Open Settings, go to Account, click Change username, and pick a name nobody else holds. Personal accounts can do this. Enterprise Managed Users can’t.
The part people skip is what happens to the old name. Anyone can claim it once you leave it, and if that person creates a repository with the same name as one of yours, their repository overrides your redirect (GitHub Docs, 2026).
Old profile links also return a 404. The cleanup takes longer than the rename itself.
How to change your GitHub username
GitHub applies the rename right after you confirm a name that is free.
Steps on github.com
- Click your profile picture in the upper-right corner of any page, then click Settings.
- In the left sidebar, click Account.
- In the “Change username” section, click Change username.
- Read the warnings, then click “I understand, let’s change my username”.
- Type the new username.
- Click Change my username if the name is available. If it is not, GitHub shows suggestions you can pick from.
That path matches GitHub Docs as of October 2026.
Accounts that cannot rename
Personal accounts can change the username whenever they like. Enterprise Managed Users can’t, since the identity provider controls those names.
On GitHub Enterprise Server it depends on how people sign in. Built-in authentication and LDAP users can rename themselves, but under single sign-on only the local administrator can.
If the Change username button is missing, look at the account type first.
Which GitHub usernames are available, and can GitHub release a taken one?
You can switch to any username that isn’t currently in use. GitHub Support can’t release one that is taken. Names go first-come, first-served and are meant for immediate, active use, per the GitHub Username Policy.
When the name you want is taken
An account with no visible activity may still be in use, because not all activity on GitHub is public. That’s why GitHub turns down release requests that rest on a name looking dormant.
The single exception is a valid trademark complaint. Those are the only requests GitHub reviews for releasing a claimed name.
Squatting is prohibited. You can’t reserve a name for later, and buying or selling one can end in permanent suspension.
The easier fix is to tweak the name you wanted. GitHub Docs suggests adding a number, a hyphen or trying an alternative spelling.
What happens to your old name
Once the rename finishes, your old username is open for anyone else to claim.
Don’t count on keeping it. Assume a stranger could grab it the moment you leave, and let that decide how carefully you update links afterward.
What happens to links, repositories and other references after a rename?
Repository links redirect. Profile links, gist links and @mentions don’t. The table below covers each reference type.
| Reference | After the rename | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Repository web links | Redirect, can take a few minutes | Nothing urgent |
| Pushes to old remote URLs | Keep working | Update the remote anyway |
| Old profile URL | Returns a 404 | Fix links on LinkedIn, X, bios |
| Gist URLs | Change, old links return a 404 | Share the new links |
| @mentions of the old name | No redirect | Use the new name going forward |
| CODEOWNERS entries | Not updated, flagged as unknown users | Edit each file by hand |
| GitHub Mobile | May show the old name | Sign out and back in |
Profile and gist links
A link to github.com/previoususername returns a 404 after the change. GitHub Docs recommends updating every place you list your profile, LinkedIn and X being the obvious ones.
Shared gists take a hit too. Public and secret gist URLs both change, so old links stop working.
CODEOWNERS and mobile sessions
Any CODEOWNERS file that names you needs a manual edit. Open one on GitHub and an error message appears if it lists unknown users or users without write access.
The GitHub Mobile app on phones and tablets may keep showing your original username until you log out. Sign out and back in on each device.
When do GitHub redirects stop working, and which names get retired?
A redirect dies when someone claims your old username and creates a repository with the same name as one of yours. Permanent name retirement and package moves do the other lasting damage.
A new owner overrides the redirect
GitHub Docs doesn’t soften this. The new owner’s repository overrides your redirect entry, and your redirect stops working.
Your old username is open to anyone once the rename finishes, so the gap between renaming and fixing your remotes is the exposure window. Close it the same day.
Names GitHub retires permanently
In some cases GitHub retires the OLD-OWNER/REPOSITORY-NAME combination for good, and only public repositories trigger it (GitHub Docs, as of October 2026). Any of these will do it:
- A public repository that contains an action listed on GitHub Marketplace
- More than 100 clones in the week before the rename
- More than 100 uses of GitHub Actions in the week before the rename
- A public container image with more than 5,000 downloads, where the image name is retired rather than the repository name
Try to create a repository under a retired combination and GitHub blocks it with an error saying the repository has been retired.
Packages and container images move with you
Packages and container images stored in a GitHub Packages registry transfer to the new namespace. Projects that depend on them under the old namespace can break.
For public images above the 5,000-download mark, the full former name (OLD-NAMESPACE/IMAGE-NAME) is retired for good. Nobody can reuse it, you included.
Who should audit before renaming
GitHub documents the thresholds, not a risk score. This table is an editorial reading of them.
| Your account | Risk | Before you rename |
|---|---|---|
| Private or personal projects only | Low | Update remotes and links |
| Public repositories with steady clones or Actions use | Medium | Check last week’s clone and usage counts |
| Marketplace action, popular package or image | High | Find dependents first, or keep the name |
For that last row, the simpler option is not to rename at all.
How to update local repositories after a username change
Run git remote -v inside each clone, then point the remote at the new URL with git remote set-url. It takes about a minute per repository.
The command sequence
Open a terminal in the project folder and list the remotes:
git remote -vLook for your old username in the paths. The origin remote is usually the one that needs fixing.
Then set the new URL:
git remote set-url origin https://github.com/NEW-USERNAME/REPOSITORY.gitSSH users swap in git@github.com:NEW-USERNAME/REPOSITORY.git instead. Run git remote -v once more to confirm the change (GitHub Docs, Managing remote repositories).
Forks and extra remotes
Only touch remotes that carry your old username. An upstream remote pointing at someone else’s repository stays as it is.
Every machine, every clone
Each clone keeps its own remote setting. A laptop and a work desktop both need the edit.
If a clone is old and untouched, a fresh copy is faster. Here is how to clone a GitHub repository from the new URL.
What happens to commits and contributions after a rename?
Commits tied to another email address you added to your GitHub account keep their attribution after the rename. Commits tied only to an older-format noreply address do not.
Which commits keep attribution
Commits made with any other email you’ve added stay attributed to you and remain in your contributions graph. The same goes for the ID+USERNAME@users.noreply.github.com format, even though the username part changes.
Older noreply addresses without a numeric ID are the problem. They’re no longer associated with your account, so those commits drop out of the graph (GitHub Docs, Username reference).
Check which format your history uses before assuming nothing changed.
Signed commits lose their Verified badge
Verified commits signed with the previous GitHub-provided noreply address lose their “Verified” status.
GitHub checks that the committer or tagger email exactly matches an email on the GPG key’s identities, and that the address is verified and linked to the account. The username in the noreply address changes, so the match fails.
Set the commit email in Git
Future commits use whatever email your local Git configuration holds. Commits you made earlier stay associated with the previous address.
The git config command sets it for every repository on your machine:
git config --global user.email "YOUR_EMAIL"Confirm with git config --global user.email. For a single repository, drop --global.
Then add that address to your GitHub account. Otherwise new commits won’t be attributed to you or appear in your contributions graph.
Common Questions About Changing a GitHub Username
Does changing a GitHub username break my GitHub Pages site?
Yes, the default address changes. User and organization GitHub Pages sites are served from <owner>.github.io, and project sites from <owner>.github.io/<repository> (GitHub Docs, 2026).
A user or organization site must also live in a repository named <owner>.github.io, so check that repository’s name after the rename. GitHub’s username documentation lists no redirect for github.io addresses, so test the new URL.
Is there a limit on how often I can change my GitHub username?
GitHub’s username documentation lists no cooldown or rate limit as of October 2026.
Each rename still releases the old name to everyone and can retire repository names. Frequent changes cost more than the click suggests.
Do SSH remotes and tokens need updating after a rename?
Remote URLs should be updated whichever protocol they use. SSH remotes carry the owner name too, in the form git@github.com:OWNER/REPOSITORY.git.
The username docs list no key or token changes. Services that store your login by name, a CI tool for example, deserve a quick check.
Can I switch back to my old GitHub username?
Only if nobody has claimed it. Any name not currently in use can be chosen, but your old one is open to everyone as soon as you leave it.
Retired repository names don’t come back with it. Those stay permanently retired.
What to Fix First After Changing a GitHub Username
Start with the remote URL in every local clone. The old name is open to anyone once the rename completes, so that gap is the one real deadline.
- Remote URLs, clone by clone
- Commit email and noreply format
- Profile links, gist links, CODEOWNERS entries
The commit email comes second because every new commit carries it. Links come last, since a 404 on a profile link never damages commit history or a repository redirect.
Owners of a Marketplace action or a heavily cloned public repository should flip that order. Retiring OLD-OWNER/REPOSITORY-NAME is permanent, so audit dependents before the rename, not after (GitHub Docs, verified October 2026).
A rename swaps the old name, which anyone can take, for the one you want. Finish by searching each repository for the old username.
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