Message says "The Microsoft account doesn't exist. Enter a different account or get a new one."

S. Lenear 106

I am trying to sign in to a new computer using my Microsoft account. I know the account is valid because it is the same one I am using in this forum. But, I get a message saying "The Microsoft account doesn't exist. Enter a different account or get a new one." What do I do?

By the way, I have no idea what I'm supposed to enter in the "Tags" field below. There is nothing that tells me what types of things I can enter. That is frustrating because the field is required.

DELA CRUZ, BRAD BONARD 6 Reputation points

2022-01-27T04:29:58.66+00:00

I just set my Microsoft Edge for email default app after Microsoft sent me pop-up when I tried logging in my Microsoft Outlook. Maybe this helps
KNH VT 141 Reputation points

2022-02-12T13:16:28.187+00:00

This is also happening to me. It says my account doesn't exist, WHILE I AM LOGGED INTO IT. MS has got to fix this. I cannot install software on my own #$$$%$# computer, because of MICROSOFT. I'm ready to switch to Linux.

MS also keeps linking my work and home accounts. I DO NOT WANT MY WORK LINKED TO HOME. I have dealt with this before. It keeps happening.

Have I said I cannot stand Microsoft?

And no, I am not going to spend hours first trying this ridiculous fix, then that, than another. Fix the damned product I pay for every single year, again and again and again.
Kris Cook 61 Reputation points

2022-02-16T16:07:13.323+00:00

This is a fairly recent change that I have observed, with great frustration. Instead of being able to set up a computer out of the box with our Microsoft 365 account for work, the system makes us sign in with a MICROSOFT account, which is totally different. I set mine up some time ago, personally, with my aol account. When I unpack a new unit, I have to start it off with that personal MICROSOFT account which is different from the work-related Microsoft 365 account.

So set up something, even if you have to open a new email account at Outlook.com or aol or whatever else it will take. That should let you at least set up the machine.

A local account is like setting up another user, but it's only on that one computer. The local account isn't looking to a server, if it is domain joined, and it's not looking to Azure Active Directory, if it's joined to a Microsoft 365 account. I haven't been able to find a way to set that up right out of the box, though. The thing just stops you cold until you satisfy it with a MICROSOFT account, but it won't tell you what a Microsoft account even is. VERY frustrating to a sysadmin who needs to set up machines for employees that aren't on premises to give me passwords and 2FA codes received on their cell phones.
Eco Help 1 Reputation point

2022-02-16T19:46:51.687+00:00

A user had this problem (situation description follows) and what worked for me was to remove her secondary/personal, @harsh.com .com account (which was created when the laptop, a consumer model purchased at a big box store, required a Microsoft account to perform initial setup). The moment I removed the personal account from her profile, her login (with a work account, @workdomain.com) worked; error gone.

Did this under Settings gear, Accounts, My Info

Situation: user was signed into the PC with a local user account, created separately from the original @harsh.com .com account, and signed in to M365 w/Microsoft account, but somehow the pesky @harsh.com .com account was present, too. It was not necessary and just interfered with her sign-in under her work account.

Hope this helps someone. Remember, if that fixes it, you can always add the account back in later. Do heed the warning, though, that it may delete data (at least on this PC/profile) for the @harsh.com .com account.
Brooklyn Godwin 61 Reputation points

2022-03-02T03:23:30.7+00:00

Someone please tell me that there is a solution now. I am logged into my Microsoft account on two different tabs but when I go to accept an invite for Microsoft Office 365 family and I go to log in.. It says my account does not exist. When I go to "make a new one", it says that the account already exists and that I should try logging in. This is extremely frustrating. I am in a new position at my job and I need this in order to begin working immediately.
Patrick Turner 1 Reputation point

2022-03-05T20:12:44.353+00:00

This is absolutely maddening. Microsoft O365 accounts conflict with Microsoft regular accounts?

I am baffled by this. I have a small business and I set up the network a few years ago. We hired a new employee and I CANNOT ADD THE EMPLOYEE LOGIN TO THE HOSTS!?!? We only have 5 hosts so a domain seemed overkill. I am not even sure if that would work anyway.

This is after creating the O365 email account for the user without issue.

I cannot believe the idiocy of this design. So frustrating.
Andreea Bot 1 Reputation point

2022-04-17T14:33:23.72+00:00

I have the same problem.
Windows is telling me that the Microsoft Account does not exist, but I am logged in with it on another computer and also on this forum.
Has anyone found a solution?
Allan G 6 Reputation points

2022-06-28T18:27:28.37+00:00

Hopefully this will help somebody at a future time.

I had to open Microsoft teams logging in with a personal account (in this case it was an @harsh.com .com account.) Once I was logged in I went to settings in Microsoft Teams and I noticed both accounts were in the list. I then signed OUT my personal account and it signed me in with my work account.

I should add that this particular computer had my personal account as the main user. This seemed to have created the issue somehow. I'm sure if I had created a local account it wouldn't have been an issue.

Good luck all!
UncleGaspatcho18 1 Reputation point

2022-08-12T19:26:16.223+00:00

Has anyone found any fix for this? My biggest qualm with this entire issue is that I cannot for the life of me get a hold of someone from Microsoft to even talk to about it. Every systematic "solution" they come up with is absolutely useless and then leads me to a point where is says my problem is worthy of contacting a Microsoft employee. So freaking annoying.
S L 6 Reputation points

2023-01-05T20:51:53.737+00:00

Having the same problem trying to sign in to my microsoft account on edge (ios) to enable sync and getting the account doesn't exist message... yet I am signed in to the same account on Edge on my personal computer.

What is so difficult that Microsoft doesn't recognise a valid account?
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Minja 5 Reputation points

2024-07-25T13:10:06.3633333+00:00

I can't login to my microsoft account on email ******@gmail.com it says that my account doesn't exist i got emailed that someone removed my email from my microsoft and replaced with theyre email i need help

29 answers

Marco Caruso 25 Reputation points

2024-11-12T17:12:38.8433333+00:00

I found the solution! Most of the other answers were totally useless or not correlated or not providing a solution.

You need to follow these steps:

(1) open Settings > Accounts > Access work or school > Add a work or school account > Connect

(2) If already available, click on Join this device to Microsoft Entra ID

If not, you first need to insert your work/school email address, than click on the above link.

(3) Click on Join this device to Microsoft Entra ID

(4) Insert your Microsoft work account credentials

(5) Confirm by clicking on Join

Now you will be able to logout from the current account and use a work account for logging in. Unfortunately, I believe you cannot convert a local account into a Microsoft work account.
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2 people found this answer helpful.
Carl Allen 0 Reputation points

2025-02-27T08:15:11.5233333+00:00

That's it! Thank You!!!!

Jan Coulson 0 Reputation points

2025-08-18T22:49:42.4766667+00:00

This worked for me too, after chasing my tail for hours. Adding your work or school account is not the same as [re]joining Entra ID. It's that step that fixed it for me. Thanks Marco!

Robert Lotterhand 0 Reputation points

2026-01-29T22:11:56.4766667+00:00

Thanks for simply solving a long running issue. Also deleted device from Entra beforehand.
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Mathias Schneider 11 Reputation points

2022-11-01T12:04:45.317+00:00

After having a Conversation with Microsoft it worked for 2Hours again and after the Next Day never since.

The weird thing is all other 365 Apps and the Account including the Windows License are working except Outlook.

So i canceled the 365 Abo Today as i can use another E-Mail Client for this and use Open Office instead for free.

On Mac there is no Problem with that in Outlook but i am p o. anyway. After having this Setup working for Years it just stopped Working. Get yourself together Microsoft.

It is true: Microsoft is a Time Killer, i am switching to Mac completely.

Bye

Guess what ;-)

After getting through the Options i walked over the Options Privacy in the General Options and deactivated Connected Experience witch is in General a logging function as it Reads all your Text and send it to MS ?

After deactivating that Option without knowing it´s existence i got rid of that annoying behavior.

So Microsoft is logging your E-Mail Messages by default without mentioning it and to make it worth, then f up their own Program with this?

DA BS
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DaveyMG 11 Reputation points

2022-06-14T00:04:11.553+00:00

This is madness, I enter an email address and the setup says that the account does not exist, so I click on "create a new one" which takes me to the create account screen with the email address pre populated where it then says that the account already exists and I should use it to log in !! Madness.

Anyway, the shortcut to making a local login is to use Shift-F10 to get to the command prompt and there issue an ipconfig /release which will disconnect the device from the network. Then when you go back to the MS login screen and hit the back arrow it goes to the local account creation screen.
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Ross Moroz 15 Reputation points

2023-08-29T18:36:43.7666667+00:00

Have you considered buying some MS hardware or perhaps you would like to purchase an OS that locks you out of your computer. That way you'll never even know that you were locked out of your email.
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Trey Fleming 11 Reputation points

2021-10-21T15:27:18.283+00:00

I am having the same issue. I have followed all of the advice above with no luck.
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Anonymous

2021-04-08T00:38:27.037+00:00

Something here may help.
https://practicalhost.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360027315731-Microsoft-account-association-issues

--please don't forget to Accept as answer if the reply is helpful--
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Tal Segel 1 Reputation point

2022-10-18T08:38:19.813+00:00

This is maddeningly ridiculous. I'm logged into the account online (and right now) but on Outlook for Mac it tells me the account doesn't exist. What am I paying for exactly? Why is there no guideline to provide a fix or workaround?

François Dommanget 0 Reputation points

2023-02-23T11:27:43.0566667+00:00

error 404
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Message says "The Microsoft account doesn't exist. Enter a different account or get a new one."

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