Overview
- Gmail, which began a U.S. rollout Wednesday, now lets users change the part before "@gmail.com" in Google Account settings, with a broader release promised later.
- Users can make one change every 12 months and create up to three alternative names, allowing as many as four addresses tied to one account over time.
- The previous address stays active as an alias and cannot be removed without deleting the entire Google account.
- Some services and devices do not switch over on their own, as most third‑party logins still use the old address and Chromebooks require you to remove the old account and add the new one after backing up local data.
- Security researchers warn of phishing tied to the change, and Google says it will not email direct links to update your address, so make changes only inside your account settings.