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Change or reset the password of a macOS user account in macOS Mojave or earlier

You can change the password that you use to log in to your Mac or reset the password if you can't remember it.

Mac screen displaying the option to enter your password to sign in to your user account

The password of your macOS user account is also known as your login password. It's the password that you use to log in to your Mac and make certain changes, such as installing software.

Before you begin

Make sure that your Mac is connected to the internet and using macOS Mojave or earlier. If you're using a later macOS, follow the steps to reset a password for macOS Catalina or later.

Change your password

If you know your password and can use it to log in to your account, you can change your password in Users & Groups preferences:

  1. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu, then click Users & Groups.

  2. Select your username from the list of users.

  3. Click the Change Password button, then follow the onscreen instructions.

Reset your password

If you can't remember your password or it isn't working, you may be able to reset it using one of the methods outlined below. But first, try these simpler solutions:

  • Make sure that you're typing the correct uppercase or lowercase characters. If your keyboard has Caps Lock turned on, the password field shows a Caps Lock symbolCaps Lock symbol .

  • If the password field displays a question mark, click it to show a password hint that may help you remember it.

  • Try to log in without a password. If that works, you can then add a password by following the steps to change your password.

  • Try to log in with the Apple ID password that you use for iCloud. If you've just changed that password and the new password isn't working, try the old password first. If that works, you should be able to use the new password from then on.

Reset using your Apple ID

In some macOS versions, you can use your Apple ID to reset your login password. At the login screen, keep entering a password until you see a message saying that you can reset your password using Apple ID. If you don't see the message after three attempts, your account hasn't been set up to allow resetting with Apple ID.

  1. ClickClick next to the Apple ID message, then follow the onscreen instructions to enter your Apple ID and create a new password. You'll be asked to restart when you've done this.

  2. Log in with your new password.

  3. Determine whether to create a new login keychain.

Reset using another admin account

If you know the name and password of an admin account on your Mac, you can use that account to reset the password.

  1. Log in with the name and password of the other admin account.

  2. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu, then click Users & Groups.

  3. Click the lockClick , then enter the admin name and password again.

  4. Select your username from the list of users.

  5. Click the Reset Password button, then follow the onscreen instructions to create a new password:

    Users and Groups pane that gives the option to enter and verify a new password

  6. Choose Log Out from the Apple menu.

  7. Log in to your account using your new password.

  8. Determine whether to create a new login keychain.

Reset using the Reset Password assistant (FileVault must be turned on)

If FileVault is turned on, you may be able to reset your password using the Reset Password assistant:

  1. Wait up to a minute at the login screen, until you see a message saying that you can use the power button If you can't see this message, FileVault isn't turned on.

  2. Press and hold the power button until your Mac turns off.

  3. Press the power button again to turn on your Mac.

  4. When the Reset Password window appears, follow the onscreen instructions to create a new password.

    • If you need to connect to Wi-Fi, move your pointer to the top of the screen and use the Wi-Fi menuWi-Fi menu to connect. To exit without resetting your password, choose Apple menu > Restart.

      The reset password screen with the option to choose the problem you're having that is causing you to need to reset your password

  5. When you've finished, click Restart.

  6. If you were able to reset your password with the Reset Password assistant, log in to your account using your new password.

  7. Determine whether to create a new login keychain.

Reset using your Recovery Key (FileVault must be turned on)

If FileVault is turned on and you have a FileVault Recovery Key, you can use that key to reset your password.

  1. At the login screen, keep entering a password until you see a message saying that you can reset your password using your Recovery Key. If you don't see the message after three attempts, FileVault isn't turned on.

  2. ClickClick next to the message. The password field will change to a Recovery Key field.

  3. Enter your Recovery Key. Use uppercase characters and include the hyphens.

  4. Follow the onscreen instructions to create a new password, then click Reset Password when you're done.

  5. Determine whether to create a new login keychain.

If you can't log in with your new password after restarting your Mac, follow these additional steps:

  1. Restart again, then immediately hold down Command-R or one of the other macOS Recovery key combinations until you see the Apple logo or a spinning globe.

  2. When you see the macOS Utilities window, choose Utilities > Terminal from the menu bar.

  3. In the Terminal window, type resetpassword, then press Return to open the Reset Password assistant pictured above.

  4. Select ”My password doesn't work when logging in”, then click Next and follow the onscreen instructions for your user account.

Create a new login keychain, if necessary

After resetting your password This is expected because the passwords for your user account and login keychain no longer match. Just click the Create New Keychain button in the alert.

If you haven't seen an alert about your login keychain or you see other messages asking for your old password, reset your keychain manually:

  1. Open Keychain Access, which is in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder.

  2. Choose Preferences from the Keychain Access menu, then click the Reset My Default Keychain button in the preferences window. After you've entered your new password, Keychain Access will create an empty login keychain with no password. Click OK to confirm.

    • If you can't see a Reset My Default keychain button, close the preferences window and select the “login” keychain from the left-hand side of the Keychain Access window. Press the Delete key, then click Delete References.

  3. Choose Log Out from the Apple menu to return to the login screen.

  4. Log in to your account using your new password. Your account password and login keychain password will now match again.

If you still can't log in

If you still can't log in with your password, contact Apple Support for help.

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