How to Recover Your Apple ID Password

To recover a forgotten Apple ID password, start with a trusted Apple device that is already signed in, or open {site} and choose the password-reset option. Apple now calls an Apple ID an Apple Account, but the same email address or phone number still identifies the account.

Where do you start Apple ID password recovery?

The official Apple password-recovery service is reached through {site}. Enter the email address or phone number associated with your Apple Account, then follow the instructions Apple displays for that account.

If an iPhone, iPad, Apple Vision Pro, or Mac is already signed in to the account, resetting the password there is usually the quickest route. A trusted device is an Apple device on which you previously signed in using two-factor authentication.

On an iPhone or iPad, open Settings, tap your name, choose Sign-In & Security, and tap Change Password. On a Mac, open System Settings, select your name, choose Sign-In & Security, and select Change Password. You will normally need the device passcode or Mac login password.

Which Apple password recovery methods can you use?

The options Apple presents depend on the security settings already attached to the account. You cannot select a method that was never configured.

• Trusted device: Change the password from an iPhone, iPad, Apple Vision Pro, or Mac that is already signed in. This is generally the simplest method.
• Trusted phone number: Apple may send a verification code by text message or automated call. A trusted phone number is one previously added to the account for identity verification.
• Borrowed Apple device: If you can receive messages at your trusted number, use the Apple Support app on a family member’s or friend’s iPhone or iPad. Select Support Tools, Reset Password, and Help Someone Else. Information entered through this flow is not stored on the borrowed device.
• Recovery contact: A recovery contact set up in advance can generate a recovery code. The contact cannot see or enter your account.
• Recovery key: This is an optional 28-character code created in advance. If you enabled a recovery key, Apple’s standard account-recovery process is disabled, and the key may be required along with a trusted phone number and an Apple device.
• Email or security questions: These may appear only for an older account that still uses those security methods. Follow them only when Apple displays them during recovery; they are not available for every account.
• Account recovery: This identity-verification process is the fallback for an account using two-factor authentication when the other reset methods are unavailable.

People often search for “apple recover password” or “apple password recover,” but the safe approach is to begin only with Apple’s official recovery flow and use the method offered for the account.

How do you reset an Apple ID password by email or phone?

1. Open Apple’s official password-recovery service through {site} and select Reset Password.
2. Enter an email address or phone number used with the Apple Account. If you do not remember it, check Settings or System Settings on a device where you may still be signed in.
3. Complete the security check shown on the screen. Apple may ask for a trusted phone number to help identify the account.
4. Choose an available verification method. Depending on the account, this may involve a notification on a trusted device, a code sent to a trusted number, an email message, or security questions.
5. Enter the verification code or complete the requested check. Never give a verification code, password, or recovery key to someone claiming to be Apple Support.
6. If Apple redirects the reset to a trusted device, follow the notification there and enter that device’s passcode when requested.
7. Create a new password that meets the requirements shown on the screen, enter it again, and submit the change.
8. Wait for confirmation that the password was reset before closing the page or trying repeated sign-ins.

If an expected code does not arrive, confirm that the displayed ending digits match a phone number you control. Look for options such as Didn’t Get a Code? or Can’t Get to Your Devices? Repeated guesses do not replace identity verification and may complicate access.

What if you cannot access a trusted Apple device?

If you still control the trusted phone number, use the Apple Support app on a borrowed iPhone or iPad and choose Help Someone Else. You can also wait until your own trusted device becomes available if the loss of access is temporary.

If a recovery key was enabled earlier, retrieve the 28-character key from the safe place where you stored it and follow Apple’s prompts. Because enabling a recovery key turns off standard account recovery, losing both the key and access needed for verification can permanently prevent recovery.

If you have no usable trusted device or trusted phone number, select the options indicating that you cannot access the device or number. Apple may then offer an account recovery request.

1. Provide the account email address or phone number and any requested verification details.
2. Submit the account recovery request and note which device was used to start it.
3. Watch for Apple’s confirmation message. Apple says the message containing the expected recovery date and time arrives within 72 hours.
4. During the waiting period, avoid using other devices signed in to the Apple Account because account activity may cancel the request. If recovery began in Settings, System Settings, or the Apple Support app, Apple says that specific device can still be used.
5. Wait for Apple’s text message or automated call when the account is ready. Account recovery may take several days or longer, and Apple Support cannot shorten the waiting period.

What should you do after resetting your Apple ID password?

• Sign in again wherever an Apple device or service asks for the updated password. Do not sign out of devices unnecessarily if they continue working normally.
• Review the email addresses and phone numbers listed under Sign-In & Security. Remove information you do not recognize and make sure the trusted number is current.
• Check the device list associated with the Apple Account and remove devices that are no longer yours.
• Confirm that two-factor authentication is enabled. Two-factor authentication requires both the password and verification through a trusted device or number when needed.
• Add another trusted phone number if an appropriate one is available, and consider setting up a recovery contact.
• If the password was reset because of suspicious activity, also review account details for changes you did not make.

When should you contact Apple Support about password recovery?

Contact Apple Support when the account is reported as locked, inactive, or disabled; when you cannot identify the email address or phone number attached to it; when the official flow produces an error that persists; or when you believe someone else changed the account information.

Apple Support can explain the available process and help with technical problems, but representatives cannot reveal a password, request your recovery key or verification code, bypass identity checks, or shorten an account-recovery waiting period. If a recovery request is active, use the date and instructions in Apple’s confirmation rather than starting repeated requests.