Unity 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app for your Unity ID
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
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Your Unity account (Unity ID) is the one you use for the Unity Hub, the Asset Store and the Unity Dashboard. Unity has changed its two-factor authentication (2FA) a lot in 2026. Since September 1, 2026, an authenticator app is the only way to set it up: Unity is retiring text-message codes (Unity, Unity). This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.
How we checked this guide: the Unity steps come from Unity's own documentation and support articles, linked below, which we read on October 12, 2026. We haven't tested them on a Unity account. Unity's pages don't all use the same labels, so what you see may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
Do you need it?
- Asset Store publishers: yes. You can't create a payout profile or get paid without two-factor authentication on your publisher account (Unity).
- Everyone else: it's optional, but Unity recommends it, especially if you've clicked a phishing link (Unity).
- Your company signs you in with SSO: if your organization's identity provider handles two-factor authentication, you can't set it up in Unity.
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
Unity's newest documentation, from October 2026, describes these steps (Unity):
- In the Unity Dashboard, select your profile, then Account, then Security.
- On the Account security tab, under Two-factor authentication, select Set up next to Authenticator app. Enter your password if Unity asks, then select Continue.
- Unity shows a QR code. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code. If the QR code is on the same iPhone, take a screenshot and use Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- If you can't scan it, select Can't scan the barcode? for a setup key. In Novaz, tap +, then Enter key manually, and type it as the Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
- In Enter the code from your app, type the code from Novaz and select Verify.
- Download or copy your recovery codes and keep them somewhere safe, away from your phone. Then select I've saved my recovery codes somewhere safe and Done.
Your security settings then show Active next to Authenticator app.
Unity's older support article, starting from id.unity.com, describes the same steps with other labels, such as Start setup and Next.
Keep your recovery codes
Unity's support page suggests choosing an authenticator app that backs up to the cloud, so a lost phone doesn't lock you out (Unity). Novaz can: turn on iCloud backup (PRO) or use Export to file… (free) in Settings › Backup. Keep the recovery codes as well, in a password manager or on paper, in case the phone is lost with no backup or an out-of-date one.
If you lose them or think someone else has them, make new ones: on the Account security tab, select the button with circular arrows next to Authenticator app, then Generate new codes. The old codes stop working at once. See 2FA backup codes.
When Unity asks for a code
Since April 2026, Unity asks for a code every time you sign in if you have two-factor authentication on, with stronger checks on new devices and networks. A Remember this device for 30 days option cuts down the prompts on devices you trust (Unity).
The Unity Hub opens a browser tab to sign you in, so that's where you'll type the code (Unity).
If Unity rejects your code
Unity's help pages don't cover rejected authenticator codes. The usual cause is the iPhone's clock: 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
Unity's way is to turn off the authenticator app and set it up again with the new phone (Unity). You can only do that while you can still sign in and get a code, so do it before you give up the old phone. With Novaz, you can instead restore your accounts on the new iPhone from iCloud backup or a backup file. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
Use one of your recovery codes. Without them, Unity's Customer Experience team can temporarily turn off two-factor authentication on your account, through Account recovery on Unity's sign-in help page. To prove the account is yours, Unity asks for two things (Unity):
- the name of your Unity organization (every account has a default one), and
- your Unity username, which isn't your email address.
If you can't give one of these, Unity accepts alternatives, such as an Asset Store order number, the name of a Unity Cloud project, or your postal address. Unity doesn't say how long this takes.
More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Turning 2FA off
On the Account security tab, select the trash can next to Authenticator app, then Remove, and enter a code if Unity asks. The status changes to Not configured (Unity). Asset Store publishers need it on to get paid.
