AdGuard 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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Your AdGuard account holds your licenses and subscriptions for AdGuard Ad Blocker, AdGuard VPN and AdGuard DNS, plus the devices bound to them and your purchase history (AdGuard, AdGuard). Two-factor authentication (2FA) is off on a new account and stays optional, but AdGuard recommends it. The second step can be a one-time code sent by email or a code from an authenticator app (AdGuard).
The part to plan for: AdGuard's help mentions no backup codes. It asks you to save the setup key instead, and that key is how you get back in if your phone goes missing. This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.
How we checked this guide: the AdGuard steps come from AdGuard's own Knowledge Base, including the screenshots on its two-factor page, linked below, which we read on October 20, 2026. We haven't tested them on an AdGuard account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
Setup runs in two rounds. AdGuard first confirms your email address, and only then lets you pick the authenticator app (AdGuard):
- Sign in to your AdGuard account and open Settings in the menu on the left.
- Under Security, scroll down to Two-factor authentication and turn the switch on.
- AdGuard emails you a code. In the window Check your inbox to enable 2FA, type it into Code from email and click Enable. If nothing arrives, use Resend code.
- Two options now appear under the switch: One-time email code and Code from authenticator app. Choose Code from authenticator app. In AdGuard's screenshot, the email option is the one selected at this stage.
- A window titled Use your authenticator app to enable 2FA shows a QR code. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at it. If the page is open on the same iPhone, take a screenshot, tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- Under Your setup key is, AdGuard shows the key as text, with a Download setup key (.txt) link. Save it now (see the next section).
- Type the code from Novaz into Code from app, then click Enable.
You can also type the key instead of scanning: in Novaz, tap +, then Enter key manually, and fill in Service, Account (optional) and Setup key. AdGuard doesn't say how many digits or seconds its codes use, though its sign-in screen has six boxes. Scanning is safer, because the QR code carries those settings, while a typed key always gives 6 digits every 30 seconds. See What is a 2FA setup key?
The setup key is your backup
AdGuard's note on this is short: keep the setup key somewhere, because you'll need it to recover the account if your phone is lost or stolen (AdGuard). The setup window adds that the key lets you link the account to a new authenticator app.
Novaz keeps its keys on your iPhone unless you turn on iCloud backup (PRO) or save a file with Export to file… (free). Without one of those, that saved key is the only copy outside your phone.
Treat the key like a password, since anyone who has it can make your codes. Keep it in a password manager or on paper, and don't leave the downloaded .txt file lying around.
Signing in afterwards
Once it's on, AdGuard's sign-in shows a Two-factor authentication screen with a 2FA code field and a Check button (AdGuard). The help page doesn't say whether AdGuard skips this step on devices you've used before.
Just above the 2FA switch, I prefer to log in with a one-time code lets you sign in with an email code instead of a password (AdGuard, AdGuard). The help doesn't explain how that combines with an authenticator app.
If AdGuard rejects your code
AdGuard's advice for an authentication error is to check your phone's clock, since a clock that's out of sync can cause it (AdGuard). On iPhone, go to Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off.
If codes from a typed key fail during setup, remove that entry in Novaz with Remove account and add AdGuard again by scanning the QR code. More causes are in Authenticator code not working?
New iPhone or lost phone
AdGuard's help doesn't describe turning 2FA off, resetting it, or moving it to another phone. The one route it documents is the setup key (AdGuard):
- New iPhone: if you have a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, restore your accounts on the new iPhone and you're done. Otherwise, on the new phone, tap +, then Enter key manually, and type your saved key. Keep the old phone until a code from the new one has signed you in. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
- Lost phone, key saved: add the key to Novaz on another iPhone, or to any authenticator app, and sign in with the code it shows.
- Lost phone, no key: AdGuard's pages don't describe a recovery process, what proof it would ask for, or how long it takes. The contact its Support Center lists for technical support is support@adguard.com (AdGuard).
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