Display name or profile URL: two different edits
A SoundCloud profile has a display name and a profile URL, and they are edited from the same place but behave differently. The display-name change is a label change; the profile URL change moves the address people and pages use to reach you.
SoundCloud lets an owner edit the display name and profile URL from the profile Edit control in a desktop web browser. Source
The URL change is the one that can break things. Because SoundCloud does not redirect the old address, every link and embed that still points at the old URL is a candidate for failure.
SoundCloud does not redirect an old profile URL after a change, and previously shared links or embedded players can be affected. Source
One practical constraint: this edit is a desktop-browser task. The profile URL cannot be changed from the mobile apps, so plan the rename for a session at a computer.
Changing the profile URL is not supported in SoundCloud’s mobile apps. Source
Why the order matters: inventory before rename
If you rename first and look for broken links afterward, you are hunting a moving target: the old URL is gone, and any page you find pointing at it is already broken. Building the inventory first gives you a fixed list to work from and a baseline you can re-check.
This is not a claim that every old link will fail in the same way. SoundCloud states that old URLs are not redirected and that shared links or embedded players can be affected. Which of your specific links break, and how visibly, depends on where they live and how they were shared. The inventory is how you find out for your own accounts and pages.
Step 1: Build a before/after inventory
Create a simple table before you touch the Edit control. One row per place the old URL appears.
| Where the URL appears | Record the old URL exactly | Who controls it | Can you edit it? | After the rename: does it work? (test) | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Your own website or blog | You | Yes | Not tested yet | Update after rename | |
| Link-in-bio or profile hub | You | Yes | Not tested yet | Update after rename | |
| Social posts and pinned posts | You | Usually yes | Not tested yet | Edit or add a corrected link | |
| Email signatures, press kits, PDFs | You | Yes | Not tested yet | Replace the file or link | |
| Embedded players on your pages | You | Yes | Not tested yet | Re-embed with the new URL | |
| Links you sent to collaborators or press | Partly | Sometimes | Not tested yet | Notify and resend | |
| Other people’s posts or directories | Not you | No | Not tested yet | Ask the owner to update |
Two columns carry the weight: the exact old URL (so you can search for it later) and the verification result (so you know what you actually tested rather than what you assume).
For embedded players, record the page where each embed appears and the track or playlist it plays, not just the profile URL. An embed can be affected even when the surrounding page looks fine.
Step 2: Rename from the desktop Edit control
With the inventory in hand:
- Open SoundCloud in a desktop web browser and sign in to the account you are renaming.
- Go to your profile and open the Edit control.
- Change the profile URL to the new handle you want.
- Save, then open your profile at the new URL in a fresh tab to confirm it loads.
- Immediately try the old URL in another tab. Do not assume it redirects; check what actually happens.
If you also want a new display name, that is a separate field. Decide whether you are changing one or both, and note which one in your inventory so you do not later confuse a label change with an address change.
Step 3: Test what you control
Work down the inventory and mark each row honestly.
- Own pages and profiles: open each one and follow the link. If it fails, replace it with the new URL.
- Embeds: load the page with the embed and check whether the player still resolves. If not, re-embed using the new URL.
- Posts you can edit: update the link in the post text where the platform allows it.
- Files and signatures: regenerate or edit the document so the new URL is baked in.
- Places you cannot edit: note them and contact the owner with the new URL and a short explanation.
Mark each row as tested and working, tested and broken, or not yet tested. A row you have not opened is not a pass.
What a rename does not fix
A profile URL change is not a general account cleanup. It does not remove old posts, change how other people describe you, or guarantee that third-party pages will be updated. It also does not mean search engines will promptly show the new URL; treat search-result updates as something outside your control and do not promise a timeline to anyone relying on the link.
If your goal is broader than the URL, such as reviewing where a handle appears across platforms, that is a different task from this one. A related next step is finding social media accounts by username, which covers matching a handle across sites rather than migrating a single profile address. A username match is a lead, not proof that the same person owns every account.
Common failure paths
| What happened | Why it matters | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Renamed first, inventoried later | You no longer have a clean list of old-URL locations | Reconstruct from your own posts, pages and sent messages; ask collaborators what they have |
| Assumed the old URL redirects | Old shares and embeds may be broken | Test the old URL directly and fix each location you control |
| Tried to change the URL in the mobile app | The profile URL cannot be changed there | Move to a desktop web browser |
| Updated the display name and thought the URL changed too | The two edits are separate | Check the actual profile URL in the browser |
| Told collaborators the new link but did not verify their pages | You cannot edit their pages yourself | Follow up and ask them to confirm the change |
A short pre-rename checklist
- Inventory built with exact old URL and every location recorded
- Embeds listed with their host pages
- Desktop browser session planned, not a mobile edit
- Decision made on display name versus profile URL, or both
- New URL chosen and checked on your own profile after saving
- Old URL tested, with the actual result recorded
- Owned links and embeds updated and retested
- Uneditable locations noted, with owners contacted
- No promise made about when search results will change
FAQ
Can I change my SoundCloud profile URL from the app?
No. Changing the profile URL is not supported in SoundCloud’s mobile apps; use a desktop web browser.
Will my old SoundCloud profile link redirect to the new one?
SoundCloud does not redirect an old profile URL after a change, so previously shared links and embedded players can be affected. Test the old URL rather than assuming it still works.
Does changing my display name change my profile URL?
They are separate edits made from the same Edit control. Changing the display name does not by itself move your profile address, so check the URL in the browser after any profile edit.
How soon will search results show my new URL?
There is no reliable answer to give. Search-result updates are outside your control, so fix the links and embeds you can edit and tell people who rely on the old link rather than promising a timeline.