How to reset the WordPress admin password

February 4. 2020

There are many reasons why one website owner could opt for a WordPress admin password reset. Perhaps you have forgotten your old/current password and don’t have access to your email for a standard password reset. Or maybe you do have access to your email, in which case you can count your blessings as this will be a whole lot easier and faster to do. Either way, we here at WP Full Care are going to walk you through the process and teach you how to reset the WordPress admin password.

As you can imagine, changing your password won’t be rocket science. However, you still do need to know exactly what to click and type. But that’s what we are here for! To make this rather easy process even easier and faster.

Different ways that you can use to approach WordPress admin password reset

Which way you will decide to use will greatly depend on one thing – whether you can or cannot access your email address. But is there another way for WordPress reset admin password to take place? That remains to be seen in a couple of minutes.

How to reset the WordPress admin password when you have access to your email

By far, this is the easiest and fastest way to change your password. Start by accessing your standard login page. Now locate the ‘lost your password’ link at the bottom of the page and click on it. Once the next screen opens, you will be asked to enter your username or the email address of your administrator account. And once you click on the ‘get new password’ button, you will receive a link for creating your new password via email.

Well, that was almost too simple, but this is where things get tricky. What happens when you don’t have the email to your WordPress.com or WordPress.org account? Then you will have to put yourself through a slightly more complicated process, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to do it nonetheless.

How to reset your WordPress admin password when you don’t have access to your email

The first thing you should do is remain composed. Just because you don’t have access to your email doesn’t mean that all hope is lost. But it does mean that you will have to deal with the intricate task of manipulating tables directly from phpMyAdmin. If not done correctly, this could very easily break your site, which is why we suggest you consult with a WordPress expert and developer if you are not confident enough in your skills. And if you are, please proceed to the following process.

Log into your phpMyAdmin panel. On the left-hand side of the page, click on your database and locate the wp_users table. Please note that some sites might add a prefix so that your wp_users table ends up looking something like wp48_users. Either way, click on it.

Do you see the row next to your admin username with an Edit next to it? Click on it, but make sure you are editing the right user if you have a couple of them on your WordPress site. Next, you will find that you have to enter a new value in the column user_pass. Just make sure that you choose MD5 from the function column, input your new password, and then click on Go at the bottom of the page.

With the Go button being pressed, you have successfully managed to update your WordPress admin password. Are you still in need of another option for a WordPress admin password reset? Don’t worry – our team has one more trick up our sleeve.

Using the Emergency Password Reset Script

Once again, a lot of attention is advised when choosing to meddle with this option. But if all other options have failed for one reason or another, you can opt for this solution. So here’s what you need to do.

First, locate the emergency.php file in the root of your WordPress directory, copy the emergency script from Emergency Password Reset Script, and paste it into the aforementioned file. Then, feel free to visit the script in your web browser and enter in the current (soon to be old) WordPress admin password. Type in the new password and click on Update options.

Once the script updates the admin password, it will send an email to the admin’s email address and that is why you need it in order to change your password this way. But you should know that your password is changed even if you don’t receive an email. 

And now for a very important notice! As soon as you finish updating your password this way, delete the emergency.php file. Leaving it in your system will be a huge security risk, and you definitely want to keep your WordPress website safe. And why is it a security risk to leave it in your system? Because someone else could use it to access the WordPress admin password reset, putting your whole website into jeopardy. Precisely because this option is so complicated, we think you should leave it as your last resort.

You now know how to deal with this simple yet intricate task

All you have to do now is choose the option that works best for you. Although, the choices are quite clear. If you have access to your email, you will choose the first option. Without access, you will opt for the second one. And if both of these options fail, you will opt for the third one. Just remember to be very careful when going for options number two and three. And we hope you won’t have to change your password again any time soon.