Accounts Allow or Prevent User to Change Password in Windows 11

Brink · Jan 1, 2026

This tutorial will show you how to allow or prevent a user from being able to change their password in Windows 10 and Windows 11.

You can apply this to local accounts and Microsoft accounts on the PC, but Microsoft accounts will still be able to change their password online at Microsoft.

You will only be able to prevent changing the password for standard user accounts and not for administrator accounts. A workaround to this is to change the administrator account to a standard user, prevent this account from changing their password, and change the account back to an administrator if wanted.

You must be signed in as an administrator to allow or prevent users from changing their password on the PC.

Contents

Option One: Allow or Prevent User to Change Password in Local Users and Groups
Option Two: Allow or Prevent User to Change Password using Command

EXAMPLE: Change password prevented for user account

Option One

Allow or Prevent User to Change Password in Local Users and Groups

Local Users and Groups is only available in the Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions of Windows 10 and Windows 11. Local Users and Groups is not available in the Home edition.

1 Open Local Users and Groups (lusrmgr.msc).

2 Click/tap on the Users folder in the left pane, and perform an action below: (see screenshot below)

Right click on the name (ex: "Brink2") of the Local account you want in the middle pane, and click/tap on Properties.
Double click/tap on the name (ex: "Brink2") of the Local account you want in the middle pane.

3 In the General tab, check (prevent) or uncheck (allow - default) User cannot change password box for what you want, and click/tap on OK. (see screenshot below)

You will get the error message below if you try to check this box for an administrator account.

Option Two

Allow or Prevent User to Change Password using Command

1 Open Windows Terminal (Admin), and select either Windows PowerShell or Command Prompt.

2 Type the command below you want into Windows Terminal (Admin), and press Enter. (see screenshots below)

(Allow user to change password - Default)

net user "<user name>" /PasswordChg:Yes

OR

(Prevent user to change password)

net user "<user name>" /PasswordChg:No

Substitute <user name> in the commands above with the actual user name (ex: "Brink2") of the account you want to allow or prevent changing their password.

For example: net user "Brink2" /PasswordChg:No

You will get the error message below if you try to prevent this for an administrator account.