How To Change Your X (Twitter) Username And Screen Name

Yes, you can change your X (Twitter) username and screen name.

Having a personal profile and a professional page on Facebook is smart marketing, but what about (X) Twitter?

Do you have one account you use for personal and business? Would you like to choose another name that suits your professional profile now? Well, it is quite easy to do.

I know it’s confusing, but I will refer to X and Twitter in this article because no one has quite got the hang of using X on its own.

How to change your X (Twitter) username and screen name

There are lots of reasons you might want to change the Twitter handle (profile URL) you use to align more with your current marketing aims.

But you don’t need to start all over again to gain new followers from zero with a new Twitter account.

You can keep your current account, and it will not affect your existing followers, direct messages or replies, and all your Tweets.

Changing your username is a far better solution than opening a new account.

You can change both your username (@username) and your name (Fred Smith) on existing accounts without losing your hard-won followers.

Yes, a complete change of identity, but still retaining all your followers, posts, and photos.

I have used this change of identity facility in the past to rename an established Twitter account from an older book title to a newly released title.

By doing this, I kept all my followers, which numbered around 10k, giving me a great launching platform for my new book. I did it again a year or so later with another account for another new book and kept around 20k followers.

Oddly enough, the drop-off rate of followers after a change of name is negligible.

Unlike other social media platforms, Twitter (X) is unique in offering the ability to change your identity with ease. It makes it an ideal solution for authors who publish under a pen name.

How to change your names – step-by-step

These instructions are for Twitter on a desktop, but you can make the same changes on the different versions of the Twitter mobile app.

1. Access the edit profile settings

Log in to your account settings and go to your profile page. Then click on the edit profile button on the right.

2. Change your screen name and appearance

You will now be on the edit screen, where you can make a lot of changes.

Arrow number 1. The button lets you upload a new header photo. Twitter recommends an image size of 1500px by 500px.

Arrow number 2. Here, you can change your profile icon (profile photo). Twitter recommends an image size of 400×400 pixels for your profile picture.

Arrow number 3. This is the important button. Here is where you can change your screen name, or as Twitter calls it, your display or screen name.

Your display name can be up to 50 characters long. It is the name people will see at the top of your posts.

Arrow number 4. In the three text boxes, you can change your Twitter bio, location, and website address. If you want to, you can also add your birthday.

Arrow number 5. Once you have added or changed all your information, click to save your changes.

3. How to change your Twitter username

Here’s the process for changing your @name on Twitter, which is your @username and can be used as a clickable link.

Select your profile, then click the More button.

Here is what you will see when you click the More button.

Click on Settings and Privacy.

Now, click on Account Information.

You will need to confirm your password before you can continue. Then click Confirm.

Once you click, you will see this screen.

Click the arrow.

Once you are here, you can change your Twitter username or @name.

Click into the username field, and you can change your name. There is a limit of 15 characters.

If the new name you select is already taken, you will be prompted to choose another one.

You might need to be a little creative to get a new name that suits you, but you’ll get there.

Once you get the green light from X (Twitter) for your new @username, you are ready to go with your new identity and username next to your profile.

Summary

You might want to think about your promotional strategy on Twitter (X) and make sure you keep your personal and professional posts separate.

But whatever your plan, it is reassuring to know that you can change your profile and name at any time and keep all of your followers.

The only limitation is that you can only change your Twitter name once every 60 days. But I doubt you would do it more than once.

Good luck with your marketing on X or Twitter, whoever you are now!

Note: This article has been updated from an earlier version to note changes by X.

Related Reading: How To Use Twitter For Authors.