If you use Windows 10, Windows 11, Outlook, Microsoft 365, Xbox, Azure, or most other products and services Microsoft offers, it's almost a given that you also have a Microsoft account to sign in with. You can call it your email account, Xbox account, OneDrive account, Skype account, or some other name, but in the end, it's always a Microsoft account. If you can't sign in to your Microsoft account because you've lost your password, you need to sign in and reset your password. Unfortunately, you can't recover a Microsoft password from the device or app you're trying to connect to. Here's how to reset your Microsoft password:

Step 1. Use a browser to visit Microsoft's password reset webpage

To regain access to your Microsoft services, you can use any computer or device connected to the Internet. First, go to the Microsoft Password Reset Tool, a special web page dedicated to helping you recover your Microsoft password. Next, in the "Recover your account" dialog box, enter the email, phone, or Skype address associated with your Microsoft account. Then press Next.

Step 2. To reset your Microsoft password, verify your identity

You can't recover your Microsoft password if the company can't prove who you are. That is why now, Microsoft asks you to verify your identity.

If you're an active user, you may have provided Microsoft with an alternate email address, phone number, or two-step security verification app. If you did, then you're in luck, and resetting your Microsoft password should be easy, involving only one or two steps: receiving and entering a security code.

Initially, Microsoft asks you to enter a code that it receives in your preferred alternative authentication method. So, for example, if you have enabled an authenticator app, you should use it to find and enter the security code, like in the following screenshot.

If the verification method suggested by Microsoft is not what you want, or if you no longer have access to it, click or tap "Use a different verification method" below the "Enter code" field. You can then choose one of the other available methods for your Microsoft account. Select the one you would like to use and press Next. In the screenshot below, you can see that we have the option to choose between using an authenticator app and receiving the security code at our alternate email address.

Also, depending on how you've set up your Microsoft account, you might have even more options to verify your identity. To see them all, click or tap "Show more verification methods." That gives you the list of all available methods for your account. In our case, we can reset the Microsoft password by getting a security code in our authenticator app, in an alternate email address, or even in a text message on a smartphone.

Step 3. How to reset your Microsoft password

Once you've entered the security code, you can reset your Microsoft password. Type and confirm the new password you want to use. Once you've done that, click or tap Next.

Microsoft confirms that your account has been recovered and that your password has been changed.

That's it: You've now reset your Microsoft password, so you can use the new one to sign in to any of the Microsoft services you use across all your computers and devices.

How do I reset my Microsoft password if I can't get a security code?

At first, we covered the easy way to recover your Microsoft account password: the one where you provided an alternate email address, phone number, or security app for two-step verification. If you didn't, resetting your password and recovering your account is much more complicated. When prompted to verify your identity, select "I don't have any of these."

You are asked to provide a working contact email address that you can use. Provide a different email address than the one associated with the Microsoft account you're trying to recover, and tap Next.

A verification code is sent to the email address you provided. Check your email, find the code sent by Microsoft, and write it down. Then press Verify.

To return to your Microsoft account, you are asked for personal information, such as your name, date of birth, etc. Fill in the available fields as accurately as possible and click Next.

Then, if you remember any old passwords you used for this account, you can enter them in the corresponding boxes. Also, select which Microsoft products you've used on your account and whether you purchased anything from Microsoft. Once you have completed all of that, hit Next.

You are prompted for the email addresses of contacts you have recently sent emails to and the subject lines of your recently sent emails. If you remember them, fill in this information. If it doesn't, just hit Next.

Now, you are asked for Skype details. Fill in what you remember, if you do, and press Next.

You may also be asked to enter some details about your credit card (if you've used one on your Microsoft account) and some recent orders you've placed. Complete the ones you know and press Next.

And finally, the last few questions we got were about the Xbox account associated with the Microsoft account we were trying to recover. This included the Xbox Gamertag and Xbox Live Device ID. If you know this information, type it in the corresponding fields and press Next afterwards.

Once you've completed all the steps, you'll be informed that your data has been submitted and it usually takes 24 hours for someone at Microsoft to review it and help you reset your Microsoft password. Additionally, you may receive a confirmation message with your ticket number at the contact email address you provided during checkout. Now all you can do is wait for Microsoft to verify your information and get back to you.

Did you manage to reset your Microsoft account password?

Now you know how to reset a Microsoft password. As you've seen, recovering a Microsoft account is easy as long as you've been proactive and provided Microsoft with an alternate email address, phone number, or two-step verification app before you lost your password. Otherwise, things get messy and it's not 100% sure that you can get your Microsoft account back. If you have gone through this process, please let us know how well it worked for you.