Alternatives to changing your primary domain

When you sign up for your Google service, you provide an Internet domain name that becomes the primary domain associated with your Google account. You and your users get account names and email addresses at this domain and you can host your website, built in Google Sites if you like, at this domain.

Do I really need a new primary domain? Changing your primary domain isn't always necessary—and it's an involved process that requires some set up. Depending on how you want to use the domain, you might be able to simply add it as a domain or domain alias rather than change your primary domain.

We just want email addresses at the new domain

If you just want your current users to be able to receive mail using an address at the new domain, add it as a domain alias and leave your primary domain as is. For details, see Give users an address at another domain.

If you also want your users to be able to send mail using their new address at the new domain, see Send mail from a different address or alias.

Users still have to sign in to their services using their account name at the old domain, but if you set this up properly, they can send and receive mail using an address at the new domain (as well as from the old domain).

We also want account names at the new domain

To change your users' account names to the new domain, add the domain as a separate domain. Then move users from their current domain to the new domain. After that, users can sign in to their services using an account name at the new domain. They get an email address at the new domain (and no longer have their old email address). They can otherwise use the new account name just like they did their old one.

Google Play Developer accounts? If a Google Play Developer account is associated with a user account name you want to change to use a new domain, the user account name will no longer be associated with the Developer account once you delete it, even if you create a new user account with the same email address. To maintain access to the apps in the previous Google Play Developer account, you need to create a new Google Play Developer account using your new user account name and request an applications transfer for apps in the previous account. For more information, see Transfer apps to a different developer account and Link a Google Play Developer account to Google Payments Merchant Center.

To get started, see Add users from another domain.

We want new web addresses

The easiest way to create web addresses at the new domain, such as mail.newdomain.com, or to host your business website built in Google Sites at the new domain, (such as www.newdomain.com) is to add a secondary domain then Customize a G Suite service address. 

We really want a new primary domain

Before you change your primary domain, check out the issues you need to consider before you change your primary domain. You can swap the new domain with your primary domain using the Admin console.

Reseller accounts, domains purchased through a Google partner, or accounts with Chrome or Mobile Device Management licenses cannot use either the Admin console or the Directory API to change primary domains. 

You cannot change Standard edition domains.

Was this helpful?
How can we improve it?