PIN forgotten, sheet available
Reset the device and restore from the 24 words. Usually no specialist help needed — verify before paying anyone.
Ledger Recovery
A Ledger device is a signing tool wrapped around a 24-word seed. Recovery depends on which layer failed — the PIN that guards the device, the sheet that records the seed, or the passphrase that opens a hidden account.
The three layers on a Ledger
The PIN exists only to stop someone with the physical device from using it. Three wrong attempts wipe the device — which is a protection, not a disaster, provided the recovery sheet exists. The 24 words are the wallet itself and can be restored on any BIP39-compatible device.
The optional passphrase is where most genuinely difficult Ledger cases originate. It attaches to the same 24 words and produces a completely separate set of accounts. The standard accounts may look untouched and empty while the funds sit in a passphrase-derived wallet whose exact string — including spacing and capitalisation — has been forgotten.
A fourth, less dramatic case: Ledger Live showing no balance after a reinstall, because accounts have not been re-added or the wrong derivation is being scanned.
Ledger situations we assess
PIN forgotten, sheet lost
The seed must be rebuilt from partial records. Extraction from the secure element is not an option.
Passphrase forgotten
Hidden-wallet accounts are unreachable until the exact passphrase is found. Candidate searches are verified against a known address.
Sheet damaged or partially readable
Ambiguous words become a constrained candidate problem rather than a blank one.
Device lost, stolen or broken
With the 24 words, restore onto a new device. The device itself holds nothing irreplaceable.
Accounts missing in Ledger Live
Frequently a re-add or derivation issue; the chain data is unaffected.
What to collect before an assessment
- Whatever remains of the 24-word sheet, including which positions are uncertain.
- Whether a passphrase was enabled, and any recollection of its structure.
- A receiving address from the affected account, so candidates can be verified.
- The device model and roughly when it was set up.
- Which coins and accounts were visible in Ledger Live before access was lost.
What can and cannot be done
Assessable
- Partially damaged or partially missing 24-word sheets.
- Forgotten passphrase with remembered patterns or candidates.
- Uncertainty between similar BIP39 words on the sheet.
- Accounts appearing empty due to derivation or account-index issues.
Not possible
- Reading the seed out of a PIN-locked secure element.
- Recovering a wallet with neither seed fragments nor passphrase recollection.
- Anything involving a device that is not yours.
- 'Ledger support' style recovery — Ledger holds no copy of your seed.
Related pages
Ledger questions
I entered the wrong PIN three times and the device wiped itself.
That is expected behaviour. Restore the 24 words onto the device to regain access. Without the words, the wipe is permanent.
Can my 24 words be extracted from the device?
No. The secure element is designed specifically to prevent extraction, and no legitimate service can do it.
My accounts vanished from Ledger Live after reinstalling.
Re-add the accounts; Ledger Live stores its account list locally. Nothing on-chain changes when the application is reinstalled.
I set a passphrase but cannot recall it exactly.
This is assessable when you remember the structure — words used, spacing, capitalisation habits. Passphrases are case- and space-sensitive, so near misses produce a different empty wallet rather than an error.
Not sure whether your case is recoverable?
Describe the wallet, what happened and what information you still have. You will get an honest assessment of whether recovery is technically feasible — without sending any secret credentials.
Assess My Ledger Recovery Case