Having a professional and memorable username on LinkedIn can be an important part of making a good first impression and growing your network. However, once you set your username, LinkedIn doesn’t make it easy to change it. Here’s what you need to know about changing your LinkedIn username.
Why would you want to change your LinkedIn username?
There are a few common reasons why you might want to change your LinkedIn username:
- Your name has changed – If you’ve gotten married or divorced and changed your last name, you’ll probably want your username to reflect your new name.
- Your brand has changed – If you’ve started a new business or want to adjust your personal brand, changing your username can help reflect that.
- Your current username is unprofessional – If you chose a silly or unprofessional username when you first joined LinkedIn, changing it can help craft a more polished presence.
- Your username contains typos – A small typo in your username can undermine your professional image.
- You want a shorter or simpler username – A shorter, catchier username can be easier to remember and share.
- You’re difficult to find – Common names can make you harder to find in LinkedIn search. Changing to a more unique username can help.
In general, if your current username no longer reflects who you are or how you want to present yourself professionally, it may be worth considering a change.
Can you change your LinkedIn username?
Unfortunately, LinkedIn does not provide an option to change your username directly from your account settings. Once you set your LinkedIn username when signing up, it becomes permanent.
LinkedIn does this to:
- Maintain continuity and prevent confusion – A permanent username helps ensure your profile and network connections always lead back to you.
- Prevent spam and abuse – Permanent usernames make it harder for spammers or abusive users to change identities.
- Align with real name policy – LinkedIn requires real first and last names on profiles, so changing usernames could enable fake identities.
So in most cases, your LinkedIn username will remain as your original choice indefinitely. LinkedIn provides no self-service way to alter it.
When can you change your LinkedIn username?
There are only a few limited scenarios where LinkedIn will allow you to change your username:
- After acquiring a company – If you acquire another company and want to change your personal profile to the company page, LinkedIn will allow it.
- Following legal name change – LinkedIn may allow you to change your username if you provide legal documentation of an official name change, such as from a marriage or divorce decree.
- Extenuating circumstances – In very rare cases, such as if your username contains offensive terms or reveals private information, LinkedIn may allow changes on appeal.
However, even in these limited cases, there is no guarantee LinkedIn will approve a username change request. They evaluate requests on a case-by-case basis.
How to request a LinkedIn username change
If you absolutely need to change your LinkedIn username, you’ll have to directly appeal to LinkedIn customer support and request an exception. Here is the process:
- Go to the LinkedIn Help Center page at https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin.
- Search for “Change username” and find the relevant help article.
- Scroll down to the bottom and click “Contact us”.
- Choose the option for “Reporting a problem”.
- Select “Account” as the issue type.
- Click “Username” for the specific issue category.
- On the next page, select “Request to change username” as the issue.
- Fill out details on why you require the change and provide any necessary documentation.
- Click “Submit” to send the request to LinkedIn.
It can take LinkedIn up to 7 business days to respond to username change requests. Even if you provide a valid reason like a legal name change, approval is not guaranteed.
What happens if you change your LinkedIn username without permission?
Because LinkedIn usernames are meant to be permanent, attempting to change it without permission through unauthorized methods is strictly prohibited. Doing so is considered a violation of LinkedIn’s User Agreement.
If you try methods like:
- Creating a new account with your desired username
- Hacking or exploiting a security flaw to alter your username
- Purchasing a username change from a third party site
Your account may end up suspended or banned by LinkedIn. Any attempt to change your username without LinkedIn’s explicit approval will be detected and reversed.
Some third party sites claim they can change LinkedIn usernames for a fee, but this violates LinkedIn’s policies. Any change they make would be temporary and get your account suspended.
Best practices for choosing your initial LinkedIn username
Because changing your LinkedIn username after the fact is so difficult, it’s important to pick the right name the first time when signing up:
- Use your real first and last name – This aligns with LinkedIn’s real name policy.
- Keep it professional – Avoid nicknames or unprofessional terms.
- Consider adding middle initial or name – This can differentiate you from others with a common name.
- Check for typos – An unintended typo could stick with you forever.
- See if desired name is available – LinkedIn will append numbers if your name is taken.
- Consider your brand – Pick a name appropriate for how you want to market yourself.
- Make it memorable – A clever or catchy name can be easier to remember.
Taking the time to choose the right username when signing up for LinkedIn can prevent the need to go through a difficult change process later on. Think carefully about how you want to represent yourself before confirming your permanent username.
Alternatives to changing your LinkedIn username
If LinkedIn rejects your username change request, there are a couple alternatives you can consider instead:
- Update profile name – While you can’t change your username, you can change how your first and last name appear in your profile.
- Add name pronunciation – You can add an audio recording to your profile with the pronunciation of your name.
- Custom URL – LinkedIn allows you to claim a unique custom URL for your profile, like linkedin.com/yourname. This can act as an alternate identifiable link to your profile.
- Update headline – Adding descriptors like your job title or business name to your headline can help identify you.
- Reset profile image – Changing your profile photo can give your profile a fresh look when you can’t change the username.
While not exactly the same as changing your username, these alternatives can help you update your LinkedIn presence.
Conclusion
LinkedIn intentionally makes it very difficult to change your username after initial account setup. This promotes consistency and prevents identity changes that could undermine professional networking.
The only way to change your LinkedIn username is to make a direct appeal to their customer support team and provide a legitimate reason like a legal name change. Even then, approval is not guaranteed.
Your best option is being thoughtful when selecting your initial username during signup. Pick something professional, memorable, and representative of your personal brand. With LinkedIn’s permanent username policy, this first choice could stay with you for your entire career.