How to Customize the WordPress Reset Password Page (2023 Guide)
Have you ever thought about customizing the default password reset page on your WordPress site? The standard WordPress reset password form is very basic, with just the WordPress logo and a simple "Get New Password" button. This doesn‘t provide the best user experience, especially if you have a membership site, online store, or any other type of site where users regularly need to log in.
Customizing your password reset page allows you to add your own branding, logo, colors, images, and text. You can provide additional instructions or reassurance to users who are trying to regain access to their account. An optimized password reset flow can increase user trust and make the process easier and less stressful when someone has forgotten their login.
In this guide, we‘ll walk through three different methods you can use to customize the WordPress reset password page and flow in 2023:
- Customizing the page the easy way using the Formidable Forms plugin
- Changing the page to match your theme using the Theme My Login plugin
- Creating a 100% custom reset password page using the WPForms plugin
Feel free to click the quick links above to jump to a particular section. We‘ll start with the easiest no-code option and work our way up to the most advanced and customizable method.
Why Customize the Default WordPress Reset Password Page?
The default WordPress password reset page is very plain and generic. It displays the WordPress logo and branding, with a simple form to enter your email or username. After submitting the form, it just displays a message that the reset link has been emailed.
For some websites, this default page may be sufficient. However, there are a few key reasons you may want to customize it:
- To add your own branding, logo, and styling to provide a more professional and trustworthy experience
- To provide additional instructions, FAQs or customer support info for users having trouble logging in
- To optimize the page text for your specific audience
- To add additional form fields to verify user identity
- To customize what happens after the form is submitted, like redirecting to a custom page
- To match the style of your custom login page and registration page for consistency
Tailoring the password reset page to your needs can make it a lot more user-friendly. Next, let‘s look at how to easily customize the page without any special technical knowledge.
Method 1: Easily Customize the Reset Page with Formidable Forms
The simplest way to customize the WordPress reset password page is by using the Formidable Forms plugin. This powerful forms plugin lets you automatically replace the default reset page with your own version by just adding a shortcode.
The customization options with this method are a bit limited – you can‘t fully edit the reset form fields, but you can easily add your own page title, logo, images, text and other content around the form.
Here are the step-by-step instructions:
Step 1: Install and activate the Formidable Forms plugin. You‘ll need to enter your license key to enable the premium features.
Step 2: Go to the Formidable → Add-Ons page and install the User Registration Addon.
Step 3: Create a new page by going to Pages → Add New. Enter a title and then click the "+" button to add a shortcode block. Search for "shortcode" and add the block to your page.
Step 4: Enter the following shortcode into the block:
[frm-reset-password]
This shortcode tells Formidable Forms to insert the reset password form.
Step 5: Add any custom content to the page that you want to display above or below the password reset form. This could be your logo, a featured image, additional instructions, or links to your support documentation.
When you‘re done customizing the page, click the Publish button to make it live.
Step 6: The last step is to tell WordPress to use this custom page instead of the default one. Go to the Formidable → Global Settings page and click the Registration tab.
Click the Reset Password Page dropdown and select the page you just created with the shortcode.
Make sure to save your changes. Now, when a user clicks the "Lost your password?" link on your login page, they will be taken to the custom reset page instead of the default one.
This method provides a quick way to add some basic customization and branding to the reset password page. However, the form is still in the default Formidable style. If you want the form to match your theme, you‘ll need to use a different approach, which we‘ll cover next.
Method 2: Change All User Pages to Match Your Theme with Theme My Login
If you want an easy way to change the password reset page, login page, and registration page to use your WordPress theme‘s styling, the free Theme My Login plugin is a good option.
It automatically replaces all of these pages with versions that inherit your theme‘s templates. So while you can‘t fully customize the form and fields, the pages will match the rest of your site.
Here‘s how to set it up:
Step 1: Install and activate the free Theme My Login plugin.
Step 2: Go to the Theme My Login page in your WordPress dashboard. The plugin will show a list of the login, registration, lost password and reset password page URLs:
Step 3: To change the password reset page, create a new page by going to Pages → Add New. Enter a title for the page.
Step 4: Click the "+" button to add a new block. Search for "shortcode" and add the shortcode block. Then enter the following shortcode:
[theme-my-login action="lostpassword"]
Step 5: Publish the page, then go to Pages → All Pages and find the page you just created. Hover over it and click Quick Edit.
Change the slug to "lostpassword" and update the page.
Step 6: Now, when someone clicks the lost password link on your site, they will be taken to the page you created. It will automatically use your theme‘s page template and styling.
You can repeat this process to create a custom login page, registration page, and reset password page. Just use the following shortcodes:
- Login page: [theme-my-login]
- Registration page: [theme-my-login action="register"]
- Reset password page: [theme-my-login action="resetpass"]
And make sure to change the URL slugs to the ones shown on the Theme My Login settings page.
While this method is quick and easy, it doesn‘t give you full control over the content and styling of the password reset form itself. For that, you‘ll need to use the next method.
Method 3: Create a Completely Custom Reset Form with WPForms
For ultimate flexibility, you can use the WPForms plugin to design your own password reset form from scratch. With the drag-and-drop form builder, you can add, remove and rearrange fields, write your own labels and descriptions, and change all the colors and styles.
Here‘s how to build a custom form and replace the default reset page with your creation. Note that WPForms is a premium plugin, so you‘ll need to purchase a license to follow these steps.
Step 1: Install and activate the WPForms plugin, then go to WPForms → Settings and enter your license key. Install the User Registration addon on the WPForms → Addons page by clicking Install Addon next to it.
Step 2: Go to WPForms → Add New and enter a name for your form at the top. Scroll down and click the "User Password Reset Form" template.
Step 3: Customize the form however you want using the drag-and-drop builder. You can click any field to change the label, description, placeholder, and other settings. Drag fields from the left panel to add them, or click the red trash icon to delete a field.
For example, you could add a GDPR agreement checkbox that users have to tick before requesting a reset link. Or add a reCAPTCHA field to prevent bots from abusing the form.
Under Settings → Confirmations, you can customize what happens after a user submits the form. Choose the confirmation type: Message, Show Page, or Go to URL (Redirect).
The default message reads "Please check your email for the confirmation link." but you can change this to whatever you want. For example, you could include a link to your support area or knowledge base for further assistance.
Make sure to save your form when you‘re done customizing it.
Step 4: Create a new page under Pages → Add New and name it something like "Reset Your Password".
In the form editor, click the Embed button in the top right, then click Create New Page.
Enter a name for the page and click Let‘s Go. WPForms will automatically create a new page and embed the password reset form you just created.
Click the Publish button to make the page live and publicly accessible.
Step 5: The last step is to redirect any requests to the default password reset page to go to the custom one instead. The easiest way to do this is with the free WPCode plugin.
Install and activate the plugin, then go to Code Snippets → Add Snippet. Give it a name like "Redirect to Custom Reset Password Page".
Under Code Type, select PHP Snippet. Then paste the following code into the area on the right:
add_filter( ‘lostpassword_url‘, ‘wpbeginner_custom_password_reset_page‘, 10, 0 );
function wpbeginner_custom_password_reset_page() {
return site_url(‘/reset-password/‘);
}
Make sure to change /reset-password/ to the actual URL slug of the page you created in step 4.
Under Insertion, leave it set to Auto Insert and select Run Everywhere under Location. This ensures the redirect code will run no matter what.
Click Save Snippet, then change the toggle at the top from Inactive to Active to enable the redirect.
And that‘s it! Now, whenever a user clicks the "Lost your password?" link, they will be redirected to your custom reset password page instead of the default one.
Going Further
The WPForms method provides the most control over your form, but there are a few other steps you can take to further optimize the lost password process for your users:
Customize your reset password email template under WPForms → Settings. Make sure the messaging is clear and matches your branding. Consider including links to your knowledge base or support area in case users need more help.
Set up SMTP to improve email deliverability. By default, WordPress uses PHP mail to send password reset emails, but these often get filtered to spam. Use a dedicated email service provider or the WP Mail SMTP plugin to ensure reset links get delivered successfully.
Use an SSL certificate and enforce HTTPS on your login and reset pages. This keeps your users‘ sensitive information secure. Many hosts offer free SSL certificates, or you can purchase one from a third-party provider.
Finally, make sure to also customize your registration and login pages so the whole authentication flow is consistent. Users should never see the default WordPress pages if you want to maintain a professional image.
The lost password process is an often overlooked part of the user journey, but optimizing it can make a big difference in your customers‘ experience. By replacing the generic WordPress reset password page with your own version, you can provide clearer instructions, strengthen your branding, and reduce user frustration.
The three methods covered in this guide provide options for users of all skill levels. Whether you want a quick one-click solution or full control over every aspect of the form, you can build a reset password page that perfectly meets your needs.
For more guides on customizing key pages on your WordPress site, see the following tutorials:
- How to Customize the WordPress Login Page
- How to Create a Custom User Registration Page
- How to Customize the WordPress Search Results Page
- How to Build a Custom 404 Error Page
