> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.whetstone.au/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create Your Whetstone Account

> Sign up as a business owner on Whetstone. No credit card is required until you are ready to book your first advisory session.

Creating a Whetstone account takes a few minutes and needs only a valid email address. No card is required until you decide to book.

## Three ways to sign up

You can sign up with an email address and password, or **Continue with Google**, or **Continue with LinkedIn**. All three end up in the same place. The social options are usually fastest — no password to remember, and your name and photo come across automatically.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Go to the sign-up page">
    Visit [whetstone.au](https://whetstone.au) and click **Sign up** in the top-right corner.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose how to sign in">
    Use Google or LinkedIn, or enter an email address and choose a password.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Verify your email">
    If you used a password, check your inbox for a confirmation link and click it. You will be signed in and returned to whatever you were doing. The link works once — if you have already used it, just sign in normally.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Describe your first challenge">
    Your business details are captured from the challenge you post, so there is no separate profile form to fill in first.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Password rules

If you use a password:

* It must be **at least 8 characters**.
* It is checked against a public list of passwords that have leaked in breaches elsewhere on the internet. If yours is on that list, you will be asked to pick another one.

<Note>
  **Your password itself is never sent anywhere** during that check. Only a scrambled fragment of it is used, which cannot be turned back into your password.
</Note>

A short phrase you will remember ("purple kettle nine tuesday") beats a short scramble ("P\@ss1!") on both counts.

## If you are asked to sign up mid-way through something

That is deliberate. Describing a business challenge needs an account, because your challenge needs an owner — that is what lets you find it later, lets us email you when your shortlist is ready, and keeps it private to you. Whetstone remembers where you were going and returns you to the same form.

## Choosing the wrong account type

Do not create a second account on the same email address — it will not work.

A business-owner account can be switched to an advisor account later, from **Become an advisor**. That switch is **permanent**, and you will be asked to confirm it with what you lose spelled out first. There is no route back, so if you are unsure, contact support before switching.

<Warning>
  Whetstone staff accounts are never created by signing up. They are created internally by the Whetstone team.
</Warning>

## Related articles

* [How Whetstone works](/getting-started/how-whetstone-works)
* [Describe your challenge](/getting-started/describe-your-challenge)
* [Can't sign in](/troubleshooting/cant-sign-in)


## Related topics

- [Can't sign in to Whetstone](/troubleshooting/cant-sign-in.md)
- [How Whetstone Works](/getting-started/how-whetstone-works.md)
- [Get Started with Whetstone](/getting-started/index.md)
- [Fix Whetstone payment problems](/troubleshooting/payment-problems.md)
- [Account settings, security and privacy](/support/account-security.md)