Help a parent keep access
to their Apple Account.

Start here

Add a second trusted phone number.

A trusted phone number receives codes Apple uses to check who’s signing in. Sit down with your parent and both phones. They’ll need to unlock their phone and may need their Apple Account password (formerly Apple ID), which is different from the phone’s passcode.

If Recovery Key is already turned on, find their 28-character key before starting. Apple may ask for it when you add a trusted phone number.

Choose the number together. A code alone doesn’t give someone access, but a person with the account password and a code sent to that number can sign in. Add your number only if they want you to receive those codes.

1. Open Settings and tap their name at the top.
2. Tap Sign-In & Security, then Two-Factor Authentication. If it’s off, turn it on and follow Apple’s prompts first.
3. Below the list of devices and phone numbers, tap Add Trusted Phone Number.
4. Enter your number, choose text message or phone call, and type in the code Apple sends you.

Check that it worked: your verified number should appear in their trusted phone number list. Keep their own number listed too.

Set up a Recovery Contact · Write down what you’ve done

When you’re ready / Recovery Contact

Ask to be their Recovery Contact.

A Recovery Contact can provide a code to help someone reset their password when the usual reset options aren’t working. They choose the contact in advance.

• A Recovery Contact gets no access to the account. You cannot see their photos, messages, or anything else. All you can do is generate a six-digit code when they ask for one.
• Apple does not keep a record of who the contacts are. The account holder has to remember, which is why you write it down.
• It can only be set up while the account holder can take part. They choose who to add on their device. An invitation may need to be accepted, as explained below.

Setting it up

Apple requires every device signed in to their account, and the device you will use, to be on a recent system (iOS 15, iPadOS 15, or macOS 12 or later), with two-factor authentication and iMessage turned on. You can be a Recovery Contact with just a Mac. If you use an iPhone or iPad, set up a passcode if Apple prompts you to. Apple may ask them to remove unused devices running older software. Both people must meet Apple’s age requirement: over 13, with the age varying by country or region. Check Apple’s setup requirements if you’re choosing a younger relative. On their iPhone:

1. Open Settings, tap their name, then tap Sign-In & Security.
2. Tap Recovery Contacts, then Add Recovery Contact, and follow the prompts.
3. Have them choose you from the suggestions, or choose someone else they trust from Contacts. A person in their Family Sharing group is added automatically. Anyone else receives an invitation in Messages and needs to accept it.

They can name up to five people. A second contact, such as a sibling or a neighbor, means the plan does not depend on you being reachable.

Check before moving on: on their phone, confirm the person is listed as added. If an invitation was required, sending it isn’t enough; the contact needs to accept it.

Keep a record

What to record, and where to keep it.

Use the checklist to record what you’ve done and anything you want to come back to. You don’t need to fill in every section. They decide what to include and who keeps it.

• The Apple Account email address, or the phone number, for accounts that sign in with one. You don’t need to put the account password on this sheet.
• The device passcode. The code that unlocks the phone. Apple asks for it during many of these steps. Include it only if they want to share it.
• Which phone numbers are trusted, including yours.
• Who the Recovery Contacts are. Apple will not tell you.
• Any other codes you have set up, such as an Assistive Access passcode or a Screen Time passcode.

Keep the sheet somewhere private and physical, with the other important papers, or in a password manager they have agreed you should hold. Do not keep the only copy in their iCloud, their Notes, or their Photos, because those are exactly what you will be locked out of. With their agreement, tell another trusted person where it is. Check it again when they get a new phone, change their number, or choose a different contact.

Fill out the checklist. If something is still pending, write down what’s left and who will do it.

If they’re locked out now

Start with what they can still access.

These steps are for someone who can take part and has asked you to help. If they can’t, read the next section.

1. Check what’s locked. A forgotten Apple Account password is different from a forgotten phone passcode. If the phone itself won’t unlock, follow Apple’s forgotten iPhone passcode instructions; the process may erase the phone. Don’t reset it just to try to fix an account sign-in problem.
2. Look for a device or number they can still use. A signed-in trusted device may let them change their account password. If they know the password but can’t receive a code, use the “Didn’t Get a Code?” option on Apple’s sign-in screen and follow the prompts for their trusted numbers.
3. Follow Apple’s password-reset steps. Have their account email or sign-in number and any recovery details ready. A Recovery Contact can help if one was set up. On a borrowed device, Apple’s Support app has Reset Password > Help Someone Else.
4. If those options don’t work, follow Apple’s prompts to request account recovery. It can take several days or longer. Apple Support can’t shorten the wait.

Already waiting for account recovery? Follow Apple’s instructions for the waiting period. Whether you can keep using a device depends on how you started recovery. Activity on other signed-in devices can cancel the request. Don’t submit another request just to try to speed it up.