbado offers two innovative solutions:
- Passkey Intelligence: Predicts whether a user’s passkey is available and automatically triggers the login flow only when success is likely.
- One-Tap Passkey Button: Enhances the standard passkey button by keeping users engaged - 97% of users continue using it once activated.
These enhancements have driven passkey adoption rates above 50% within months, far exceeding industry averages.
Conclusion
High passkey adoption requires more than just registration - it demands a well-designed login experience. By leveraging automatic login flows, Conditional UI, optimized fallback strategies, and Corbado’s advanced solutions, enterprises can surpass 50% passkey login rates and move toward a passwordless future.
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