If Amazon’s two-step verification code does not arrive, first try a registered backup method or a trusted device. If you cannot use those, choose Didn’t Receive the Code and follow Amazon’s account-recovery option. Resetting a password alone does not necessarily remove the second verification step.
Check which code Amazon wants
| What is failing? | First check |
|---|---|
| SMS code never arrives | The displayed phone number, mobile reception and blocked-message settings. |
| Authenticator code is rejected | The correct account entry and the phone’s date/time settings. |
| Email sign-in or password-reset code is missing | The right email address, spam folder and whether this is a different step from 2SV. |
| Old phone or authenticator is unavailable | An already registered backup method or trusted device, then official recovery. |
| Password itself is rejected | Password recovery for the correct Amazon account. |
Use the Amazon website or app for your country. A UK, US or Canadian account-help page may show different options. Read the wording on your screen instead of assuming every email or SMS code is the same kind.
When Amazon is not sending an SMS code
- Check the final digits of the number shown. If it is an old number, asking for more codes will not reach your new phone.
- Check reception, message filtering and whether the sender is blocked.
- Use a backup method already registered to the account, if offered.
- Follow any waiting period shown before requesting another code. Use the latest code rather than mixing messages from several attempts.
Amazon’s two-step troubleshooting guide covers message-delivery and device-registration problems. A device-registration workaround is not a general instruction to add codes to every normal sign-in password.
Start two-step verification account recovery
The current Amazon recovery guide gives this route:
- Start signing in with Amazon and enter the email address or phone number linked to the account.
- Use the password or another sign-in option actually offered.
- At the two-step code screen, choose Didn’t Receive the Code.
- Select Two-Step Verification Account Recovery.
- Follow the on-screen identity checks and wait for the result.
The required evidence and timing depend on the current recovery process. Do not rely on the earlier article’s fixed list of accepted documents or a guaranteed two-day result. If identification is requested, use the official upload page and follow its instructions about which details must remain visible.
After you regain access
Open Your Account → Login & security and check your phone number and verification methods. Add or test a backup method where offered before removing the only method that still works.
Two-step verification adds a check beyond the password. Disabling it to avoid a temporary delivery problem can reduce account protection. Also, do not read a sign-in code to an unsolicited caller or send it in an ordinary support message.
For a Windows sign-in problem instead, use the Windows account-recovery guide. Amazon account recovery does not unlock a local PC account.
Information checked October 13, 2026, using the guides linked above.