What to do if you lose access to Two-Factor Codes?

With Discord, you can easily communicate with your teammates or friends in the form of text, image, video, and audio. It is a really useful freeware app that is specially designed for video gaming communities.

DiscordWhen you create an account on Discord, then like most of the services it offers you to set up Two-Factor Authentication.

Two-Factor Authentication gives you an extra layer of security and in-case your account gets compromised, no one will be able to access your account unless they provide the Two-Factor Authentication codes.

Sometimes bad luck can hit you, and you get logged out of your Desktop app and also lose access to your phone. In that case, it may be impossible for you to provide two-factor authentication codes. So, what to do if you lose access to Two-Factor Codes?

What to do if you lose access to Two-Factor Codes?

  1. Double check that if you are logged into your Discord account from Desktop App or Browser. If you are logged in, luckily, you will be able to see all of your backup codes with your current password.
  2. If that isn’t the case, then you have only one option left and that is to search your computer for “discord_backup_codes.txt”. Search your PC for this file and if you happen to find it, then you are in luck!

These two are the only ways by which you can access your account if you ever lose access.

If you do not have access to your backup codes, then it will be impossible for you to access your account. Discord is unable to remove Two-Factor Authentication or provide you with new backup codes.

You will have to create new Discord Account.

4.9/5 - (1153 votes)

119 thoughts on “What to do if you lose access to Two-Factor Codes?”

    1. What I can tell you never ever in your life of internet use Google’s authentication system as it does not even try to make another compromise to save your codes

      1. I saved my backup codes
        , even wrote them down and back codes I wrote in 2 places but Im told they are wrong,! How can that be.
        Bad luck comes by volume. I changes my Google pass word on the 3rd of this month but can’t read my own writing to recover my google account

      2. Yall are wrong for not thinking of this. Ive used discord since just after launch in 2015. My account was created in 2015 and I had almost my entire internet ecosystem in that. This is awful. You guys dont care about customers apparently. I was a nitro member too and now I wasted money on an account I cant use anymore. Do something about this or Ill leave I dont care.

        1. Same ngl,i have 2018 account now i cant even use it,even tho i have authy codes on my phone for no reason i cant login in.

        2. Same ngl it’s hard for me too because i’m a fivem scripter and on that account i have some important scripts that i made but this happen all because i changed my phone and my pc’s motherboard and now i can’t use the old accoun it’s a shame that an app like this can make it’s customers/users lose all their information please remove it Thank you.

          1. Yeah I just lost my account yesterday at 8:21am, it’s just bogus these people can’t login to our accounts to just TELL us the codes. You clowns are devs, and we’ve spent money on your site, and just expect us to just go and move on? Luck y’all.

        3. fr bro i loss access to my 2fa auth app then they tell us to make a new account im never using discord ever again there app is a waste of time

    2. I know right? Sometimes you phone have a Console, Phone, Android, But no PC! I’m just wishing that Discord can share backup codes to your e-Mail. It’s Unlucky how discord didn’t think of that.

  1. Screw discord for doing this and then not having an option to recover the account. My phone was stolen and I lost everything
    My discord was 5 years old and now I’m locked out of it.

    1. Similar thing happened to me, blizzard, steam etc all have ways to recover one’s account in case they lose access to their phone number, but discord can’t do something as simple as that?

      this is just awful

      1. Actually makes no sense when literally most other social media have ways to recover your account this is unbelievable. My phone screen is completely broken and cant fix it this time. Have no way of turning off the two factor authentication this is so bad on their part

  2. A standard alternative would be to offer alternative authentication methods (hardware tokens, fido keys etc) to the second factor of choice so there are backup options available but I guess this might prove to expensive to be practical for most users.

  3. still same problem Dec2020, I mean it makes sense to be hard for a random person to get back your account if they have access to your e-mail etc etc but STILL..get the Discord account linked to your phone option for 2fa extreme recovery or many other things possible if you think about it Discord make it happen, so many people losing their phone or stolen with 2fa app on it means bye bye Discord server..

  4. My phone factory reset and I lost my discord account discord should and more than just one way to get your 2fa codes

  5. This is stupid, my computer got reset so now im locked out of my acc discord needs to fix it

  6. muck discord, i have my email and password, none of my backupcodes works. And had my phone number connected to discord but when i activated 2FA there was like only 2 option, 1. SMS, 2. Discord Backupcodes, i choosed backupcodes but i dont get it that you cant have also the sms option to verify it with your phone number, nope discord doesnt care.And the ONLY responde discord got is this: “dIsCoRd iS uNaBlE tO rEmOvE tWo-FaCtOr AuThEnTiFCaTiOn Or PrOvIdE yOu WiTh NeW bAcKuPcOdEs”. You have my email and password and you cant say i can get my account back, ALL others sites like YT or lucking google send you a verification message with a code you can put and voila, you are logged in CUZ YOU HAD YOUR EMAIL AND PASSWORD, i wanted to try out 2FA just for fun to test it out and thats what i get for not have a bucking authentification app installed. DUCK DISCORD for being so useless in this subject area and not giving a sh*t for their users. I had this acc for like 5 Years and i wont make another acc, i will never use discord anymore. duck discord

    1. same cuz I even don’t think this is fair and in result of this I also don’t think i m going to make another account cuz this really sucks

    2. I gotta agree with him, Discord does not give a luck if they have your Mail and Password.

  7. I’ve been looking for my authenticator codes like 2 weeks and I’m really DISAPPOINTED ;-;

  8. This is a big and major problem which must be solved somehow cause If we can’t recover our accounts then its too hard to make another account same as the first one. Also the thing in my case is that I had all grinding on my account of dank memer which is wasted now !!

  9. This is absolutely stupid! I don’t have those “backupcodes” anymore. Resetting Password doesn not work: you always need those codes in addition. And no way to get back my account. Discord: kill yourself.

  10. I lost my discord account and that had 2fa security and also I lost backup codes for it so please give my account.
    Thank you

  11. I have all my back-up codes …. none of the will work… so stupid. I have all the information needed to log into my account and it will not log me in. I what is the freaking time limit before it forgets your information and requires this back up code crap. I log in at home all the time – and it works. I log in sometimes at work or on phone and always have to use the back up code … which NEVER works.

  12. Discord Mucks for this reason thanks for being ducks! I’m uninstalling this trash app and I hope others will do the same and avoid being locked out of their account, I’m spreading the word because no one should use an app that was created by retards.

  13. 2021, and still discord haven’t put any alternative for backup codes. my mobile got stolen and i don’t have my account logged in on my computer. i’m trying to login but discord doesn’t let me because i don’t have backup codes or authentication app. why the hack i linked my number or email for? you can provide us with codes to log in our account but no what discord does? it says you have to make a new account, like anyone would! lost my 5 years old account and can’t recover it now. lukk discord!

    1. i feel you dude same here i got hacked this bad guy changed everything in my Profile guess what the code from the Authentification App is always invalid-.-
      what a waste of money time and more !

  14. Well this really did not, now i know the only thing i can do is make a new account 🙁

  15. Take your time to read this!
    My daughter lost her account because of this stupid solution:
    “Note: If you do not have access to your backup codes, we are unable to remove 2FA and you will have to create a new account. Discord cannot remove 2FA or issue you new backup codes.”
    There is only Discord that are able to come up with a stupid solution like this! I know there is lot of people that now have lost their accounts. Over 42000 individs have locked up this problem on Discords website. Only 6000 where happy after reading the solution! There you have over 36000 customers who unhappily lost their account! And this isn’t even close to the total numbers! And Discord don’t give a duck!
    My bank, who has very high security, don’t have stupid solution like this: “If you do not have access to your backup codes, you will have to create a new account. You have lost all your money. We are very sorry for your loss.”
    This is almost as stupid as Bitcoin security! The brain is there for a reason, use it!!!

  16. this is so stupid. It’s also bad for the environment because of the overload of the servers. Just give a chance to the people to change email or just to switch the data to another account. I can’t do nothing now because of these, i have to create another account from scratch, it’s painful and it’s for no reason. It’s just because they are buzy

  17. I had this amazing server with a bot that basically turns the server into Pokemon GO, but now I lost that account due to 2fa, and I am SUPER triggered at Discord because i had 2 MEWS! I really want Discord to remove 2fa altogether so I can get back on and be with my friends, my Pokemon, and my LIFE.

  18. Dear Discord Users!

    I am very sorry to give you bad news, but, unfortunately, for Discord company new user statistics is very important KPI and this way of blocking user is the only way we can get good stats.
    Soon we will have a new investment round and investors must be happy. We cannot help you if your house is burned, or you have been robbed and don’t have access to your old phone now.
    For us the only thing what matters is MONEY, not the users.

    Sincerely,
    Jason Citron

  19. I lost ma 2fa code of discord and i also don’t now my backup code plss help ne to recover

  20. I have the same problem, i never log out of my discord and now somehow i’ve be logged out on my pc and my phone, for no reason, i didn’t do it myself.
    Try to change my password but they ask me to put in a 2FA recovery code, i dont have. Now years of infomation and projects gone. Becaus they did not provide me with the info that i had to export the back-up codes file to my computer, i have no acces on discord to my phone or another device.

    Yeah make a new account, is the answer i got from the support. Also they did sent me 2 times a sms code on my phone to verify last month. so why not sent me a recovery code on my phone.

    I can reset my password on my computer but i need that stupid recovery code to get access to my account and the support is not very helpfull. They say sorry if you do not have those codes we cannot help you. Yeah, then why did you sent me 2 sms verifcation codes to my phone last month. Can you not sent a recovery code to my phone then?

    I’m very dissapointend in discord and their costumer support.

  21. Terrible system. Every other major company that uses two-factor has a way to recover if you lose it.

  22. very bad Solution.

    A recent Google Authenticator App Update broke the app and I lost all Accounts.
    SMS Recovery on discord is disabled and I don’t have the Backup Codes.
    So i can’t never log in again.

    1. it’s very shame, I felt you cuz I have the same problem like this

  23. phone stolen…. discord can actually get dcked for this. lost friends, lost memories, absolutely devastated… go dck yourselves!

  24. This is crazy, I’ve never been so mad at a company for not being more helpful – I do know they can, and they have the possibility to help us recover accounts. There is multiple ways for them to get proof that you are the rightful owner.

    I’ve been dealing with discord to recover my account, but still no luck. I have been told they can delete my account – as long as im confirming it with the same email connected to the account. That makes no sense Discord, If I can reply from my email connected to my account why in hell shouldn’t I be able to retrieve it?

    Im laughing and crying at the same time. Cba gaming anymore as I’ve lost a 8 year old account. There is no way to get back to all my friends, server, server roles, etc.
    It’s just stupid that they do not have any way to retrieve accounts, they must not know we are in 2023 and should have the technology to make this much easier than they do it.

  25. lost my account of 12 years and i cant get it back? what the actual luck discord

  26. This is only question of time when thoose codes will be lost. In my case I even didn’t know they existing and critical. Just one day got logged out from all devices and found out that my account is lost forever now. Screw you discord, i will never be back.

  27. Well, so long Dis this I meant discord.Cordy is out. You guys make it almost impossible to have and maintain an account with you. How many new accounts a person needs to create? All because passwords not enough we must have those back up codes. Well for example I’m outside at work and need to access this discord account however only got my cellphone and desktop which the codes backup ones could be there but again I’m away from home and my desktop now what??? Another way when I can or need to access my discord account and only got my cellphone and password but not my desktop. Well, create a new account again. No don’t need more nonsense to remember enough with all the passwords and pins and these backups codes too. Sorry but that’s just not worth the headaches another platform which I love and have been with Riddt no problem no issues. So you guys need to up your game. I really gave y’all fair ” Chances” look I’m one person but not everyone going to help you with a constructive criticism like myself they would just unplug from your site all together. Just saying guys you definitely can do much better.

  28. Tengo el mismo problema, no puede ser que en este epoca un no pueden solucionar esto. Alguien no esta haciendo su trabajo como debe

  29. Got a new phone, Autheticator never had 2FA set for discord. Now I am locked out. Had no idea I was meant to write down my code for 2fa. Now I have lost access to friends all around the world over the last 6 years. What a useless system.

    Most frustratingly, they absolutely could recover an account for you. They just decide not to.

  30. While I understand the importance of 2fa and backup codes and a bit of how those work, there should still be a way to recover an account. I’ve lost the damn codes thanks to a windows update that f’d up the drive and the mobile app logged me out, leaving my account basically stranded unless a ssd forensics can accomplish to recover the drive.

    Lessons learned:
    Keep your data out of reach of windows update
    Keep a copy of the backup codes
    Keep a copy of a copy of the backup codes
    Keep a copy of a copy of a copy of the backup codes
    etc. …

  31. A friend of mine just formatted his mobile phone, no back up codes worked for him and after tried everything then he just has to create a new account and lose all past experience… Now that is really a shame and unfortunately the discord 2FA structure idea is a disappointment (saying this when i love discord…).

  32. It’s been 5 years since I’ve lost access to my account. I lost many friends that I met on anonymous corners of the internet, that I will never see again. I mean it was created in 2016, and I was actively talking to so many people. It was such an important account to me which is why I used 2FA in the first place (ironic how that was the cause of me losing something so important)
    Every now and then I get curious about that account I’ve lost. I always wonder “it’s been a long time, surely Discord will now just say ‘luck it, i’ll restore the account for you'” But they’re still as stingy as ever. I wonder why? Seriously, why? I get the idea of fraud. That if anyone can just report in the account back then that takes away the point of 2FA. But it’s been 5 years. Discord themselves can see that an account has been inactive for 5 years, surely they’re aware that the owner is the one who is locked out. It’s a 5 year old dead account, genuinely what is the problem in unlocking it now?

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