Change your Microsoft account username through account settings

Your Microsoft account username (also called your Microsoft account name) is the email address you use to sign into Xbox, Minecraft, Microsoft 365, and other Microsoft services. You can change it to a different email address, but the process happens in your Microsoft account settings, not within individual apps or games.

The change takes effect across all Microsoft services at once — when you update your username, it updates everywhere you use that account. This means your Xbox profile, Minecraft launcher, and any other Microsoft service will all recognize the new email address the next time you sign in.

Key Takeaways

  • Your Microsoft account username is the email address associated with your account, and you change it by visiting account.microsoft.com, not through Xbox or other apps.
  • You can change your username to a different email address you already own, or create a new Outlook email address through Microsoft and use that instead.
  • The change takes 24 hours to fully process across all Microsoft services, so you may not see it reflected when ready in games or apps.
  • After you change your username, you sign in with the new email address on all devices, but your game progress, achievements, and purchases stay with your account.
  • If you forget which email you changed it to, you can recover your account using a phone number or backup email address linked to your Microsoft account.

Sign into your Microsoft account online and locate the username setting

Go to account.microsoft.com in your web browser and sign in with your current Microsoft account email and password. Once you are signed in, look for your account name or profile section — this is usually in the upper right corner of the page or in a menu labeled "Your info" or "Account".

Click on the section that shows your current email address or account name. This opens your account details page. You should see an option to edit or change your email address or username — the exact wording varies depending on which version of the Microsoft account page you see, but it will be clearly labeled as an edit or change option next to your current email.

Choose a new email address or create one through Outlook

When you click to change your username, Microsoft gives you two paths: use an email address you already own, or create a new Outlook email address (one that ends in @outlook.com or @hotmail.com) and use that as your new username.

If you already have another email address you want to use, enter it in the field provided. Microsoft will send a confirmation code to that email address to verify you own it — check your inbox (and spam folder) for the code, then enter it back on the Microsoft page to confirm.

If you want to create a new Outlook email through Microsoft instead, click the option to create a new email address. You will choose the part before @outlook.com, and Microsoft will check whether that name is available. Once you create it, that new Outlook address becomes your Microsoft account username.

Confirm the change and wait for it to take effect

After you enter your new email address and confirm it (either by verifying a code sent to that email, or by creating a new Outlook address), Microsoft will show you a confirmation screen. Review the details to make sure the new email is correct, then confirm the change.

The username change is not when ready. It can take up to 24 hours for the new email address to work across all Microsoft services. During that time, you may still see your old email in some places, or you might be able to sign in with either the old or new email. After 24 hours, only the new email address will work.

Sign in with your new username on your devices

Once the change has processed, you need to sign out and sign back in on any device where you use that Microsoft account. On Xbox, go to Settings, then Accounts, then Your Info, and sign out. Then sign back in using your new email address as the username.

On a PC or Mac, go to Settings (or System Preferences), find the Accounts section, and sign out of your Microsoft account. Then sign back in with the new email address. In the Microsoft Launcher app or Minecraft, you may need to sign out and sign back in as well — the app will prompt you to re-enter your credentials the next time you open it.

Your game progress, achievements, purchases, and game pass subscription all stay with your account. Changing the username does not affect any of your game data or digital purchases — it only changes the email address you use to sign in.

What to do if you cannot access the email you want to use

If you want to change your username to an email address but you no longer have access to that email account, you cannot use it as your new username. Microsoft requires you to verify ownership of any email address you add to your account, which means you must be able to receive emails at that address.

Your best option is to create a new Outlook email address through Microsoft and use that as your new username instead. This takes just a few minutes and gives you a new email you can access when ready. Alternatively, if you have another email address you do have access to, you can use that one.

Recover your account if you forget your new username

If you change your username and then forget which email address you changed it to, you can recover access to your account. Go to account.live.com/password/reset and choose "I forgot my password" or "I can't sign in to my account".

Microsoft will ask you to verify your identity using a phone number or backup email address that you linked to your account earlier. Once you verify, you can see your current username (the email address your account is now using) and reset your password if needed. If you did not set up a phone number or backup email before you changed your username, recovery is more difficult — contact Microsoft Support for help.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will changing my username delete my Xbox or Minecraft progress?

No. Your game progress, achievements, purchases, and game pass subscription are all tied to your account itself, not to the email address. When you change the username, all of that stays with your account. You just sign in with a different email address.

Can I change my username back to my old email address?

Yes. You can change your username as many times as you want by going back to account.microsoft.com and following the same process. There is no limit on how often you can change it, though each change takes up to 24 hours to take effect across all services.

What happens if someone else has the email address I want to use?

You cannot use an email address that belongs to someone else. When you try to change your username to that address, Microsoft will ask you to verify it by entering a code sent to that email. If you do not have access to that email, the change will not go through.

Do I need to change my password when I change my username?

No, your password stays the same. You sign in with your new email address and your existing password. However, if you want to change your password at the same time, you can do that in the account settings on the same page.

Why does it take 24 hours for the change to work everywhere?

Microsoft's servers across different services (Xbox, Minecraft, Outlook, etc.) need time to sync the change. During that sync period, some services may still recognize your old email. After 24 hours, the new email is active everywhere.