Don't fret, 1337Gamer69: Google will soon let you change your embarrassing Gmail username
Dear reader, I know I'm hardly the only one whose teenage self experienced an embarrassing weeb phase. I mean, let those who aren't still holding on to an online handle they're at least a little bit embarrassed about cast the first stone, but usually these things don't just stop at one online portal—your younger self likely had the bright idea to claim your cringe-worthy username across multiple platforms, including email.
Well, I've got good news on that front: Google will finally let you change your Gmail address. Whether your username is in a second language you don't speak, or simply wildly inappropriate to be sharing with potential employers, it's now possible to "change your Google Account email that ends in gmail.com to a new address that ends in gmail.com."
The feature has only just begun to roll out, so not all users will have access yet. For instance, I just took a look at My Account page and found that, as a UK-based Gmail user, I'm still locked into an email address that's now old enough to take on a heap of student debt but certainly doesn't communicate that level of maturity at a glance.
If you'd like to check for yourself, you'll need to first log into the Gmail account you want to rename. Then, click on your profile picture in the top right-hand corner, and then click 'Manage your Google Account.' On this new page, click 'Personal Info' in the left sidebar menu, and then 'Email' from the resulting options.
On the following page, under the heading 'Google Account email,' you may then see one of two things: for me, it explicitly says, 'You can’t change this address,' though many Gmail users may instead see the option 'Change Google Account email.' If that's you, enjoy your glow up!
Folks can still search for you using your old email address, and the old handle will become an alternate address associated with your Gmail inbox to ensure no emails go astray. You can also easily swap back to your old Gmail name 'at any time' after choosing a fresh handle.
However, it's worth noting that you may need to log back into various other accounts and online services associated with your old Gmail address after your name change. If you don't fancy all that faff, you can alternatively just give yourself a new display name.
To do this, you'll need to log into Gmail, click the settings cog near the top right-hand corner, click 'See all settings,' navigate to 'Accounts and import,' then take a look under 'send mail as,' and then click 'edit info'. A display name will obscure that old, embarrassing Gmail handle without changing it, though as with the wider feature roll-out, not all users have access to this just yet either.
If you'd rather just ditch Gmail and your aged-like-milk username, you're also in luck; Google will delete any Gmail account inactive for at least two years. There are many reasons to do this, though rest assured that Google has recently denied the claims of a viral X post and clarified that it is not scraping your emails to train its AI products.