Accountable 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
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Accountable is an accounting app for freelancers and self-employed people, so your account holds invoices, expenses, tax filings and, if you use it, Accountable Banking (Accountable). Out of the box you sign in with a password only. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional and adds a 6-digit code from an authenticator app at login (Accountable). Accountable names Google Authenticator and Microsoft Authenticator as examples, but any authenticator app works. This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone.
The detail that matters most: Accountable gives you one recovery code, and it shows it only once, during setup. Save it before you leave that screen.
How we checked this guide: the Accountable steps come from Accountable's own help center, including the screenshots in its setup article, which we read on October 24, 2026. We haven't tested them on an Accountable account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
Two different codes in Accountable
Accountable uses the word "two-factor" for two separate things. The authenticator code covered here protects signing in to your account. Accountable Banking has its own confirmation for sensitive banking actions, called Strong Customer Authentication, which sends a code by text message or lets you scan a QR code (Accountable). Setting up an authenticator app doesn't replace those text messages, and Accountable's troubleshooting article treats the two as separate problems (Accountable).
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
Accountable's help describes the setup on the web version only, so use a computer if you can (Accountable):
- Sign in to Accountable in a web browser. The help article links to web.accountable.de.
- Open Account at the bottom left, then Settings.
- Choose Login methods. Under Two-Factor Authentication, select Setup.
- The first step, Get authentication app, suggests Google Authenticator. You can skip that: select Next step.
- On Verify code, Accountable shows a QR code. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at it. If you're on the same iPhone, take a screenshot, tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- Type the 6-digit code Novaz shows to confirm.
- On Recovery code, save the code somewhere safe, away from your phone.
Accountable's help doesn't mention a text key you can type instead of scanning. If the setup screen offers one, add it in Novaz with +, then Enter key manually, and paste it into Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
Keep the recovery code
Accountable's troubleshooting article repeats the warning: the recovery code appears when you turn on 2FA and can't be viewed afterwards (Accountable). Store it in a password manager or on paper.
The same article suggests Google Authenticator or Microsoft Authenticator cloud sync as a way to get codes back on a new phone. Novaz does this differently: its keys stay on your iPhone unless you turn on iCloud backup (PRO) or save a file with Export to file… (free), and either one lets you restore them on a new iPhone. Keep the recovery code too: it's your way back in if the phone is gone and you have no Novaz backup. More in 2FA backup codes.
When Accountable asks for a code
After setup, Accountable asks for the 6-digit code from your app when you log in (Accountable). Its help doesn't say whether you can mark a device as trusted, or whether accounts that sign in with Google or Apple get the same prompt.
If Accountable rejects your code
Accountable's own advice, from its troubleshooting and login-help articles (Accountable, Accountable):
- Set your phone's date and time to automatic. On iPhone: Settings > General > Date & Time > Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off.
- Wait for a new code and enter it right away.
- If you have more than one Accountable entry in your app, try each one.
- Remember that the code comes from your app, not from an email.
Other causes are in Authenticator code not working?
Changing phones
Accountable suggests turning off 2FA in its settings before you switch, then turning it on again with the new phone (Accountable). Do that while you still have the old iPhone; you'll get a new recovery code when you set it up again. With a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, you can skip this and restore the account on the new iPhone instead. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
On the screen that asks for the 6-digit code, choose Don't have access to your phone? Enter your recovery code, type the code without spaces, and select Verify. Once you're in, Accountable recommends setting up 2FA again under Settings > Login methods, which also gives you a fresh recovery code (Accountable).
Without the app and without the recovery code, contact Accountable through the in-app chat, at support@accountable.eu, or through the Need help? Contact your Tax Coach link on the login screen. Support checks your identity before it resets 2FA. Accountable doesn't list what proof it asks for, and it only says the check "can take a little time" (Accountable). If you're unsure which email address your account uses, its login help says your VAT number lets support find the account (Accountable).
More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Turning 2FA off
Accountable mentions that you can deactivate 2FA in your settings, but its help doesn't spell out the steps. Start from Settings > Login methods, where you set it up. After that, you can remove the entry in Novaz: open it and tap Remove account.
