How to Recover/Reactivate an Old Yahoo! Mail Account

What to Know

Sign in to Yahoo with the deleted email address, then select Next. Choose a recovery method (Text or Email). Follow the instructions.
To confirm the account is deleted, go to the Forgot Username page and enter the email address. Deleted accounts aren't recognized.
Most Yahoo Mail users have up to 30 days from the time of deletion to recover their account.

You may be able to recover a Yahoo email account that you deleted before it is permanently removed from the Yahoo servers. Here's how Yahoo account recovery works and how you can easily recover a deleted account.

How to Reactivate Your Yahoo Account

You have two ways to reactivate your Yahoo account if it wasn't permanently deleted. You can either go to the Yahoo homepage or use the Sign-in helper. Here's how to reactivate your account from the Yahoo homepage.

Go to the Yahoo homepage and select Sign in.
Enter your Yahoo email address, then select Next.
If your account is recoverable, Select an option appears. From here, select your method of recovery (choose either Text or Email).
Enter the verification code you received in the text or email message.
If the verification code is entered correctly, you're prompted to create a new password. Select Continue to change the password.
Once successful, select Continue again.
You may be prompted to confirm your account recovery settings. Select the Pencil to edit or select Add email or mobile no to add additional accounts. Otherwise, select Looks good to continue.

How to Confirm Your Yahoo Mail Account Has Been Deleted

If you want to see if your Yahoo Mail account has been deleted, do the following:

Most Yahoo Mail users have up to 30 days (approximately 90 days for accounts in Australia, India, and New Zealand, and approximately 180 days for accounts registered in Brazil, Hong Kong, and Taiwan) from the time of deletion to recover their account. After that point, it will be permanently deleted from the Yahoo servers, and you won't be able to recover the account.

Open a web browser, then go to https://login.yahoo.com/forgot.
In the Email address or phone number field, enter your Yahoo email address, then select Continue.
If your account was permanently deleted, you see the message, Sorry, we don't recognize that email address or phone number.

How to Reactivate Your Account via Sign-in Helper

If you don't remember your Yahoo Mail password, follow these steps:

Open a web browser and go to https://login.yahoo.com/forgot.
Enter your Yahoo mail address in the Email address or phone number field, then select Continue.
Select a verification method. Choose either Text or Email.
Enter the verification code you received by text or email message.
If the verification code is entered correctly, you're prompted to create a new password. Select Continue to change your password or select I'll secure my account later if you know your password.

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for letting us know!

Tell us why!