My Authenticator App 2FA code doesn't work

25 Apr 2019

Out-of-sync Time

Authenticator App 2FA codes are based on time and thus require the time on your phone to be perfectly in-sync with the official time.

You can disconnect your phone from the internet and as long as its time is still correct, it will successfully generate correct 2FA codes. (Note that manual time settings and offline devices eventually slip out of sync).

If your phone's time is out of sync, or if you have changed time zones, the best way to fix it is to change the time settings on your phone from "Manual" to "Automatic".

On iPhone On Android
  • Go to the Settings app
  • Select General
  • Select Date & Time
  • Enable Set Automatically
  • Go to the Settings app
  • Select General Management
  • Select Date and Time
  • Enable Automatic date and time

Time correction for codes in Google Authenticator for Android:

  1. Go to the main menu on the Google Authenticator app
  2. Click Settings
  3. Click Time correction for codes
  4. Click Sync now