Was it an exclamation mark (!) or the hash (#) symbol? Remembering passwords is a tricky business, especially given the expanding number of sites we interact with. Some websites have specific criteria and consequently, some passwords are easier to recall than others.
The platform where people forget their passwords the most is YouTube, leading with the highest number of password-related searches. Video streaming users forget their login details the most, with the top platform’s users requesting new passwords over four times a year.
In general, contents consumption platforms see up to 43 times more password reset requests than communication platforms.
This information comes from a firm called Heepsy, based on an examination concerning which social media platforms experience the highest number of password recovery attempts. This was derived by analysing user search behaviour patterns.
The review included 35 popular platforms, using their monthly active user counts to assess the scale of password issues. Data was collected from three common search queries:
“[Platform] password reset,” “[Platform] forgot password,” and “[Platform] recover account.”
These queries reflect users seeking help to regain access. Rankings based on searches per 100K users highlight where users struggle most with passwords, offering insights into potential usability or security issues.
The top sites were established as:
- YouTube
- X
- Spotify
- Twitch
- Line
- Discord
As indicated above, YouTube ranks first with 35.8K password-related searches per 100K users, resulting in 4.3 average password resets per user yearly. The platform records the highest absolute number of password-related searches at over 1.4 billion, primarily driven by “forgot password” queries. YouTube’s massive base of 3.9 billion monthly active users, along with its cross-device usage patterns, contributes significantly to its top position in password reset frequency.
Facebook comes in second, generating 28.2K password recovery searches. Meta’s flagship platform shows a relatively high rate of “recover account” searches (3.5 million monthly). Facebook’s search volume is 21% lower than YouTube, while having about half the user base, with users averaging 3.4 password resets annually.
Pinterest follows in third position, with 20K password-related queries. It has a smaller user base compared to YouTube and Facebook, but its users have a quite high propensity for password issues, with “recover account” searches reaching 73.8 million monthly—21 times higher than Facebook’s recovery searches.
X (formely Twitter before Musk’s intervention) takes the fourth position with 8.4K queries on password recovery or reset, translating to an average of 1 password reset per user yearly. The platform has 65.8 million monthly “forgot password” searches, making up 85.4% of its password-related queries.
Instagram ranks fifth, showing just 5.8K password recovery inquiries. Despite being another Meta property with 1.6 billion users, Instagram has 79% fewer password issues than Facebook. Its mobile-first approach likely helps users remember their passwords, with only 94.3 million total password recovery searches.
Spotify is 6th with 4.2K password-related queries. LinkedIn ranks 7th with password recovery searches at 2.6K less than one-tenth of YouTube’s rate. Twitch ranks 8th, registering 2.2K password-related searches. Amazon’s streaming platform has just 4 million “forgot password” searches—99.9 percent of all Twitch password-related queries. Despite having a similar search rate to LinkedIn, Twitch has fewer total searches due to its smaller user base.
Line ranks 9th with 1.9K password recovery queries. The Naver-owned messaging platform popular in Asia shows minimal password reset patterns with just 3.4 million monthly “forgot password” searches. Discord ranks 10th with only 1K password-related searches per 100,000 users, the lowest in the study and equivalent to just 0.1 password resets per user yearly.
