Summary

Can’t remember your Mac’s password?

You might be able to use your fingerprint, or you canunlock a Mac with an Apple Watch.

Hopefully, you added a password hint when you originally set it up.

IMac on the login screen showing password reset options.

Lucas Gouveia / How-To Geek | Apple |Krisda/ Shutterstock

If you did, you’ll see a question mark alongside the password box on the lock screen.

Click that to see the hint, and it should jog your memory.

Accounts with admin permissions can reset the password for other accounts (but Standard accounts can’t).

The setting that allows you to reset the password of another user.

In most cases, you’re free to now click “Reset it using your Apple ID.”

A dialog box will open, asking for your Apple ID email and password.

Enter those and click “Reset Password.”

The password reset options on the macOS lock screen.

Click “OK” to continue.

Alternatively, you might only see the option to “Restart and show password reset options.”

If so, select this instead.

The reset password box on the macOS lock screen.

Now, grab the user for which you want to reset the password.

To launch the tool, initiate the Terminal by clicking Utilities > Terminal in the menu bar.

At the Terminal prompt, jot down:

Then hit Enter to launch the Reset Password tool.

The warning before resetting your password on macOS.

To do it, boot into Recovery mode again.

And there’s a third trick, which works via Apple’s Find My service.

But it is pretty straightforward despite this.

The screen to reset the password on macOS.

The Options screen when you launch Recovery mode on macOS.

Launch the Terminal through Recovery.

The Recovery Assistant password reset screen.

The Erase Mac settings in macOS Recovery.