Changing your name on Facebook is a simple process that can be done right from your profile settings. Your Facebook name is separate from your username – it’s the name that shows up on your profile and when you post or comment. Here’s what you need to know about changing your Facebook name, including step-by-step instructions.
Why Would You Want to Change Your FB Name?
There are a few common reasons why you might want to change your name on Facebook:
- You got married or divorced and want your Facebook name to match your legal name.
- You prefer to use a nickname rather than your full name.
- You want to use your middle name or initial instead of your first name.
- You are transgender and have changed your name as part of your transition.
- You simply don’t like your current name and want something new.
Facebook allows you to change your name as often as you want. You are not limited to just one name change. However, be aware that changing your name too frequently may cause confusion among your friends and family who see your profile.
Requirements for Changing Your Facebook Name
Before changing your name, there are a few requirements you need to be aware of:
- You must have had your current name for at least 60 days before changing it again.
- Your new name cannot contain special characters or more than 50 characters total.
- You cannot use a name that is impersonating or misleading others.
As long as your new name meets Facebook’s requirements, you can change it as often as you want after waiting at least 60 days between each change.
Step-by-Step Guide to Changing Your Name
Changing your Facebook name only takes a few steps:
- Go to your profile page and click on the “About” tab.
- Hover over your name and click the pencil icon that appears to the right of it.
- Enter your new name in the text box.
- Click the “Review Change” button.
- On the next screen, confirm that you want to change your name by clicking “Confirm”.
That’s all there is to it! As soon as you confirm the change, your new name will be updated across Facebook. Any past posts, photos or tags will also reflect your new name (with limited exceptions).
Other People Seeing Your New Name
When you change your Facebook name, here is how it appears to others:
- Friends and family will see your new name on your profile, posts and in their news feeds.
- For followers who don’t know you, your new name will show up immediately.
- For followers who know you, your old name may be shown in brackets next to your new name for a few days as people get used to your change.
The process is designed to make name changes easy for you while preventing impersonation and confusion for others. Within a few days, everyone should be seeing only your new name.
Considerations When Changing Your Name
While changing your Facebook name is easy to do, here are a couple things to keep in mind:
- URLs that contain your old name will automatically redirect to URLs with your new name. However, some links shared in the past may still show your old name.
- Any name change notifications you send out could be missed by friends who don’t check Facebook often.
- Some traces of your old name may still be visible in archived messages or notifications.
Overall the process works very smoothly, but be prepared for it to take a few days for your new name to fully propagate everywhere on Facebook as people adjust.
Changing Your Name Back
If you change your mind after updating your Facebook name, you can always change it back:
- Go through the name change process again.
- Enter your old name when prompted for the new name.
- Confirm the change back to your original name.
As long as at least 60 days have passed since your initial name change, you can revert back to a previous name anytime.
Troubleshooting Name Change Issues
In most cases, changing your Facebook name goes smoothly. But here are some steps to take if you run into any problems:
- Make sure you have waited at least 60 days if reverting to an older name.
- Double check that your new name does not violate any Facebook policies.
- Try closing and reopening your Facebook app to refresh the changes.
- Clear your browser cookies and cache to force a refresh of the changes.
- Make sure you don’t have any other active social media sessions open.
- Try changing your name using a different device or web browser.
In most cases, minor glitches will resolve themselves within a few hours. But if you still have issues, you can contact Facebook support for help recovering your original name.
Does Changing Your Name Affect Your Username?
It’s important to note that your Facebook username (the one you use to log in) does not automatically change when you change your name.
Here’s the difference:
- Your name is displayed on your profile and seen publicly.
- Your username is private and only used for logging into your account.
To change your username, you need to go through additional steps in your account settings. Changing either your name or username does not affect the other.
Conclusion
Changing your Facebook name to reflect a life change, nickname preference or for any other reason is a simple process. Just go to your About page, edit your name and confirm the change. It may take a few days to fully take effect across the platform as your friends and followers adjust. But overall it is a fast and uncomplicated way to update your profile. Just be sure to follow Facebook’s name policies and allow enough time between changes. With those tips in mind, you can update your Facebook name as needed with few issues.
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Go to your profile page and click “About” |
| 2 | Click the pencil icon next to your name |
| 3 | Enter your new name |
| 4 | Click “Review Change” |
| 5 | Confirm the change |
Follow these simple steps to update your Facebook name. Just be sure to wait at least 60 days between name changes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many times can I change my Facebook name?
You can change your Facebook name as many times as you want, as long as you wait at least 60 days between each change. There is no limit on how many total name changes you can make.
Does changing my Facebook name change my URL?
Yes, when you change your Facebook name, your profile URL will automatically update to reflect your new name. For example, if your URL was “facebook.com/john” before changing your name to Mary, it will update to “facebook.com/mary”.
Can I change my name to anything I want?
Facebook does not allow name changes to terms that are abusive, offensive, misleading or impersonating of others. Your new name also cannot contain special characters or be longer than 50 characters. As long as your new name abides by Facebook’s policies, you can change it to anything you want.
Do I have to update my name everywhere else if I change my Facebook name?
No, you do not have to change your name on other websites or documents. Your Facebook name is separate and changing it does not affect your legal name. Feel free to update it on Facebook without worrying about syncing it across other accounts.
What happens to my old name when I change Facebook names?
Your old name will be removed from your profile and news feed. However, it may still appear in some archived posts, messages and notifications until the change has fully propagated. Most traces of your old name will be gone within a few days.
Additional Resources
For more help with changing your Facebook name, check out these resources: