Never generated here
- Repeated digits: 0000, 7777
- Runs: 1234, 6789, 9876
- Repeating pairs: 1212, 6969
- Years from 1900 to 2099 (4 digits)
From 4 to 12 digits, drawn by the Web Crypto API with the obvious ones skipped: no 1234, no 0000, no repeating pairs and no years. For a phone, a bank card, a SIM card or a door code.
Calculating…
PINs are only safe where attempts are limited, like a phone or a bank card. Obvious ones (1234, 0000, 1212) are skipped.
Why random
A well-known analysis of 3.4 million four-digit PINs found that 1234 alone made up about 1 in 9 of them, and that the 20 most common PINs covered about a quarter. Birth years and dates came next.
The odds
A PIN is only safe because the device stops the guessing. Here are the chances that a thief guesses a random PIN before the lockout.
| PIN length | Possible PINs | Odds with 3 tries | Odds with 10 tries |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 digits | 10,000 | 1 in 3,333 | 1 in 1,000 |
| 5 digits | 100,000 | 1 in 33,333 | 1 in 10,000 |
| 6 digits | 1,000,000 | 1 in 333,333 | 1 in 100,000 |
| 8 digits | 100,000,000 | 1 in 33,333,333 | 1 in 10,000,000 |
These odds hold for a random PIN. In the same analysis, three guesses (1234, 1111 and 0000) would have opened almost 1 card in 5.
Where a PIN belongs
Use 6 digits or more. Phones add delays after wrong attempts, and an iPhone can erase itself after 10 failures (Settings, Face ID & Passcode, Erase Data).
Card PINs are usually 4 digits and the card is blocked after 3 wrong tries. A random PIN keeps a thief's odds at 3 in 10,000 instead of almost 1 in 5.
A SIM PIN protects your phone number if the phone is stolen, and with it the text-message codes of your accounts. After 3 wrong tries the SIM asks for the PUK code from your carrier.
Online accounts face bots and leaked databases. Use a random password or a passphrase there. Windows Hello PINs are the exception: they never leave the device and its TPM chip limits the guesses.
Questions
Yes, 100 times safer: there are 1,000,000 possible 6-digit PINs against 10,000 with 4 digits. With 10 tries before lockout, a thief's chance drops from 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 100,000.
Anything with a pattern or a link to you: 1234, 0000, 1111, 1212, birth years, dates, and digits from your phone number or address. The generator skips repeats, runs, repeating pairs and years automatically.
Use it several times right after setting it: muscle memory does the rest within a day or two. You can also keep it in your password manager. Never write it on the card or slip it into the phone case.
Because thieves try them first. For 4 digits the filter removes 318 of the 10,000 combinations (repeated digits, runs like 1234 or 9876, repeating pairs and the years 1900 to 2099), so the PIN stays random while avoiding the worst picks.
Only where hardware limits the attempts: a phone, a bank card, a SIM card, or a Windows Hello PIN tied to your device's TPM chip. On websites, use a random password, a passphrase or a passkey.
Random words you can actually remember, with the entropy of a 16-character password.
Open toolA strong WPA2/WPA3 key and a QR code your guests scan to join, with a card to print.
Open toolSee your password the way an attacker does: patterns, entropy and four crack-time scenarios.
Open toolFind out if a password already leaked, without ever revealing it (k-anonymity).
Open toolNIST, PCI DSS and CIS presets with ready-to-run Windows, Active Directory and Linux scripts.
Open toolHow long every length and character mix survives a modern GPU cracking rig.
Open tool