How to Change Your Facebook Password (or Reset It)

Two different problems

• You know the current password and want to change it → change it in settings.
• You cannot log in → you need a reset, not a change.

They are different flows, and starting the wrong one wastes time.

Changing it while logged in

1. Pick the profile if Accounts Center manages more than one.
2. Enter the current password, then the new one twice.
3. Read the "stay logged in" question carefully. It decides whether other devices keep their session. Changing your password because something felt wrong? Choose to log out of other devices.
4. Save. The change takes effect immediately.

Resetting it when you are locked out

Use Forgot password on the login screen. Facebook sends a code to the email or phone already on the account — you do not need the old password.

The critical detail: Facebook shows a masked hint of where it sent the code, like j••••@gmail.com. Read it.

• If the hint matches an address or number you control, get the code and continue.
• If the hint is not yours, stop. Someone changed the recovery details, which means the account was taken over. Resetting will not help. Go to account recovery and secure that email account first.

The full walkthrough is in forgot password.

When the code does not arrive

Work through these in order rather than requesting code after code — repeated requests trigger a temporary block that makes diagnosis harder.

1. Wait a full two minutes. Delivery is often slower than it feels.
2. Check spam and promotions folders.
3. Confirm the masked hint is an address you can actually open.
4. Try the other channel — if email is failing, request the SMS code, or the reverse.
5. Try from a device and browser you have used to log in before. Facebook trusts recognised devices and sometimes offers additional recovery options there.
6. If two-factor is the blocker rather than the password, see two-factor problems.

After changing it

A password change is only half the job if you suspect someone else had access:

• Review active sessions in Password and security → Where you're logged in. End anything you do not recognise.
• Check the recovery email and phone are still yours. Attackers change these first so they can lock you back out.
• Check linked apps. Accounts Center → Apps and websites. Remove anything unfamiliar.
• Turn on two-factor authentication and save the backup codes somewhere that is not your Facebook account.

Choosing a password worth having

The six-character minimum is a legacy floor, not advice. What actually matters:

• Unique to Facebook. Most takeovers are not clever attacks — they are passwords reused from a site that leaked years ago.
• Long beats complex. Four unrelated words beat P@ssw0rd! on both memorability and strength.
• Use a password manager if you have more accounts than you can remember, which is everyone.

Never enter your password anywhere you arrived at from a link in a message. Type facebook.com yourself, or check the page against the fake login page checklist. And remember there is no support phone number to call about a password — anyone offering one by phone is running a scam.

Official source

Meta's changing your password page carries the current labels and requirements. The screens shown on your own account are the final authority.