Facebook, one of the largest social media platforms in the world, allows users to change their name on their profile under certain conditions. The name shown on a Facebook profile is important since it’s how friends, family, coworkers and other connections identify you on the platform.
Being able to change your name on Facebook can be useful for many reasons – whether you changed your legal name due to marriage, divorce or another reason, want to use a nickname, or simply feel your current name no longer represents who you are. However, Facebook does have rules in place for name changes to prevent abuse.
What are Facebook’s name policy rules?
Facebook requires users to use the name they commonly go by in everyday life. This is to maintain authenticity on the platform and so people know who they are connecting with. However, Facebook understands there are valid reasons someone may need to change their name. Here are some key parts of Facebook’s name policy:
- You can maintain an authentic representation of your identity by using the name your friends, family, coworkers know you by in everyday life.
- The name on your profile should be the one people know you by in everyday life, even if it’s a nickname or middle name you commonly use.
- You can only change your name every 60 days to prevent abuse.
- You cannot use a fake or misleading name meant to represent a business, brand, group, object or concept. Names like “John’s Cafe” or “Super Cool Guy” would go against the policy.
- Impersonating another person or using an name with intention to deceive is prohibited.
As long as you have a genuine reason for changing your name and follow the policies, Facebook will allow a name change. Some example reasons that Facebook considers valid include:
- Changing your legal name due to marriage, divorce or other court approved change
- Wanting to use a nickname or middle name you are commonly known by
- Identifying with another name gender identity
- Protecting your identity for personal safety reasons
How often can you change your Facebook name?
In order to prevent abuse, Facebook limits how often you can change your name. Here are the key limits:
- You can only change your name a total of 5 times in a 90 day period.
- There must be at least 60 days between each name change.
- If you hit the limit, you will need to wait 60 days from the last change to do it again.
This policy is in place so people do not take advantage of name changes to impersonate others, mislead, or other deceptive purposes. Keep these limits in mind when deciding to change your name – make sure it’s a name you want to stick with for at least 60 days.
How to change your Facebook name
Changing your name on Facebook is easy to do directly within the Facebook platform. Here are the steps:
- Go to your profile page and click on your name at the top.
- Select “Edit public details” from the dropdown menu.
- Enter your new name in the name field.
- Re-enter your password to confirm the change.
- Click “Review Change” to preview your new profile with the name change.
- Click “Save Changes” to officially change your Facebook name.
Once you save the changes, your name will be updated on your profile, posts and all places your name appears on Facebook. Your previous name will not appear or be available anywhere on your profile or Facebook.
Does changing your Facebook name change your URL?
When you change your name on Facebook, it does not change the unique URL for your profile page. For example, if your profile URL is facebook.com/john Smith your URL will remain the same even if you change your name to Mary Jones.
The reason is your username, which is in the URL, remains separate from the name shown on your actual profile. Usernames on Facebook are permanent and cannot be changed.
What happens when you change your name on Facebook?
Here is what happens when you change your Facebook name:
- Your new name will appear on your profile, posts, comments and any place your name is visible on Facebook
- Your name will be updated when people receive notifications involving you
- You previous name will no longer be visible anywhere on Facebook
- You keep the same profile URL even though your name changes
- You may need to update your name in Facebook integrations like Instagram, Messenger or LinkedIn
- Pages and ads associated with your account will not change (unless you edit them)
Essentially, changing your name will update it everywhere possible throughout Facebook. However, URLs and integrations with other platforms will remain the same.
What does Facebook show other users about your name change?
When you change your name on Facebook, here is what others users will see:
- Your new name on your profile, posts, comments and anywhere else your name appears
- Your name change will not be announced anywhere on Facebook
- They will not see your previous name or be alerted that you changed your name
- The name on their past communications with you will also be updated to the new name
Essentially, Facebook will seamlessly update your name everywhere without making it obvious to other users that you made a change. The change will appear retroactive.
Does Facebook allow you to hide your middle or last name?
If you do not want your middle or last name shown on your Facebook profile, you have two options:
- Initials – You can display just your first name and last initial. For example, “Mary J”.
- First Name Only – Or you can display only your first name. For example, “Mary”.
To change how your name displays:
- Go to your profile and click on your name
- Select “Edit public details” in the dropdown menu
- Edit your name field to show only your first name or first and last initial.
- Click Save Changes
Your name will then show up as just your first name or with your last initial on your profile and throughout Facebook.
Can you change your name through Facebook’s Help Center?
Unfortunately you cannot change your Facebook name through the Facebook Help Center. Name changes can only be done directly within the Facebook platform. The Help Center does provide guidance on Facebook’s name policy but does not offer the ability to actually change your name.
Conclusion
Facebook does allow users to change their name following the name policy guidelines. You can change it to a name people know you by in everyday life as long as it’s not misleading, offensive or impersonating someone. Facebook limits you to 5 name changes within 90 days to prevent abuse. The process to change your name is straightforward and done directly through your profile settings. While your name will update, your profile URL remains the same. Overall, Facebook aims to make name changes simple while maintaining authenticity on its platform.