HSBC Online Banking 2026: Register, Log On and Fix Common Problems

Just need to sign in? Use the HSBC login guide. Want the full bank overview? See our updated HSBC UK review.

What is HSBC online banking?

HSBC online banking is the browser version of the HSBC UK mobile app: the same accounts and most of the same features, reached from a computer at hsbc.co.uk. HSBC says it is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and it covers every personal HSBC product you hold, from current accounts and savings to credit cards, loans and mortgages.

Unlike app-only banks such as Monzo or Starling, HSBC keeps a full desktop service alongside its app. Our guide to digital banking compares the two approaches, and our overview of UK banks and money apps covers the alternatives. Business customers use a separate service, HSBC Business Internet Banking, which this guide does not cover.

What you can do online

• View balances, transactions and paperless statements, going back up to six years;
• See your sort code, account number and IBAN (your international account number);
• Move money between your HSBC accounts, pay UK beneficiaries (with Confirmation of Payee) and send money abroad;
• Set up and amend direct debits and standing orders;
• Manage your cards: activate them, report them lost or stolen and order replacements;
• Update your personal details, including address, email and marketing preferences;
• Chat with HSBC from inside online banking.

How to set up online banking with HSBC

You can register for HSBC online banking in the HSBC UK app, which HSBC describes as the quickest route, or on the website. Either way you need an existing HSBC UK account, your sort code and account number, your date of birth and the UK mobile number HSBC holds for you.

To register on the website:

1. 1Go to hsbc.co.uk/register;
2. 2Choose to register on the website rather than in the app;
3. 3Enter your sort code, account number and date of birth;
4. 4Choose a username and a memorable answer, which HSBC uses to confirm your identity, for example when you reset your details;
5. 5Download the HSBC UK app and set up your Mobile Banking PIN, which unlocks the Digital Secure Key you will use to log on.

During registration HSBC may also ask you to set a Telephone Security Number: a 6 to 10 digit number that only you know, used to identify you when you call.

No smartphone? HSBC can send you a physical Secure Key. Request one on 03456 002 290 or at a branch, and allow up to 10 working days for delivery.

How to log in to HSBC online banking

To log on, you enter your username at hsbc.co.uk, then confirm who you are with a security code. The full walkthrough, including the app and Business Internet Banking, is in our login guide linked at the top of this page. Quick recap:

1. 1Go to hsbc.co.uk and select Log on;
2. 2Enter your username;
3. 3Generate a security code in the HSBC UK app (or on your physical Secure Key) and enter it on the website.

Security and the Digital Secure Key

The Digital Secure Key is the security-code generator built into the HSBC UK app. You unlock it with your Mobile Banking PIN, and it gives you a one-time code each time you log on to online banking or approve a payment to a new payee. Because it is tied to your registered device, a stolen password alone is not enough to get into your account.

If you cannot or do not want to use the app, the physical Secure Key does the same job:

Other protections you get with HSBC online banking:

• Strong Customer Authentication, an extra check such as a security code before a new payee or an online card payment goes through;
• Confirmation of Payee, which checks the name on the account before you pay someone new;
• Card freeze in the app for a card you have temporarily mislaid;
• Automatic sign-out after a period of inactivity.

Will HSBC refund you if you are scammed?

Usually, yes. Under the Payment Systems Regulator's reimbursement rules, UK banks including HSBC must refund victims of authorised push payment (APP) scams, where you are tricked into sending money yourself, for payments made on or after 7 October 2024. The cap is £85,000 per claim, which the regulator says covers over 99% of claims. You should report the scam within 13 months of the payment, and the bank may deduct an excess of up to £100.

If HSBC turns down your claim or does not reply within eight weeks, you can take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service for free.

How to spot a fake HSBC log-on page

Only enter your details on a page whose address starts with https://www.hsbc.co.uk. A genuine bank will never ask you to share your PIN, your password or a security code by phone, text or email. If a message pushes you to log on through a link, close it and open the HSBC UK app or type the address yourself.

HSBC online banking problems and resets

Most HSBC internet banking problems, such as a forgotten username, memorable answer or PIN, can be fixed yourself from the log-on page or with HSBC's digital banking help tool.

Forgotten your HSBC username

1. 1On the HSBC log-on page, select the forgotten username link;
2. 2Enter your sort code, account number and date of birth;
3. 3Follow the on-screen checks to get your username back.

Forgotten your memorable answer

1. 1On the HSBC log-on page, select the forgotten memorable answer or password link;
2. 2Confirm your identity with your username and a Secure Key code;
3. 3Set a new memorable answer.

Forgotten all of your HSBC login details

If you have lost both your username and your memorable answer, or your Secure Key no longer works, call HSBC to reset your access. Have your card and ID ready. These are the numbers HSBC lists on its contact page:

For wait times, complaints and the best time to call, see our HSBC customer service review.

Reactivate the Digital Secure Key

If you have replaced your phone or reinstalled the app, you need to set up mobile banking on the new device before the Digital Secure Key works again.

1. 1Install the HSBC UK app on the new phone and log on with your username;
2. 2Confirm your identity with the one-time code HSBC sends by text to the mobile number on file;
3. 3Set your Mobile Banking PIN to finish.

A locked or forgotten Mobile Banking PIN is reset the same way, from the I've forgotten my mobile banking PIN option in HSBC's help tool.

If your mobile number is out of date, you cannot reactivate online and will need to call HSBC. Keep your number up to date in My details.

Is HSBC online banking down?

To check whether HSBC online banking is down, open HSBC's service status page, which lists planned maintenance and live problems for online banking, the app, cards and payments. If it shows no issue:

1. 1Check @HSBC_UK on X for outage updates;
2. 2Try the other channel: if the app is down, try a browser, and vice versa;
3. 3If only the website shows an error, clear your browser cache or try another browser;
4. 4For anything urgent, call HSBC on the numbers in the table above.

HSBC online banking FAQ