Outlook doesn't recognize email password

Question

When I open Outlook Classic on my desktop computer, it continually prompts me to enter my password. When I do, it does not accept it and the same dialog box keeps popping up. I opened my Xfinity email on their site, and my password is working fine there. What is the issue?

Answer 1

Hello, do you have two step verification enabled on your email account?

Open Control Panel, go to Credential Manager, then remove all saved entries for Outlook or your email under Windows Credentials. Restart Outlook and sign in again so it saves fresh credentials. If two step verification is on, use an app password from your email account instead of your regular password.

Answer 2

The issue is almost always that Outlook Classic is either using the wrong credentials or the wrong authentication/settings for that mailbox, even though the password itself works in webmail.

Work through these checks that apply to Outlook Classic on Windows:

1. Confirm the username format
   • In Outlook’s account settings, make sure the User name is the full email address (for example, ******@xfinity.com), not just the part before @.
   • Classic Outlook will keep prompting if the username is wrong, even when the password is correct.
2. Check for password changes or expiration
   • If the password was recently changed on Xfinity’s site, Outlook still has the old password stored.
   • Update the stored password in Outlook following the steps in Change or update your email password (see reference link below).
3. Verify Outlook is allowed to connect to the Internet
   • If Outlook is blocked from reaching the mail servers, it can show repeated password prompts.
   • In Outlook, go to File → Options → Trust Center → Trust Center Settings → Privacy Options and ensure Allow Office to connect to the Internet is selected. If this is unchecked, Outlook can:
     • Prompt for a password every time it starts, even if Remember my credentials is enabled.
     • Fail to create or connect a profile reliably.
4. Fix repeated prompts for Microsoft 365/Exchange-type profiles
   • If the Xfinity account was added as a Microsoft 365/Exchange account instead of the correct type (usually IMAP/POP), Outlook may continually prompt.
   • Remove the account and re-add it using the correct account type and server settings from Xfinity.
5. If Outlook is connecting to Microsoft 365/Exchange
   • For Microsoft 365 mailboxes, repeated prompts can occur if Logon network security is set incorrectly.
   • In the Microsoft Exchange account settings (classic Outlook profile properties), the Logon network security option must be Anonymous Authentication. Any other value can cause continuous password prompts.

If the password works in webmail but Outlook still refuses it after these steps, remove the account from Outlook Classic and add it again from Control Panel → Mail → Email Accounts → New, entering the correct email address and password when prompted.

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References:

• Troubleshoot Outlook email setup
• Outlook continually prompts for your password when you try to connect to Microsoft 365
• Password prompt at every Outlook start or can't create profile