How to Change Your Primary Email Address for a Microsoft Account

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Easily update the email linked to your Microsoft account

Written by Hannah Dillon

Last Updated: January 23, 2026 Fact Checked

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• Changing a Microsoft Account's Email
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• FAQ
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• Video
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Do you need to change the primary email for your Microsoft account? You might need to do this because you forgot the original email you used to sign up, or you no longer use that email. Whatever the reason, it's thankfully very easy to change your primary email on your Microsoft account. Read on to learn how!

Quick Steps

1. Go to account.live.com/names/Manage in a web browser.
2. Click Add Email.
3. Choose whether to add a new or an existing Microsoft alias.
4. Enter the new email address.
5. Click Add Alias.
6. Click Make Primary next to the email address you just added.

Steps

Section 1 of 2:

Changing a Microsoft Account's Email

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1. 
   1
   Navigate to Microsoft's alias management page. Go to account.live.com/names/Manage in your web browser. Enter your original email address to sign in if you're not already signed in, and then click Next. If you don't remember that email address, click Sign in with Windows Hello or a security key to sign in without that information.

   • If you happen to remember the email address, you can enter it here. After clicking Next, you will be prompted to enter the code sent to that email. If you don't have access to that email anymore, like it no longer exists, click Other ways to sign in so you can log in without that information.
   • Microsoft refers to alternative email addresses or phone numbers as 'aliases.' If you see that term, that is what it refers to.
2. 
   2
   Click Add Email. The button is located under the "Account" section.
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3. 
   3
   Select "New" or "Existing" Microsoft alias. If you want to make a new Outlook email address, click New and enter text that will be your new email address.
4. 
   4
   Enter the email address. Creating a new email will prompt you to enter the email name and select an email service from a menu. Using an existing email will prompt you to enter the full address into a text field.
5. 
   5
   Click Add Alias. You will be taken back to the profile page, and the new alias will be listed among your other emails.

   • If the email address that you just tried to use is not listed, you are either trying to add an email address that is associated with another Microsoft account, or you attempted to create an email that already exists.
   • You can find out if your other email is already associated with a Microsoft account by going to account.live.com/username/recover and entering that email address.
6. 
   6
   Click Make Primary. This will appear next to each alias listed on the account (except the current primary alias). The address you select will now be the one that appears in your avatar when you log into your account.
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Section 2 of 2:

FAQ

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1. 1
   Can I change my Microsoft account email address without making a new account? Yes, you can change the email address of your Microsoft account without making a brand new account. Simply go to the alias management page, which can be accessed by clicking Your info > Manage how you sign into Microsoft from the Microsoft account homepage.
2. 2
   How do I remove an old email address from Outlook? Click on File > Settings > Accounts. Click Manage next to the account you want to remove, then scroll down and click Remove.

   • Note that removing an account from your Outlook won't delete the account.
3. 3
   Can I use Gmail for a Microsoft account? Yes, you can use a Gmail email address on your Microsoft account. You can also use a Yahoo or iCloud email address.
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Tips

• You can change your primary alias up to twice a week.
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• You can add up to 10 aliases per year.
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• If you created your Microsoft account before June 2014 and haven't accessed it for one year, it will have been closed for inactivity. If you created your account after June 2014 and haven't accessed it for two years, it will have been closed for inactivity. You'll need to create a new Microsoft account.
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