Email without a so-called smartphone

Question

Email without a so-called smartphone

Angela Woodgates 0

If login codes are no longer supplied by text message and I use ONLY a laptop, how do I keep access to my Outlook mailbox? PS What is a tag?

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2 answers

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Answer 1

EmilyS726 280.2K Independent Advisor

Hello,

If you do not have a smartphone where you can install authentication app, you options will be to use an alternative email address, that you can access via the laptop. Or passkey if your laptop has Windows PIN set up.

Angela Woodgates 0 Reputation points

2026-11-12T13:25:45.17+00:00

There is no alternative email address, and the passkey options that I've seen appear to require items that I don't have. Explanations also don't explain much for those who don't already know what the various terms mean.
EmilyS726 280.2K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-11-12T13:28:47.9633333+00:00

Angela, if you don't have a smartphone, and want to use 2FA verification, I am not sure if you have a lot of options.

You can get an alternative email address for free from yahoo.com or gmail.com. And then set up a passkey to use your computer's PIN.

Otherwise you will have to disable 2FA, which is not the best for security, but if you prefer not to open an alternative email address.

Answer 2

For a personal Outlook.com account, access does not have to depend on SMS.

Supported alternatives are:

Add a verified email as security info.
- Go to the Security basics page.
- Select Advanced security options > Get started.
- Add another email address or another verification method.
- Enter the security code sent to that method, then select Next.
Set up Microsoft Authenticator.
- Microsoft recommends the Microsoft Authenticator app as an alternative to text-message codes.
- It can generate security codes.
Use a passkey.
- Microsoft is phasing out SMS for personal Microsoft accounts and recommends passkeys and verified email instead.
- Passkeys use the device’s built-in sign-in method, such as PIN, fingerprint, or face sign-in.
On a frequently used device, mark it as trusted.
- Go to the Security settings page.
- Sign in and complete the security code check.
- Select I sign in frequently on this device. Don't ask me for a code.
- Select Submit.
Keep more than one recovery method.
- If one method is unavailable, another can still be used.
- Avoid relying on only one email address or one phone number.

Important limits:

If all security info is lost but the password is still known, replacement security info can be added, but sign-in is blocked for 30 days after replacing all security info.
VOIP numbers cannot be used to receive Microsoft verification codes.
Repeated code requests can trigger a temporary block on code delivery.

About “tag”:

A tag is just a label used to show which product or topic a question is about, such as Outlook.com or Outlook Web.