Discord users can not only choose their name, but change it fairly often. This is in addition to being able to have different names for different communities. However, how frequently a name can be changed on Discord depends on whether referring to the username or a nickname. These are two different parts of the experience, designed to cater to different uses, and that affects the frequency of how often they can be changed. In addition to who can actually change them.
Discord has become an increasingly popular option for communities. While it might have originally been designed with gamers in mind, a lot has changed since then and the service now caters to a wide array of users and communities. What has remained constant, however, is the ability to customize the experience, whether at the individual profile or community level.
Changing a Discord name depends on whether changing the username or the nickname, as these are fundamentally different. Usernames are ones that follow users across the Discord experience. In contrast, Discord allows users to create a different nickname for each server. As a single Discord user can have multiple nicknames at the same time, this allows them to create different profiles to better reflect the various communities they are a member of. In contrast, those same users can only ever have one Discord username at a time.
How Often Usernames & Nicknames Can Be Changed
The difference in usernames and nicknames directly affects how often a Discord name can be changed. As a username follows a user at all times, Discord only allows them to be changed twice per hour. Basically, a Discord user can only change their username once every thirty minutes. In contrast, nicknames are always in a changing state and there are no major limits on how often they can be changed. After all, there are no limits on how many nicknames a Discord user can have to begin with, so it makes sense there are no additional limits on the frequency of changing them either.
As to be expected, the process of changing these names is also different. For example, Discord nicknames can very quickly and easily be changed within the server, at any time, and in multiple ways. However, as the username not only applies to the server the user is currently in, but all servers they are a part of, this can only be changed by heading to the My Account section of the individual user settings in Discord. Likewise, only the user can change their own username while nicknames can also be changed by others within a Discord community, depending on the settings.
Although the use of two different names can be confusing at first, it is all part of the Discord experience and can prove beneficial when a member of many communities. Of course the use of two different names at the same time, as well as the ability to change them, is all optional. Those that plan on only joining a few communities and ones that are related, may find it is just as beneficial to have a single username and nickname, and even the same Discord name for both.
