Instagram accounts are taken over by phished passwords every day, and getting one back is slow. Meta recommends an authentication app over text messages: codes cannot be intercepted with your phone number, and you can keep them on more than one device.
Turn on two-factor authentication on Instagram
- Sign in at instagram.com on your computer and click “More” in the bottom left.
- Choose “Settings”, then “Accounts Center”.
- Open “Password and security” → “Two-factor authentication” and select your Instagram account.
- Choose “Authentication app” and click “Next”.
- Add the key or QR code Instagram shows to the extension as described below, then enter the confirmation code on Instagram.
Add Instagram to Authenticator
- Install 2FA Authenticator from the Chrome Web Store and pin it to the toolbar, so its icon is one click away.
- Leave the Instagram page with the QR code open. Click the Authenticator icon, then “Add Account” → “QR Code” → “Scan QR from screen”.
- The account appears in the list with a six-digit code that changes every 30 seconds. Rename it if you like — the name is only for you.
- Go back to Instagram and type the current code into the confirmation field. If it is about to expire, wait for the next one.
- Instagram confirms that two-factor authentication is on. From now on it will ask for a code when you sign in — click the extension icon and copy it.
No QR code, or it will not scan? Look for the option to enter a key manually on Instagram’s setup screen, copy the key, and add it in the extension with “Add Account” → “Manual” → “Secret Key”.
Get 2FA Authenticator for Chrome — freeSave your Instagram backup codes
In Accounts Center → Password and security → Two-factor authentication, select your account and open “Additional methods” → “Backup codes”. Write them down or save them away from this computer — a backup code signs you in when the authentication app is not available.
The code is not accepted?
Most often the QR code changed: the website makes a new one each time its setup page is reloaded or opened again, so the account you added first no longer matches. Start the setup again, add the QR code that is on the screen now and type its code in straight away. Two entries for the same website? Use the newest. Other reasons: why codes are refused.
Typed the key in by hand? Paste it into the TOTP code generator and compare the code with the one in the extension. If they differ, the key was copied wrong — add the account again.
Questions
- Can I use an Instagram authentication app on my computer?
- Yes. Instagram needs an app that produces standard six-digit codes, and the Authenticator extension produces them in Chrome. Setting it up on the computer also means you can sign in on the web without reaching for your phone.
- Is an authentication app better than SMS for Instagram?
- Yes. SMS codes can be intercepted by someone who takes over your phone number, and they do not arrive when you are abroad or offline. An authentication app generates codes on your device with no network at all.
- What if I lose access to my authentication app?
- Sign in with a backup code or another method you set up, then set the authentication app up again. Keeping the extension’s automatic backups on, and exporting a password-protected backup, means a reinstall does not lose the account.
- Can I use the same authentication app on my phone too?
- Yes. Meta allows more than one device. The simplest way is during setup: scan the same QR code with your phone app as well, before you confirm — both will show the same codes. Later you can export the account from the extension as an otpauth:// link in Settings → Export.
Your codes, one click from the login page
Authenticator keeps your 2FA codes in the browser, on your device only — free to use, open source, no account and no phone needed. Local backups and optional password protection come built in.
Get 2FA Authenticator for Chrome — free