How to change account name in Windows 10 or Windows 11

So, you want to change the account name of your Windows computer. Maybe you didn’t enter your real name in the initial setup, or, if you did, maybe you now want to alter it to something else. 

Whatever your reason, the Windows operating system lets you change the account name easily. In this article, we’ll cover how you can do that on both Windows 10 and Windows 11.

Let’s get started.

1. Change the Windows account name from Advanced Control Panel

You can easily change your account name from the Advanced Control Panel. Here’s how:

1. Press the Windows key + R, type in ‘netplwiz’ or ‘control userpasswords2’, and hit the Enter key.
2. On the User Accounts menu, select the account and click on Properties.
3. On the General tab in the new window, enter the username you’d like to use from now on.
4. Click on OK.

Restart your PC and your account name will be changed on the next boot up. It’s a fairly similar process in the Windows 11 environment.

2. Use the Control Panel

The Control Panel is the central hub on your Windows. From here, you can change the look and feel of your Windows, as well as alter other important Windows settings.

Here’s how you can also change the Windows account name from the Control Panel:

1. Go to the Start menu search bar, type in ‘control panel,’ and select the Best Match.
2. From there, open the User Accounts panel, and click on Manage another account.
3. Click on the account you want to edit > Change account name. 

Now enter the new username you’d like to use, and click on Change Name, and you’re all set.

For your Windows 11 PC, the process isn’t that different. To get started, follow the steps below:

1. Launch the Control Panel and select User accounts > Change account type.
2. Select your local account and click on Change the account name.
3. Enter the new account name and click on Change Name.

Your Windows 11 username will be changed instantly.

3. Change the Windows account name from Settings

The Settings lets you tinker with several options on your Windows computer. You can also alter the account name settings with its help. Follow the steps below to get started:

1. Open the Windows Settings (Windows Key + I).
2. Click on Accounts > Your info > Manage my Microsoft account option from there.
3. Sign in to your Microsoft account and click on your profile picture.
4. You’ll be taken to Your info section. From there, click on the Edit name option.
5. Enter a new username (both first and last name) and click on Save. 

Your username will be changed successfully. Restart your PC to make sure the changes are applied effectively to your computer. 

Wrapping Up

Hopefully, this article helped you change your Windows accounts name without any hassles. But don’t stop in your tracks now. Apart from the usernames, the Windows operating system also lets you manage the type of your user account, as well as lets you change the Windows profile picture.