How to Change Name on Zoom (2026 Guide)

Ever joined a Zoom call and realized your display name still shows an old nickname, a work email prefix, or your account holder’s name instead of yours? It’s a surprisingly common issue, especially on shared or company-managed devices. The good news is Zoom makes it easy to fix — you can either update your name permanently in your profile, or simply rename yourself for a single meeting without touching your account settings at all.

This guide covers every method: changing your name before a meeting on web, desktop, and mobile, renaming yourself mid-meeting, and what to do if the rename option isn’t working.

Two Different “Names” in Zoom

Before diving into the steps, it helps to understand that Zoom actually tracks two separate names tied to your account:

• Profile name: Your registered first and last name, tied to your Zoom account itself.
• Display name: The name other participants actually see during meetings and on your profile. This can be different from your profile name — for example, adding a role or nickname.

Changing your display name in your profile settings updates it permanently for all future meetings. Renaming yourself during a live meeting, on the other hand, only affects that single session and reverts back afterward unless you also update your profile.

To Change Your Display Name

• Role clarity for specific events. Something like “John Smith – Presenter” or “Alex Smith – Volunteer” can help other attendees immediately understand your role in a particular meeting.
• Correcting an outdated or wrong name, especially on a shared work account or a device someone else set up for you.
• Using a preferred name or nickname that differs from your legal or registered name.
• Adding pronouns or a title for meetings where that context is useful for attendees.
• Anonymity for one-off calls, such as joining a public webinar or event without wanting your full legal name displayed.

How to Change Your Name Before a Meeting (Permanent Change)

On the Zoom Web Portal

1. Click Profile in the left sidebar.
2. Click the Edit button next to your current profile name.
3. On the next screen, enter your full name, and separately update your Display Name if you want it to differ from your registered name. The display name is what other participants will actually see in meetings.
4. You can also update your job title, company, pronouns, and location on this same page if you’d like.
5. Scroll down and click Save.

On the Zoom Desktop App

The desktop app process is very similar and, in most cases, redirects you to the Zoom website to complete the change:

1. Open the Zoom desktop app and sign in if you aren’t already.
2. Click your profile picture in the top-right corner.
3. Click Settings (or My Profile, depending on your version).
4. Click Edit My Profile — this will open the Zoom web portal in your browser.
5. Follow the same steps as the web portal method above: click Edit, update your name and display name, then click Save.

If you’re joining without being signed in — say, entering a meeting ID or a personal link directly — there’s an alternative method specific to that scenario:

1. Launch the desktop client and, if you’re signed in, sign out first.
2. Click Join a Meeting.
3. Type your desired display name in the box below it.
4. Optionally, check Remember my name for future meetings if you want this name to be used automatically going forward.
5. Click Join.

On the Zoom Mobile App (iOS and Android)

1. Tap the More menu (usually represented by dots or lines) in the bottom-right corner.
2. Tap your profile picture or name at the top of that menu.
3. Tap Display Name.
4. Enter your new name and tap Save.

How to Change Your Name During a Live Meeting (Temporary, One-Time Change)

This method only affects the current meeting session — once the call ends, your name reverts back to whatever’s set in your profile, unless you also update it there separately.

On Desktop (Windows and Mac)

1. Click Participants on the meeting toolbar.
2. Find your own name in the list — it will usually be marked (Me).
3. Hover over your name and click More, then select Rename.
4. Type in the new name you’d like to use for this meeting and click OK (or Change, depending on your version).

A quicker shortcut: you can also right-click directly on your own video tile and select Rename from the context menu, skipping the Participants panel entirely.

On Mobile (iOS and Android)

1. Tap the screen to bring up the meeting controls if they’re hidden.
2. Tap Participants.
3. Tap your own name at the top of the participant list.
4. Tap Rename.
5. Enter your new name and tap Done.

On the Web Client

If you’re joining through a browser rather than the app:

1. Before joining, click Join and enter your desired display name directly in the name field on the join screen.
2. Once already in the meeting, click Participants in the meeting toolbar, find your name, click More, and select Rename — the same process as desktop.

Renaming Yourself Without a Zoom Account

You don’t need an account at all to set a custom display name for a single meeting. When joining through a shared meeting link or meeting ID, Zoom typically lets you type your preferred display name into the join screen before entering the session — no sign-in required. This is especially useful for guests, webinar attendees, or anyone joining a one-off call who doesn’t want to create a full Zoom profile just to appear under the right name.

Making a Meeting-Only Rename Permanent

If you rename yourself during a meeting and decide you actually want that name to stick going forward, renaming inside a single session isn’t enough — that change only applies to the current call. To make it permanent:

1. Go to your Profile at zoom.us and update your display name there using the steps above.
2. Fully quit and reopen the Zoom app afterward, rather than just minimizing it.
3. Alternatively, sign out of the desktop app completely and sign back in.

This last step matters more than people expect — Zoom’s desktop client often caches your old display name locally until you fully re-authenticate, so simply changing it on the web portal without restarting the app can leave your old name showing up in your next meeting anyway.

Troubleshooting: Can’t Change Your Name in Zoom

If the rename option isn’t working the way you expect, run through these common causes:

1. The host has disabled the rename feature. Some meeting hosts turn off the ability for participants to rename themselves mid-meeting, usually for moderation or attendance-tracking reasons. If this is the case, you generally can’t change your name once you’re already in — you’d need to leave and rejoin with a different name entered at the join screen instead, if that path is still available.
2. You joined by phone dial-in only. If you called into a meeting rather than joining through the app or browser, your entry typically just shows up as a phone number rather than a name. In this case, either join from the app instead, or ask the host to manually rename your phone entry from the Participants list on their end.
3. The desktop app is showing a cached name. As mentioned above, changing your name on the web portal doesn’t always immediately reflect in the desktop app until you restart it or sign out and back in.
4. You’re not actually changing the right “name” field. Remember there are two separate fields — your registered profile name and your display name. Make sure you’re editing the display name specifically if that’s what you want other participants to see.
5. App is outdated. An older version of the Zoom app can occasionally cause menu options like Rename to behave unpredictably. Updating to the latest version usually resolves interface glitches like this.

A Few Practical Tips

• Set your preferred display name once in your profile, rather than renaming yourself in every single meeting — it saves time and ensures consistency across all your calls.
• Use meeting-specific renames for context, not for every call. Adding something like “– Presenter” or “– IT Support” is helpful for a specific event but isn’t something you’d want permanently attached to your profile name.
• If you manage recurring meetings for a team, consider standardizing display name formats (e.g., “First Last – Department”) to make large meetings easier to navigate.
• Double-check your display name before joining public or recorded webinars, since a name meant for internal joking or nicknames might not be appropriate for a wider or recorded audience.
• Restart the app after any profile-level name change to avoid the caching issue where your old name briefly reappears in your next meeting.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does changing my name on the Zoom website update it in the desktop app automatically? Not always immediately. The desktop app can cache your old display name until you sign out and back in, or fully quit and reopen the app.

2. If I rename myself during a meeting, does that change stick for future calls? No. A rename done through the Participants panel during a live meeting only applies to that session. To make it permanent, you need to update your display name separately in your Zoom profile settings.

3. Can I set a custom name for a Zoom meeting without having a Zoom account? Yes. When joining through a shared meeting link or meeting ID, you can usually type your preferred display name directly into the join screen before entering, without needing to sign in or create an account.

4. Why can’t I rename myself once I’m already inside a meeting? This is usually because the host has disabled the rename feature for participants, often for moderation or attendance-tracking purposes. If that’s the case, there’s typically no participant-side workaround while already in the meeting.

5. What happens to my display name if I join a meeting by phone only? Your entry usually shows up as just a phone number rather than a name, since there’s no display name field to fill in through a phone dial-in. Joining via the app instead, or asking the host to manually rename your entry, are the two workarounds.

6. Can I have a different display name for different meetings? Yes. You can either rename yourself temporarily for a single meeting through the Participants panel, or enter a custom name at the join screen each time without changing your permanent profile settings.

7. Where exactly do I go to permanently change my name on Zoom? Sign in at zoom.us, click Profile in the sidebar, click Edit next to your name, update your First Name, Last Name, and Display Name fields, then click Save.

8. Will my new display name show up immediately in my very next meeting? Generally yes, once the change is saved on the web portal, but if you’re using the desktop app, restarting it (or signing out and back in) ensures the update takes effect rather than showing a cached older name.

Conclusion

Changing your name on Zoom is one of those small settings that’s easy to overlook until it actually matters — a mislabeled name on a client call, a nickname that doesn’t belong in a formal meeting, or simply wanting consistency across every call you join. Whether you go the permanent route through your profile or just rename yourself for a single session, the process takes under a minute on every platform. Just remember the one detail that trips people up most: a meeting-only rename doesn’t carry over, and a profile-level rename sometimes needs an app restart before it actually shows up where you expect it.