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How do I change my Hotmail name or address?

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Summary: Changing your Hotmail address is not possible, but you can set up a new account.

My MSN Hotmail name is "something@hotmail.com". I really don't like the "something". What I'd really like is to be "soemthingelse@hotmail.com". How do I change it?

This is another one of those seemingly simple questions that I get several times every day.

What you're asking for is not to change your name, but your email address. Unfortunately, your email address is how MSN Hotmail identifies you. A different email address means a completely different MSN Hotmail account.

Let's clarify something first, though. Your MSN Hotmail identity consists of two parts: your display name (like "Leo Notenboom") and your email address ("something@hotmail.com"). You can easily change your MSN Hotmail display name. I've covered that in a previous article.

But you cannot change the email address of your Hotmail account. You can only create a new account with a new email address. To do that:

  • Sign Out of your Hotmail account by clicking on the "Sign Out" button.

  • Visit Hotmail.com - but instead of signing in, click the Sign Up button under the "New to MSN Hotmail?" section. This will lead you through creating a new Hotmail account.

  • After you select the free option, the next step will be to select your new email address. Good luck finding something you like that hasn't already been taken.

  • Be sure to pick a good password that you can remember, and that others will not be able to guess.

  • Select a secret question from the list, and give an answer that only you would know. Do not forget this - without it, you could lose your account.

  • Enter an alternate email address that your password could be sent to in case you forget it. Make sure it's a different email address that you control, preferably on a different service.

"... you cannot change the email address of your Hotmail account."

After your new account has been created, you can start using it.

But your old account still exists. You will need to manually move all your contacts from your old Hotmail account to your new one. You will need to tell all your contacts that you have a new email address, and that they should stop using the old one. You will need to change anywhere else you use your old email address, for example in MSN Instant Messenger.

And when you're all done, you may, or may not, want to delete your old MSN Hotmail account. Remember, some time after you close your account, your old email name will become available for someone else to take and use as their own.

As you can see, it's a lot of work, and it's definitely not easy to do.

It's yet another reason I don't recommend free email services for anything important.

Related:

Article C2632 - April 22, 2006

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Recent Comments
22 Comments

I do have a Hotmail Account. I do NOT want to use The new version: Windows Live Hotmail.
Whenever I open my Hotmail account the new version:Windows live hotmail opens up.
I prefer the previos version of Hotmail which is easier for me to work with.
How do i convert the new version; widows live hotmail that opens
up when I sign in TO the older version to open up when i sighn in?

Posted by: Prem at May 23, 2007 7:58 PM

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That's this article:
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_switch_windows_live_hotmail_back_to_the_old_style_msn_hotmail.html

Leo

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Posted by: Leo A. Notenboom at May 24, 2007 10:45 PM

You can change your MSN Messenger login here: https://accountservices.msn.com/uiChangeName.srf?lc=1033&id=9

Posted by: Frungi at June 25, 2007 5:53 PM

How do I find out of a msn.com email address is available?

Posted by: Kim Massie at November 23, 2007 7:49 PM

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The only way I know is to simply try to get it. This article has a link to how:
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_make_an_msncom_email_address_instead_of_hotmailcom.html

Thanks,

Leo


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Posted by: Leo A. Notenboom at November 24, 2007 1:30 PM

I purchased additional storage under Hotmail (MSN Hotmail Plus) to get additional storage for a MSN User Group I had set up over a year ago. The Group no longer exists, but the renewal for the group was automatically reissued. I recently set up a new MSN User Group and unfortunately used my own personal email address instead of the hotmailplus account (my personal email is a Canadian ISP that does hook itself on some things to MSN. Is there any way I can move this group to my hotmail plus account? I cannot change the name of the MSN User Gp. at this time as it will only confuse the seniors who joined it, even more, but I really need the additional 30 mb of storage I paid for. The only other possibility would be for people joining or viewing the existing group to get a link on accessing the existing address that automatically forwards them to a new website in MSN groups utilizing the hotmail plus account, or a new one that I could have the billing people transfer the account/storage to. I have tried to contact MSN U.S. but since my own ISP is Canadian, I am automatically forwarded to Bell Sympatico/MSN when I press the "MSN Support and Feedback" button and they cannot help me.
Thank you.

Posted by: Di.Williams at April 7, 2008 9:45 AM

This is a regular question ask by many people in search of help or assistant to enable them create a net account. When answering this question many people seem to forget that it is not everyone that views the sign up options.
The best way of cereating a new net account is by following these steps,
Step1. Clicking on the link below
www.passport.net
step 2. Please click on the sign up option
Windows Live ID home
Sign up
Account Services
Do you have an e-mail address?
If you have an e-mail address, you can use it to sign in to Windows Live ID sites. If you don't have an e-mail address, you can get a free MSN Hotmail e-mail address.
________________________________________

Yes, use my e-mail address

No, sign me up for a free MSN Hotmail e-mail address

________________________________________

Posted by: FIDEL OGIE at June 19, 2008 5:20 AM

I have a paid-for Hotmail account so by changing the profile my credit card name will no longer match the profile name. I have gone ahead and done this but will the cc bounce? My problem is that I am away for long periods without Internet access so if the cc bounces I cannot action it for some time...meaning that my 'space' and POP3 access will lapse.

It seems that this ought to have a proper solution that does not involve giving a false name to Hotmail but giving your real first given name and surname on every email is a heck of a security risk when you think of all those copied emails on peoples' pcs that have no anti-virus in place.

Any suggestions or comments? Many thanks.

Posted by: David at July 13, 2008 9:49 AM

My desire is to stay at Hotmail.com I ONLY wish to change the name part of the Email a single name that will cover both my wife and myself and a lot easer and quicker to type in. We would also need a new password if possible ?

As the article you commented on outlines, the only way to do what you're asking is to create a brand new Hotmail account from scratch with the name you want. There's no way to rename an account, or to transfer email/contacts from your old account to the new.
- Leo
28-Sep-2008

Posted by: GEORGE ADAMS or SHIRLEY ADAMS at September 27, 2008 9:58 PM

so, if I create a new email address, can I forward all emails it receives to my current hotmail address like I can in Outlook? or will I have to check both accounts?

Maybe. Hotmail does allow some people to automatically forward incoming email to another address. (It doesn't work for all, and we've not been able to determine why.) More here: How do I automatically forward my Windows Live Hotmail mail?
- Leo
07-Apr-2009

Posted by: Regina at April 6, 2009 8:34 AM

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