Do I need a phone for Zapier two-factor authentication?

No. Zapier names Google Authenticator and Authy, but all it checks is the six-digit code, and any standard authenticator produces it. The Authenticator extension reads the QR code straight off the Zapier setup page and generates the codes in Chrome.

What if I lose access to my authenticator?

At the sign-in prompt click “Use a recovery code”, enter an unused one, and set the authenticator up again. Without recovery codes Zapier cannot let you back in, which is why saving them — and keeping the extension’s automatic backups on — matters more here than almost anywhere.

Why does Zapier say my code is wrong?

Usually the computer clock is off by a minute or more. Turn on automatic date and time and try the next code. If it still fails, the account may have been added from an old QR code — disable 2FA with a recovery code, enable it again and add the new QR code.

How do I move Zapier 2FA to a new device or app?

Zapier has no “switch device” button: disable two-factor authentication in the same settings, then enable it again and scan the new QR code. With the extension you can instead restore it from a backup on the new computer, and the codes carry on working.

Zapier Authenticator App — Set Up Two-Factor Authentication

A Zapier account holds live connections to everything else you use — email, CRM, payments, spreadsheets — so whoever signs in can read from and act in all of them through your Zaps. Zapier highly recommends two-factor authentication, and with it on, a stolen password alone no longer gets anyone in.

Turn on two-factor authentication in Zapier

Zapier 2FA is set by each member for themselves — on Team and Enterprise plans the account’s owners and admins cannot turn it on or off for you. If your company signs in to Zapier through SAML single sign-on, 2FA cannot be turned on in Zapier at all; it is set up in the company’s login instead.

Sign in at zapier.com on your computer and open your “Settings”.
In the left sidebar, under “My account”, select “Security and data”.
In the “Security” section, select “Two-Factor Authentication”, then click “Setup Two-Factor Authentication”.
In the “Get an Authentication App” section, click “Next Step”.
In the “Verify Code” section, Zapier shows a barcode — a QR code. Leave it on the screen and add it to the extension as described below — then enter the six-digit code and click “Next Step”.

Zapier’s own instructions

Add Zapier 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 Zapier 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 Zapier and type the current code into the confirmation field. If it is about to expire, wait for the next one.
Zapier 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 Zapier’s setup screen, copy the key, and add it in the extension with “Add Account” → “Manual” → “Secret Key”.

Get 2FA Authenticator for Chrome — free

Save your 10 Zapier recovery codes

In “Save Your Recovery Codes”, click “Copy” or “Download” and keep the codes somewhere other than this computer; Zapier then asks you to enter one of them to prove you saved them. You can see them again in your two-factor authentication settings, and “Regenerate Codes” makes a new set of ten. Zapier is blunt: lose both the authenticator and these codes and the account is locked for good — its support team cannot restore access. On paid plans you can also add an emergency phone number.

The code is not accepted?

Almost always the computer’s clock. The codes are calculated from the current time, so a clock that is a minute off produces codes that look right and are refused. Turn on automatic date and time in your system settings — step-by-step for Windows, macOS and Linux.

If the clock is right, check the key itself: 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

Do I need a phone for Zapier two-factor authentication?: No. Zapier names Google Authenticator and Authy, but all it checks is the six-digit code, and any standard authenticator produces it. The Authenticator extension reads the QR code straight off the Zapier setup page and generates the codes in Chrome.
What if I lose access to my authenticator?: At the sign-in prompt click “Use a recovery code”, enter an unused one, and set the authenticator up again. Without recovery codes Zapier cannot let you back in, which is why saving them — and keeping the extension’s automatic backups on — matters more here than almost anywhere.
Why does Zapier say my code is wrong?: Usually the computer clock is off by a minute or more. Turn on automatic date and time and try the next code. If it still fails, the account may have been added from an old QR code — disable 2FA with a recovery code, enable it again and add the new QR code.
How do I move Zapier 2FA to a new device or app?: Zapier has no “switch device” button: disable two-factor authentication in the same settings, then enable it again and scan the new QR code. With the extension you can instead restore it from a backup on the new computer, and the codes carry on working.

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.