How do I reset Joomla administrator password?

If you have lost your Joomla administrator password and cannot log into the backend, you can reset it directly in the database using phpMyAdmin. No email recovery is needed.

01. Reset via phpMyAdmin

1. Log into cPanel > Databases > phpMyAdmin
2. Select your Joomla database from the left sidebar (check configuration.php in your Joomla root for the database name if unsure)
3. Click the SQL tab and run this query:

UPDATE #__users SET password = MD5('NewPassword123')
WHERE username = 'admin';

Replace #__ with your actual Joomla database table prefix (the default is jos_ for older versions or a random prefix for newer installations). Replace NewPassword123 with your desired password. Replace admin with your admin username if different.

02. After Resetting

1. Log into Joomla admin at yourdomain.com/administrator
2. Enter the username and your new password
3. Immediately change the password again through the Joomla admin interface (Users > Manage > click your user > set a proper password). The MD5 hash we used above is a legacy format. Joomla will automatically upgrade it to a secure bcrypt hash when you change it through the admin panel.

03. Alternative: Create a New Admin User

If you cannot find your admin username, you can insert a new super admin user via SQL. This is more complex and version-dependent. Check Joomla's official documentation for the correct INSERT statement for your version.

For other CMS password resets: WordPress has a built-in "Lost your password?" link on the login page that sends a reset email. phpMyAdmin can be used for direct database edits on any CMS.

Quick Recap

1. Open phpMyAdmin in cPanel
2. Run the UPDATE query on the users table with an MD5 password
3. Log in and change the password again through Joomla's admin panel
4. Check configuration.php for your database name and table prefix
5. MD5 is temporary - Let Joomla upgrade it to a secure hash

CMS password recovery · Last updated March 2026 · Browse all PHP Scripts articles