How to change an Instagram username

The name you originally chose for your Instagram account might have made total sense at the time. But, as the world turns things change, and you could find yourself feeling that 1DirectionHotness or Blue&BlackNotWhite&Gold isn’t quite the way you want people to see you now.

The answer is simple: change your username and free yourself from the past and update your online identity.

Will changing my Instagram username affect your account?

The only thing that changes is your name. All of your followers remain the same, only now you will appear in their feeds with your new title. Your photo stream stays as it was, and all of the people you follow will still be there.

If you want people to recognise you, then keeping the same profile picture is a good idea, or you can mention the previous username in your Bio until those you care about know of the change.

How to change your username

It’s very easy to give yourself a new username. Open the app (either on iOS or Android) and tap on the icon in the bottom right corner that looks like a person’s head and shoulders.

This brings you to your account page, which displays all of your posts as well as details of your followers. At the top of the page there’s an Edit Profile button. Tap this.

You’ll now see all of your profile details. To change your username, tap where you see it displayed and this will launch the keyboard. All that’s left to do is enter the new name then, when you’re happy with the updated title, tap either Done (iOS) or the Tick icon in the top right corner (Android).

That’s it, your identity is renewed. We recommend you also change your password and enable two-factor authentication to keep your Instagram account safe.

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