How do I make a new MSN Hotmail account?

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Summary: Making a new MSN Hotmail account isn't as obvious as many think. First you need to make the option to make a new MSN Hotmail account visible - by signing out.

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Here's the part that's so "obvious" to some, and not so obvious at all to many:

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Step 1: Sign Out

The thing that confuses people is that they have some form of "remember me" turned on. That means you may never (or rarely) see the Hotmail login screen after your first login. That, in turn, means you'll never see the options to create a new account.

So sign out. Near the top of your browser window you'll see something like this:

Notice the signout button that I've highlighted. Click that, and you'll be signed out of Hotmail and returned to the MSN home page.

Now, go to http://hotmail.com, and you'll see a page that contains this:

Instead of logging in, click on the Sign Up button, and you'll start the process of creating a new account.

Now, about those "issues" I mentioned. Here are some things to realize:

• There's no way to transfer your existing information from your old HotMail account to your new one.

• There's no way to 'rename' your existing account either.

• HotMail is a free service, and you get what you pay for. Customer service is almost non-existent should you run into a problem.

Because I see so many people run into problems using, and in particular relying on, free email services such as HotMail I strongly recommend you never use this type of service for anything important. If your email is important to you, if keeping your contacts is important to you, and if having customer service to help you when (not if) you run into a problem is important to you, then I strongly suggest using an email account from your ISP or other paid provider.

If you're planning on changing your email address anyway, now is the perfect time to do so.

Related:

• How do I make a new Windows Live Hotmail account? Making a new Windows Live Hotmail account begins by making the option visible - by signing out of Hotmail. From there making a new account is easy.

• How do I switch Windows Live Hotmail back to the old style MSN Hotmail? Windows Live Hotmail is the new interface to your Hotmail account. You can currently switch back to MSN Hotmail, but that may not stay true.

• Are free email services worth it? Free email services and accounts are convenient and ubiquitous. But free email services aren't the right place to keep your important information.

• Can I rename my Hotmail account? I know of no way to rename a Hotmail account. Or a Yahoo account. Or an account with any of the free email services. In fact, it's fairly common that even paid services cannot be renamed.

Article C2797 - September 27, 2006