You can switch authenticator apps without losing account access, but the move is not usually a single app-to-app transfer: each service controls its own MFA enrollment. First make sure you have a recovery method that does not rely on the old phone, then transfer or re-enroll accounts and test sign-in before erasing the device or removing the old method.
Before you switch, make a safe route back into each account
List the accounts that use the old authenticator, including email, financial services, work or school logins, and other important sites. An authenticator app stores or displays sign-in credentials, but each service decides how its MFA enrollment can be changed. Moving an app therefore does not necessarily move every account’s MFA setup.
For each account, confirm you can sign in now and identify a fallback that does not depend on the old phone. Depending on the service, that may be a backup code, another signed-in device, a security key, a passkey on another device, or an alternate phone number. Save recovery codes somewhere private and accessible without the phone; never share them with someone who contacts you.
Google says its account backup codes are single-use and that generating a new set invalidates the old set. Google currently provides 10 codes per generated set. These are Google Account recovery details, not a universal feature or count for other services. Google’s backup-code instructions explain how to use them.
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Choose the transfer path that matches your apps and devices
| Situation | What to do | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Same authenticator app, sync or backup already enabled | Sign in or restore using the app’s documented recovery account and process. | Confirm the correct recovery account and supported platform; a backup may not restore every kind of sign-in method. |
| Google Authenticator, old phone available | Use Google Account sync or its QR-code export/import process. | QR transfer moves Google Authenticator entries; it does not establish compatibility with another app. |
| Microsoft Authenticator, new phone | Use Microsoft’s backup and restore process. | Restore is limited to the same device type, and some account types require sign-in again. |
| Switching to a different authenticator product | Plan to re-enroll accounts through each service’s security settings unless both app makers document a compatible transfer. | A backup from one app should not be assumed to import into a competing app. |
| Old phone unavailable | Use each account provider’s recovery route, then enroll a new method. | Providers do not necessarily have a way to recover third-party authenticator secrets for you. |
Transfer Google Authenticator codes
Google documents two ways to get Google Authenticator codes onto a new device: sync through a Google Account, or manually export and import using QR codes. The instructions are for Google Authenticator itself; they do not say that another authenticator app can import the same export.
Use Google Account sync
If the codes are synced to a Google Account, sign in to that same account in Google Authenticator on the new device. Synced codes should then be available there. Google says synced codes are encrypted in transit and at rest across its products. If you chose “Use without an account,” the codes stay on that device and are not available on other devices through Google Account sync. See Google’s Google Authenticator instructions for current app details.
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Export and import with QR codes
- Install the latest Google Authenticator app on the new phone.
- On the old phone, open Google Authenticator and choose Transfer codes > Export codes. Select the accounts to transfer.
- On the new phone, choose Transfer codes > Import codes and scan the QR code shown by the old phone.
- If the transfer displays more than one QR code, scan each one, then check that the expected accounts appear on the new phone.
The QR codes encode authentication secrets. Keep them private: do not save or send screenshots or unencrypted copies. Do not remove the old device’s codes until you have tested the new setup.
Transfer Microsoft Authenticator entries
Microsoft’s backup and restore process works only between devices of the same type: an iOS backup cannot be restored to Android, or vice versa. The setup also differs by platform. On Android, Microsoft directs users to enable Cloud Backup and select a Microsoft personal recovery account. On iOS, its instructions list iCloud Drive, iCloud Keychain, iCloud Backup, and Authenticator among the Apple Account’s Saved to iCloud settings. Follow Microsoft’s current backup instructions and transfer guide for the device you use.
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Restored entries do not all behave alike. Microsoft says personal accounts that use one-time codes and third-party OTP entries may have their codes restored. Work or school account entries restore as account names and require another sign-in to complete setup. Personal Microsoft accounts using passwordless sign-in may also need to be set up again.
Passkeys are separate from Authenticator account backup. Check whether a passkey is synced in a credential manager, or create and test a new passkey before removing the old device. A restored account name alone does not confirm that an approval method or passkey is ready.
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Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.“Keep your old phone until you confirm that you can sign in to the accounts and resources you use most often.”
Switching to a different authenticator app
Do not assume that a cloud backup, QR export, or account entry from one authenticator can be imported into another. The documented Google process covers Google Authenticator sync or its own QR transfer, while Microsoft’s backup instructions cover restoring Microsoft Authenticator entries. Neither establishes a universal cross-app format.
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For a different app, use the service’s own security settings to change the MFA method. Depending on the service, you may need to sign in, add the new authenticator, scan a new enrollment QR code, and verify a code before the change is complete. Keep the old method enabled until the service confirms the new one works. If the service does not allow two methods to overlap, make sure its recovery route is ready before replacing the old method.
If you no longer have the old phone
Recover access through each service, rather than expecting the new authenticator to recreate codes from a missing device. For a Google Account, available options can include another phone already signed in, another number enrolled in 2-Step Verification, a previously saved backup code, a registered hardware security key, a passkey on another device, or Google Account recovery. Which options appear depends on what you configured. Google’s guidance on backup codes also covers code use; an organization-managed account may require an administrator.
After regaining access, visit each service’s security settings and enroll the new phone or authenticator. If the old phone was lost or stolen, follow the account provider’s device-security guidance and remove its access to codes where possible. Google notes that when unsynced codes were stored on a lost device, you may need to visit each service and relink a new device. For work or school accounts, use your organization’s approved process or contact its administrator if self-service recovery is unavailable.
Test the new setup before retiring the old one
- Use the new app or method to sign in to high-priority accounts, starting with the accounts you rely on most.
- Confirm that work or school accounts complete any required sign-in again, and test passkeys or passwordless methods separately.
- Check that recovery codes and at least one fallback method remain available for each important service.
- Only after successful tests, remove the old MFA method if appropriate, then erase or retire the old phone.
Add an independent backup method
A hardware security key can provide another way to verify an account when a phone is unavailable, if the service and account configuration support it. Google lists a registered security key among possible ways to verify account ownership when a phone is unavailable. A key does not transfer authenticator codes; enroll it with the service and test it before relying on it as a fallback. Google’s backup-code and recovery guidance describes its available verification routes.
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