17 Twitter Username Ideas To Inspire You
Need a list of Twitter username ideas for a new account on the platform?
Or maybe you’re looking to change your current username into something that’s more marketable?
In this post, we cover over a dozen Twitter username ideas you can use to come up with fun or professional handles to apply to all social media platforms, but especially Twitter.
Twitter username ideas for fun and professional handles
We broke these ideas into a few different sections:
- Primary twitter username ideas.
- Twitter username ideas if Yours is taken.
- Tips on perfecting your Twitter username.
- Using Twitter username generators.
Let’s start with our primary ideas.
Primary Twitter username ideas
1. Use your own name
This is the best place to start, especially if you’re creating an account for your own personal brand.
Even if you’re creating a Twitter account for a brand, if you’re the face of that brand, it’d be better to create a Twitter account in your own name than a corporate name that’ll just get ignored by consumers.
You can still earn brand recognition by inserting a link to your company’s website in your bio, linking to it in tweets, and representing your brand visually by adding branded images to your posts and wearing merchandise with your brand’s logo.
It’s best to use the name you want to be recognized by online, such as the name you use in the author section of a blog post, though you can always save this role for your display name if need be.
If your desired username is already taken on the site, scroll down to the next section to read our tips on creating a unique username from a username that’s already taken.
2. Use your business name
You should still create a dedicated Twitter account for your business even if your personal Twitter account is dedicated to your brand already.
It gives you the opportunity to create a professional Twitter profile for your brand, one that only has important business updates and marketing campaigns instead of personal opinions and more casual tweets.
Follow the same approach as we recommended for creating personal Twitter usernames: use your business name verbatim, or at least the name you want your brand to be recognized by.
If your brand name is already taken on social media and you don’t have an audience or customers, yet, consider coming up with a more original name before you start gaining recognition.
Proceed to the next section if you’re set on your name but discover it’s already taken on Twitter.
3. Use the handle you already have on other social media platforms
If you have accounts on other social media platforms, you’re already set. All you need to do is use the same handle as you do on those other platforms.
Using the same handle on all social media platforms makes it much easier to market your brand’s social media accounts away from social media.
If you’re being interviewed on a podcast and your social media platforms are all the same, all you need to say is “you can find me @handlename on all platforms.”
If one or more of your handles is different, that same shoutout will sound a little something like “you can find me @handlename on Instagram, @handlenamehq on Instagram and @handlenametok on TikTok.”
Obviously, if the username you use on other platforms is already taken on Twitter, you’ll have no choice but to use another handle.
However, if you have the option to, definitely stay consistent by using the same handle on all platforms. It’ll make it easier for you to earn brand recognition in the long run.
4. Draw inspiration from your niche
Okay, so if you don’t want to or can’t use your name or your brand name, what are you left with?
Well, if you don’t want to use a variation of your name or brand name, you can always create a handle that’s related to your niche in one way or another.
Find a way to include a keyword or concept related to your niche in your handle.
Here’s an example, @ChrisLaneFish.
Chris Lane is a professional angler, and so, he’s added the simple keyword “fish” to his handle so you can easily pick him out from all the other Chris Lanes on the platform.
5. Be unique
If you’re not using your brand, personal or professional, as your handle, at least get creative with your username. This will make it more memorable and captivating as Twitter users scroll through their feed.
One way to get more creative with your username is by using word play. Here’s an example from an account called @YetiOrKnot.
It’s a crochet-focused account. It takes the well-known phrase “ready or not” and transforms it into a playful username suitable for an account dedicated to crochet.
You can also use numbers to create more interesting Twitter handles. Here’s a quick example from Suffolk-based property management firm Seven Property.
They use the handle @s3venproperty, changing the first “e” in their business name into a “3.”
6. Include your services
If you’re a service-based business, consider creating dedicated Twitter accounts for different parts of your service.
For example, if you offer support, consider creating a dedicated Twitter account for your support team by combining your brand name with the words “support” or “cares.”
Here are some real-world examples:
- @AskPlayStation
- @EAHelp
- @XboxSupport
- @snapchatsupport
- @SpotifyCares
Here are some real-world examples for shop-based Twitter accounts:
- @shopDisney
- @BigHitShop
- @packersproshop
If your brand has a fanbase, you can also create a dedicated Twitter account for your community and add “community” or “fans” to the end of it.
You can also create different Twitter accounts for different niche-based services you offer, but only if the services are vastly different, such as a web developer who offers development services for Squarespace and WordPress.
Twitter username ideas when yours is taken
Let’s talk about some good Twitter username ideas to use when yours is taken.
In the previous section, we talked about a few alternatives to use if you didn’t want to or couldn’t use your name or brand name as your Twitter username.
In this section, we’re assuming you want to use your name as your username but can’t because it’s already taken on the site.
These ideas will give you a few ways to alter your username so you can still use your personal or brand identity on Twitter.
7. Add a prefix or suffix to your name
If the Twitter handle you want is already taken on the platform, try adding a prefix or suffix to it.
Popular examples used by brands include “team,” “app,” “hq” and business entities, such as “llc,” “inc” and “corp.”
“Team” can be used as a prefix or suffix, but the others are best used after your business name.
Popular examples for personal accounts include “thereal” in front of your name or “official” after your name.
Just be sure to work on getting verification right away if you use these examples. Spam accounts and bots often use “thereal” and “official” in an attempt to appear authentic as they scam users on the platform.
8. Add your location
If your Twitter name is already taken, create cool Twitter username alternatives by adding your location to your name.
Just be vague about it so you’re not revealing exactly where you live, so only countries, states, counties and major cities.
Use abbreviations to create simpler usernames, such as “sf” instead of San Francisco or “fr” instead of France.
If you’re a worldwide brand or you market yourself to specific regions, you can also use this technique to create dedicated Twitter accounts for each region.
9. Add numbers or abbreviations
Ignore this if you’re creating a Twitter account for a brand as you shouldn’t add numbers or non-professional abbreviations to your social media usernames.
However, if you’re creating a Twitter account for yourself and your name is already taken, consider adding a few meaningful numbers or an abbreviation to it.
Here’s an example from YouTuber Ray William Johnson. While his account isn’t as active as it once was, his Twitter username is @RayWJ.
As you can see, he uses his first name and then abbreviates his middle and last names.
You can also choose abbreviations that have meaning to you or your niche.
For numbers, you can add the last two digits of your birth year, a number that’s significant to you, so long as it can’t be used to identify you on official forms, or your city’s area code if you live in a major city.
10. Use only abbreviations
You may also consider using only abbreviations as your username if your name or brand name is already taken.
You can always put your brand name in the display text and any branded images you use on your account.
This is what American government accounts do, including the Twitter accounts for the American Vice President, which is @VP, and the American President of the United States, which is @POTUS.
If your username is already taken but the abbreviation for it isn’t, consider using the abbreviated version of your name instead.
If you’re creating a Twitter account for yourself, consider adding numbers and additional abbreviations to it if need be. Look at the previous tip for ideas on this.
11. Use your domain name
If your brand’s name is already taken as a username on Twitter, consider using your site’s domain name instead.
Only do this if you have a simple, relatively short domain name, such as “business.com.”
You could create the usernames “businesscom” or “businessdotcom” out of this.
Here’s an example from Indonesian news network Liputan 6, which uses the Twitter username @liputan6dotcom.
12. Use action words
Finally, if the Twitter username you want is already taken, add an action word to your name if it makes sense.
Examples include “try,” “get,” “join,” “buy” and “use.”
This mostly makes sense for apps, community-based websites and service-based businesses.
Here’s an example from smartphone app CallApp, who uses the Twitter username @GetCallApp.
13. Use misspellings
If a keyword you want to use in your username is quite common, consider using a misspelled version of it.
For instance, instead of using “fishing” in your Twitter names, use “fishng”. Instead of using “captain,” use “captn” or the official shortened version “capt”.
The misspelling may even be more likely to catch the attention of other users as they browse Twitter.
Tips on perfecting your Twitter username
Your Twitter username is not just a username. It’s your brand identity on the platform and any additional platform you use it on.
It’s important to come up with a few Twitter username ideas for this reason as well as to workshop a few possibilities.
In this section, let’s talk about a few additional tips you can use to perfect the username idea you have right now to transform it into the perfect Twitter username.
14. Make sure your Twitter username is easy to pronounce
Like we said before, your Twitter username is not read only.
There will come a time where you’ll want to promote your social media accounts through the spoken word. When you do, you want to make sure you can pronounce it easily, well enough for listeners to understand it and find you on the platform.
So, avoid a username that’s spoken like “at-username-h-q-one-three-seven-underscore-eight-nine-five,” or something just as harsh to the ears.
15. Make sure your Twitter username is easy to remember
This one ties into the last point. Some folks exposed to your username won’t want to or won’t have the opportunity to look you up on the platform right away.
It’s best to make your username memorable because of this.
A good username is easy to pronounce and easy to remember. That way, you can start establishing a brand for yourself on social media.
It also helps your audience look you up at a later date.
16. Create an aesthetically-pleasing Twitter username
No matter which Twitter username ideas you decide to go with, make sure your username looks good to the eye.
It’s best not to use underscores most of all, but you should also avoid long strings of numbers and letters that have no meaning.
If the numbers make sense to you and your audience, such as binary code representing letters, go for it.
Unique Twitter usernames are good, but don’t set yourself apart to the point where you’re creating a username that’s not marketable.
17. Keep it short
Twitter limits you to just 15 characters for usernames. Here’s a visual representation of how long that is:
@abcdefghijklmno
This isn’t that bad as far as usernames go, so you shouldn’t be too worried about creating a username that’s too long.
However, shorter usernames are better as they’re easier to pronounce and easier for audiences to remember.
Plus, you can always save your full name for your display name by editing it on the settings page.
You’ll gain more followers in the long run the simpler your username is.
18. Don’t add sensitive information
You can add your area code, ZIP code or abbreviated location to your username if you live in a major city since it’s much harder for bad actors to find out exactly where you live in cities that inhabit hundreds of thousands or even millions of people.
However, you shouldn’t add too much sensitive information to your username, especially if you live in smaller cities.
This includes your social security number, phone number, house number, etc.
This is information bad actors need in order to steal your identity, so it’s best to keep it hidden as much as possible.
Bonus tip: Twitter username generators
Twitter username generators are useful tools you can use to generate Twitter username ideas well enough to come up with a new username or at least a few funny usernames.
Unfortunately, most of the top results for “twitter username generators” on Google spit out usernames that already exist or look pretty awful.
Here are a few good ones. We won’t spend too much time on each one.
Vista Social has a Twitter username generator that allows you to select a category you or your content belongs to and input a keyword as a topic.
It then spits out a few creative Twitter usernames you can use.
Some will already be available on the platform, but I found a few originals in the list it spit out for me.
Then there’s GeneratorMix. This tool lets you input a keyword and configure a few parameters, such as whether or not you want to include underscores.
It then generates however many usernames you want it to, all of which incorporate your chosen keyword.
NameGenerator.biz lets you input a prefix and suffix. It then puts a random word in between each one and lets you generate one username idea at a time.
Our last recommendation is Jimpix. While they do have an option for inputting keywords and parameters, the tool’s base functionality is pretty interesting.
It simply generates a list of generic username ideas every time you hit refresh. However, they’re fairly decent, and the tool will even check if the username is available for you.
Final thoughts
Coming up with a Twitter username isn’t easy, especially if your name is already taken on the platform.
However, these tips demonstrate that with a little creativity and maybe even a bit of help from generator tools, you can create a unique username capable of helping you establish a brand for yourself on Twitter.
Just remember to ensure your username is easy to read, pronounce and remember.
And while you’re here, be sure to check out our post on Twitter statistics.