If you’ve lost access to your iTunes account, there are a few steps you can take to try to recover it. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk through all the different options for tracking down a lost iTunes account so you can get back in and access your music, apps, and more.
Quick Overview – How Do I Find My Lost iTunes Account?
Here are some quick answers to common questions about finding a lost iTunes account:
- Check your email for iTunes receipts – Any purchases or subscriptions made through iTunes are emailed to the account holder so check your inboxes.
- Use Find My iPhone – If you have Find My iPhone enabled, you can locate lost iOS devices logged into your iTunes account.
- Answer security questions – Apple will ask security questions to verify your identity if you contact them about a lost account.
- Check iTunes on other devices – Your iTunes account may still be logged in on other phones, tablets, or computers you own.
- Use a password manager – See if the iTunes login is stored in a password manager app you use.
Check Your Email for iTunes Receipts
Whenever you purchase or subscribe to something through your iTunes account, such as an app, song, movie, or Apple service like Apple Music, you should receive an email receipt to the email address associated with your iTunes account.
Go through your email and see if you can find any receipts from Apple iTunes Store. The emails will be from [email protected]. If you purchased music, it would be from [email protected] with a subject like “Your iTunes Store purchase receipt for [Song Name].” If you purchased a specific app, the email subject would say “Your iTunes Store purchase receipt for [App Name].”
Searching your email for any iTunes receipts from the past can help jog your memory on what email you used to set up the account. And if you find a recent receipt, you may still be logged in on that device which made the purchase.
Check Different Email Accounts
Be sure to check all of your email accounts if you have multiple – personal, work, school, etc. You may have used an older email you no longer use as often when you first created your iTunes account years ago.
Go through the inbox, sent, spam, and any other folders in each account. If you have a lot of emails, try searching for keywords like “iTunes” “Apple” or “receipt.” The receipts get sent immediately after every purchase, so there is likely a record if you bought apps, music, or other media at some point.
Check Email on Old Devices
If you’ve changed phones or computers since originally setting up your iTunes account, make sure to check any old devices still logged into your email. Sometimes we forget to remove accounts from old phones or delete emails when upgrading to new devices.
Sign into any old phones, tablets, laptops, or computers you still have access to and check if they have any iTunes receipts in their email inbox. They may hold clues to your forgotten iTunes account email address or other useful details.
Use Find My iPhone
If you have ever turned on Find My iPhone for an iOS device logged into your missing iTunes account, you may be able to use it to your advantage locating your account.
Find My iPhone is enabled through your iCloud account and lets you remotely view and manage devices associated with your account. Even if you no longer have the device, you can sign into iCloud.com and check Find My iPhone to see if any devices show up there.
Locate Old iPhones, iPads, or iPod Touches
If you’re lucky, an old iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch you used with your iTunes account many years ago could still be logged in and show up in Find My iPhone. This would confirm at least part of the Apple ID email address or password you used for that iTunes account.
You can also try playing a sound on the device from Find My iPhone to help track it down if you no longer know where it is in your home. Just hearing the sound in a drawer or box somewhere could jog your memory.
See Login Location History
Find My iPhone shows a map view where you can see the last known location history of devices logged into your iCloud account. This can help remind you of devices you may have forgotten were linked to your iTunes account at one point.
Maybe an old location will stand out to you and bring back memories of using that device with your iTunes apps and music.
Answer Apple’s Security Questions
If you contact Apple Support to ask for help accessing a lost iTunes account, one of the ways they can verify you are the account owner is by asking security questions.
When you originally created your iTunes account, you may have provided answers to questions like “What city were you born in?” or “What was the name of your first pet?” in order to help confirm your identity if you ever forgot your password.
Before contacting Apple Support, try to think back and come up with answers for any security questions you may have set up. This will speed up the account recovery process.
Think Back to When You Opened Your Account
Reflect back to when you think you originally created your iTunes account and the details you would have used at that time for security questions. If it was 10 years ago, what city did you live in then? What phone number would you have used?
Jot down any details from the time period when you opened the iTunes account so they are handy if Apple asks for verification.
Research Common Security Questions
There are some more common security questions Apple tends to use, like the street you grew up on, your first car, or your childhood best friend’s name. Do some thinking or research into answers for questions like these that Apple may ask.
Talk to family members who may remember details from your childhood that could be answers to security questions on your iTunes account.
Check iTunes on Other Devices
Your iTunes account doesn’t just work on one device. Anytime you’ve logged into iTunes on another iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac computer, or Windows PC, it will remember your account.
It’s possible you may still be logged into your iTunes account on another device that you own, even if you’ve forgotten the password.
Log Into iPhones, iPads and iPods
If you have any other iOS devices like an iPhone or iPad, check to see if the iTunes Store app opens successfully. If your iTunes username and password are saved, the app could automatically log in for you.
You can also try going into Settings > iTunes & App Store and see if your Apple ID is listed there. Tap your profile at the top of this screen to view the full email address.
Open iTunes App on Windows or Mac
Similarly, open the iTunes desktop app on any Mac or Windows computers you own. Check if you can successfully access the iTunes Store tab without needing to reenter your password.
Look under Account > View My Account in the iTunes menu bar to see your full Apple ID email address if you’re already logged in.
Check Your Password Manager
If you use a password manager app like 1Password, LastPass, or Apple’s iCloud Keychain, there’s a chance it has saved your iTunes login.
Search the app for any stored passwords related to “Apple” or “iTunes.” The username field should show the full email address for your iTunes account if there’s a match.
Reveal Passwords
In your password manager app, tap or click the reveal password icon next to any iTunes or Apple related logins to uncover the full password instead of just asterisks. This can confirm for sure if you have the correct iTunes account stored.
Check Browser Extensions
Many password managers also have browser extensions that integrate with Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge. Check your list of saved passwords in any browser extensions related to your password manager.
You may find your iTunes login already saved there if you had previously allowed it to auto-fill on iTunes.
Contact Apple Support
If you still can’t find your iTunes account details, you can reach out to Apple Support for additional help recovering or resetting your account.
Use Apple Support Chat
Go to getsupport.apple.com and click Chat Now to start a live chat session with an Apple Support advisor. Explain that you’re unable to find your iTunes account details and they can walk you through options.
Make sure to have any relevant information on hand, like your approximate account opening date, any old devices, billing info, or attempts you’ve already made to recover your account.
Call Apple Support
You can also call 1-800-275-2273 for Apple Support in the US or check for numbers in other countries at support.apple.com/contact.
Calling can provide more detailed back and forth conversation with support reps to answer any questions as they try to verify your identity and recover your account info.
Visit an Apple Store
For in-person help, make a Genius Bar appointment at your local Apple retail store. Employees can assist you directly with account recovery steps like identifying old devices, checking iTunes purchase receipts, or submitting account recovery forms.
Having them check while you’re there in the store allows for real-time verification to restore your iTunes access.
Reset Your Apple ID Password
Once you’ve figured out the email address for your Apple ID, you can reset the password if you’ve also forgotten it. Here are a couple ways to reset your Apple ID password:
Reset at iforgot.apple.com
Go to iforgot.apple.com and enter your Apple ID email address. Choose to have a reset password link emailed to you.
Click the link in the email when received and follow prompts to create a new password. You can then use this new password to sign in to iTunes.
Reset in iTunes App
Open iTunes and click Account > View My Account. Click the Forgot password? link below your Apple ID email.
Enter the email address and complete any additional verification steps needed to reset your password. A new temporary password will be emailed to you to login.
Contact Your Email Provider
If you cannot remember the Apple ID email address used for your iTunes account at all, another option is to contact your email provider.
For example, if you know you used a gmail address but not which one, reach out to Google support. Or contact Yahoo if it was a Yahoo email address. Explain the situation and that you need help identifying the old email address that may have been used for iTunes.
Depending on their policies and your account details, the email provider may be able to assist with recovering the old email address, especially if your name was associated with it.
Search Old Email Addresses
If you’ve used an email provider for a long time, like Gmail or Yahoo Mail, log into the account and search through old emails, contacts, or account settings for any clues. There’s a chance your old iTunes account email might show up somewhere.
Look under account recovery options, connected services, mailing lists you subscribed to, or emails containing Apple receipts as places the address could be hiding.
Check Alternative Emails
Think about any alternative emails you may have used at the time like school, work, or other personal addresses. Reach out to those providers as well for help determining the account handle.
Recover iTunes Purchases Separately
If you are totally unable to recover your actual iTunes account for whatever reason, you may be able to restore access separately to purchases like apps, music, movies, TV shows, and books.
Apps
For apps purchased under your Apple ID, you can often recover them through your App Store account even if you lose access to the overall iTunes account used to buy them.
Just sign into the App Store with a new or different Apple ID, go to Purchased, and search for any paid apps you downloaded in the past. Tap their Cloud icon to redownload.
Music, Movies, TV Shows
Sign up for iTunes Match to recover access to music purchased through iTunes in the past. iTunes Match scans your computer for existing music files and makes them available in your new account.
For movies, TV shows, and other iTunes media, you can contact Apple Support and they may be able to assist with getting access to past purchases recovered over to a new account.
iBooks
Books purchased through the iBooks Store can be recovered through the Books app. Open it, tap Purchased, and you should see past book downloads that can be transferred over to a new account.
Prevent Future Lost Accounts
Once you successfully recover access to your iTunes account, make sure you take measures to prevent losing it again in the future. Here are some tips:
- Save account details in a password manager
- Add backup email addresses and phone numbers in Apple ID settings
- Make note of security question answers
- Keep old device with account access as a backup
- Regularly check iTunes purchase receipts for account email reminders
- Set up Apple ID account recovery options at iforgot.apple.com
Conclusion
Losing access to an iTunes account can be stressful, but in many cases it is recoverable. Spend time retracing your steps, checking Apple ID associated emails, using Find My iPhone, answering security questions accurately, and contacting Apple Support to get back into a lost account.
If needed, you may be able to at least get iTunes content purchases restored through alternative means. And be sure to set up redundant account security and backup options so you can avoid a lost iTunes account scenario in the future.
