Before you try anything, answer one question: does this PC sign in with a Microsoft account (an email address) or a local account (a username only)? Every reliable recovery route depends on that answer, and the two are completely different. You can tell from the lock screen — if an email address appears under the name, it is a Microsoft account.
If you sign in with a Microsoft account
This is the straightforward case, because the password lives with Microsoft rather than on the machine. Reset it from any working device — a phone will do.
1. On another device, go to Microsoft’s account recovery page and choose to reset a forgotten password.
2. Enter the email address you sign in with.
3. Verify your identity using the recovery method on the account — a code to an alternative email, a text message, or an authenticator app.
4. Set a new password.
5. Return to the locked PC and sign in with it. The machine needs an internet connection to check the new password, so connect to Wi-Fi from the lock screen first if it is not already online.
If you no longer control the recovery email or phone number, Microsoft has an account recovery form that asks detailed questions about the account. It can take days and it does fail, which is precisely why the recovery options are worth reviewing while you still have access.
If you sign in with a local account
A local password is stored on the machine, so there is no online reset. What is available depends on what was set up beforehand.
Security questions. Windows 10 version 1803 and later prompt for three security questions when a local account is created. Get the password wrong once at the sign-in screen and a Reset password link appears beneath the box. Answer the questions and you can set a new password on the spot. This is the most common way back in, and many people do not know the link is there because it only appears after a failed attempt.
A password reset disk. If a USB reset disk was created for this account at some earlier point, insert it and use the Reset password link. These have to be made in advance and are specific to one account, so this only helps the well prepared.
Another administrator on the same PC. If a second account with administrator rights exists, sign in to it, open Settings, go to Accounts, then Other users, select the locked account and change its password there.
If you only forgot the PIN
A forgotten PIN is not a forgotten password. Click I forgot my PIN on the sign-in screen and Windows will verify you through your Microsoft account and let you set a new one. On a local account you can also switch to entering the password instead, using the sign-in options icons below the box.
If it is a work or school PC
Stop and contact your IT desk. Accounts on a company domain or managed through a work Microsoft 365 tenant are reset centrally, and attempts to work around that are likely to breach an acceptable use policy as well as fail. IT can usually reset it in minutes.
A word about “password cracker” tools
Search this problem and you will be offered downloadable utilities that promise to remove any Windows password in a few clicks. This article previously recommended one of them; it no longer does, and the reasons are worth stating plainly. Tools in this category are a favoured vehicle for bundled adware and malware, the free versions routinely stop short of the advertised result, and using one on a machine you do not own is unlawful in most jurisdictions. The legitimate routes above cover every case where you are the rightful owner — and where they do not, the honest answer is a clean reinstall rather than a cracking tool.
The last resort: reset the PC
If none of the above applies — a local account with no security questions, no reset disk and no second administrator — then the account cannot be recovered, and the remaining option is to reset the machine and start again. From the sign-in screen, hold Shift while clicking Restart, then choose Troubleshoot and Reset this PC.
Windows offers to keep your personal files or remove everything. Keeping files preserves documents and photos but removes installed applications and does not recover the password — you set up a fresh account afterwards. Treat this as genuinely final: anything not backed up and not covered by “keep my files” is gone.
Setting things up so it cannot happen again
Once you are back in, spend two minutes on the part that matters. Confirm the recovery email and phone number on your Microsoft account are current. Add a PIN or Windows Hello, which gives you a second way in that does not depend on remembering the password. If you use a local account, check that its security questions are set and that you know the answers. And store the password itself somewhere durable — a password manager exists for exactly this, and a browser’s saved passwords are no help when you cannot reach the browser.
Frequently asked questions
Can I recover a Windows password without losing my files?
Yes, in every case except one. Microsoft account resets, security questions, a reset disk and another administrator all leave your files untouched. Only a full reset risks data, and even then the keep-my-files option preserves documents and photos.
Does Windows 10 have security questions for local accounts?
Yes, from version 1803 onwards. The Reset password link appears under the sign-in box after one failed attempt.
Do these steps work on Windows 11 as well?
Yes. The recovery routes and the account types are the same on Windows 11; some menus are arranged differently but the options are identical.
Can Microsoft see or tell me my old password?
No. Passwords are stored as hashes, so no one at Microsoft can read yours. Recovery always means setting a new one, never retrieving the old one.
What if I have no internet on the locked PC?
Connect to Wi-Fi from the lock screen using the network icon in the bottom right. A Microsoft account password reset performed elsewhere cannot be verified until the machine is online.
Is it legal to bypass a Windows password?
On a device you own, recovering your own account is entirely legitimate. Doing it on a machine belonging to someone else, including an employer, is not, regardless of which tool is used.
Related reading
If a reset is where you end up, our guide to installing Windows covers what comes next, and recovering a formatted hard drive is worth reading before you wipe anything.
