How to change your Instagram username, step by step

Go to your profile, tap Edit profile, tap Username, type the new name and save. If someone already has it, Instagram tells you before you can save. Your followers, posts, messages and Highlights all stay; what changes is your @handle and your profile link, instagram.com/ followed by the new name. A few things depend on the old name, so read the section on what breaks before you save.

In the app

1. Go to your profile and tap Edit profile.
2. Tap Username and type the new one. Instagram flags it straight away if it's taken or breaks the rules.
3. Save with the tick or Done in the top corner. The label depends on your phone.

Through Accounts Center, including on a computer

1. Open Settings and go to Accounts Center. On instagram.com, click More (☰), then Settings, then See more in Accounts Center.
2. Choose Profiles, then the Instagram profile you want to change.
3. Select Username, enter the new one and confirm.

On instagram.com you can also open your profile, click Edit profile and change the username there. Menus move between versions, so if a label differs, look for Edit profile or Accounts Center.

Usernames are unique across Instagram and use a narrow set of characters.

• At most 30 characters.
• Only letters (a to z), numbers, periods and underscores. No spaces, hyphens, emoji or other symbols.
• No two periods in a row, and no period at the very end.
• No capitals: Instagram shows every username in lowercase, so rivera.ceramics and Rivera.Ceramics are the same name.
• Nobody else can be using it, including an account that hasn't posted in years.

Your name is a separate field: the line above your bio. It can include spaces and emoji, it doesn't have to be unique, and Instagram search reads it. People report a limit of two name changes within 14 days, though Instagram's current help article on profile information gives no number.

Instagram doesn't release usernames held by other accounts, active or not, and buying one from its owner isn't allowed either: Instagram's Terms of Use say you can't buy, sell or transfer any part of your account, and they name the username. If an account is using your registered trademark as its username, report it through Instagram's trademark process; otherwise, pick another name.

People report that Instagram keeps your old username on hold for 14 days after a change, and that the Edit profile screen says that in most cases you can change back within that time. Instagram's current help article on profile information doesn't mention the hold, so treat it as a grace period, not a promise. After it, the old name goes to whoever claims it first.

If you can't afford to lose the old name, read the section on protecting it before you start.

• How often: Instagram's help article gives no limit. People report caps of about two changes within 14 days on names, and similar ones on usernames, so if a free name won't save, a recent change is the likely reason, and waiting is the fix.
• Review: Instagram says that when an account has high reach, a username change may be reviewed before it takes effect.
• Notice: Instagram also says followers may be notified of the change, so don't count on switching quietly.
• Verified accounts: Instagram notes that once verified, some public figures, celebrities and brands can't change their username at all. On Meta Verified, the Help Center says changing your name or picture later may mean verifying again, and details such as your username may be locked while an application is in review.

Tip: Settle on the final name before you start. Trying names out live confuses people who are about to tag you, and you may hit a limit that makes you wait.

Most of your account doesn't notice. Instagram attaches followers, posts and messages to the account, not to its name. What breaks is anything that stored the old name as text.

Once Instagram lets your old name go, anyone can register it. For most personal accounts that's harmless. For a business or creator with links all over the internet, it means old links and mentions could end up on a stranger's profile, or on someone pretending to be you.

1. Change the username on your main account.
2. Register the old username on a second account you control. If Instagram won't let you take it straight away, try again when the 14 days are up.
3. In that account's bio, say where you've moved, such as “We've moved to @riveraceramics.studio”, and link to your new profile.
4. Leave it with no posts, or one post explaining the move, and protect the login with two-factor authentication.

The app lets you switch between several accounts, so a placeholder like this costs nothing to keep.

Tip: Keep the old name if it's printed anywhere you can't update, such as packaging, signage, a book or an old campaign. People will keep typing it in long after you've moved.

Instagram doesn't redirect old profile links, so every place that points to the old name needs a manual update. Work through this list on the day you switch:

• Bios and profile links on your other social accounts, such as YouTube, TikTok and LinkedIn.
• Your website: header and footer icons, embedded feeds and contact pages.
• Email signatures, invoices and newsletter footers.
• Link-in-bio pages and any tracked links that contain the old name.
• Your Google Business Profile and directory listings.
• Saved replies, auto-replies and DM templates that mention your @handle in their text.
• Brand partners and agencies, so sponsored posts tag the right account.
• Printed material: business cards, packaging, menus and posters, including any QR code that opens the old profile link.

Then tell your followers. A Story or short post saying “Same account, new name” with your new @handle saves people searching for a name that no longer works. Keep it in a Highlight or pinned for a few weeks.

The best outcome is doing this only once. Names that last tend to share a few traits.

• Easy to say and spell. If you have to explain “two underscores and a 7”, people will tag the wrong account.
• Not tied to a moment: avoid years, ages, a city you might leave and jokes you'll outgrow.
• Room to grow. A potter who may start teaching is better served by rivera.ceramics than rivera.mugs.
• The same everywhere. Check it's free on the other platforms you use before committing.
• Clear of other people's brands. A name built on a well-known trademark can be reported, and you could lose it.

Put the descriptive part in your name instead, for example “Rivera Ceramics | Pottery classes”. That line can change as the business does, while the username underneath stays put.

• Instagram says the name isn't available: someone has it, or it was changed recently and may still be on hold, as people report. Try a variation that adds a word rather than a number.
• Instagram won't let you change it yet: you've probably changed your username or name recently. Wait for the 14 days to pass.
• The change is pending: accounts with high reach can be reviewed first. Leave it rather than trying again and again.
• Someone took your old name and is posing as you: report the account for impersonation from its profile.
• Old links lead nowhere: Instagram can't forward them. A placeholder account on the old name is the only fix.