Gmail Users Can Change Email Addresses After 20 Years

New Feature for Gmail Users

Gmail users have been stuck with the same email addresses for over two decades, but this may soon change. Google has begun to quietly implement an option that allows users to change their @gmail.com addresses while retaining all emails, files, photos, and connected services such as YouTube and Google Drive, according to a report from The New York Times.

This new feature currently appears only on Gmail's Hindi support page, but Google announces that it will gradually be available to all users. Until now, users could change their usernames, but the email address had to remain the same, which caused considerable frustration.

Here’s how it will work: old Gmail addresses will automatically be assigned alias status and will continue to receive emails. Users can log into Google services with either their old or new address, and all data will remain on the existing account. However, there are certain limitations. Users can change their address only once every 12 months and can create a maximum of three new addresses over their lifetime, for a total of four Gmail addresses. This change applies only to @gmail.com addresses, not to accounts through employers or educational institutions.