The short answer
A handle is your username with an @ in front. It is the one name on Instagram that belongs only to you. People type it to find you, tag you in photos, and mention you in comments. It also builds your profile link: instagram.com followed by your handle.
Handle and username are the same thing. Handle is the older word, borrowed from radio and early internet chat, and it stuck.
Handle versus display name
Every profile carries two names, and they follow different rules.
- Handle: unique across all of Instagram, lowercase, no spaces. Letters, numbers, periods and underscores only, up to 30 characters. Shown with @ in mentions.
- Name: the bold line above your bio. Spaces, capitals and emoji are fine. It does not need to be unique, so a thousand accounts can share it.
Search checks both. That is why the name line often carries a keyword, like “Maya | Food Blogger,” while the handle stays short.
How to find your handle
Open your profile. The name at the very top of the screen is your handle. It also appears in your profile link, which our Instagram URL guide shows how to copy and share.
To find someone else’s handle, open their profile and read the top line, or look at what follows the @ when someone tags them.
How to change your handle
- Open your profile and tap Edit profile.
- Tap Username.
- Type the new handle. Instagram tells you at once if it is taken.
- Tap Done.
Instagram reserves your old handle for 14 days so you can change your mind, as covered in the Help Center. Your followers and posts are untouched. Links are not: every old link to your profile breaks the moment the handle changes, so update your other bios and pages the same day.
Picking a handle people remember
A good handle is easy to say out loud and easy to type after hearing it once.
- Keep it short. Under 15 characters is a fair target.
- Match your name on other platforms, so people find you everywhere.
- Skip long number strings. They read as spam and are hard to recall.
- Use at most one period or underscore. “my.brand” is fine, “m_y.b_rand” is not.
- If your first pick is taken, add a clear word: city, craft or “official.”
The handle is how people arrive; what they see next decides if they stay. Watch your growth for free with our Instagram follower count checker, and read our tips on getting more followers. When you want the count itself to move sooner, Famoid delivers Instagram followers at a natural pace.