Reset Your Password When You Cannot Sign In at All

TL;DR — If you cannot sign in at all, start with the sign-in page's Forgot password? link and reset your password from the email you receive. If no email arrives, the most common fix is to check spam, confirm you are using the exact account email address, and request one fresh reset link instead of reusing an older one. Reading time: ~5 min

Goal

When you finish, you will be able to sign in with a new password to the same account you used before, and the old password will no longer work.

Prerequisites

• The email address used for your account
• Access to that email inbox, including its spam/junk folder
• A web browser on a phone or computer
• A stable internet connection
• If your account uses two-factor authentication (2FA, an extra sign-in code), access to your authenticator app, backup codes, or phone
• If your company manages your account through single sign-on (SSO, sign-in via Google, Microsoft, Okta, or similar), access to that identity provider account

Steps

Step 1: Confirm you are on the correct sign-in page

Open the same sign-in page you normally use for the product. Look for one of these links near the password field:

• Forgot password?
• Reset password
• Trouble signing in?

If you normally sign in with Google, Microsoft, Okta, or another company login, use that button instead of typing a password.

What you should see when this succeeds: a page that asks for your account email address, or buttons for your sign-in provider.

Step 2: Request a password reset email

On the password reset page, enter the exact email address for your account and submit the form.

Exact field value to enter:

name@your-company.com

If the page offers a button, click the literal button text shown, such as:

Send reset link

or

Email me instructions

What you should see when this succeeds: a confirmation message such as "If an account exists for that email, we sent a reset link".

Step 3: Check your email and open only the newest reset message

In your email inbox, search for these common subjects:

password reset
reset your password
sign-in help

Also check these folders:

Spam
Junk
Promotions
Updates

Open the newest reset email and click the reset link inside it.

What you should see when this succeeds: a browser page with fields for a new password.

Step 4: Set a new password

On the reset page, enter a new password you have not used before. If the page has two fields, type the same password in both.

Use a password in this format:

Three random words + a number + a symbol
Example: River-Window-Lemon-42!

If the page lists password rules, follow the literal rules shown there. Then click the button labeled something like:

Reset password

or

Save new password

What you should see when this succeeds: a success message such as "Your password has been updated" or a redirect back to the sign-in page.

Step 5: Sign in with the new password

Return to the sign-in page and enter your email address and the new password you just set.

Exact values to enter:

Email: name@your-company.com
Password: your new password from Step 4

If prompted for 2FA, enter the current code from your authenticator app or use a backup code.

What you should see when this succeeds: your account dashboard or home page opens without an "incorrect password" error.

Step 6: If you use Google, Microsoft, Okta, or another company login, reset the password there instead

If the product does not store your password directly, the local reset link may not work. On the sign-in page, click the provider you normally use:

Continue with Google
Continue with Microsoft
Continue with Okta
Continue with SSO

Then use that provider's password recovery flow on its sign-in page.

Common menu paths in provider dashboards vary, but on the sign-in screen the path is usually:

Sign-in page → Forgot password?

What you should see when this succeeds: after resetting the provider password, you can return and sign in through the same provider button.

Step 7: If the reset email does not arrive, request one fresh link and wait 10 minutes

Go back to the reset page and submit one new request for the same email address.

Then wait:

10 minutes

Do not click older reset emails after requesting a new one; many systems invalidate older links when a newer one is issued.

What you should see when this succeeds: one new reset email arrives, and its link opens a valid reset page instead of an error.

⚠️ If you no longer have access to the account email inbox, you usually cannot complete a self-service password reset. At that point, stop retrying and contact your organization's administrator or the support contact listed in your contract so they can verify your identity and update the email or recovery method.

Step 8: If you are blocked by 2FA after resetting the password, use backup recovery

If the password reset works but sign-in still stops at a 2FA prompt you cannot complete, use one of these exact recovery options if they were set up earlier:

Use a backup code
Use a recovery code
Try another method
Send code by SMS

If your organization manages access centrally, contact your internal administrator to reset 2FA for your account.

What you should see when this succeeds: you complete the second step and reach your account.

Verify it works

Use these checks to confirm the reset worked end to end:

1. Sign out if you are automatically signed in after the reset.
2. Return to the sign-in page.
3. Sign in with the new password.
4. Confirm the old password fails.

Expected results:

New password: sign-in succeeds
Old password: sign-in fails with an incorrect password message

If your account has a profile or security page, verify the password change was recorded. Common menu paths vary, but look for:

Account → Security
Profile → Security
Settings → Password

Expected result: a recent password change timestamp or no further prompt to reset your password.

Common pitfalls

You entered the wrong email address

Mistake: requesting a reset for a different email address than the one on the account.

Symptom: no reset email arrives, or you receive the message but it leads to a different account than expected.

One-line fix: return to the reset form and enter the exact address you use for billing, notifications, or previous sign-ins.

You clicked an older reset link

Mistake: opening the first reset email after requesting multiple links.

Symptom: the page says the link is invalid, expired, or already used.

One-line fix: request one fresh reset email and click only the newest message.

The reset email is in spam or filtered folders

Mistake: checking only the main inbox.

Symptom: the app says the email was sent, but you do not see it.

One-line fix: search your mailbox for "password reset" and check Spam, Junk, Promotions, and Updates.

You are trying to reset a password for an SSO account

Mistake: using the product's local reset form when your company signs you in through Google, Microsoft, Okta, or another identity provider.

Symptom: the reset appears to work, but sign-in still fails unless you use the provider button.

One-line fix: go back to the sign-in page and use the same provider button you normally use, then reset the password on that provider's sign-in screen.

Your browser is using a stale session

Mistake: the browser keeps an old sign-in state or opens an expired reset page from cache (saved browser data).

Symptom: you loop back to sign-in, see an old error, or the reset form does not load correctly.

One-line fix: open the reset link in a private/incognito window and complete the reset there.

2FA is the real blocker, not the password

Mistake: resetting the password repeatedly when the password is already correct.

Symptom: password is accepted, but you cannot get past the code prompt.

One-line fix: use a backup code, another recovery method, or ask your administrator to reset 2FA for your account.

This article was written by an AI system and published pending human review. Verify anything you intend to act on.