What To Do If You Can Not Remember an Apple ID or Password

Dec 23, 2014 - 190 Comments

What to do if you Forgot an Apple ID

Forgetting the login and password to an Apple ID is not the best feeling in the world, particularly given how integral an Apple login is to the broader iOS and Mac OS X experience. So, if you or someone else happens to forget an Apple ID or the password to an Apple account, what should you do? First, don’t freak out, we’re human and this stuff happens. Apple provides multiple ways to recover a forgotten ID login or password, and you can start the recovery process either directly on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, Mac, Windows PC, or just about anything with a web browser.

The different processes described below will work to recover a forgotten Apple ID (meaning the email address used to login), and/or reset a forgotten Apple ID password. This can be particularly helpful if you’re setting up a new device for yourself or someone else, switching a device to a credit card-free ID, or changing the Apple ID associated with a device, and you can’t remember the pertinent login information, or if your email changed at some point and you didn’t update your Apple details to go along with it.

Before anything else, know that you can always contact Apple support directly here if you want assistance through official channels to regain account access, which may be the best option for users who are overwhelmed or confused.

Recover or Reset Forgotten Apple ID or Password on iPhone & iPad

This is all done on an iOS device and is often the simplest way to log back into an Apple account:

  1. Open the Settings app and scroll down and tap on your name (or “iCloud” if older iOS)
  2. Tap on the email address at the very top of the iCloud settings screen
  3. Tap on the blue text underneath the password entry that says “Forgot Apple ID or Password?” where you’ll have two choices:
    • If you know your Apple ID and don’t remember the password, type in your email address and click “Next” to start the reset process
    • If you don’t know your Apple ID, tap on “Forgot your Apple ID?” and fill out your full name and email address to recover the Apple ID login (yes, you can then do the password reset after you have the Apple ID)
  4. Answer the security questions pertaining to that Apple ID, and follow the onscreen directions to complete the process

At this point you should be good to go, you can reset the password for the account and then login as usual.

What if this doesn’t work, or what if it doesn’t find your Apple ID? You can try one of the next two options:

Find a Forgotten Apple ID by Email or Old Email Address

This is a more advanced trick to search multiple email addresses, which is incredibly helpful if you switched email accounts at some point in time and that’s what has caused the login problem. This can be done with any web browser in iOS, Mac OS X, or Windows:

  1. Open the web browser of choice and go to this Apple iForgot website at https://iforgot.apple.com/appleid
  2. Enter the first and last name associated with the Apple ID, your current email address, and any and all prior email addresses to start the reset process
  3. Answer the security questions associated with the user to complete the reset process

This will help to find the Apple ID, but if you can’t recall the password to that ID then you’d need to go to the next step as well.

Reset an Apple ID Password from the Web

You can also start the password reset process from the official Apple ID website, this also can be done any device as long as you have a web browser:

  1. Go to this Apple ID site https://appleid.apple.com/ and under “Manage your Apple ID” choose the “Reset your password” option
  2. Enter the email address associated with the account and answer the security questions as usual to complete the password reset process

Finally, if you’re completely stuck, you’re annoyed, confused, or none of the above has worked, you can contact Apple directly about your account and in many situations they can help you to regain access again.

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Posted by: Paul Horowitz in iPad, iPhone, Mac OS, Troubleshooting

190 Comments

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  1. Andrew says:

    It looks like that I am going to be locked out of my Apple ID account permanently forever. I have lost my 16-character recovery code and forgotten what my password is. I know what my Apple ID email addresses are. I got into contact with the Apple support team enough times and had been told by them that there was nothing they could be able to do for me about it. The accounts of which my personal email addresses are registered with my Apple ID account, I have to keep them as they are forever.

  2. Emmanuel says:

    I don’t know

  3. Bob says:

    Give it back to who it belongs to and thay will take the password off hahaha

  4. Ighedosa Sunny Ilehide says:

    Good morning Sir/Ma. I was using my iPad 3 in a church, I decided to put off the passcode to o avoid repeating the passcode, I did not know that it was put off, at the time I entered the passcode in a number of times, the iPad was disabled. I can’t remember my password.

  5. Wil says:

    I’m having the same trouble I don’t remember my email I used for the Apple ID and I’m still being charged for Apple Music. How can I recover my Apple ID now

  6. Alexander Shekhtman says:

    What if I can’t remember the email that was used for the Apple ID. I tried finding my Apple ID, put in my name and email used for Apple ID, but could not find such an email. Should I contact Apple support and maybe they can tell me which email I used? Thank you.

  7. Juli says:

    I can’t find the iCloud log on or
    Password to iPad Air 2 and have changed emails long ago can’t open iPad stuck on activation lock how do I gain access to the iPad to fix this

  8. Luis says:

    Forgot my iCloud Password and apparently the email it sends links to in order to recover my account is not any of the emails i have ,which is really wierd, so I can’t reset my password at all because I dont remember the answers to my security questions either! Please help!!! Is there any way I can just get the recovery information sent to my current cell phone number?

  9. George says:

    Hello sr I forgot my iCloud password both and what should I do can I transfer my old iCloud Id photos and contacts numbers another phone

  10. John Philip says:

    My brother gave me an iPhone6s as a 🎁 but it’s on iCloud I tried to sign out but it requires Apple ID and the Apple ID it locked 🔒 ,

  11. Deogratius Kijanga says:

    i have iPhone 5s but i forget both apple id and username now the phone couldn’t open any of app after being locked by someone
    can help me to fix this problem?

  12. Umer Sugal says:

    I’m forget my icloud and on which gmail
    Please help me my I’d is disable for security reason.
    How To Get My Gmail or password of my icloud

  13. Noman Khan says:

    I’m forget my icloud and on which gmail
    Please help me my I’d is disable for security reason.
    How To Get My Gmail or password of my icloud

  14. Anabel says:

    I purchased a mini iPad for my mom and created an iCloud ID as her Apple ID but she missed placed the paper that I wrote the info on and now she’s locked out of her iPad. I’m trying to help her access but it’s asking for the Apple ID and we can’t remember it.. can her iPad be opened at an Apple store?

    • Chick Samuelson says:

      Unable to access m E-mail on msn.com since I have lost my password. Should I get an appointment with the local Apple store for help?

  15. Arcilynjimlae says:

    I have iphone 5 but i forgot my apple id and i want to create new one without apple id required

  16. Akbar hossien says:

    1 days later my younger brother Log out my Apple ID. I just forgot my id or password. Please help me

  17. Vivian says:

    Need help please I have I phone 6 but it stolen now I have new I phone 7 but problem is I can’t remember my email and password to return all my pics please Is there any one now how I fix this problem

  18. viorica says:

    i forgot my password and i dont know what to do

  19. Mugan says:

    I want to remove iCloud in my iPhone

  20. Lewis says:

    What happens to an old Apple ID if you change the Apple ID on an iPhone?

  21. Micheal says:

    Please help me and open my iPhone that is in I could.

  22. Mujeeb says:

    I forget my iphone 6 username and password now i update my phone softaware .so it need username and password .please help me

  23. Ines says:

    hello i have some problems with my iPhone, i forget my ID Apple and password, help me please. thanks

  24. Fokumlah says:

    Hello iPhone plssss I need your help I can’t even remembered my id address so I don’t know wat to do so plss help me

  25. Chirmi says:

    i forgot my iPhone 8plus Apple id cloud.
    Please help me up thanks.

  26. alma says:

    hi! i lost my cellphone I’m trying to find it but i don’t remember what email i have it in my apple id. what can i do?

  27. Gary Corley says:

    I have forgotten my Apple ID and Password. How do I recover it?

  28. Adrian says:

    Getting to know how disastrous people are really sucks. A mate kicked me out of my own icloud account so I wouldn’t have access to the icloud account I created to keep documents this really made me mad. It appears unreal at first but thanks he made it possible for me to kick that mate completely out of the box

  29. Stuce says:

    I have had many Apple ID’s over the years. Some music I purchased is missing so I know to retrieve it I must log in to the Apple ID Account the music was downloaded. Well since I have many I’d like to look at them all from the past and see what music I’m missing cuz I know there is some! is there somewhere possibly listing all past Apple ID accounts? Or we must remember them ALL?????

    • Katie King says:

      Yes. This. So much this!

    • butt crack says:

      I have the same case except that mine was apps and games instead of music files.. wife logged out the apple id that has been used for over a year and i wanted to get an old app back using purchase history. But neither of us remembers the old apple id

  30. Arash rahimzadeh says:

    I forgot apple ID and password

  31. brenda says:

    my daughter just got a new i phone she doesn’t know here apple id email but remembers her password. but doesn’t remember what email she used to set it up any ideas

  32. pesty says:

    What is wrong with Apple? Holly Jesus, i have never seen a company with so rigid system to recover a bloody password! Why make it so difficult, we are not trying to robb a bank! My cousin is desperate! He has forgotten his apple password, he is sending emails to recover it but he has also forgotten his icloud password and now his phone is blocked! We have tried everything to recover it but nothing. We live in a country where we dont have apple support! According to Apple what should he do now, buy a new phone! He is a bloody student, he cant afford it and his current phone is 6 years old.
    I will never in my life buy an apple product and i cant believe why people support this company so much! Unfortunatelly for my cousin he now has to buy a new phone.
    Shame!

    • Brenda says:

      Same here.
      Step-son is 14.
      He received Ipad2 when he was 12.
      since he’s had multiple emails like many his age for different reasons. (gaming, social sites …whatever)
      He forgot his iCloud email and password and now all I could do is do factor reset and still not able to do anything with it because no iCloud password or email.
      Its been like this for over 1 year.
      brand new iPad…
      We don’t want to get rid of it because its still NEW!!!

      Apple- Are you scamming people?
      so now it’s just stored because nobody can help.

      • Warren says:

        Take it to Apple with your original receipt of purchase, they might be able to help you.

        Otherwise use the password reset option and use the original email you signed up to iCloud with.

  33. qasim raza says:

    Hi
    bro my apple id is stuck on trusted phone number and even i don’t know that number but i know all security questions so how i will go to security answer and recover my apple id please advise

  34. Sarah oliviera says:

    I forgot my ID and password now I can open my phone pls what do I do

  35. Rainen Sasdane says:

    Hello!

    I just restored my iPad air because i forgot its passcode and it was disabled but after restoring i cant open because of the Activation lock (linked to an Apple id). The probelem is i forgot my apple id and password also..

    Its useless cause i cant even use this.

  36. Pam Riestenberg says:

    All this info is crap. I have been working with Apple for over2months on my husbands iPad mini because he forgot his applied password. We have done the recovery process multiple times to no avail. No one at Apple seems to be able to figure it out. And these are the senior techs.
    So my husband has a useless iPad. Hackers can jailbreak items but the people who make the devices can’t help. Very frustrated and gett8ng ready to switch to Android based devices

  37. Emily says:

    I have an iPod touch that I bought a few years ago for a Christmas gift for someone. Turns out they set up their account but totally forgot the apple id and the password. Is there anyway to be able to use this iPod again? Maybe totally erasing what account was originally set up on it??? I’m not an apple user so I have NO idea where to start or who to ask. Please someone offer me some advice!!!!! TIA

  38. Dawn says:

    My daughters iPhone is at the beginning where she is setting up the phone and it asked for apple id but she doesn’t remember the address or password and can’t go any further to setting it up without that. What to do?

  39. Kiki says:

    Suddenly I could not log on to my Apple Store they said my password has been disabled cos of security reasons, I tried to reset but I remember when the iPad was once given to me someone helped to set it up and all my information I keyed did not work to reset it. Pls what should I do cos I lost the persons contact long time ago. Pls I need help

  40. pegah says:

    I have forgotten my icloud password, even my email address and security question, because somebody else created my apple. i have some numbers such as ID and IC written on the phone and IMEI in a paper that i get that from the shop that i bought my Iphone
    what should I do , because inorder to turn on my phone i need apple id and password , but i dont have the information of that
    please help me

  41. Furqan majid says:

    I have forgotten my iCloud password and tried to reset but didn’t get any response from almost 3 weeks kindly is there any another way to reset password. One thing more they just asking me my contact number. There are no option such as answering my security questions etc…

  42. DonAlfian says:

    Well, I have a problem too.

    Roughly about 2 years ago, our company bought 15 units of iPhone 6 and distributed to all 15 managers. All were given the privilege to use their own Apple ID to operate the phone. End of last year, one of them was dismissed due to misconduct and forced to return the phone and everything. He returned the phone but refused to reveal his Apple ID. Until now, for more than 8 months, we can’t do anything with the phone. How can I reset the phone as the terminated manager refuses to cooperate. Please help.

  43. courtney says:

    I recently got a ipad from my cousin and when I turn it on it has been reset and for me to set it up it wants the original AppleID and password that it was first set up with but when I ask my cousin he can’t remember what it is…what do I do. Plz help

  44. sarvjit Singh says:

    I forgot my Apple id and password. pls hlp me how to deal with this problem.

  45. fatima says:

    I brought my iPhone from a friend, I made an iCloud account on it. one day I went to restart my iPhone however I forgot my email. I am not sure what my email. how will I be able to fix my phone.

  46. Lesley says:

    I forgot my password

  47. sarah says:

    I changed my ipad screen so to open my ipad again i have to sign in my icloud but unfortunately i forgot my apple id but i think i know the pass so i have to know my apple id to try my pass and then its gonna be done .. i tried the apple help but it didnt worm so can anyone help or give an advice
    . Ps. I heard that if i forgot my icloud the pid will NEVER open again is that right ?

  48. Landyn says:

    I can’t remember my Apple ID

  49. Patricia forbed says:

    I can not get in to the phone to go to settings how can I get to reset the activation lock I do not remember my is or password

  50. brett says:

    i forgot both my apple id password and the password that i used linking my apple id. how do i go about it

  51. Mike Little says:

    while creating an Apple ID for my wife to use Facetime i
    made a mistake entering her birthday. And APPLE website was
    programmed WRONG-so it allowed my error to go thru and my wife’s apple id was created, BUT when i went back in to correct her birthday date-then the WEB site blocked the WRONG birthdate info. an email to Apple support has gone unanswered.?? [ your program should have REJECTED as dd/mm/yyyy

    Instead of your Required mm/dd/yyyy!!! help.

  52. Okay says:

    Guys if ur trying to make fake Apple ID accounts and ur saying u forgot everything for it, DON’T try to get apple to reset it for you. THEY WON’T. making fake apple IDs is PROHIBITED. if u fail to answer their questions, don’t even bother to dream about having your Apple ID restored.

    • Butt crack says:

      Wtf are u on about? All these complaints are legitimate problems and ur here ranting about misuse/violations.. ure in the wrong neighborhood kid..

  53. Whhnd says:

    I forgot my Apple ID password and security questions, it won’t let me log back in because the account has been locked for security reasons. The rescue email this account has been deleted so the only option I have is answering the security questions, but I forgot them all. I also cannot call them so I’ve tried emailing them but they sent me something useless. At this rate, do you guys think it STILL can be possible to recover an Apple ID? Thanks.

  54. Riya says:

    My icloud id is nt working on my iphone 5 ,it had nrrn stolen bt i got it back by my imei no. Bt when i got it back n tried to login by my id its nt working or accpting by my iphone ..i had contact tbr service centre of iphone tgey are saying thy can,t help call to coustmer care n there phn no. Is nt working m pisseed off what to do to login or reset my id.. pls helo what to do

  55. sherwin cordova says:

    If i reset my iphone 4s and i dont know the apple id and password what should i do to open it

  56. Ritesh Jajodia says:

    Hi.. I had lost my iPhone 5 and put it on lost mode.. but recently I found it and when I tried to use it I forgot my iCloud id and password.. now I m having trouble restarting and using my phone as to do so I have to sign in with the iCloud account I used to lock the phone.. what should I do???

  57. Kerubo says:

    please I registered in iCloud but I didn’t use it for long time and for now I don’t remember anything in my iCloud account please help m to recover my Apple ID and the password

  58. Matt Emrich says:

    There’s no message saying ‘Forgot Apple ID or password?’ when I try to log in. My iCloud ID is already visible and that’s the only thing that’s visible. When I tap on it, my only option is to enter the password. I’ve done this multiple times now, and I know I’m entering it correctly, but I keep getting the message that my password is incorrect. How can I reset it if a) what I’m entering isn’t wrong and b) there’s no reset option ?

  59. josie says:

    ok so i got a google speaker anyway i need to download an app…. but when i started up my ipad it wanted my network so i put it in …then it wanted my apple ID passcode but every passcode i put in is wrong then when i hit forgot passcode it doesn’t even let me reset it now i cant get into my iPad or anything its frozen on that page what do i do!!!

  60. Fiona says:

    …but what if they don’t remember the details?

  61. Elias says:

    My problem is that iwas changing my iCloud password via email then after they resend me instructions on my email I found out that may email is not working en it needs me to sign in to iCloud that iwas changing en I can’t Gett it any more

  62. Marvin says:

    i forgot both my Apple ID and icloud passwords, i cant access both of the, i tried all the procedures they gave mi but none has helped me. they always send steps to follow in reseting both of to my icloud while i cant access it too. i tried to look for an option to direct them to send the steps to my gmail but i couldnt see the option

  63. Simukai Madamombe says:

    I got an Ipad from someone in USA and am in Africa. I was using it for notes and bible only for two years by passing his password. The problem started when i wanted to changed settings it then locked and wrote connect to itunes i pad is disabled. I contacted the first owner and he has forgotten the ID and password. What should both of us do to fix the machine
    thank you

  64. Zoe says:

    I know my current details for my ID and password, but my sisters phone (used to be mine) needs my “old” or the original password that set up the iPhone, and I can’t remember my old password.
    it WONT let me enter my current password, so how do I find Out my OLD password? thanks.

  65. usman says:

    hey.. i have forgotten email id and cell is lost too.. want to recover my contacts .. kindly help

  66. Bilal says:

    i forgot my passcode on iphone5.
    i have try passcode more times then my phone doesnot show anything.
    Then i reset my mobile.
    Now it show icloud ID and password , without this , i can’t use my phone. And i forgot those also :(
    so what can i do ?
    How can i use my phone ?
    please help anybody!

  67. Jean Reno Villanueva says:

    Hi. my father bought an iphone4s online in Guam. Now he’s back here in the Philippines. The problem is, the previous owner forgot to delete his apple ID from the unit, and said that he also forgot his password. Is there a way to reboot the iphone without using the apple ID of the previous owner?
    I’d really appreciate your help. Thank you! :)

  68. John Alvarez says:

    Hi,
    I have this issue with my ipad: it’s 4 years old so the mail that was used to create id is no longer valid and I can’t even remember it, the only thing I have is the password… so what can I do to recover my ID? ( I can’t even use it right now cause the newest update demanded ID and pass to finish the install).

    I would appreciate it any advice

  69. Millicent Tagoe says:

    Anytime i type my email password for on my iPhone it tells me its wrong. I am trying reset it but i still cannot remember my one of my security questions what should i do?

  70. Varun says:

    I forget the Apple id and password, but this fixed my problem and I was able to reset it. Thanks!

  71. Novem says:

    My iphone5 turned off then when i switched it off it’s like it resetted and asked for apple id and password but i forgot it both.what can I do?

  72. Julie2588 says:

    I once have met this situation. It’s been a tough process. It seems that you need to appeal to Apple, and then wait patiently for their reply. No way.

  73. Ankush says:

    I have iPhone 4s i reset my phone when I start my phone and he asking for old I’d or password but I don’t no so how I start my iPhone please reply

  74. Junior says:

    Hi,
    I just got a new MacBook Pro. I transferred my past purchases to the new computer, and some of them won’t play. The issue I have is that the ones that won’t play were authorized on a computer that I no longer own (2 laptops ago) with an email address that no longer exists (@mac.com). I have no idea how to log in to this old Apple ID. This is really frustrating considering i paid for the songs and they worked on my old laptop (one laptop newer than the one they were originally purchased on). I’m wondering if they worked on the old laptop because I did something to authorize the old old laptop on there… but that would have been 6+ years ago and honestly I have no idea what I did.
    Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

  75. bernard says:

    i bought a 2nd had and the person i bought it from cannot be contacted. can i do a complete reset?

  76. Glen says:

    I buy iPhone 4s w/my friends and it needs Apple ID and password..pls help

  77. Aayush says:

    What if we purchase the ipad 2nd hand , and the person have forgot the id and pass and he cannot be contacted. Complete reset is also fine by me . Kindly suggest a solution.

  78. Zoey says:

    My Ipad is disabled for 23,000,000 minutes and i need to restore it, but its been a while since it was first locked and i cant remeber my apple ID or my passwords or my email. How do i restore it?

  79. mary rose salinas says:

    pleased help me..i forgot my apple i.d @ may password… my ipad buy my boss for me,, then he forget also her email address…pls help me to recover my apple id @ my pasword thank you

  80. muhire aimable says:

    hey guys,
    i have a problem on my ipad i bought it to someones but he did not tell me its icloud then when am opening it its asked me to set the icloud so i do not know what to do, could you pls help me friends, thank you.

  81. Muhammad Ameen says:

    I bought a second hand ipad and he didnt sign out from his apple id and right now my ipad is locked as i dont have any details of the seller what do i do

  82. mel says:

    I have recently brought a ipad online and I contacted the seller because I couldn’t reset it as someones icloud password is needed, the seller told me the person he brought it off forget their passwords and that so what am I to do? do I contact apple for help or take it into a shop?

  83. Joy Lekwa says:

    I just finished updating my iphone 5c. Now I have to login in with my apple id and password. I have forgotten both. I have never used the computer or icloud to my knowledge with this phone. How do I unlock it? How do I retrieve a forgotten email/password with out icloud or iTunes?

  84. Camella Melarion says:

    Hello,,after i finished to update my ipad i need to activate first but i forgot my email and password.so that i cant open my ipad becoz i need to set up first.what will i do???and i cant open my settings too.

  85. Steven says:

    so I factory reset my mom’s old iPhone 4 for my own use, after doing so while setting up the phone it asks of the apple id used for setting up the phone, I don’t remember nor does my mom.

  86. Kaylee says:

    I got an iPhone off of someone and it looks like it was reset but when I go to start making it my own it tell me that it was lost and I have to enter in the Apple ID the phone was originally created with. I’ve tried to contact the person I originally got it off of, but I’ve had no luck. Is there anything I can do? Or is the phone basically garbage

  87. mafe revidad gacusan says:

    i give up to this iphone i can’t fix it!

  88. Vernan Franklin aloysius says:

    Pls be kind enough to help me get my Apple ID password
    Thanks.

  89. natheesh says:

    I forget my apple id an password!

  90. Cathy Smith says:

    I spent hours online with tech support and we had a bit of problem understanding one another… however my spelling out the words solved the comunication problem…. Just couldn’t solve how to recover a password from years ago when I used Apple products. After this frustrating ordeal I logged off.

    Logged on again this evening and found a website that made more sense to me and was able to get the ancient password reset.

    Tomorrow I will attempt to update the obsolete, inactive password.

    …. I’ve told my husband if he buys one more Apple product, it’s going right back.

  91. Aliceconnors says:

    I forgot my password off my iCloud

  92. sujan panta says:

    what should I do.. when I forgotten both apple Id and passport… where I already reset my I phone.

  93. Rian says:

    My dad forgot his password to his phone. And he does t know any of his Apple id information. He is trying to remember his stuff. But he can’t. Can someone please help me???? 😞

  94. oSCAR says:

    thank you. but how about this?
    I created an apple id and gave my email address wrong. and i forgot the password of this apple id. I created a new one but i cannot delete this apple id. whenever i try the recovery option goes to this unknown e-mail

  95. Anita says:

    1. Like many, I do not want to reset my password. So I was excited to see your subhead above, “Recover or Reset Forgotten AppleID or Password on iPhone & iPad.” That’s misleading. Apple won’t let us *recover* our password. (I haven’t forgotten my password, but sometimes Apple won’t accept it.)

    2. PLEASE provide a way for us to combine two AppleIDs. I created one to download iTunes when I used a PC and no Apple devices. Several years later, I rejoined the Mac world (yay) and got an AppleID associated with my @me.com email address–a second AppleID. I had no idea how much trouble that would cause. I know both IDs and passwords; I just want to combine them. Why not?

  96. Raees waseem says:

    hiii… my problem is that of my friend gave me his iphone 5s as a gift..so Then i made the mistake of trying to do a restore through iTunes. Now I can’t even get into the phone. The first page says “Hola” as if it were a brand new phone, then swipe and it asks for the Apple ID or password associated with my friend’s email account so i asked him he said he don’t remember anything so in this case what should I do? –

  97. John lee says:

    Hi, I’ve just brought a iPad 2 from an old girl bless her, but she has no clue of the email address or pass word or security question, all she can remember is she got it from Vodafone …. Please help as I want it for my son for xmas

  98. Debra Obrien says:

    I have reset my old password but the unlock find my iPhone won’t turn off because it keeps referring back to a old email which I no longer have passwords to…I changed my password but it won’t change it when I try to turn off app!

  99. brianna says:

    my phone broke and got fix and now its asking for my apple id and i forgot it how can i get my apple id back need help please

  100. Caitlin says:

    So my phone decided to factory reset itself and so when I went to type in my apple ID and realized I forgot it. But I remember the password. i tried the whole find my apple ID thing and the email address and well any email address that I could remember being connected with my icloud account didn’t work so I don’t know what to do.

  101. Antoinette says:

    Want to use my new id since I can’t remember anything about the old one. Pls help me

  102. Antoinette says:

    My friend used his Apple ID and password to download whatsapp on my phone. But he forgot the password and also, his email address don’t open again. Now I need to update the app but all effort using my own id didnt work

  103. daniel says:

    i forgot my old apple id to activate my ipod. my old email doesnt work anymore and prior email doesnt seem to work

  104. Bill says:

    I forgot my password, but I do not want to reset it. Is there any way to recover- NOT reset- my password?

  105. Muneeb says:

    I have similar problem, forgot the iCloud password and don’t remeber the security questions, the advantage i have is that my itunes ID and iCloud ID are different and i can use the phone normally, i just can’t sell, replace or restore it, as it tequires find my iphone to be turned off, is there anyway to turn off find my iphone if i can’t reset the password? The iCloud ID is @iCloud domain and there is no email associated with that ID so can’t get the reaet email either. A part from iCloud feature, all oother features are working perfectly fine. Any help please?

  106. Tonygman08 says:

    My Apple Ipad 2 was sent to me by my Big Brother in London; whom said that he bought it a second_hand….. I couldn’t complete the set up of the phone because its requesting for an Apple ID which neither I nor my Big brother knows.

  107. Jenny says:

    We have 5 phones on our account. My daughter received a message from apple that her email was jeopardized and she was locked out. She contacted Apple and they sent a recovery email to her old email (from 5 years ago) and she doesn’t have access to that anymore. They asked her the answers to her security questions but nothing she said was correct. We think that part got hacked too. Apple has not been able to help her. Question is if I have receipts for purchase and she has her ID why can they not restore it and issue her a new Apple ID? I know she will lose all her purchases but we aren’t sure what to do from this point.

  108. Emy says:

    I am freaking out,I just update my iphone 5s to ios 9 today morning and after some process my phone got stuck on slide to upgrade .so I took my phone to apple store they fix it but the wasn’t ended I forgot my Apple ID I think I wrote correct Apple ID .my phone was asking Apple ID and password but when I type it reject it ,I don’t know what shall I do ,I am searching solution in various website I don’t know what to do…I think I have only one choice to throw my iphone

  109. Caroline says:

    Here’s my problem, I don’t want to reset my password. I just need to find out what it is.

  110. David says:

    I can’t access my old email or Apple id, I don’t remember the password, the email I used is no longer active, so how do I change Apple id, I have my iPad for about 4 years and it now needs cleaned out as it is becoming very unstable, I can’t either remember the security questions so what can I do, I have tried everything but it seems to send the email to my old email address, very annoyed

  111. Mary spagnuolo says:

    I forgot my id & password

  112. Aman Singh says:

    hiii… my problem is that of my friend gave me his iphone 4s as a gift..so Then i made the mistake of trying to do a restore through iTunes. Now I can’t even get into the phone. The first page says “Hola” as if it were a brand new phone, then swipe and it asks for the Apple ID password associated with my friend’s email account so i asked him he said he don’t remember anything so in this case what should I do?

  113. sam says:

    Hey I have got second hand iphone 5c from one shop and he dosent remember the id or the password so I am nt able to log into the phone so can anyone help me with that. And its “find my phone is on”. So can anyone plz suggest me what to do. Thanks in advance.

    • Birther says:

      I forgot my Apple ID, I reset it and recovered it through email as described on this web page. It works great.

      But Sam, no wonder your Apple ID doesn’t work, you can barely type a word without misspelling it! You should enable spell check, your typing is illegible and full of errors and you have to enter a proper password to work with the Apple ID, that’s probably why when you enter your Apple ID and password it’s not working with the iPhone 5C. You have to enter your password without typos! The good news is once you figure out how to type the words without the spelling errors, you can learn what to do if you can’t remember your password and Apple ID by reading this article

      That is what I did, and it works for me and everyone else here!

      Remember, enter your name and password properly or it won’t work like you describe!

  114. nitesh says:

    hey sir
    my child reset my i phone
    so my iphone is locked
    i forget my iphone id and my other id
    what can i do

  115. pintu says:

    i can not remember apple id and password of my iphone 4s.what can i do now?

  116. Michael says:

    Hey can someone help me plz… I bought an iPhone 4s… Waisted my whole money on it…its brand new but the original owner used it once and he forgot his Apple ID password… what can I do and I want to reset it but stills asks for id password. I need help :,(

  117. Ellen says:

    kk. So I made an email as soon as I got home when I got my iPhone 5s. then after a few months I changed it to my current email. before I switched accounts I set up Find My iPhone with the old account. I later forgot my passcode and had to restore my iPhone 5s. I’ve tried changing it on manage my id but my email is owned by Apple (icloud.com). I don’t remember my rescue email with that account and my security questions say my answers are incorrect. What should I do.

    (iPhone 5s, ios 8.1.2)

  118. Asif says:

    I can’t reset my Apple ID because I cant remember my security question and I can’t reset with email

  119. Maila says:

    I want to restore my ipad but i can’t do that without entering my icloud password which i forgot and i no longer have access to my old email so i can’t reset the password. I tried the recovery option using the security questions but apparently i forgot the answer to one of them…. and now im locked out of my account for 8 hours for entering the wrong answer way too many times…. is there any other option i can try ?

  120. Ericka says:

    Hi. My father bought me an iPad mini. He was the one who created the Apple ID. The problem is, he forgot the password. When I’m about to download apps, it says that I should sign in the apple id.. We went to a gadget store and ask the technician there how to recover the apple id. He said that we can’t change the password because it won’t work so we shoud remember what’s the first password. Is it possible to create a new apple id to use the ipad?

  121. Martha says:

    I am super frustrated and very confused! I just got this iPhone 6 from my a friend who had already put an ICloud ID. When I got the phone, I immediately set a new Apple ID. When I went on to try to sign out of the old ICloud account, a password was required and my friend doesn’t remember the password!! I have tried the many suggested ways but when I try to turn off find my phone, I can’t!! I have tried to call the help line but I cant! I am on the verge of tears! Please help

  122. Brenda says:

    I restarted my iPod because they took it away at my school and I forgot my passcode so now to get into my iPod I have to put an old Apple ID that I forgot and it won’t let me in at all it doesn’t even give me any options

  123. Rowen Twawanda says:

    Hello good people need some help,l bought an iphone from the owner and he removed everything of his from the phone,I set up the phone with my Apple ID which l created,went to a Internet cafe to load some music from a desk top computer,I connected my iphone to the computer and it asked me to authorize the TRANSFERE of information from the computer to the iphone since l wanted music from the computer l accepted to authorize but to my surprise all my information disappeared and my iCloud account was different lost my important stuff in my iCloud,now my phone has got some stuff l don’t know and someone iCloud account came into my phone,I can’t log out of that iCloud account to add mine,what do l do am stressed to the born this is my first iphone was using android so changed to iphone, l contacted the previous owner and he was also surprised as the Apple ID which came into my phone wasn’t his,and given the fact that he gave me the phone as new without any information in it please help.

  124. Trista says:

    Hi, I went to a moving sale and was given the owners old iPhone for free, I didn’t know I had to know her apple ID until I got the phone charged, this is the first time I’ve ever used a iPhone so I had no idea. I went back to see if I could get her to fix the apple ID so then I could activate the phone but they had already left the house and been moved out. I’m not sure now how to get into the phone cause I have no idea the log in or password, is there anything I can do?.

    • bae says:

      You need the valid Apple ID to bypass iCloud activation lock, without the valid Apple ID it can not be bypassed except by Apple. Contact the prior owner if you bought it or was given to you, they will have the Apple ID if you do not.

  125. eyrun says:

    what about if i can´t get the security questions right even tho i know them. i made this three years ago and i have changed it since then because i couldn´t remember what it was but my ipad still wants me to sign into the first account i made. they said they could change it if i pay a lot of money and show the pay check wich is stupid since like i said i got it three years ago and also as a gift. what can i do to get into my ipad, i dont care if all the pictures and everything goes away i just want to get into it so i can take it with me to the trip i´m going to and not be bored to death on the way there.

  126. Duncan says:

    I am having the problem of certain Aps not opening on my phone. One of the suggestions is to sign out of Ap store and sign back in. Whoops! No idea what my Apple ID is and now cannot sign back in.

    I don’t have email set up on my phone. How do I retrieve a forgotten Apple ID?

  127. derek says:

    well i have a question.
    i was wondering how you unlock your iphone after it has been disable and unlocked again.
    i bought an iphone not to long ago and when i went to set it up, it told me to connect to itune.
    i did it and i HAD to use the account it was activated to.
    well i dont know that account.
    i just bought the phone on ebay.
    how do i fix the phone?

  128. Tony Visconti says:

    ” This is definitely the right thing to do. Not write an ominously titled article (like Owen Williams from The Next Web did) complaining because the technology works as it should —”

    No, it *does not* work ‘as it should’. It is supposed to lock out the data thief. Not the OWNER.

  129. Aalif says:

    hi… my problem is that of my friend gave me his ipad as a gift so i just rest and updated it after that my ipad is requesting me for the Id and password which is actually my friends so i asked him he said he don’t remember anything so in this case what should I do?? Can anyone please help me???

  130. Kami says:

    We have an iPhone 5c at the company I work for. I ordered it from AT&T, my name is on the AT&T business account. The lady who was using it was let go. Now trying to transfer the phone to another colleague. Didn’t have the Apple ID password and am trying to avoid having to contact someone whose job was terminated. I tried to recover the password by having an email sent to her account (which we have access to and which is also the email associated with her Apple id) but the email isn’t going through. Tried 4 times to recover by email to no avail. Checked spam/junk folders and there’s nothing there. Then made the mistake of trying to do a restore through iTunes. Now I can’t even get into the phone. The first page says “Hola” as if it were a brand new phone, then swipe and it asks for the Apple ID password associated with that email account and now I can’t get past that screen to get to the home screen. So frustrating!

  131. jorge says:

    I need help I bought a iPhone but I didn’t have a iTunes so I asked a friend if he can log into his so I can access my iPhone but months later I forgot my password so I had reset it but when I try to put in my new iTunes account it says I need the original iTunes but I don’t know it and I don’t talk to that friend anymore so what my question is what can I do can someone help me please

  132. Dave says:

    Can anyone tell me why is it that when my wife resets her password using her own apple id(her own email address) the related emails come to me..my Apple ID and email are entirely different from hers. When we then go into her account all her details (ie her own I’d and email address) are correct..so why and how would anything like this come to me. Also if I log into iTunes on my iPad using My own I’d and email address ( totally different from my wife’s) I see all her apps in with my own apps. Am confused how all this could happen.

  133. myra newman says:

    I am looking to remove 5c from icloud account…is registered to old email account that i no longer have access to…how can i reset without access to email..help pls

  134. Shelby says:

    I had to restore my phone and I have to activate my phone by signing into my apple ID i had to reset my password at first and i did that and i still wont let me onto it ive also made new accounts and it wont let me get on those either i honestly dont know what else to do

  135. Fancy says:

    i changed my apple id at night and the following morning i totally forgot the password so i decided to restore then i realized i had a security thing of find my ipad which i aint quite sure of the username nor the password. Ive been trying to get verification details through my recovery email bt no message has come through now my account is locked. What can i do given that am in Kenya?

    • teom says:

      Check your spam folder sometimes the reset messages get stuck in there, the only option is to reset the password through the official protocol from Apple. You may also contact Apple directly at their support line or Apple Support https://www.apple.com/support/

  136. Sash says:

    Hi , i need a little help, i have forgotten my apple ID password like a moron and i have tried a few things that have come up online but now i am just comfused. Does anyone know what there doing 😂. Any help please?

  137. Samantha says:

    well i have a problem that i still cant figure out i forgot my icloud account on my phone and well i thought resetting the phone it would delete it but now that i did it didnt delete it and its not even letting me do nothing on my phone because i first have to log in ….

    but i dont rember my password or the username n when i put restart my password i dont remeber the email that i connected with that account n ethier the questions

    What Can I do?

    • Casey Jones says:

      Well Samantha, the first thing you should do is read the article about what to do if you can’t remember your password or the username of your Apple ID

      This tells you what to do, exactly, when you can’t remember your password or the username.

  138. LeAshq says:

    I Lost My IPhone Then Found It But It Is Disabled And I Don’t Remember My Icloud Information . What Should I Do ?

  139. Elsy says:

    No one has answered the question about how to reset if the Apple ID wasnt yours and you cant get it from abyone. Ie the pawn shop purchase ir the friend that went to Italy. I am in a similar situation. I bought an iPhone off ebay that is connected to an Apple ID. I have tried to contact the guy bur no response yet. I know i can get ebay involved an would eventually be refunded but I really needes this phone activates by tomorrow and sont have the time to mess with all that. Is it possible, can I reset to factory settings when I cant even get i to settings?

    Someone please respond (if u have helpful info)!

  140. omid says:

    Hey Everybody… I forgot my apple id email after reset my ipad. My ipad want my email and password I still remember my password but dont remember my apple id email. What should I do?

  141. Naji says:

    My children play with my iPhone 5s they want download some games without knowing with my phone the delegate her password unfortunately my wife she did not save the password so please we need help

  142. Amy says:

    I got an iPhone because my friend gave it to me and i don’t know the password I asked her and she forgot it

  143. mean says:

    hi. my friend gave me his Ipad4. when i got home it was asking for another set up and needs the password of the previous owner. my friend already left and went to Italy to work. I dont know his contact number there. Please help. Thank you

  144. Jen Cariaga says:

    I forgot the password on my screen lock..after that I restore my iPhone apparently I don’t remember my apple I’d password I had 2 apple I’d the first apple I’d I used once I bought my iPhone but I didn’t verify so I used another Apple I’d.but when I got restore my iPhone they asking for my list apple I’d but I can’t remember anything wat should I do..my account is lock

  145. Amanda says:

    I recently bought an ipod from a pawn shop and they said it was reset to factory settings but when I got home an tried to activate it,it asking for the id and password of the previous owners. Is there away to wipe it clean of anything associated with the previous owners?? Help – See more at: https://osxdaily.com/2014/12/23/forgot-apple-id-password-reset-recover/

  146. lakshmanan says:

    thank you.

  147. Kevin Mitchell says:

    I recently bought an ipod from a pawn shop and they said it was reset to factory settings but when I got home an tried to activate it,it asking for the id and password of the previous owners. Is there away to wipe it clean of anything associated with the previous owners?? Help

    • Bruce Webb says:

      “Is there away to wipe it clean of anything associated with the previous owners??”

      Short answer: “No”. Long answer you would need original receipts from the store that sold it new or death certificates from the previous owner. Basically Apple realized that there was a huge market in iPhones stolen from clue-less people walking through urban areas checking their messages and decided to clamp down.

      If you buy an iPhone used there are ways to check to see if it is “Activation Locked”. Do so BEFORE you leave the pawn shop. Or be prepard to admire your high-tech brick. Because the people in online support or at the Apple Store have NO powers to make this right. They can only ‘escalate’ it to hard nosed people in Account Security who have heard every sad story in the books.

  148. Ashley Russel says:

    so my wifi has been greyed out lately and cannot reach any internet connections, i went to this store that fixes phones and told me it has to do with my icloud, and i forgot the password to my icloud and can no longer sign out, i dont know how it has to do with the icloud but the wifi button will not slide to green but stays grey, any suggestions on this one?

  149. Bob says:

    Please don’t go into an Apple store for appleID issues. They’ll take you through the self recovery steps. If Apple has to intervene the store will refer you to call applecare. If you call be sure to have your credit card (if on file with them for itunes), Macintosh or iOS device serial numbers, and the answers to your security questions. If they can verify 2 of these points of info they can get you access again. If not there is not a thing they can do for you, per their privacy agreements and appleID terms or service.

    • Keshaw says:

      How about recovering the iCloud by his past number used and some of the call details.. The imei have the detail of it… If one forget the secret answer then there should me some option for the person or else what is the use of Apple mobile.. Paying for $400 to $700 Is worthless.. You should help yours Apple customer…

  150. John says:

    I set up 2 step verification with one of my Apple IDs. I had gotten rid of the cellphone and got a new number. Now I can’t get into that ID at all, especially the cell phone number. Tried to use the recovery key, but it did not work. Reported to Apple, they apparently tried a couple things, they elevated it, but now is a case forgot about now. Still would like to fix tis because I a number of Apps I have purchased on that ID….suggestions?

  151. John says:

    I set up 2 step verification with one of my Apple IDs. I had gotten rid of the cellphone and got a new number. Now I can’t get into that ID at all, especially the cell phone number. Tried to use the recovery key, but it did not work. Reported to Apple, they apparently tried a couple things, they elevated it, but now is a case forgot about now. Still would like to fix tis because I a number of Apps I have purchased on that ID….suggestions?

  152. Robby Smyth says:

    Question:

    If someone hasn’t set up iCloud, I assume that the directions on recovering an iPhone or iPad password won’t work.

    Is that right?

    If so, what should one do instead?

    • nt says:

      Choose to create a new Apple ID if you don’t have one yet, it’s in the same iCloud Settings panel if there is no account logged in. You can make one on the Apple ID website too.

      • Iphone issue says:

        I found my old iPhone 4 and cant remember the password to get into the phone or any of the I cloud stuff or anything and I have no idea what to do

  153. Noah says:

    Okay, but what about this situation:

    My old email address went defunct, so I changed the email address for my AppleID. It’s the same AppleID, just associated with a new address.

    However, at the time, I didn’t update anything on our iPad, which we don’t use much. Now, I want to use the iPad. However, to re-set the iPad, I have to login with my old email address and password. It won’t let me re-set it without logging in with that specific email address. But that’s NOT POSSIBLE, since Apple no longer recognizes my old email address. What do I do???

    • Jon Abierto says:

      I had a similar situation when I changed email addresses (by the way, go with something like Gmail and you can hopefully keep that email forever).

      So here’s what to do: You log in to your Apple account with the old email address, and change the email on file to the NEW email address. Confirm the change with the email sent to your inbox, and then you’re good to go.

      This is a pretty common situation, but if you don’t have access to the old email account any more you may find it easier to contact the Apple Genius Bar Support call center (1-800-SOS-APPLE is phone number I always use) and have them do it for you, you will need to provide a fair amount of verification details – which is good – but I’m sure they can remove the old email from your account for you if you are unable to access it because it was deleted by the ISP or something.

      I think if Apple allowed us to merge ID and accounts this would be less of an issue, personally.

      • Jon Abierto says:

        Oh by the way, you can log out of the old account this way:

        iOS icons > Settings > iCloud > Sign Out

      • Noah says:

        Your suggestion doesn’t work. My new email address is associated with the same Apple account as my old address was. As a result, it’s impossible to log in with my old address.

        I’m aware of the genius bar option, but we don’t use the ipad enough to justify paying for it. The result is that I’m using the ipad without access to our apple account, which is fine for most things. (We have a computer, so we can still update apps and do other things like that.) Apple mainly loses out on purchases we might make on the iPad. But it’s annoying.

        • il signorino says:

          Noah, what you actually need to do is to log into the Apple ID site with your current ID details (The current address and password). You then Edit the main address associated to the ID and register the old one -this might seem counterproductive but it’s actually what will allow you to sign out of iCloud on the iPad. Once you’ve edited the main address back to the one you used to have registered for the ID you go to the iPad, log out of iCloud and voila!

          After this you can edit the main address on the ID, from the Apple ID site, to be the one you currently use for email communications.

          AND, for future reference, before editing the address registered on your ID, follow the steps on this article [Step 1 being the most important]

          http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202667

      • amberly w says:

        What about if I can not remember my password or the phone number associated with the account? Is another option available? I have a valid photo ID can I not send that in? I have changed my phone number several times.

    • Narwale says:

      Well I will sign into my iTunes and then take the charger and when I plug it into the coumpter iTunes will pop up and say that it requires a your passcode to be enterd in order for it to work. The hole point of this is that I FORGOT MY PASSCODE AND IT STILL WANTS ME TO ENTER IT!!!! How do I get the thing to let me just recover my passcode without it making me enter my passcode because I FORGOT IT!!!!?????????

    • Jery says:

      I have been able to reset the passwords on the Apple.com website several times, it works fine.

      However if you have problems with that the easiest thing to do if you can’t remember an Apple ID password or if you can’t remember the Apple ID email address is to go to an Apple Store, or to contact Apple directly through https://apple.com

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