How do I recover a forgotten Gmail password?

Go to gmail.com, type your email, click 'Forgot password?', and follow the steps. Google will try to send a code to your phone or recovery email. If those do not work, it asks you security questions to prove you are you. We can help if you get stuck.

What if the phone number on the account is old?

This is the most common problem. Each service handles it differently but all of them have a 'Try another way' option. We can walk you through it during a visit and help you prove the account is yours.

Can you recover a password for me?

We cannot guess or bypass anyone's password, but we can sit with you and guide you through the official recovery steps, answer the security questions, and check your phone for recovery codes. Most accounts can be recovered this way.

Help Guides

How do I recover a forgotten email password?

Getting locked out of your email is stressful because so many other accounts depend on it. The good news is every major provider has a recovery process, and most people get back in within an hour.

Quick Answer

Go directly to your email provider's website (gmail.com, outlook.com, or yahoo.com), click "Forgot password?" on the sign-in page, and follow the prompts. The provider will try to send you a code by text or to a backup email. Most people are back in within fifteen minutes.

Locked out and not sure where to even start? We recover email accounts in Durham Region homes every week. Give us a call.

The FAQ below is the most useful part of this guide. Each question covers one of the situations we see most often. Find the one that matches yours.

Go to the real website

Before anything else, make sure you are on the real website for your email provider. Type the address yourself (gmail.com, outlook.com, yahoo.com) rather than clicking a link in an email, because fake "password reset" emails are one of the oldest scams there is. If you are ever unsure, our phishing email guide walks through the warning signs.

Rather have someone sit with you?

We guide Durham Region homes through account recovery in one calm visit, including answering the security questions together.

Book a Visit

When to call us instead

Call us if the recovery phone number on your account is one you no longer use, if the security questions do not sound familiar, if the provider keeps saying "try again later", or if you just want someone calm to sit with you while it gets sorted. We cannot reset anyone's password for them, but we can guide you through the official steps, answer the security questions alongside you, and check your phone and backup email for recovery codes. Most email accounts are recoverable this way.

If the reason you are locked out is that someone else has changed your password, that is a different situation and our hacked account guide is the right place to start.

Get help today

We help Durham Region homes recover locked-out email accounts. Calm, patient, one visit.

Get Help Today

FAQ

Email recovery, question by question

How do I recover a forgotten Gmail password?: Go to gmail.com and click "Sign in". Type your email address and then click "Forgot password?" under the password box. Google will try a few methods in order: sending a code to the phone number linked to your account, sending a code to your backup email, or asking you to type a password you remember from before. If none of those work, click "Try another way" at each step. Eventually Google will ask you to answer a few questions about the account. Answer as accurately as you can. Most people get back in within fifteen minutes.
How do I recover a forgotten Outlook or Hotmail password?: Go to outlook.com and click "Sign in", then type your email and click "Forgot password?" Microsoft will send a code to your recovery email or phone. If neither works, click "I do not have any of these" to start the account recovery form. Microsoft asks a long list of questions including old passwords you remember, people you have emailed, and folder names. Fill in as much as you can. It sounds intense but it is how Microsoft confirms you are really you. You usually hear back within 24 hours.
How do I recover a forgotten Yahoo password?: Go to yahoo.com, click "Sign in", type your Yahoo email address, click "Next", then click "Forgot username or password?" Yahoo will send a recovery code to the phone number or backup email on file. Follow the code. If neither works, Yahoo also offers security questions and will sometimes ask about your birth year or postal code. Be patient and answer the ones you are sure about.
What if I no longer have access to the recovery phone number?: This is the most common problem. Every provider has a "Try another way" or "I do not have this any more" option. Click that. You will then be asked to confirm the account through other means: a backup email, an older password you remember, security questions, or a form where you describe the account. Answer as accurately as you can. If you are stuck, we can guide you through it in person. Do not create a new account unless you absolutely have to, because you will lose all your contacts and history.
I am not sure which email provider I use. How do I tell?: Look at the part after the @ symbol in your email address. If it says @gmail.com you are with Google. If it says @outlook.com, @hotmail.com or @live.com you are with Microsoft. If it says @yahoo.com or @rogers.com (Rogers uses Yahoo behind the scenes) you are with Yahoo. If it says @sympatico.ca or @bell.net you are with Bell, and they have their own recovery page, though we can help you find it.
When should I call easyTech Durham instead?: Call us if any of these sound like you: the recovery steps keep failing, the provider is asking questions you cannot answer, the recovery phone is long gone, you are worried the account was hacked, or you simply want someone calm sitting next to you while you try. We handle all of this as part of our phone and computer help visits, and we do not make anyone feel silly for forgetting a password.