Knowing how to reset your WordPress password from phpMyAdmin is one of the essential things you should know about because for some reason if your site is hacked, or something else, you are no longer able to login to your admin panel using the login information, and you are not able to reset the password via email, this method can be very useful. We have helped three users with the same issue therefore we have decided to do this writeup.
Every WordPress blog uses a MySQL Database which can be accessed through your phpMyAdmin even if you are not using cPanel hosting. Follow the following steps to reset your WordPress password:
Video Tutorial
If you don’t like the video or need more instructions, then continue reading.
Step 1 – Identify the Name of your Database
It is always good to know the name of your WordPress Database. Sometimes you might be running multiple installations within the same database, then you will need to know exactly where to look for to reset the password. The best place to look is your wp-config.php file which is located in your root WordPress Directory. In there you will find the name of your database.
Step 2 – Locating Database and Editing the Fields
In your cPanel or other admin panel, you will need to access your MySQL database and then browse it via phpMyAdmin.
Once you are in phpMyAdmin, you will need to select the correct database on the left hand side. Look for the name that you found in your wp-config.php and click on that. You will see a list of tables with a prefix wp_ for the most part.
If you changed your prefix during installation, then you would be looking for that specific prefix “for ex: wp673_”.
You will look for the table wp_users, click on it and then click on the Browse Tab.
Click on the Pencil (Edit) Icon to reset your Password.
Now you will see a field that looks like this:
Edit the user_pass field value. You will notice that there are a lot of random characters in the password field. Due to security reasons, WordPress stores the passwords as MD5 Hash rather than Plain text.
This means that you will not be able to enter plain text as the password. You would need to use one of the MD5 generators online to generate your password.
Recommended Tool: JavaScript MD5
Simply type your password in that tool and generate MD5 results. Copy and paste the code you get from the converter into your phpMyAdmin field and click Go to save changes.
You have now successfully changed your WordPress Password from phpMyAdmin.
Thank you very much, Syed and team WPBeginner.
My site was put in maintenance mode and hence password reset option did not work.
I changed the password as you suggested and everything is back to normal.
Much thanks for the awesome content.
Really would like to say thank you as I find it really hard to change the password of my site
Awesome, thank you very much this has been a massive help
Awesome! Helped me reset my password when I kept getting the “Host disabled the mail () function” error.
Hi! I’m s using mamp as local host, and i’m having some troubles with it: I can’t recover my wordpress password by setting a new one on phpMyadmin. It shows that the password row has been updated to the new one I chose, but it is not recognized by wordpress.org when i try to log in. Can’t figure out what may be the problem. I’m giving up on hosting my site on MAMP. I’ve seen that I can create a new database with cPanel, since I’m paying for hosting service from namecheap. What do you suggest for starting a new project from zero? Thanks a lot!
Thanks you. I lost my password and I used this way to create a new password.
Unfortunately this isn’t working for me. I’m doing exactly what your asking, but when I made a new password using the MD5 Hash and copy and paste that new password in the field > save by hitting Go > then go to refresh my Website admin log in page, I enter the new password and still tells me I’ve entered the wrong password??? I’ve tried email recovery but never get sent an email… So painful!
Any idea’s?
wow, this is way too fast a video clip for me. Just can’t follow any. Didn’t even where to start.
Do you have to be logged into your admin to start with? I can’t even log in to do any of the above!!!
This is not working for me…still cannot login
awesome, very old post, but still being read and replied to!
I used Duplicator to copy a one-page WP-site to localhost (XAMPP). Made a new database as instructed, password and everything.
When I try to enter local password (or is it the database password?), screen reverts to site published on cloud host.
Localhost DB has two entries: for Duplicator (prefix 2ecxx_) and what I thought was local copy (prefix wp_). But the ‘local’ DB _wp entries are actually referring to the cloud hosting environment.
Tried to change wp_user username en PW (MD5), but does not work
Changed siteurl in _wp_options to localhost, does not help
When I use 2eczz_users username and PW, page also moves back to site published in the cloud
Does this tutorial still relevant in 2017 ????
Yes, it is.
Thanks A lot, VERY INFORMATIVE ARTICLE, i was up and down last two days. . you saved me. Thanks again
Really would like to say thank you as I find it really hard to change the password of my site
Very informative article, i was stuck at database name, finally found with the help of this article.
Thanks so much. I am NOT a programmer whatsoever and these instructions were easy enough for me to get. This was a lifesaver.
Thanks for the MD5 tip
This was very good. thanks !
great contribution master! thank you so much!
It’s Awesome bro..you saved my time. Its working fine for me
I have followed the steps exactly and still can’t log in. Is there anything else I can do?
The layout has changed a lot since this was posted- the admin tab or the browse tabs are nowhere to be seen..
Lot of thanx guys. It has worked for me and was stranded on my website security but now am fine.
The procedures are very user friendly hence easy to understand.
God bless
I did all those steps but I still cannot login into my wordpress wp-admin. Can you help me? Thanks.
Why not use the md5 hash that is already there in phpMyAdmin? Just open the drop-down in the functions column. I will md5 hash your plain text password for you.
genuine <3
thank you for all the know-how and tricks you share!
Thanks Sara
we are glad you find them useful. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook for more WordPress tips and tutorials.
Sir/Madam
I am interested in becoming a professional web designer using the WordPress platform but don’t know where to start. Any advise thanks.
Thank you so much. The instructions were easy enough for even me to follow. God bless you
THANK YOU!!
I was caught up on the md5 encryption of the pw field. This really save my tail. I was using a member profile update which stripped all the email fields. This in turn also stripped mine and poof! Everyone’s password was deleted.
Seriously.
So, thank you a lot.
-Graham
How do I find my “hosting provider” so I can get to phpmyadmin? I am new to this.
Thanks a lot!
Great post, i wasn’t able to access my WP site for months already but thanks to this post, it is really a big help for me. Thank you.
Thanks alot. I was worried and stuck as well as i was unable to acess my WordPress dashboard for 2 hours. your recipe worked quickly. Thanks once again
Glad it helped you solve the issue
Thanks!! it worked! :):)
Lifesaver, thank you!
What a fantastic email, new to C-panel but this tutorial was so clear I did it first time.
Great job.
Regards,
Alan
Thank you !!!
Did this now Jetpack gives me this error :
Jetpack could not contact WordPress.com: register_http_request_failed. This usually means something is incorrectly configured on your web host.
Operation timed out after 15000 milliseconds with 0 bytes received
Any tips on this?
Thank you so much. The instructions were easy enough for even me to follow
I wish it worked for me……I followed the directions [easy] but when I went to put in the MD5 hash numbers, they were exactly the same as what was already in the field value. This tells me that my problem is then not entering my user name and password that is the problem, but something completely different. …..:(
Thank you, but ..
while I can now reset the password with the MD5 code, derived from the new password I created, say, “abc” , and I finish and go back to my wordpress adimin signin:
domain.org/wp-admin : username ; password
for the password do I now use “abc” ?
Yes the password is “abc” – very nice – between your post and the video you are very clear, thank you.
Not quite correct. If you choose MD5 as the function in the drop down menu, and then type the password in plain text it hashes the value to an MD5 value.
awesome post thanks a lot
Just wanted to say a BIG thank you for this article! I was indeed hacked and had sought assistance from my hosting company and others.. but this article was the only straight forward approach that worked first time! Thanks so much!
Glad you found it helpful.
I spent hours trying to find a website to explain why I was logged onto my WP then 5 minutes later I couldn’t log onto it again.
Thank you so much for the simple video. Problem solved in 5 minutes!
You rock!
Glad you found it helpful.
Thank you. For anyone that finds the video confusing just follow the written instructions.
thank you so much for this tutorial…
Thank you for this turorial
thank you work charm.
I’m the dunce from Mars who can’t speak computer. I’ll start with this:
“The best place to look is your wp-config.php file which is located in your root WordPress Directory.”
OK–where is it and how do I get there? I can’t log into my site because it will not any accept any password resets. I tried Chris’s phone method and got in on my phone, but not on my laptop. and when I tried to post something on the phone, I got a message that I should install the latest Jetpack, but I had to log into WordPress again, and guess what–“Invalid username.”
Is any of you who found these instructions such a breeze willing to speak to me on the phone? I’m writing from my wit’s end. That’s where I am. I would so appreciate it! Cheers!
wp-config.php file resides on your web server. You can login to your web hosting control panel, locate the file manager, and then locate wp-config.php file. Alternately, you can also edit it using an FTP client.
Thank You! Thank You! Easy and worked like a charm!