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How to reset a Google Workspace user's password from the Admin console — quick steps for admins when a team member is locked out.

If a team member forgets their password and can't sign in, a Workspace admin can reset it in a couple of minutes from the Admin console. Regular users can't reset each other's passwords — this is an admin-only action, and you need an admin account with password-reset privileges.

Quick summary

Go to admin.google.com, open Directory → Users, point at the person in the list and click Reset password. Choose "Automatically generate a password" or "Create password", then Reset. Share the new password with them another way — by phone, or by clicking Email Password and sending it to an address they can actually reach. Then reset their sign-in cookies so the old password stops working.

What you'll need

Admin access to the Google Admin console
A way to contact the user to give them the new password (phone, text, or another email)

Resetting a password

Go to admin.google.com and sign in with your admin account.

Go to Menu → Directory → Users.

Find the user. You can search by name or email address in the search bar at the top.

Point at the user in the list and click Reset password at the right. (If you've opened their account page instead, Reset password is at the left of it.)

Choose how to set the password. Automatically generate a password creates a secure one for you — the user is asked to reset it again the next time they sign in. Create password lets you type something simpler you can read out over the phone; tick Ask the user to change their password so they replace it with their own.

Click Reset.

Tell the user. Click Copy Password and send it over a channel they can reach, then click Done. Or click Email Password → Send and send it to an address where they can actually receive email — not the account they're locked out of.

Reset their sign-in cookies. Open the user's account page, click Security → Sign in cookies → Reset. This stops anyone signing in with the old password, and signs the account out everywhere.

The user can sign in with the new password straight away

The change applies to their online accounts immediately. After you reset the password and the sign-in cookies, they're signed out of every active session and will need the new password to get back in. Two things to warn them about: on an iPhone or iPad their Google Account is removed from the account list and has to be added again, and if they use Google Drive for desktop the password isn't changed there.

If the user is the only admin

If you're trying to reset the password for the admin account — and you're the only admin — things are trickier. You can't use the Admin console, because you're locked out. Google's recovery route is:

Automated recovery. Go to accounts.google.com/signin/recovery and enter the email address you use to sign in to the admin account, then click Next and "Try another way". If you added a recovery phone number or email address to the account, Google sends you a verification code and you can reset the password from there.
Verify your domain instead. With no recovery phone or email on file, the wizard asks you to prove you own the domain by adding a CNAME record to its DNS settings. Allow a few minutes for the record to propagate before you continue.
Support-assisted recovery. If the automated flow can't get you in, it may offer a Contact support option, which takes you through verifying ownership of the domain with Google's support team. You have to try the automated route first.

If your organisation has another super admin, the quickest fix is simply to ask them to reset your password from the Admin console.

Set up a backup admin account

This is exactly why we recommend having at least two admin accounts — Google recommends the same. If one is locked out, the other can reset it. It's also worth adding a recovery phone number and email address to every admin account now, while you can still sign in. See The Google Admin console, explained for how to set this up.

Good password practices

When setting up a new password for someone:

Use a password you haven't used before
Make it at least 16 characters
Tick "Ask the user to change their password" so the user ends up with one only they know
Encourage them to save it in a password manager

You can also set password rules for the whole organisation in the Admin console under Security → Authentication → Password management.

Common questions

Can the user reset their own password?

Only if a super admin has turned that on. By default, someone who clicks "Forgot password?" is told to contact their administrator. To change that, switch on user account recovery (below) and make sure people have added a recovery phone number or email address — without one, they're sent back to you. If the account has 2-Step Verification, only a recovery email address will work.

Will the user lose any data when I reset their password?

No. Resetting a password only changes how they sign in. All their emails, files, and calendar events are untouched. They will be signed out of their sessions and apps, and third-party mail apps stop syncing until they sign in again.

How do I enable self-service password recovery for all users?

Sign in as a super admin and go to Security → Authentication → Account recovery, click User account recovery, then tick Allow users and non-super admins to recover their account and save. It doesn't apply if your organisation uses single sign-on with another identity provider, or Password Sync.

Check that the account isn't suspended. Find them in Directory → Users and look at their status; if the account is suspended, restore it before anything else. Also check they're using the new password on a fresh sign-in, not a saved one, and remember an iPhone or iPad needs the account added again after a reset.

Need a hand?

If you're stuck, email support@chykalophia.com and we'll help. Include your website address and a screenshot if you can.

Resetting a user's password