Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Changing Your Name.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 28, 2023)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365
When you first install Excel, it asks you for your name so it can personalize the registration for your program. It also writes your name into the user area. This information is used in various places by Excel, such as in the workbook properties area. If you need to change your name, follow these steps:
Figure 1. The General options of the Excel Options dialog box.
Changing this setting has an additional consequence: On any workbooks you create in the future, whatever you enter into the User Name field ends up in the Author workbook property. The change won't modify the Author property for any existing workbooks, including the one you have open when you change the User Name field.
If you are using the version of Excel provided with Microsoft 365, it should also be noted that changing the User Name field doesn't change your Microsoft 365 account name. That must be done within your Microsoft account directly.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (7555) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Changing Your Name.
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Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here:
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