You bought a PC from a manufacturer and Windows 10 was already installed – including an awful generic name? Thankfully it is easy to change the name your computer is listed as. We show you how it’s done.
How to change your computer’s name in Windows 10
Windows 10 is getting a lot of updates and its features and design are not the same as they were when Microsoft launched the operating system. This is how you change your computer’s name if you have a newer Windows 10 version:
On your PC, open “Settings” and then “System”.
In the column on the left side of the pop-up window, click “About”.
In the “About” menu, you’ll find information about your computer and also the “Rename PC” button.
Click “Rename PC” and you’ll see a new pop-up window. Type the new name (no spaces allowed!). Then click “Next”.
The name will be updated once you restart your computer. In the next pop-up window you’ll be asked if you want to restart it now or later. Click one of the two options.
How to change your computer’s name in Windows 10 (c) Screenshot
Changing your computer’s name if you have an older Windows 10 version
If you still have an older Windows 10 version, you can change the computer’s name by using the Control Panel:
Right click on the Start button of your PC. Then click “Control Panel”. Alternatively you can left click and then type “Control Panel” to find the app.
Click “System”.
The next step is to open the “System Properties”. You do that by clicking “Advanced system settings” in the column on the left.
A second option would be to go to “Computer name, domain, and workgroup settings” and click “Change settings”.
In the “System Properties” pop-up window, you’ll see some tabs. Click on “Computer Name”.
In the new window that pops up, there is an option “To rename this computer, click Change”. Click the “Change” button.
Type the new name and click “OK”.
You’ll be asked if you want to restart your computer now or later. Choose “Restart Now” if you want to change the name immediately
Windows 10: Change the username from your Microsoft account
Sometimes, even if you change your computer’s name, the PC will still show another name. This may be because you’re not using a local, but your Microsoft account instead. This is how you change the name of your Microsoft account:
Login to your Microsoft account on this Microsoft website. If you didn’t bookmark and don’t know the URL, open your computer’s “Settings” and go to “Account”.
You should now see the information about your account. If not, click the tab “Your info”.
If you’re using a local account, click the option to switch to a Microsoft account.
When the information shown is that of your Microsoft account, click “Manage my Microsoft account”.
A new window will pop up in a browser. At the top of that landing page, click your account’s name.
On the next page, you’ll see your personal information (name, birthday etc.). Directly under your name there’s an option to change it.
Type a name and surname, enter the captcha code and click “Save”.
Changing the name of your Microsoft account (c) Screenshot
