How to change the primary alias of an account?

Yes you can change the original email address. This process is called changing the primary alias. The primary alias is the email address that is used to sign in to the account. The article explains how to complete this process.

Hello Christian Lford,

We appreciate you for sharing this with us and welcome to Xbox Forums.

We understand the importance of securing your account after it was hacked. Glad to hear that you were able to get it back online from your end. Let's work on this together in a timely manner.

To proceed, regarding with the concern we have I believe that when the account is in the process of changing it's account information, your original email address will receive a notification for the activity and if the changes is not made by you, there is an option to cancel the changes from your end at the bottom of the email. Just want to confirm, were you able to see that email?



In the meantime, you can try to change your primary alias, you need to follow these steps:



1. Go to account.microsoft.com and sign in to your account.

2. Click on the "Your info" tab.

3. Click on the "Manage how you sign in to Microsoft" link.

4. Click on the "Add email" button and add your preferred email address as a secondary email address.

5. Once you have added your preferred email address, click on the "Make primary" button next to it.

6. You will be prompted to verify your identity by entering a security code that will be sent to your new primary email address.

7. Enter the security code and click on the "Verify" button.

8. Once your identity is verified, your preferred email address will become your new primary alias.



If you are unable to change your primary alias immediately, it may be because you have recently made changes to your account. Microsoft has a security feature that prevents users from making too many changes to their account in a short period of time. In this case, you will need to wait for a week before you can change your primary alias.

If this doesn't work, it is recommended to try setting up two steps verification with your account as part of securing it:

1. Go to the Security basics page and sign in with your Microsoft account.
   

1. Select More security options.
   
2. Under Two-step verification, choose Set up two-step verification to turn it on, or choose Turn off two-step verification to turn it off.
   
3. Follow the instructions.
   

Note: As part of setting up this account, you’ll be given a QR code to scan with your device; this is one way we ensure you are in physical possession of the device you are installing the Authenticator app to.

Also, do not forget to remove the devices where your account recently signed in:

1. Go to account.microsoft.com/devices, sign in, and find the device you want to remove.
   
2. Select Show details to see info for that device.
   
3. Under your device's name, select More actions > Remove.
   
4. Review your device details, select the check box, I'm ready to remove this device, then select Remove.
   

Sources:

Remove a device from your Microsoft account - Microsoft Support

How to use two-step verification with your Microsoft account - Microsoft Support



I hope this helps! If you have any further questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask.

Kind regards,



Microsoft Community Moderator

Hello Christian Lford,

We haven't heard from you in 72 hours, so we will consider your issue resolved. If you do need further help, please create a new thread to discuss your concerns through this link: Create a new question or start a new discussion (microsoft.com), as we will not be monitoring this thread going forward.















Thank you for understanding.



Respectfully,



Microsoft Community Moderator

I tried this exact method, however when attempting to change the primary alias, no matter how many times I click "make primary" it would not change the primary alias. It is now saying I've changed my primary alias too many times this week even though it
hasn't changed once.

Hi there ASwiftDevil,

Thanks for reaching out here in Xbox Forums. I understand there is an issue with changing the primary alias to an existing Microsoft Account. When changing a primary aliases on an account, you may not use any Microsoft Domains such as: xboxlivefamily.com,
Hotmail.com, live.com, outlook.com, and msn.com.

For more detailed information about how to add an alias, including why and how to set your primary alias, see the
Manage aliases on your
Microsoft accountarticle.

Hope this helps.