Show by on February 04, 2021 Techlicious editors independently review products. To help support our mission, we may earn affiliate commissions from links contained on this page. If you forget your Android lock screen password, is there a way to unlock your phone? The short answer is no – you will have to factory reset your device to be able to use your phone again. And because all recent versions of Android encrypt the data on your phone by default, there is no way to recover any photos, contacts or other data that you haven’t backed up to your Google account; they will be gone forever after the reset. However, at least your phone will be unlocked and you’ll be able to use it again. There are two ways to factory reset an Android phone if you’ve forgotten the password and can’t get past the lock screen. The first is to use Google’s Find My Device, which allows you to remotely erase your phone online. If you don’t have Find My Device turned on (it should be on by default), you’ll have to use the second method, Android’s “Recovery Mode”. It’s critical to note that resetting your phone through either of these methods will require you to know your Google account and password that was used to set up the phone. If you don’t have this information, the device will be permanently locked. This security measure is in place to prevent a thief from using your device after factory resetting it. How to reset your Android phone through Find My Device
How to reset your Android phone through Recovery ModeThe steps to enter Recovery Mode varies by manufacturer, but I’ll provide instructions for the major ones below. How to reset stock Android phones (Google Pixel or Nexus 6P):
How to reset HTC phones:
How to reset Huawei phones:
How to reset LG phones:
How to reset Motorola phones:
How to reset Samsung phones:
For Samsung phones without a Home button (such as Galaxy S10, Galaxy S11, Galaxy S20, Galaxy S21, Note 20),
Updated 2/4/2021 for newer Samsung devices [Image credit: Josh Kirschner/Techlicious] |