![xTiles password reset email: [xTiles] Password reset](/email-examples/img/195ed78ba52ad164-t.webp)
What a password reset email is
A password reset email is the message a service sends when someone asks to change a forgotten password. It carries a single-use link or button, or a code to type back in, that lets the account owner set a new one.
We collected 88 from 78 brands in two ordinary inboxes, sent between 2017 and 2026, and show 20 of them here. The percentages describe all 88. The ones left out are not shown yet, or printed something that belongs to the account, such as a live-looking reset link or the reader's device.
Browse all 20 password reset emails
Filter by the links and buttons in each email, or search a brand or subject line. Open any email to see it full length, with its subject line, notes on what it is doing, and a prompt that rebuilds it.
Spotify
Reset your password for Spotify
Headspace
Headspace password reset
Discord
Password Reset Request for Discord
Share with Oscar
Reset password: Reset Password Request
BINGE
Reset your password
PocketSmith
PocketSmith | Password Reset Instructions
Reset your password
X Corp.
Password reset request
[CODE] is your password reset code
PayPal
Verification code to reset your PayPal password
NBA
Your NBA Password Reset Request
xTiles
[xTiles] Password reset
amaysim
Reset your password
TeamViewer
Password reset request
Microsoft account team
Microsoft account password reset
myGov
Your myGov password reset
NYTimes.com
[ACCOUNT_NO] is your password reset code
Linked Helper Service
Password reset code for Linked Helper
Yoto
Reset your password
FirstAidPro Australia
Password Reset Request for FirstAidPro Australia
How password reset emails differ from everything else in the same inboxes
Password reset emails against every other email
88 password reset and 12,623 other emails| What we measured | Password reset | Everything else |
|---|---|---|
| Plain subject line that says what it is | 98% | 32% |
| Text heavy | 95% | 60% |
| Monochrome color | 94% | 62% |
| Exactly one call to action | 78% | 30% |
| Plain-text layout | 68% | 31% |
| Micro length | 63% | 12% |
| Median calls to action | 1 | 2 |
| Greets by first name | 43% | 40% |
98% of password reset emails use a plain subject line that says what the email is, against 32% of everything else the same inboxes received, and 78% carry exactly one call to action, against 30%. The one place they look like other email is the greeting: 43% use the reader's first name, against 40%.
What is in the collected set
Links and buttons in the email
all 88 collected| The email contains | Emails | Share |
|---|---|---|
| A text link | 56 | 64% |
| A button | 23 | 26% |
| A button and a text link | 5 | 6% |
| No call to action, only a code | 4 | 5% |
What the emails say
read in each email's text| The email | All 88 | The 20 shown |
|---|---|---|
| Tells the reader what to do if they did not ask for the reset | 66 (75%) | 17: all but Headspace, PayPal and Linked Helper |
| Says how long the link or code lasts | 30 (34%) | 6: NBA (5 minutes), PocketSmith (30 minutes), Spotify (2 hours), Headspace, amaysim, FirstAidPro (24 hours) |
| Asks for a code instead of a link | read in the 20 shown only | 7: X Corp., Microsoft, PayPal, Facebook, myGov, NYTimes.com, Linked Helper |
79 of the 88 were filed as security email and 9 as account admin. SaaS is the largest industry, with 18, then media and publishing with 14. Code emails split across the first table: of the 7 code emails shown, 5 file as a text link and 2, NYTimes.com and Linked Helper, as no call to action. Those two have no reset link or button; their only links sit in the footer or signature. In the grid, 9 emails contain a button, 8 a text link, 1 both and 2 have no call to action, and 10 use a plain-text layout.
A password reset email template built from the 88
This is our template, not any brand's copy. The subject, the single link and the not-you line follow what most of the 88 do. The greeting, the request line, the expiry and the support line are our additions.
Subject: Reset your [Brand] password Hi [first name], We got a request to reset the password for your [Brand] account. Reset your password: [link] This link expires in [time]. If you did not ask for this, ignore this email and your password stays the same. [Brand] support: [help link]
A plain subject line that says what the email is: 98% of the 88, and 29 of them contain the words "reset your password". One thing to do: 78% have exactly one call to action, and a text link is the most common form, in 64%, against a button in 26% and both in 6%. A line for the reader who did not ask: 66 of the 88, or 75%. The expiry line and the first-name greeting are our recommendation, not the majority: 30 of the 88 (34%) say how long the link or code lasts, and 43% greet the reader by first name.
The expiry line also sets a rule for the sending side. In the 20 shown, the links that state a lifetime last between 5 minutes (NBA) and 24 hours, so a reset email that fails and is retried a day later can arrive with a link that has already expired. Retry a failed reset within minutes, or drop it and let the next request send a fresh one.
Next to this one
The same library, cut by the job the email does: one-time passcode emails, email verification emails, security alerts and account notices.
Questions about the collection
Spotify's, from 2024. The subject is "Reset your password for Spotify", the body says the link is valid for 2 hours, there is one "Reset Password" button, and a closing line says to ignore the email if you did not ask for it. 78% of the 88 we collected carry exactly one call to action, as Spotify's does.
Keep it short and ask for one thing: of the 88, 98% use a plain subject and 78% one call to action. Say what was requested, how long the link lasts and what to do if it was not you. Use up the token on submit, not on page load: Microsoft Defender's Safe Links scans links in inbound mail before delivery.
Someone typed your email address into a sign-in page and asked to reset the password, you or someone else. Nothing changes until the link is used or the code entered, which is why 66 of the 88 we collected tell you what to do if you did not ask for it.
Yes, the template above, built from what the 88 do rather than copied from a brand. Its plain subject, single action and not-you line match most of them: 98%, 78% and 75%. Its expiry line is our recommendation, since only 30 of the 88 say how long the link lasts. More in transactional email templates.
A transactional email is one a system sends because of something a person did, like the 88 password resets here. This library has pages for the other common ones: one-time passcodes, email verification, order confirmations, shipping updates, receipts and invoices.
28 of the 88 are rendered full length so far. We took 8 off this page: six printed something that belongs to the account (a handle, a device and browser, or a reset link with its token), one is from a telehealth service, and one rendered with broken images. The rest count in the percentages but are not shown yet.