Choose or change your username

Your username is the name people see on the sites you use. Some sites share usernames with each other, and some give you a separate username just for that site.

Username rules

• Between 3 and 24 characters.
• Letters A to Z, numbers, underscores (_) and full stops (.).
• Names that look alike count as the same name. Capitals don't matter, dots and underscores are ignored, and look-alike characters match: 0 and o, 1 and l, rn and m, vv and w, 5 and s.
• Some names are reserved so nobody can pretend to speak for a site or for Omxus, like admin, support, staff, moderator and omxus. A site's own name is reserved on that site.

Why do lookalike names count as the same?

It stops someone from taking a name that reads the same as yours, like paul.smith and pau1smith, and using it to fool people who know you.

Shared usernames and site usernames

Each site chooses one of two options:

• Shared username. Your username is the same on every site that shares usernames.
• Site username. The site has its own set of names. You can go by a different name there than you do elsewhere.

The first time you sign in to a site where you don't have a username yet, it asks you to choose one. It only asks once.

Change your username

Sites that let you change your username show the option in their account settings. When you change it, the new name replaces the old one for that site, or for every site that shares usernames. Someone else can then choose your old name.