Create a Login.gov Account

What You Need Before Creating an Account

To create a Login.gov account, have an email address that you can open now and expect to keep using. A personal email address may be easier to retain than a work address. Login.gov will send a confirmation message before you can continue.

You will also need a password with at least 12 characters and at least one multi-factor authentication method. Depending on your choice, have a compatible phone, authentication app, security key, backup-code storage method, or eligible government employee or military ID ready.

Creating the account does not always require identity documents. However, the government agency you are accessing may later ask you to verify your identity. Its requirements may include personal information or identification. Follow only the instructions shown for that agency.

How to Create a Login.gov Account

Use these steps when you are ready to sign up for Login.gov:

1. Open {site} and select the option to create an account. You may also begin on a participating agency’s website and choose Login.gov when asked how you want to sign in.
2. Enter an email address you can access and submit it.
3. Open the message sent by Login.gov and select the button that confirms your email address.
4. Return to the Login.gov screen and create a password with at least 12 characters.
5. Choose and configure at least one authentication method.
6. Complete the authentication prompt. You will then reach your Login.gov account page or return to the government agency you were trying to access.

This is the standard Login.gov account registration process. If you searched for “how do I create a Login.gov account,” “create account Login.gov,” or “open a Login.gov account,” these are the official basic steps.

How to Verify Your Email Address

After you submit your email address, look in that email account for a message from Login.gov. Open it and select the confirmation button. That action returns you to Login.gov so you can create your password and continue.

If the message is missing, check the spam, junk, promotions, and other filtered folders. Confirm that you typed the address correctly. If your email is forwarded, check the original mailbox as well as the destination mailbox. You can add the official sender shown in Login.gov’s help instructions to your contacts, then request another confirmation message.

Do not continue through a message that looks suspicious. Return to {site} yourself and request a fresh message. If the email address is already connected to an account, Login.gov may instead send instructions for recovering access.

How to Set Up Account Security

Your password must contain at least 12 characters. Use a unique phrase or several words that you can remember. Avoid common phrases, repeated characters, parts of your email address, personal dates, and passwords used for other accounts.

Login.gov requires multi-factor authentication. The currently listed methods include:

• Face or touch unlock on a compatible device
• An authentication application that generates one-time codes
• A compatible physical security key
• A code delivered by text message or voice call
• Backup codes that you save securely
• A PIV or CAC card for eligible federal employees or military personnel

Follow the on-screen setup for the method you choose. Login.gov recommends adding more than one method. A backup option can preserve access if you lose a phone or security key. Store backup codes somewhere secure and separate from the device you normally use.

How to Connect Login.gov to a Government Service

A Login.gov account handles secure sign-in for participating government services. It does not provide benefits, decide eligibility, process applications, or maintain the agency’s service records.

After creating your account, return to the government agency’s official website. Select its sign-in option, choose Login.gov if offered, and sign in with your email address, password, and authentication method. The agency may then require separate enrollment, identity verification, consent, or profile information.

Use the same Login.gov account for participating agencies instead of creating a new account for each one. If the agency cannot find your application or profile, contact that agency because the problem may concern its records rather than your Login.gov sign-in.

Problems Creating or Accessing an Account

• An account already uses your email: Do not create another account with the same address. Use the password-reset option, even if you do not remember completing an earlier registration.

• The confirmation message is missing: Check filtered folders, verify the spelling of the address, inspect the original mailbox if forwarding is enabled, and request another message.

• You forgot your password: Select the password-reset option on the sign-in screen, enter your email address, and follow the message sent by Login.gov.

• You lost one authentication method: Sign in using another method already connected to the account. After signing in, remove the lost method and add a replacement.

• You lost every authentication method: Login.gov cannot bypass multi-factor authentication or restore access for you. You may need to delete the inaccessible account and create a new one, then reconnect it to the agency.

• Your email or phone information is rejected: Check for typing and formatting errors. Make sure the email account works and that the selected phone can receive the required text or voice code.

How to Contact Login.gov Support

Start with the official Help Center. Its sections cover creating an account, authentication methods, password resets, identity verification, account management, and sign-in problems. The official Contact page also provides verified contact options and a help-ticket form for unresolved account-access issues.

Do not put sensitive information in a support request. Login.gov says its representatives can explain account steps but cannot sign in, create, delete, or manage the account for you. For application status, eligibility, appointments, payments, benefits, or agency records, contact the government agency directly.