Account

Create an account

Go to self.app and tap Create Account. You'll choose a username, verify your email, set up a passkey and save your 12-word recovery phrase.

1. Choose a username. It also becomes your referral code for inviting others.
2. Verify your email. Enter your email and the 6-digit code we send you. We only store an encrypted version of your email.
3. Set up your passkey. Use Face ID, Touch ID or your fingerprint for quick sign-in. You can skip this and add one later in Settings → Security.
4. Save your recovery phrase. Write the 12 words down and store them somewhere safe.

Your recovery phrase

Your 12-word recovery phrase is the key to your account and all your encrypted data. SELF never sees it and can't reset it, so if it's lost it can't be recovered.

Store it offline somewhere safe. Setting a password gives you another way to sign in, and Link New Device lets you add devices without typing it. If you've already lost it, see Lost your recovery phrase.

Use SELF on multiple devices

Yes, SELF syncs across devices on both the Zero and Connect tiers. Your recovery phrase creates the same encryption keys on every device, so your AI conversations, messages and data stay in sync.

Sign in on a new device with your passkey, your recovery phrase, your email and password (if you've set one), or by scanning a QR code from Settings → Security → Link New Device.

Before you sign out

Before you sign out, make sure you can get back in. You'll need your passkey, your recovery phrase, or your email and password if you've set one.

If you're not sure you have any of these, set a password in Settings → Security before you sign out. If you have another device that's still signed in, you can also use Link New Device from it.

Profile picture won't upload

Profile pictures must be 2MB or smaller. Choose a smaller image, or crop or compress it, then try again in Settings → Appearance → Profile Image.

Export your data

Go to Settings → Privacy → Export Data and tap Export All Data to download a copy of your data as a ZIP file.

Your conversations and memories are decrypted on your device using its private key, so run the export on a device where you're signed in.

Delete your account

You can delete your account from Settings → Privacy → Delete Account. Deletion is immediate and permanent: your node is fully wiped within 24 hours, and nobody, including SELF, can recover it.

Export your data first from Export Data on the same page if you want to keep a copy.

• Permanent removal. Your conversations, memories, files, messages and account information are permanently destroyed. If you're on SELF Connect, your subscription is cancelled.
• No ID reuse. Your node ID is retired forever. No future node or account can ever be given your old ID.
• No recovery possible. Deletion isn't undone from infrastructure backups, and those backups are encrypted. Your recovery phrase and encryption keys are tied to your node ID, so once the node is deleted they can't decrypt anything.

This is by design. SELF's zero-knowledge architecture means that when you delete, it really happens.