Google May Enable You to Modify Your Awkward Gmail Address Soon

Highlights from ZDNET

Do you cringe every time you see your outdated college email or a username linked to a past phase? Good news might be on the horizon: Google is contemplating an option to alter it.

Although there's no official announcement yet, internal documents suggest this feature to change your Gmail address is in the works. A recent document update elaborates on the process, hinting at a phased rollout for users.

The document notes that the ability to amend your Google Account email is being incrementally introduced. As this stretches across the user base, you’ll have a transitional period where both your current and new email receive messages. All existing data, such as emails, photos, and other media, remains unaffected. You'll remain able to log into Google services with either address, and you can revert to your old email at any time.

However, there are limitations: deleting the new email is not an option, and you are prohibited from creating another new Gmail address ending in ‘gmail.com’ for at least 12 months.

Unusually, these details are only found in the Hindi version of the documentation, which I verified using Chrome’s translation services. This may indicate a priority rollout in Hindi-speaking regions or merely that it was updated there first. The English support site still indicates email changes as typically impossible.

Many of Google's competitors have offered email address changes for years, making it a relief to see Gmail catching up. While creating a new Gmail account is always possible, it involves abandoning any data linked to the old one. The potential rollout of this feature to all users would be significant.

I'm seeking further clarification from Google on this development.

Steps to Modify Your Gmail Account When Available

This section will guide you through the steps to change your Gmail address once Google releases the feature.