How to Add a User in Windows 10

To add a user in Windows 10, open Settings (press Windows key + I), select Accounts > Family & other users, and then select Add someone else to this PC. Type the person’s Microsoft account email, or, for an account that lives only on this computer, select I don’t have this person’s sign-in information > Add a user without a Microsoft account and choose a user name and password. The new account shows up under Other users and on the sign-in screen right away.

Applies to: Windows 10 Home, Pro, Enterprise and Education, version 22H2. You need to be signed in with an administrator account. The Settings route matches Microsoft’s page on managing user accounts in Windows, which now shows the Windows 11 labels (Other user and Add account) for both versions. On Windows 10, the same buttons are named as described in this guide.

Windows 10 reached end of support on October 14, 2025. A PC enrolled in Extended Security Updates keeps getting security fixes through October 12, 2027; one that isn’t enrolled gets none.

Before you start: pick the right kind of account

Windows asks two questions while you add a user. Deciding the answers first makes the process quick.

Microsoft account or local account?

	Microsoft account	Local account
Signs in with	An email address (Outlook.com, Gmail or any other address registered as a Microsoft account) or phone number	A user name you make up, such as “Alex”
Works on	Any Windows PC; settings and OneDrive files can follow the person	This PC only
Forgotten password	Reset online from any device	Reset with the security questions you set, or by another administrator on this PC
Good for	Family members, people who already use Outlook, OneDrive or Xbox	A roommate, a test account, an offline PC, or anyone who wants nothing synced

Microsoft recommends a Microsoft account because of its cloud sync and account recovery features, but a local account is a fully supported choice. If you mainly need an offline account, the detailed walkthrough for creating a local account on Windows 10 covers that path step by step.

Standard user or administrator?

Every account you add from Settings starts as a Standard User. Standard users can run programs, change their own settings and save their own files, but they can’t install software for everyone or change system settings without an administrator’s password. Keep most people on Standard and promote an account only when that person really manages the PC. You can change this at any time (see Make the new user an administrator).

What you need

• An administrator account. If you sign in as a Standard user, Windows won’t let you add people.
• An internet connection if you’re adding a Microsoft account or a family member. A local account can be created offline.
• The person’s email address (Microsoft account), or a user name and password you’ll hand over (local account). User names can be up to 20 characters and can’t contain characters such as / \ [ ] : ; | = , + * ? < > @ “.

Add a user in Settings

This is the main method and works on every Windows 10 edition.

1. Select the Start button, then select the gear icon to open Settings. You can also press Windows key + I.
2. Select Accounts.
3. In the left pane, select Family & other users. (Some early Windows 10 builds called this Family & other people.) The page has a Your family section at the top and an Other users section below it.
4. Under Other users, select Add someone else to this PC. A Microsoft account window opens and asks how this person will sign in.

5. Now choose one path:
   • To add a Microsoft account: type the person’s email address or phone number, select Next and follow the prompts. The person types their own password the first time they sign in, so you don’t need to know it.
   • To create a new Microsoft account for them: select I don’t have this person’s sign-in information and follow the prompts to sign up for a new address.
   • To create a local account: select I don’t have this person’s sign-in information, then select Add a user without a Microsoft account. Continue with step 6.
6. For a local account, the Create a user for this PC window opens. Type a user name (for example, Jordan), then type a password twice. When you enter a password, Windows also asks you to choose three security questions and answers. Those answers are how the person resets a forgotten password from the sign-in screen, so pick ones they will remember.

7. Select Next. You’re returned to Family & other users, and the new account is listed under Other users.

Leaving the password boxes empty creates an account anyone can open from the sign-in screen. That can be fine for a shared kiosk-style account, but it’s a poor choice for anyone’s personal files.

The Control Panel route ends up in the same place: Control Panel > User Accounts > Manage another account > Add a new user in PC settings opens the Settings page above.

Make the new user an administrator (optional)

Only do this for someone you trust to install software and change system settings. Administrators have complete control over the PC, including other people’s accounts.

1. Go to Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.
2. Under Other users, select the account. Two buttons appear: Change account type and Remove.
3. Select Change account type.
4. In the Account type list, choose Administrator (or Standard User to demote someone), then select OK.

The label under the account name changes to Administrator. For a separate, dedicated admin account (handy for repairs), see the guide to creating an administrator account in Windows 10.

Add a child or other family member

Use Your family instead of Other users when you want parental controls such as screen time limits and content filters. Family accounts are always Microsoft accounts, and you must be signed in to Windows with a Microsoft account yourself.

1. Go to Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.
2. Under Your family, select Add a family member.
3. Choose whether you’re adding a child (a member) or an adult (an organizer who can manage the family), then enter their email address or phone number. If they don’t have one, use the link to create an account for them.
4. Follow the prompts to send the invitation.

The person gets an email invitation and has to accept it by signing in to their Microsoft account. A child under the age of consent is asked to get an adult’s approval. Until then, the invite shows as pending in your family group. Someone who already belongs to another family group has to leave that group first. Microsoft explains the roles and invites on its page about adding people to your family group.

If you only need to lend the PC to a visitor for an afternoon, a guest account on Windows 10 is the simpler setup.

Other ways to add a user

These tools create local accounts only. They’re useful when the Settings window misbehaves, when you’re setting up several PCs, or when you prefer typing commands. Pick one:

• Command Prompt or PowerShell: fastest, works on every edition, good for scripts.
• User Accounts (netplwiz): a classic dialog box, every edition.
• Local Users and Groups (lusrmgr.msc): the most detailed options, but not available on Windows 10 Home.

Command Prompt (net user)

1. Select Start, type cmd, right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator. Select Yes at the User Account Control prompt.
2. Type the following, replacing Priya with the user name you want, and press Enter:

   net user Priya * /add

3. The asterisk makes Windows ask for the password. Type it (nothing appears on screen while you type), press Enter, type it again and press Enter. Windows prints a short confirmation when the account is created.
4. Optional: to make the account an administrator, run:

   net localgroup Administrators Priya /add

5. Type net user and press Enter to see the list of accounts and confirm the new one is there.

You can also type the password right in the command (net user Priya YourPassword /add), but then it stays visible on screen and in the window’s history, so the asterisk is the safer habit. Accounts made this way have no security questions, so if the person forgets the password, an administrator has to reset it. The full option list is on Microsoft’s net user reference.

PowerShell (New-LocalUser)

1. Right-click Start and choose Windows PowerShell (Admin).
2. Run these two lines. The first one asks for the password without showing it:

   $Password = Read-Host -AsSecureString
   New-LocalUser -Name "Priya" -Password $Password -FullName "Priya Shah"

3. PowerShell prints the new account’s name with Enabled set to True.
4. Optional: make it an administrator with Add-LocalGroupMember -Group "Administrators" -Member "Priya".

If the new account doesn’t appear on the sign-in screen afterward, adding it to the standard users group with Add-LocalGroupMember -Group "Users" -Member "Priya" may help. Microsoft notes that this module doesn’t load in 32-bit PowerShell on a 64-bit PC, so use the standard Windows PowerShell window from the Start menu. More options are on the New-LocalUser reference page.

User Accounts window (netplwiz)

1. Press Windows key + R, type netplwiz and press Enter.
2. On the Users tab, select Add.
3. For a local account, select Sign in without a Microsoft account (not recommended), then Local account.
4. Enter a user name, a password and a password hint, then select Next and Finish.

This window uses a password hint instead of security questions. To give the account administrator rights afterward, use Change account type in Settings.

Local Users and Groups (Pro, Enterprise and Education)

1. Press Windows key + R, type lusrmgr.msc and press Enter.
2. Select the Users folder, then right-click an empty area and choose New User.
3. Fill in the user name, full name and password boxes, review the password checkboxes below them, then select Create.

On Windows 10 Home this console generally isn’t available, so use Settings, Command Prompt or netplwiz instead.

Check that it worked and sign in

• The account is listed under Other users (or Your family) in Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.
• Select Start, then your account picture. The new name appears in the list; selecting it switches to that account without closing your apps.
• On the sign-in screen, the new account is available as another user to pick. You can also press Ctrl + Alt + Delete and choose Switch user.

The first sign-in can take a little while as Windows builds the new person’s desktop, Documents folder and settings. A Microsoft account usually needs an internet connection for that first sign-in. For every way to hop between profiles, see how to go into another account on Windows 10.

If something goes wrong

• “Add someone else to this PC” does nothing or is missing. Make sure you’re signed in as an administrator: your account should show Administrator under its name in Settings > Accounts > Your info. On a work or school PC, your organization may block new accounts. If the Settings window simply won’t open the dialog, use Command Prompt or netplwiz instead.
• The Microsoft account sign-in window is blank or keeps spinning. That window needs the internet. Check your connection, or create a local account with one of the other methods; you can switch it to a Microsoft account later from that person’s Your info page.
• An access denied error in Command Prompt. The window wasn’t opened with Run as administrator. Close it and open it again the right way.
• Windows rejects the user name. Names must be unique: they can’t match another user or group on the PC, can’t be longer than 20 characters and can’t use the blocked characters listed above. Pick a different name.
• The new account doesn’t appear on the sign-in screen. Restart the PC once. If the choice to switch accounts never shows up, follow the steps for enabling Switch User in Windows 10.
• A Microsoft account asks for a code at first sign-in. Signing in to a Microsoft account on a new PC can trigger a security check that sends a code to the person’s email or phone, so they may need access to it.
• The password is rejected. Passwords are case-sensitive, so check Caps Lock. For a local account, an administrator can set a new one with net user Priya * in an administrator Command Prompt.
• A family member doesn’t appear. They haven’t accepted the email invitation yet, or they belong to another family group.

Remove the account later

Warning: removing an account deletes that person’s desktop, documents, downloads and other files from this PC. Copy anything worth keeping first. It doesn’t delete their Microsoft account online.

1. Go to Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.
2. Select the account under Other users, then select Remove.
3. Read the warning and confirm.

For local accounts made with commands, net user Priya /delete in an administrator Command Prompt does the same job. More detail, including leftover profile folders, is in the guide on removing a user account in Windows 10. If you only want to stop using a Microsoft account on the PC, removing a Microsoft account from Windows 10 covers that instead.

FAQs

Can I create an account without a password?

Yes. In the local account steps, leave both password boxes empty and select Next. Anyone at the PC can then open that account, and without a password there are no security questions to set. It suits a shared account used for a single app, not anyone’s personal email or files. If you change your mind later, the person can add a password from Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options.

Will the new person see my files?

Each account gets its own Desktop, Documents and other personal folders, and a Standard user can’t make system-wide changes. Administrators, though, have complete control over the PC, and that includes other people’s files. That’s the strongest reason to leave extra accounts on Standard.

Can I turn a local account into a Microsoft account later?

Yes. The person signs in to their local account, opens Settings > Accounts > Your info and selects Sign in with a Microsoft account instead. Their files and apps stay in place. Going the other direction is covered in the guide to signing out of a Microsoft account in Windows 10.

What if someone forgets the password for a local account?

On the sign-in screen, they select the Reset password link and answer the security questions chosen when the account was created. If there are no security questions (for example, the account was made with Command Prompt), an administrator can set a new password with net user Priya * in an administrator Command Prompt. Microsoft support can’t recover local account passwords, so write the answers down somewhere safe.

Are these steps the same in Windows 11?

Very close, but the labels differ: Windows 11 uses Accounts > Other user > Add account, and family members have their own Family page. See adding another user in Windows 11 for that version.

For a child’s account, you can later see screen time on Windows 10, and if a name was mistyped, changing your account name in Windows 10 fixes it without starting over.

Once the account works, have the new person sign in once while you’re nearby so they can set a PIN, check their password and confirm the security questions.