# Why does Adalo say ‘Invalid email or password’ for a valid user?

Work out whether Adalo's invalid email or password message comes from the login action, one user record, the Preview environment, or a wider service problem.

- Canonical URL: https://adalocado.com/answers/adalo-invalid-email-password-valid-user
- Verification: Documented from current sources
- Topic: Users and Authentication
- Skill level: Beginner
- Last reviewed: 2026-09-23
- Index status: index-now

## Short answer

Do not assume this is a Preview-only bug yet. Adalo's current docs do not list failed email-and-password login as a normal Preview limitation. First check that the Login action uses the visible Email and Password inputs, create one clean test user, log out with a real Log Out action, and try the same account in both Preview and the published web app. If the clean account fails in both places, capture the action setup and send it to Adalo Support.

The fastest useful test is not another browser or another copy of the screen. Use one clean account and one plain Login action, then compare Preview with the published web app. That gives you evidence about where the failure lives and gives Adalo Support something specific to investigate.

## Intended outcome

A small, repeatable test that separates a screen setup problem, a user-specific credential problem, a Preview-only failure, and a wider Adalo issue.

## Requirements

- Access to the app's Sign Up, Log In, and Users collection setup
- One new email address that has never been used in the app
- The app's Preview link and published web URL
- A safe test password that will not be shared in screenshots or support posts
- Permission to record the builder setup if Adalo Support needs it

## Step by step

1. **Confirm which user system the app uses**

   This guide assumes the native Adalo Users collection. If the app uses Xano or another external user system, confirm that the button uses the matching External Login action and that its authentication endpoint is working.

2. **Remove extra behavior from the test**

   Use one plain Login screen with an Email input, a Password input, one Login action, and a link that runs only after login succeeds. Temporarily remove screen-load logout actions, automatic redirects, and duplicate hidden inputs from this control test.

3. **Check the Login action bindings**

   Open the Login action and confirm Email comes from the visible Email input and Password comes from the visible Password input. Re-select both Magic Text values instead of relying on old bindings after a component was replaced.

4. **Create a clean account**

   Sign up with a new email and a known test password. Write down the exact email outside the app, but never place the password in a public recording or forum reply.

5. **Log out through the normal path**

   Use a button with Adalo's Log Out action, followed by a link to the Log In screen. Do not use the automatic session created by Sign Up as proof that a later Login action works.

6. **Test Preview and published web separately**

   Enter the same test credentials in Preview, then open the published web URL in a private browser window and repeat the login. Record which environment fails and the exact time of the test.

7. **Test one more user**

   Repeat with a second new account. If only one account fails, treat it as a credential or user-record problem. If every clean account fails, focus on the action setup or platform state.

8. **Escalate with a useful recording**

   If the clean setup still fails, record the visible input names, Login action mappings, Sign Up action, logout path, Users record email, Preview result, and published-web result. Hide every password, then send the recording and test time to Adalo Support.

## Why it works

- A user row proves that an account record exists. It does not let an administrator verify the saved password because Adalo keeps that property encrypted.
- The Sign Up action creates the account and starts a session. Actions that work immediately after sign-up prove that the new session exists, but they do not prove that a later Login action reads the right inputs.
- The invalid email or password message is a general authentication failure. The same message can appear when a username is used instead of an email, an input is mapped incorrectly, one user's credentials are wrong, or the authentication service is unavailable.
- Testing the same account in Preview and on the published web URL changes one major variable. That comparison is more useful than repeatedly rebuilding the same screen without recording the result.

## Common failures

### The action uses Username instead of Email

Use the account's email in the native Login action. A previous forum case with the same message was resolved after the maker stopped trying to log in with a username.

### The button points to an old or hidden input

Delete the Login action itself, add a fresh Login action, and map it to the two visible inputs. Renaming or rebuilding the screen does not always prove that an old Magic Text binding was replaced.

### Sign-up works, but login after logout fails

Treat sign-up and login as separate tests. Confirm the Sign Up action saved the intended email, then use the normal Log Out action before testing the Login action with the same exact email.

### Only one user cannot log in

Create another clean account and compare. Because the stored password cannot be viewed, reset that user's password or replace the disposable test account instead of guessing what was saved.

### Preview fails, but the published web app works

Record both results and report it as a Preview-specific case. Keep testing the real user journey on the published web URL while Adalo reviews the Preview behavior.

### Every user fails in Preview and published web

Check Adalo's status page, remove extra Login-screen actions, and test the default authentication flow. If the failure continues, send Adalo Support the app link, recording, browser, and exact test time.

## Testing checklist

- [ ] A brand-new test user can sign up, log out, and log back in with the exact same email and password.
- [ ] The Login action reads the visible Email input and Password input, with no default or hidden value replacing either one.
- [ ] The same clean account is tested once in Preview and once on the published web URL.
- [ ] A second test account confirms whether the failure belongs to one user or the whole app.
- [ ] The test is repeated after removing extra screen-load actions and automatic redirects from the Login screen.
- [ ] The test uses an email address, not a username
- [ ] Email and Password point to the visible inputs
- [ ] The test account was created through the intended Sign Up action
- [ ] A real Log Out action ends the first session
- [ ] No password appears in a screenshot or support post
- [ ] Preview and published web results are recorded separately
- [ ] A second account shows whether the problem affects one user or everyone
- [ ] The support recording shows actions and results without exposing credentials

## Limitations

- The source forum thread is unresolved and does not include the requested builder recording, so the exact cause is unknown.
- The editorial team did not reproduce this login failure in the source app or confirm whether it also affects a native store build.
- Older forum workarounds show possible causes, not guaranteed fixes for the current Adalo version.
- Passwords are encrypted in Adalo and cannot be read back from the Users collection, even by an administrator.

## Community evidence

### [Invalid email or password for a freshly registered user](https://forum.adalo.com/t/bug-invalid-email-or-password-error-when-logging-in-with-a-valid-freshly-registered-user-web-preview-share-link/70001)

A maker reports that native sign-up creates the user and starts a session, but a later login with the same credentials fails in Preview and a share link. The helper asks for a screen recording of the builder and preview setup. Boundary: The thread has no accepted solution, screen recording, or confirmed reproduction, so it does not establish a Preview bug.

### [Frustrating login problem](https://forum.adalo.com/t/frustrating-login-problem/23337)

A similar error was resolved when the maker found that the login used a username instead of the account email. Boundary: This is an older, different setup and is only evidence that the same message can have more than one cause.

### [When clicking on Login in the embedded previewer](https://forum.adalo.com/t/when-clicking-on-login-embedded-page-previewer/869)

One maker reported success after logging the current user out when the Login screen opened. Boundary: The source thread already tried this workaround without success, so it should not be presented as a universal fix.

## Sources

- [Adalo forum: Invalid email or password for a freshly registered user](https://forum.adalo.com/t/bug-invalid-email-or-password-error-when-logging-in-with-a-valid-freshly-registered-user-web-preview-share-link/70001)
- [Adalo: Screens and default authentication flow](https://help.adalo.com/component-basics/inserting-and-editing-screens)
- [Adalo: Preview Your App](https://help.adalo.com/design/preview-your-app)
- [Adalo: Users collection and encrypted passwords](https://help.adalo.com/feature-templates/user-profile-and-account-settings/overview-screens-database-layout-settings-use-cases)
- [Adalo: Account Settings and Sign Out](https://help.adalo.com/feature-templates/account-settings/account-settings-screen)
- [Adalo: Xano user sign-up and login](https://help.adalo.com/integrations/xano-integration/user-signup-login-authentication)
- [Adalo Status](https://status.adalo.com/)
- [Adalo forum: Username mistaken for email](https://forum.adalo.com/t/frustrating-login-problem/23337)
- [Adalo forum: Login-screen logout workaround](https://forum.adalo.com/t/when-clicking-on-login-embedded-page-previewer/869)

Markdown version: https://adalocado.com/answers/adalo-invalid-email-password-valid-user.md