Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Changing Your Name.

Changing Your Name

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 12, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


When you first install Excel, it asks you for your name so it can personalize the registration for your program. It also writes your name into the user area. This information is used in various places by Excel, such as in the workbook properties area. If you need to change your name, follow these steps:

  1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Excel displays the Options dialog box.
  2. Make sure the General tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The General tab of the Options dialog box.

  4. Change the information in the User Name box, as desired.
  5. Click on OK.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2735) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Changing Your Name.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Importing a Subset of Records

If you only want to import a portion of whatever records are in a text file, Excel provides a number of ways you can ...

Discover More

Upgrade Your Mastering Styles and Templates Course

Those who are registered in the streaming version of the Mastering Styles and Templates course can enhance their ...

Discover More

Closing a Document and Creating a New One

When you often perform a series of steps, the best solution to make those steps easier is to create a macro. This tip ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 365 applications with VBA programming. Written in clear terms and understandable language, the book includes systematic tutorials and contains both intermediate and advanced content for experienced VB developers. Designed to be comprehensive, the book addresses not just one Office application, but the entire Office suite. Check out Mastering VBA for Microsoft Office 365 today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Selecting Tabs in Dialog Boxes

Want to move around in dialog boxes using just the keyboard? You'll love the ideas in this tip, then.

Discover More

Forcing Stubborn Recalculation

Have you ever recalculated a worksheet, only to notice that not everything calculated as it should? Here's a way you can ...

Discover More

Inserting Different Dashes

Excel supports several types of dashes. This tip describes those different types and explains how to enter them in a cell.

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 7 + 9?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.