Gusto Retirement (Guideline) 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app

Guideline, the 401(k) and IRA provider, now belongs to Gusto. Its help center and support pages call it Gusto Retirement (Gusto Retirement). You still sign in at my.guideline.com with a username and password, and the two-factor authentication (2FA) pages still use the Guideline name throughout (Gusto Retirement).

Guideline offers two ways to get 2FA codes: text messages or an authenticator app. You can also set up both. Texts only work with US and Canadian phone numbers, so if your number is elsewhere, the app is your only choice (Gusto Retirement). This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.

How we checked this guide: the Gusto Retirement steps come from its own help center, linked below, which we read on October 22, 2026. Some pages blocked automated access that day, so we read those in archived copies on web.archive.org (noted below). We haven't tested the steps on a Guideline 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

Guideline's setup article, dated February 9, 2026, describes these steps (Gusto Retirement):

1. Sign in at my.guideline.com. Click Settings in the main menu, then Personal settings.
2. Open the Security tab and click Enable 2FA.
3. Choose Authenticate with an app. Guideline shows a QR code.
4. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at it. If the QR code is on the same iPhone, take a screenshot and use Choose a photo instead. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
5. If you can't scan it, Guideline also shows a code you can type in by hand. The article doesn't give that code a name. In Novaz, tap +, then Enter key manually, and type it as the Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
6. Your app lists the new entry as Guideline, Inc. Type its current 6-digit code into Guideline's prompt.

After that, Guideline sends no notification or text: open Novaz whenever it asks for a code.

The same article gives a second path for changing your settings later: click your name in the top right, choose Account Settings, scroll to Two-factor authentication and click Edit 2FA. Your dashboard may use either set of labels.

Add text messages as a backup

Guideline's help doesn't mention backup or recovery codes. What it does suggest is setting up both methods, so one still works if you lose a device or change numbers. To add the second one, go back to the 2FA section and choose Send me a text. With both on, you pick which method to use each time a code is needed (Gusto Retirement).

Texts are weaker than app codes, but they're the only self-service fallback Guideline documents. See Authenticator app vs. SMS.

When Guideline asks for a code

Guideline asks for a code when you sign in from a new device, and you can choose to remember that device. It also asks again every so often for security reasons. If you have more than one Guideline account, such as a 401(k) and an IRA, one 2FA setting covers all your linked accounts (Gusto Retirement).

A code request you didn't start may come from a budgeting app you've connected, such as Quicken or NerdWallet, when it tries to refresh your data. Guideline suggests giving those apps a system-generated password instead of your real one (Gusto Retirement, archived copy).

If Guideline rejects your code

Guideline's advice: type the code exactly, with no spaces or dashes; use a fresh code if the old one has expired; and make sure you're reading the Guideline, Inc. entry, not another account in the same app (Gusto Retirement). Its login help adds that your device's time must be in sync (Gusto Retirement, archived copy).

On iPhone, open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when your clock is 15 seconds or more off. Other causes are in Authenticator code not working?

Changing phones

Guideline's troubleshooting page assumes your authenticator app can restore its accounts on a new phone by signing in to the app (Gusto Retirement). Novaz has no sign-in, but it can restore your accounts on a new iPhone if you turned on iCloud backup or kept a backup file. Without one, its keys stay on the old iPhone, so before you give it up, sign in to Guideline, open the 2FA settings with Edit 2FA, and set up the app again on the new phone. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.

If you lose your authenticator

If you also set up text messages, choose that method at sign-in. Otherwise, contact Gusto Retirement support and ask them to reset your 2FA. You can then set it up again from your dashboard (Gusto Retirement).

Support will ask questions about you or your plan to verify who you are, so have your account number ready. For 401(k) participants, the general support line is (888) 344-5188 and the email is support@retirement.gusto.com. Support works Monday to Friday, 9 am to 7 pm ET, and aims to answer emails and form requests within one business day (Gusto Retirement). The help pages don't say how long a 2FA reset takes.

More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?

Official Gusto Retirement help

• How do I set up two-factor authentication (2FA)?
• Two-factor authentication (2FA) troubleshooting tips
• Common login issues and solutions (read in an archived copy)
• How do I log in to my Gusto retirement account? (read in an archived copy)
• What we do to keep your retirement accounts secure (read in an archived copy)
• Support contact information and operating hours
• Guideline has joined Gusto! FAQs about our recent acquisition