Hotmail Sign in

Outlook.com is the new Hotmail! Welcome to Login: Windows Live Hotmail Sign in, your online resource for all Hotmail-sign-in related questions and help. After you have signed up for your live.com or hotmail.com email address, the sign in screen will become the most important aspect of the Hotmail experience: you can customize the settings that allow you to login, automatic log out or sign out, how you should proceed when checking your emails from a public computer (at school, at work, or another unfamiliar location), etc. Note that "Outlook.com" is the new name Microsoft gave its free webmail service when it redesigned it - but all the underlying functionality remains relevant!

Tip: we just launched a one-page reference to all matters relating to Microsoft credentials - check out our "Hotmail Sign in" tutorial - just a single bookmark gives you all the tips you need. For more detailed tips and tricks, this website does it!

 

Hotmail Sign in and the Outlook.com login process

Whenever you are trying to check your emails from a web browser like Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome, or Safari, you will either type www.hotmail.com, www.live.com, or www.outlook.com in the address bar, or use a bookmark/favorite to load the sign in page or your inbox. In the foreground or behind the scenes, there are various steps that need to take place during the Hotmail login process:

Hotmail Sign in page Hotmail Login
Automatically sign in to Hotmail (skip login) Sign in to Windows Live Hotmail Home page
Anonymously login to your Hotmail account Erase Hotmail history and cookies
Hotmail Sign options and security settings Change language for Hotmail sign in screen
How secure is the "Remember Me" option? When to make Hotmail remember your password

Of course all the sign in settings you can configure are only available once you have an email address with hotmail.com or live.com email address (or if you are using Windows Live Hotmail for own email account). If you need to use several Hotmail accounts from the same machine, make sure to read "Sign in to multiple / different Hotmail accounts on the same computer" for tips and help.

The MSN Hotmail Login Process

Tip: Although integrated with Hotmail and Windows Live Mail, Messenger operates as "standalone": you can be signed out of Hotmail but logged into Messenger: see how to sign in to Windows Live Messenger, and how to logout of Windows Live Messenger (and confirm your Signed-out status) once you are done. Learn how to disable notifications when signed in to Windows Live Messenger, and how to configure sign-in options for Windows Live Messenger (for your own profile and chat friends).

Windows Live Hotmail Login Options and Settings

The above Hotmail-sign-in tutorials covered secure settings at your disposal when checking your emails, but here are a few Hotmail login options you may not yet know about, like changing the language of the Windows Live Hotmail sign in screen or login straight to your inbox or the Outlook calendar:

Sign in to Hotmail as a guest Sign in to the Hotmail Calendar
Directly login to your Hotmail inbox Change language of Hotmail sign in page
Get Hotmail Sign in English version page Use Hotmail Sign in Spanish version page
Use Hotmail Sign in Bing to login to Windows Live Hotmail Sign in at school or at work
Add a trusted PC to Hotmail (sign in / password reset) Configure "Connect with HTTPS" Hotmail settings

Hotmail login options and settings

Check Hotmail from smartphones, basic cell phone handsets, and mobile internet devices

All tutorials focused so far on checking your Hotmail account from a desktop web browser; but you can also read your emails on the go, either from a mobile browser or email app: both can apply to smartphones (like the iPhone), regular cell phones (like low-priced Nokia handsets), or "MID's" like the iPod touch or iPad.

Mobile Hotmail Sign in: check emails from cell phone Sign in to Hotmail from iPhone Mail
Hotmail Sign in from iPad Sign out of Hotmail account on iPad

Hotmail sign out and the logout process

Perhaps just as important as signing in, and the login process is the logout process: what happens after you sign out of your Hotmail account? Well, this depends on the sign in options you chose initially. There are several precautions to take when signing out of Windows Live Hotmail, especially if you are on a public computer. Have a look at the standard Hotmail sign out to logout of your Hotmail account, and even confirm Hotmail sign out (completely logout) to prevent others from accessing your account.

Use the sign out link to manually logout of your Hotmail account

A common problem is how to sign in to Hotmail as a different user when several people are using the same computer; you can first read our short introduction with various solutions: "Can you use the same Hotmail login on multiple computers?".

Hotmail sign in security: secure login options and general account safety

The login options you pick when you sign in to your Hotmail account play a major role in your security from hackers and identity theft; here are tips and tricks to make the most of Windows Live Hotmail wherever you are, including when checking your emails from a public location or computer that isn't yours:

Hotmail Sign in from a public computer Login to Hotmail with a single-use sign in code
Sign in to your Hotmail account with SSL Setup Hotmail sign in for a cell phone

If you are worried that your Hotmail account may have been compromised, you can check the last Hotmail login (the last time someone tried to sign in to your email account). And of course, since your Windows Live password protects your profile from unauthorized access, you may want to manually change your Hotmail password: you can even make Hotmail automatically ask you to change to a new password!

For international access: What is the Hotmail sign in address (URL)? An upcoming series of pages will explain how to login to Hotmail in your own language, as well as localized versions of the email service. And don't forget that it is possible to have different email accounts, one you use all the time, and another Hotmail address you use in public: Hotmail Sign up - create a Hotmail account or get a new email address.

Hotmail sign in security and safety measures

Common Hotmail sign in problems and sign out error messages

Although you will rarely experience technical issues with your Hotmail account, there are some error messages you should know about to troubleshoot them; in many cases, these simple problems can be worked around once you know their cause, and access your Hotmail emails in spite of everything.

Hotmail Sign in blank page problem Fix Hotmail Sign in blocked page problem
Hotmail "Sign-in Error" message (login screen) Windows Live help on Hotmail Sign-in Error
"Sign-out isn't complete... Finish signing out" "Your session has timed out. Please try again"
"You've tried to sign in too many times (…)" "The email address or password is incorrect"
Hotmail Sign in again: twice or looping Check the status of Windows Live services

Web browser-related problems

JavaScript, Cookies, and web browser problems Aside from Hotmail sign in issues on Microsoft servers' end, there are often problems with the web browser you are using to check your emails: an old or unsupported version, JavaScript disabled, cookies turned off, and many other browser-related issues. Here are various "browser + Hotmail" topics: first, a list of web browsers officially supported by Windows Live Hotmail (which doesn't mean that you cannot use another browser of your choice - it just means that not all features are guaranteed to work).

Set Hotmail as your homepage in IE 9 / 8 / 7 / 6 Set Hotmail as your homepage in Firefox
Set Hotmail as your homepage in Chrome Set Hotmail as your homepage in Safari
Tutorial last updated on January 5, 2014
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New Hotmail, MSN Hotmail, Windows Live Hotmail & Live email are all referring to the same free webmail service offered by Microsoft and Windows Live Team (works on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Mac OS X). Microsoft Corporation, Apple, and other companies own the copyright or trademark to these and other terms mentioned.