Managing personal Outlook.com account settings, security, and privacy
For personal Microsoft accounts, a new phone number may no longer be available as a sign-in or verification method. On the Security page, when selecting Manage how I sign in and then Add a new way to sign in or verify, the phone option might not appear. In that case, use one of the available methods instead, such as a recovery email address, Microsoft Authenticator, or a passkey.
To check:
- Go to Sign in on the Microsoft account Security tab.
- Select Manage how I sign in.
- Select Add a new way to sign in or verify.
- If phone number is not offered, add one of the available methods shown there.
If the issue is specifically that the new phone number is already tied to another Microsoft account, a phone number can only be added to a single Microsoft account:
- If the number is on another account owned by the same person, remove it from that account first, then add it to the target account.
- If Transfer is shown, use Transfer to move the number.
- If Transfer is not shown, the number was recently used on another Microsoft account. In that case, use Change number and a different number, or try again after 30 days.
If a recently added number is linked to a different account, the only option is to use a different mobile number.
If sign-in help is needed, use the Sign-in helper. For technical support, use Contact Microsoft Support.
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