The Complete Guide to Resetting Your Samsung Tablet Password in 2025

If you’re reading this right now, chances are one of two things is happening. Either you want to reset your Samsung tablet password because it’s been the same since 2018 or you’re staring at a locked screen right now - frantically trying combinations - and wondering if you’ll ever see your vacation photos again. 

But there’s good news. 

Whether you remember your password (or not), we’re going to show you the exact steps to reset your Samsung tablet password. 

Let’s start with the easy scenario first. 

Scenario One: You remember your password 

This is the easy one, and Samsung made it simple: 

• On your Home screen, swipe up to open the Menu. 

• Choose Settings > Lock screen > Screen lock type 

• Enter your current PIN or password when prompted 

• Choose Continue and then choose PIN or Password 

• Set a new PIN or password and choose Continue 

• Re-enter the new PIN or password and choose OK. And that’s it! 

Scenario Two: You forgot your password 

Ok, take a deep breath. 

Remember this happens to someone, somewhere in the world, every single day. 

If you’ve forgotten your Samsung tablet password, you have options. 

• For newer Samsung tablets (One UI 6.1 and higher), you can either (a) “Reset with previous screen lock” or (b) perform a remote factory reset with Samsung SmartThings Find.  

• For older Samsung tablets, a factory reset via Recovery Mode is your best bet. 

Let’s start with the options for resetting newer Samsung tablets. 

Option A: Reset with previous screen lock 

When you enter the wrong password five times, you’ll see a "Reset with previous screen lock" menu.  

If you changed your password recently (within 72 hours), you can use your OLD password to unlock it and then set up a new one. Note, however, that you can’t use this option if your screen lock relies solely on biometrics. 

Option B: Perform a remote factory reset with Samsung SmartThings Find (if you have a Samsung account) 

This one requires you to: 

• sign in to a Samsung account 

• connect your tablet to a Wi-Fi network 

With SmartThings Find, you can locate your tablet (if lost) with a registered Samsung account.  

Performing a remote factory reset via SmartThings Find erases all your data. But it also removes your password so you can set up a new one. Here’s how to do it: 

• Head to https://smartthingsfind.samsung.com/login 

• Sign in to your Samsung account. 

• On the left-hand side of the screen, you’ll see all the devices connected to your Samsung account. Select the device you'd like to factory reset. 

• Click Erase data 

• If you’re asked to verify your identity, a pop-up box will appear so you can enter the verification code sent to your Samsung tablet. After you enter the code, click Verify. Once your identity has been verified, click Erase data again. 

• A pop-up box will appear asking for confirmation that you'd like to wipe your device. Click Erase to confirm. 

• Another pop-up message will appear asking you to confirm your Samsung account password. Enter your password, then click Next. 

• Your device will undergo a factory reset, and you can set up a new password after. 

Now, let’s talk about what to do when none of the above works (because you have an older Samsung tablet). 

What happens when you reset a Samsung tablet? 

Here’s what no one tells you until it’s too late. 

A factory reset wipes all data stored on your device. This includes all your settings, downloaded apps, photos, carefully curated bookmarks, and game progress. 

This type of reset returns your Samsung tablet to its original state, i.e. before it left the factory. 

And this is important: If you have a microSD card that’s encrypted, you MUST decrypt it before resetting. Otherwise, your tablet won’t be able to read the data on it after the reset. 

That said, rest assured there are other reset methods that won’t erase all your data.   

What are the different types of Samsung tablet resets? 

Not all resets are created equal. You’ve got three options when it comes to resetting your Samsung tablet. 

#1 Soft reset 

This is your simple power off-and-on-again method. 

Depending on your device, you may have separate Power and Bixby buttons or a combined Side button. Either of these can be used to power down and turn on your tablet. 

If your device has a Side button: 

• From the top of the screen, swipe down with two fingers to open the Quick settings panel. 

• Tap the Power icon in the upper right of the screen (next to the Settings icon), and then tap Power Off. 

• Tap Power Off again to confirm. 

• To turn your device back on, press and hold the Side button. 

If your device has a dedicated Power button: 

• Press and hold the Power button until the Power menu appears.  

• Tap Power Off, and then tap Power Off again to confirm.  

• To power the device back on, press and hold the Power button. 

To power off using Bixby, you must have already set up Bixby Voice.  

How do I activate Bixby on my Samsung tablet?

• First, press and hold the Side button or Bixby button to open Bixby. You may be asked to sign in to your Samsung account. 

• Next, tap Start. Read the information in the pop-up message and tap Continue. 

• Press and hold the Side button or Bixby button to talk to Bixby. Alternatively, you can open the Bixby app, usually located in the Samsung folder. 

• To enable Voice wake-up, press and hold the Side button or Bixby button again, and then ask Bixby to open Bixby Settings. 

• You can also open Bixby Settings from your tablet’s Settings menu: Settings > Advanced features > Bixby. 

• Tap Voice registration, and then select a Voice wake-up command like “Hi Bixby” or just “Bixby.” To finish a conversation, simply say “That’s all,” “Goodbye,” or “Dismiss.” If you keep waking up Bixby by accident, you can change the wake-up sensitivity. 

To do a soft reset or restart your device with Voice wake-up, simply say, “Hi Bixby, restart my tablet.” Bixby will hear you and your tablet will restart.  

#2 Forced reset or restart 

This is useful if your tablet is frozen or isn’t responding. To do a forced reset, press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons together for more than seven (7) seconds until the screen goes black, and the Samsung logo appears, indicating the tablet is rebooting. 

Like the soft reset, the forced reset doesn’t erase data. It just forces your tablet to reboot without using the screen. 

#3 Factory reset (hard reset) 

There are times when a hard reset or factory reset is necessary. Perhaps you’d like to sell or give away your Samsung tablet. Or you forgot your password and want to get access back. If so, you’d want to do these four things before your factory reset: 

Back up everything. This includes photos, videos, contacts, and documents. Anything you don’t want to lose. You have solid options for this:  

• Samsung Cloud. To access this option, open Settings > (tap) Samsung account name at the top of the screen > Samsung Cloud > Back up data. Choose the data you'd like to back up by tapping the switch(es) and tap Back up now. 

• LastPass. Did you know that you can save more than passwords in LastPass Secure Notes? This includes credit card details, bank account info, Wi-Fi and firewall passwords, club membership cards, emergency contacts, and more. 

• Google Drive. To access this, open Settings > Accounts and backup > Back up data (under Google Drive) > Back up now. 

• Manual transfer. If you only need to back up certain files, connect your tablet to a computer with a USB cable and drag-and-drop your important files to a folder on your PC. Old school but bulletproof.  

Decrypt your microSD card. From Settings, select Decrypt SD card, and then follow the on-screen prompts. As mentioned, you’ll want to decrypt your microSD card if it’s encrypted. Otherwise, your tablet won’t be able to read the card after the factory reset. 

Sign out of your account. You’ll need a network connection to log out of your Samsung account before you can finish the reset.  

Charge your tablet. Make sure you have at least 70% battery, so your reset doesn’t die mid-process. 

Next, let’s walk through the steps on how to perform a factory reset via Recovery Mode. 

How to factory reset your Samsung tablet without password (using Recovery Mode) 

This is your last resort. It wipes everything, but it always works. 

Here's the step-by-step process: 

• First, power off your tablet completely. 

• Press and hold the Volume Up and Power buttons together. 

• Keep holding until you see the Samsung logo or Recovery Menu screen. 

• Use the Volume Up or Volume Down buttons to move through the options in the Recovery Menu and highlight Wipe data/factory reset. 

• Press the Power button to select it. 

• Use the Volume buttons to highlight Yes or Yes – delete all user data, then press the Power button to confirm. 

• Your tablet will now erase all data and return your tablet to factory settings. 

• Once the reset is finished, select Reboot system now and press the Power button. The tablet will restart fresh, just like it came out of the box. 

Never get locked out again: Save yourself from Samsung password resets with LastPass 

If you’ve tried everything in this guide and are still stuck, Samsung has actual humans who can help. Call the official line at 1-800-726-7864 or head to the official support page at https://www.samsung.com/us/support/contact/ for more options. 

Once you’ve recovered access, there’s a better way to keep that access. It’s called LastPass, and here’s what it does for you: 

• Built-in password generator: Never rack your brain to create a “complex” password again. Our password generator does it for you. And once it’s done, you don’t even need to remember or type it. Our secure autofill does it for you. 

• AES-256 encryption: This is military-grade protection, the same one used by the NSA, federal agencies, and the military to protect Top Secret data. With LastPass, every login credential and URL associated with those credentials is encrypted. This means attackers will only see gibberish if they even manage to break in. 

At LastPass, the security of your data is our highest priority. Whenever there’s a potential breach, our dedicated TIME (Threat Intelligence, Mitigation, and Escalation) team (with nearly 50 years of intelligence experience) immediately investigates and works round the clock to address and contain issues.

This can be seen in the recent September 2025 Atomic infostealer campaign targeting macOS users, where our security researchers Alex Cox, Mike Kosak, and Stephanie Schneider were at the forefront of efforts to warn the public about malware-laced programs masquerading as legitimate tools. This swift response is part of our ongoing commitment to keeping your information safe.

See how our new, purpose-built, highly secure infrastructure compares with 1Password. If you’re doing business today, learn how you can get regular key rotation and vault re-encryption to keep the vaults of your federated users safe. It’s like changing the locks periodically on your front door to ensure only you have access. 

• Advanced multi-factor authentication: With LastPass, you get powerful MFA options. Unlock them today with a free trial of LastPass Premium (for individuals) or Business Max (for organizations).  

No credit card is required for registration because we want you to see how much easier your life becomes when you stop relying on password resets to regain access. Whether you’re running a business with 200 logins or just want to remember your Samsung tablet password, LastPass never stops working to ensure secure access for all your online accounts.  

I have been using LastPass for the last two and a half years, daily, and this is the most reliable password manager I have used to date... Over the last two and a half years of my experience, I have never seen LastPass being down or having any kind of issue while being implemented...In fact, in my organization, it is mandatory to use LastPass as it is the most secure and most trusted platform. We even use LastPass for generating passwords...

Avinash S, infrastructure support analyst and verified G2 reviewer

Sources

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10002030/

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS00062607/

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10001374/

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10003231/

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10001415/

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10001414/

https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10002780/

https://thetechgorilla.com/how-to-factory-reset-samsung-tablet

https://www.t-mobile.com/support/tutorials/device/samsung/galaxy-tab-a7-lite/topic/settings/change-device-lock-password-pin

https://www.samsung.com/ae/support/mobile-devices/what-is-the-reset-with-previous-lock-feature-and-how-do-i-use-it-if-i-forget-the-new-pin-password-pattern/