The 10 most common 4-digit PINs (and why to avoid them)

The most common 4-digit PIN is 1234. Nick Berry’s analysis of 3.4 million exposed PINs found that 1234 accounted for 10.7% of the dataset. The other numbers near the top are just as familiar: 1111, 0000, 1212, and 7777. A PIN can have 10,000 possible combinations and still be easy to guess when people choose from a short list.

The ten PINs people choose most often

The table below comes from Nick Berry’s DataGenetics analysis of 3.4 million exposed PINs. The percentages are the published shares in that dataset.

The ten most common four-digit PINs in the published dataset

Rank	PIN	Share of the dataset
1	1234	10.7%
2	1111	6.0%
3	0000	1.9%
4	1212	1.2%
5	7777	0.7%
6	1004	0.6%
7	2000	0.6%
8	4444	0.5%
9	2222	0.5%
10	6969	0.5%

The source is old, but the lesson is not. People still reach for patterns that are quick to type and easy to remember. That makes the numbers useful to an attacker who starts with a short guess list instead of trying all 10,000 combinations.

Why these PINs are risky

The list contains several kinds of shortcuts:

• Counting runs: 1234 is a sequence that people type without thinking.
• Repeated digits: 1111, 0000, 7777, 4444, and 2222 are easy to remember.
• Mirrored pairs: 1212 and 6969 repeat a simple shape.
• Years and dates: 2000 looks like a year, while other common choices follow a birthday or calendar pattern.

The risk is not that these numbers are mathematically invalid. The risk is that they appear early in the guesses made by someone who knows how people choose. The same principle applies to phone unlock codes, alarm panels, voicemail PINs, payment PINs, and any other system that accepts a short numeric secret.

How many combinations does a 4-digit PIN have?

A 4-digit PIN has 10,000 possible values, from 0000 through 9999. A single random guess has a 1 in 10,000 chance of being correct. Those odds describe a truly random choice, not a number selected from a birthday, a year, a house number, or the ten examples above.

Six digits gives a million possible values. Choose six digits when a device or service allows it. The extra two positions do more against random guessing than trying to make four familiar digits look clever.

How to choose a less predictable PIN

Use a random generator instead of personal information. Avoid:

1. Your birthday or another date someone can find.
2. A birth year, postcode, house number, or phone suffix.
3. Repeated digits and counting runs.
4. The PIN you use on another card or device.

MoolKey’s random PIN generator creates 4, 5, 6, or 8 digit values and filters common repeats, runs, dates, and birth years. It runs in the browser, and the generated PIN is not stored by the tool. If you need a fixed length, use the 4-digit PIN generator or choose six digits when the system supports it.

Remembering a random PIN can still be difficult. Recall practice helps: type it from memory several times on the day you set it, then once the next day. If you need the same PIN again without keeping a list, MoolKey can recreate a PIN from a Master Key and account inputs. That is different from the free random tool above, which produces a fresh random value.

What this dataset does not prove

Berry’s analysis used exposed PINs, not a random sample of every PIN in use. It shows how people selected numbers in that dataset. It does not tell you the exact distribution for every bank, phone, country, or year, and it should not be treated as a current breach count.

The useful conclusion is narrower: predictable patterns are common enough to avoid. Choose a random PIN, use six digits when possible, and keep a separate PIN for each card or device.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most common 4-digit PIN? 1234 is the most common 4-digit PIN in Nick Berry’s analysis of 3.4 million exposed PINs. It accounted for 10.7% of the dataset, which is why it should be avoided on a card, phone, lock, or other PIN-protected device.

What are the ten most common 4-digit PINs? The ten listed in the DataGenetics analysis are 1234, 1111, 0000, 1212, 7777, 1004, 2000, 4444, 2222, and 6969. Their published shares show how far human PIN choice is from random.

Are 4-digit PINs secure? A 4-digit PIN has 10,000 possible combinations, but the number only helps when people choose across that space. Repeated digits, counting runs, dates, and birth years make a PIN much easier to guess. Use a random PIN and choose six digits when a system allows it.

How can I choose a safer PIN? Use a cryptographically random PIN rather than a birthday, year, address, repeated digit, or counting run. MoolKey’s free PIN generator can filter those patterns in your browser, and it does not store the generated result.