How to Use the New Aadhaar (Aadhar) App?

What is the new Aadhaar App?

It is UIDAI's official app for your Aadhaar. UIDAI launched it on 28 January 2026 after a beta in November 2025. It replaced the old mAadhaar app and works in 13 languages.

UIDAI reported 21 million downloads by May 2026. News reports put it at 4 crore downloads by July 2026.

Can the app do what you need?

How do you install the official Aadhaar App?

Install it only from the official store listing. The publisher must be UIDAI. Ignore apps sent as links on WhatsApp or SMS.

How do you register in the Aadhaar App for the first time?

1. Open the app and enter your Aadhaar number

   Type your 12-digit Aadhaar number. Keep the phone with your registered mobile SIM nearby.

2. Enter the OTP from your registered mobile

   UIDAI sends a 6-digit OTP to the mobile number linked to your Aadhaar. It may come to a different phone than the one you are using.

   If no OTP comes: wait a few minutes and try again. If the linked number is lost or closed, the app can't help; update your mobile at a centre first.

3. Do the face scan

   The app takes a live photo and matches it with your Aadhaar photo. Sit in good, even light, face the camera and hold still.

4. Set a 6-digit PIN

   This PIN protects the app on your phone. Don't use your birth year or 123456, and don't tell anyone.

   You'll know it worked when your Aadhaar card details and photo show in the app.

How do you add family members to the app?

One phone can hold up to 5 Aadhaar profiles. In our experience, adding a member needs that member's OTP and face scan, not the phone owner's. So the person must be with you, and their registered mobile must receive SMS.

• Children: the face scan matches the photo on the Aadhaar. People report that it often fails for those enrolled as small children, because their face has changed. A biometric update at a centre refreshes the photo.
• Elderly parents: help them sit in daylight and hold the phone steady at eye level.
• Different numbers: each member's OTP goes to the mobile linked to their Aadhaar. A family member's mobile can be linked to Aadhaar without any problem.

What can you do in the Aadhaar App?

UIDAI says name, date of birth and gender updates "may be added in phases". As of October 2026 they need an Aadhaar centre, like photo, fingerprint and iris updates.

Viewing and downloading e-Aadhaar

After registering, open your profile to see or download your e-Aadhaar. The PDF password is the first 4 letters of your name in CAPITALS plus your year of birth (for example, SURE1990); our PDF password helper works it out for you. For a copy that shows only the last 4 digits, tick the "masked" option when you download. See e-Aadhaar vs PVC vs masked to choose the right form.

Locking your biometrics

The app has a one-click biometric lock. While it is on, nobody can use your fingerprint, iris or face for Aadhaar checks; the attempt fails with error 330. This protects you from fingerprint-clone fraud at micro-ATMs. Unlock before you give your fingerprint at a bank, ration shop or centre. Full guide: Lock Aadhaar and biometrics.

Checking authentication history

UIDAI's authentication history shows the last 6 months, up to 50 records at a time. Each record shows the type (OTP, fingerprint, iris, face or demographic), the time, the agency, a transaction ID and the result. If you see a use you don't recognise, lock your biometrics and call 1947. For money taken from your bank, also call 1930.

UIDAI also sends an email notice for each authentication. Linking your email in the app is free until 31 December 2026, so it is a good time to add it.

Updating address and email

Address update in the app costs ₹75. In our experience these documents work: electricity, water or gas bill, bank passbook or statement, notarised rent agreement, voter ID, passport or ration card. No proof in your name? A family member can share their address through the Head of Family route. Steps and rejection fixes: Update your address.

How do you update your mobile number in the app?

The app route works only if your current linked number still receives SMS. It costs ₹75 and needs a face scan. In our experience it succeeds in roughly half the cases, and the face scan is the usual reason it fails.

• Time: UIDAI allows up to 30 days. In our experience the app takes 7–15 days. Until then, OTPs still go to the old number.
• Faster option: at an Aadhaar centre no document is needed, the fee is ₹75 and it's done the same day. OTPs usually start on the new number in 1–2 days.
• Your bank is separate: bank OTPs and UPI keep using the number registered with the bank. Change it at the bank too.

Full guide with the centre route: Update your Aadhaar mobile number.

Is the app's QR or profile accepted as ID?

Not yet, in practice. In our experience, airports, railways and hotels don't accept the app's QR or profile as ID. Carry your e-Aadhaar printout, the physical card or a PVC card.

UIDAI wants businesses to verify Aadhaar by QR instead of keeping photocopies. Businesses can register as offline verification entities at ovse.uidai.gov.in. In December 2025, UIDAI was reported as saying that storing photocopies breaks the Aadhaar Act. On the ground it is mixed: in our experience some hotels scan the QR, while others still take a photocopy.

• What the QR holds: the last 4 digits of your Aadhaar, name, address, gender, date of birth, photo, and masked mobile and email.
• Who can read it: only the Aadhaar App, UIDAI's Aadhaar QR Scanner app or UIDAI's Windows reader. It works offline.
• Checking an Aadhaar someone gives you: scan its QR with the app. Reports say fake e-Aadhaar copies, including AI-made ones, can be caught this way. See how to verify an Aadhaar.

What happened to the old mAadhaar app?

News reports say mAadhaar was retired on 30 June – 1 July 2026. At our counter we see that it no longer shows in the Play Store; the new Aadhaar App appears in its place. Most customers switch without trouble.

• Your mAadhaar profiles don't move across. Register yourself and each family member again in the new app.
• Any guide that tells you to download mAadhaar is out of date.
• Biometric lock, e-Aadhaar download and updates are all in the new app.

What if you don't have a smartphone?

Our customers without a smartphone usually do one of these:

• Use a family member's phone. Add your profile with your OTP and face scan. It counts towards that phone's 5 profiles.
• Visit a cyber café or digital seva shop to download and print your e-Aadhaar. A normal shop can't update your details.
• Go to an Aadhaar centre or authorised CSC for updates, or for a biometric-verified e-Aadhaar print (₹30–₹40) if your mobile isn't linked.

Never let a shop keep your OTP, PIN or a copy of your Aadhaar. Add your profile only to a phone you trust.

What problems come up in the Aadhaar App, and how do you fix them?

Tips for a face scan that passes

• Sit facing a window or in even daylight. Avoid a bright light behind you.
• Remove glasses, a cap or a mask. Keep your face fully in the frame.
• Hold the phone at eye level and keep still, or ask someone to hold it.
• If you were enrolled as a child or your look has changed a lot, the match may fail. A photo update at a centre helps.

When should you go to an Aadhaar centre instead?

• Your linked mobile is lost, closed, or was never registered.
• The face scan keeps failing.
• You need to change your name, date of birth, gender, photo, fingerprints or iris.

Find a centre bhuvan-app3.nrsc.gov.in

Bottom line

The new Aadhaar App is the easiest way to keep your e-Aadhaar on your phone, lock your biometrics and check where your Aadhaar was used. It needs a working registered mobile and a face scan. If either fails, an Aadhaar centre is the sure route. For help, UIDAI's free helpline is 1947.