How to Set Up Auto Login in Windows

This article explains how to automatically log in to Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP. It also includes information on using auto login in a domain scenario and tips for when the normal steps don't work.

How to Automatically Log On to Windows

There are plenty of good reasons to auto log in to your computer, and there are several reasons not to (see the Is It Safe section below). If security isn't an issue, follow these steps to make Windows log in automatically:

1. Press Win+R to open the Run dialog box, then enter this into the text box and press Enter to open the Advanced User Accounts program:
   

    netplwiz
   

   A different command is used in Windows XP:
   

    control userpasswords2
   

   Technically, this program is called the Advanced User Accounts Control Panel, but it's not really a Control Panel applet and you won't find it in Control Panel. To make it more confusing, the title of the windows says just User Accounts.

2. In the Users tab, uncheck the box next to Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer.

   Don't see that option? Skip to the next section below these steps to learn how a small tweak to the Windows Registry can reveal this checkbox.

3. Select OK at the bottom of the window.

4. When the password prompt appears, enter the username you wish to use for your automatic login, followed by the password in the next two boxes.

   In Windows 11, 10, and 8, if you're using a Microsoft account, be sure to enter the entire email address that you use to sign in to Windows, in the User name field. The defaults there might instead be the name associated with your account, not your actual username.

5. Select OK to save and close the open windows.

6. Restart your computer and make sure that Windows automatically logs you in. You may catch a glimpse of the sign-in screen, but only long enough to see it log you in without you having to type anything!

Is the Automatic Login Checkbox Missing?

Follow these registry editing steps if you don't see the automatic login option in Windows 10 or Windows 11:

1. Open Registry Editor. It's most easily done by executing regedit from the search box after you select the Start button.

   While following the steps below exactly should be perfectly safe, we always recommend that you back up the registry before making changes.

2. Paste this path into the navigation bar at the top of the editor:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\PasswordLess\Device
   

3. Right-click the value called DevicePasswordLessBuildVersion, then choose Delete and confirm by pressing Yes. You can now repeat the above steps.

How to Set Up Auto Log in for Domain Scenarios

You won't be able to configure your Windows computer to use an auto-login in exactly the way described above if your computer is a member of a domain. In a domain login situation, which is common in larger business networks, your credentials are stored on a server run by your company's IT department, not on the Windows PC you're using. This complicates the Windows auto login setup process a little bit, but it's still possible.

Here's how to get that checkbox from Step 2 (instructions above) to appear so that you can check it:

1. Open Registry Editor by searching for it from the taskbar.

2. From the registry hive listing on the left, choose HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, followed by Software.

   If you're in an entirely separate location in the Windows Registry when you open it, just scroll to the very top on the left side until you see Computer, and then collapse each hive until you reach HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.

3. Continue drilling down through the nested registry keys, first to Microsoft, then Windows NT, then CurrentVersion, and then finally Winlogon.

4. With Winlogon selected on the left, locate the registry value of AutoAdminLogon on the right.

5. Double-click AutoAdminLogon and change the Value data to 1 from 0.

6. Select OK.

7. Restart your computer and then follow the standard Windows auto-login procedure outlined above.

That should work, but if not, you may have to manually add a few additional registry values yourself. It's not too difficult.

1. Work back to Winlogon in the Windows registry, as outlined above from Step 1 through Step 3.

2. Add the string values of DefaultDomainName, DefaultUserName, and DefaultPassword, assuming they don't already exist.

   You can add a new string value from the menu in Registry Editor through Edit > New > String Value.

3. Set the Value data as your domain, user name, and password, respectively.

4. Restart your computer and test to see that you can use the auto login without entering your normal Windows credentials.

Is It Safe to Auto Log In to Windows?

As great as it sounds to be able to skip over that sometimes annoying login process when Windows starts, it's not always a good idea. In fact, it may even be a bad idea, and here's why: computers are less and less physically secure.

Security Risks and Auto Log In

If your Windows computer is a desktop and that desktop is in your home, which is probably locked and otherwise secure, then setting up automatic logon is probably a relatively safe thing to do.

On the other hand, if you're using a Windows laptop, netbook, tablet, or another portable computer that often leaves your home, we highly recommend that you don't configure it to automatically log in.

The login screen is the first defense your computer has from a user who shouldn't have access. If your computer is stolen and you've configured it to skip right over that basic protection, the thief will have access to everything you have on it—email, social networks, other passwords, bank accounts, and more.

Multiple User Accounts and Auto Log In

Also, if your computer has more than one user account and you configure an auto login for one of those accounts, you (or the account holder) will need to log off or switch users from your automatically logged-in account to use the other user account.

In other words, if you have more than one user on your computer and you choose to auto-log in to your account, you're actually slowing down the other user's experience.