PARIS ― It’s been one of the most highly requested features since Snapchat launched back in 2011, and now the app has finally confirmed that it will let users change their username.
From February 23, users will be able to alter their username without any impact on their friends list, Snap code, Snap score or memories.
A Snapchat spokesperson said: ‘As an app built around ephemerality, we know that people grow and change – we certainly have over the last ten years – and couldn’t be more excited to bring this top requested feature to Snapchatters.’
Your Snapchat username is set when you first create your Snapchat account, and until now has been unchangeable for security reasons.
‘When we first launched Snapchat in 2011, we structured our platform around accounts with unique usernames, much like email accounts at the time,’ Snapchat explained.
‘In order to rebuild that framework, we had to develop a new way to identify each Snapchatter without asking our community to build new profiles from scratch.
‘Now, we’ve implemented a User ID-based system that provides flexibility when it comes to usernames.’
To change your username, open the Snapchat app and tap the Bitmoji icon in the top right corner of the Camera to head to the profile screen.
Select settings by tapping on the gear icon in the top right corner of the profile.
Tap ‘Username,’ just below Name, and select ‘Change Username’ marked in blue.
Type in a new username, hit next, and log back in to Snapchat to finalise.
While users can now change their usernames, there are some important caveats.