Army Knowledge Online (AKO) Registration Instructions

These instructions contain complete information on starting an AKO account, including email. The AKO has two types of accounts: FULL and GUEST.

To obtain a FULL account, you must meet the following criteria:

Army (Active)

Army Retired

National Guard

Army Reservist

DA Civilian

For a GUEST account, you must meet the following criteria:

Army Volunteer

Contractor

DA Civilian, Retired

Family Member of FULL AKO Member

Foreign Officers (attached to U.S. Army)

Cadets (collegiate level)

US Air Force

US Coast Guard

US Marine Corps

US Navy

Instructions for a Full Account:

1. Open web page: www.us.army.mil

2. Select “I’m A New User.”

3. The screen shown below will appear.

4. Click “Next” beside “Full Account.”

5. The screen shown below will appear. Fill out the online form (the PEBD is on your LES for military) and select "Next" for each screen. Civilian personnel should enter their birth date for both dates required. For Army Civilians who are also Army retirees, enter your birth date as requested and then your PEBD in the next block. Also if you receive an error saying that your SSN already exists, your DOB is incorrect, or that your information does not match a record in TAPDB, email the AKO Help Desk at help@us.army.mil with a detailed description of the error message, your full name, date of birth, and rank/pay grade.

6. The screen below will appear. Fill in required data and select “Next.”

8. The following screen will appear.

9. Highlight a user name then, in the Password box, enter a 9-character password (it must contain at least one number, at least one letter and no special characters). The password is case-sensitive.

10. Re-enter password to confirm and select “Finish.”

11. The following screen will appear.

12. You will receive an email at the address you provided in number 7 above with a hyper-link to activate your account. After you activate your account, you will be emailed instructions for logging into the system.

Instructions for a Guest Account:

1. Open web page: www.us.army.mil

2. Select “I’m A New User.”

3. The screen shown below will appear.

4. Click “Next” beside “Guest Account.” You will be prompted to enter specific information. Make sure in the box titled "Army Sponsor Email Address" that you enter your sponsor's AKO email address (John.Smith@us.army.mil). Once you enter the required information click "Next".

5. The following screen will appear:

6. Your sponsor will receive an email at the address you provided in number 4 above with a hyper-link to activate your account. Your sponsor will have to give you this in order to activate your account. After you activate your account, you will be emailed instructions for logging into the system.