Whether you've just gotten married, no longer identify with your birth name, or just want to change the overly formal "Robert" to "Rob" on your profile, here's how to change the name you're using on Facebook.

Before diving in, it's worth having a look at Facebook's names policy. You're required to use "the name [you] go by in everyday life", but this gives you a fair amount of flexibility. My name on Facebook is Harry and it's what everyone calls me, but it's not the name on my birth certificate.

You also can't use things like:

  • Symbols, numbers, unusual capitalization, repeating characters or punctuation.
  • Characters from multiple languages.
  • Titles of any kind.
  • Words or phrases in place of a name.
  • Offensive or suggestive words of any kind.

As long as you don't use anything too ridiculous, you should be able to change your name to whatever you want without Facebook having a hissy fit. It's also worth noting, once you've changed your name, you won't be able to change it again for another 60 days.

To change your name on Facebook, head to the Settings screen. You can get to it by clicking on the arrow in the top right corner and then clicking Settings.

Next to Name, click Edit.

You'll then be able to edit and change your name to whatever you want.

Click Review Changes and then enter your password and click Save Changes.

If you've got a nickname, professional name or other name that you don't necessarily go by in everyday life but want attached to your Facebook profile, click Add Other Names. These other names will help people find you in search, so for example, you'd show up for searches for both your married and maiden names.

Click "Add A Nickname, A Birth Name…"

…and select the kind of name you want to add from the dropdown.

Enter whatever name you want.

If you check the Show at Top of Profile checkbox, the name you choose will be shown in brackets after your Facebook profile name. For example, with this nickname, my Facebook profile would say Harry Guinness (Hazza).

Click Save Changes and the new name will be added to your Facebook profile.

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