Apple IDs may be renamed 'Apple Accounts' by the end of 2024

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in iOS edited February 29

Apple is reportedly considering rebranding the Apple ID as "Apple Account," and may make the change before the end of 2024.

The familiar Apple ID may be rebranded
The familiar Apple ID may be rebranded "Apple Account"



Apple ID is the way users log in to Apple Services. It's such a familiar part of using the Apple ecosystem that it's not thought about, until a user wants to merge two or more Apple IDs together

The Apple ID is such an integral part of everything to do with Apple now that it's hard to definitively say when it began. Apart from the abortive eWorld in the '90s or the dealer-only AppleLink of the '80s, the first time users had to sign in to anything was with iTools in 2000.

Even then, that service was free so there was no registering of credit cards with it, and consequently less need for security. Then the iTunes Music Store came along in 2003, and now the sign in was more often, more formally, called Apple ID.

So whether it's for 24 years or merely 21, Apple ID has been part of being an Apple user for decades -- and now it may change.

According to MacRumors, Apple is considering renaming the sign-in identification to "Apple Account." It may do this before the end of 2024, in which case it's reasonable to expect that the rebrand could be launched alongside the forthcoming iOS 18 and next version of macOS.

There's no detail about why Apple would be considering this, nor any certainty over whether it will happen.

If it's not to just be cosmetic rebranding, perhaps Apple will be altering or improving Apple ID in some way that warrants distinguishing it from the previous model. However, other than finally allowing IDs to be merged, or somehow connecting the ID to a wider rollout of the Apple Card, it's hard to guess what further features it could bring.

Rumor Score: Possible

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 18
    mikethemartianmikethemartian Posts: 1,328member
    Apple ID sounds better.
    williamlondonForumPostwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 18
    CheeseFreezeCheeseFreeze Posts: 1,250member
    I hope they finally allow the App Store and iCloud accounts to be merged. I'm still forced to use 2 email & passwords for it.

    dewmewilliamlondonappleinsideruser
  • Reply 3 of 18
    sflagelsflagel Posts: 805member
    Excellent idea. Apple ID was always confusing; every company in the world clarifies the difference between the account, the log-in identification (mostly an email address), and the password. Only Apple blurs the lines.

    Who knows, this may be the first step allowing users to use another Apple email address and, shock horror, merge two addresses under one account?
    edited February 29 watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 18
    slow n easyslow n easy Posts: 323member
    Apple Account sounds more accurate in what it is. If Apple ID never existed before and this was being set up for the first time, I think that Apple Account makes more sense. Just the same way that when the rumor first appeared that Apple was changing the name from OS X to macOS, it just seemed very logical.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 18
    omasouomasou Posts: 576member
    Great. Now let me merge and consolidate all my Apple IDs into one account.
    edited February 29 beowulfschmidtblastdoorwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 18
    XedXed Posts: 2,574member
    mikethemartian said:
    Apple ID sounds better.
    I like Apple Accounts more. If everything is consolidated (finally) I'm all for the change.
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 18
    eriamjheriamjh Posts: 1,647member
    It used to be iTunes ID, didn't it?
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 18
    lordjohnwhorfinlordjohnwhorfin Posts: 851member
    If only there was a way to explain to my technophobe friend that the password for her AppleID account which is her gmail email address is NOT the google password for that account. I tried. Many times. No, all she does is get a password reset, changes the password triggering a cascade of problems.
    sflagelwilliamlondonpaisleydiscoStrangeDayswatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 18
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,376member
    CheeseFreeze said:
    I hope they finally allow the App Store and iCloud accounts to be merged. I'm still forced to use 2 email & passwords for it.

    Me too. But from every single interaction I've had with Apple support people, this will happen on or about the same time as the Sun expands to the point where it completely envelops the Earth, or possibly shortly thereafter.
    tenthousandthingswatto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 18
    paisleydiscopaisleydisco Posts: 87member
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    If only there was a way to explain to my technophobe friend that the password for her AppleID account which is her gmail email address is NOT the google password for that account. I tried. Many times. No, all she does is get a password reset, changes the password triggering a cascade of problems.
    the amount of dumb  people who do this is maddening. 
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 18
    ForumPostForumPost Posts: 68member
    I believe these problems people are having eg wanting to merge accounts etc is the later registrations or people who was a switcher. I have my Apple ID since the beginning and I use it for all Apple services like iTunes, @mac email and log-in account etc. I only have one and use one. Why
    all the confusions?
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 18
    DavidEsratiDavidEsrati Posts: 26member
    Please make an easy way for a small business owner to manage all the computers- and assign accounts to employees- so that we can actually use this easily.
    The whole configurator- or paying for the right to access things monthly is evil and difficult.
    They killed off server- they forced services into the cloud- please don't screw this up more.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 18
    blastdoorblastdoor Posts: 3,308member
    omasou said:
    Great. Now let me merge and consolidate all my Apple IDs into one account.
    100% this. I hate having two apple ids. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 18
    MplsPMplsP Posts: 3,931member
    blastdoor said:
    omasou said:
    Great. Now let me merge and consolidate all my Apple IDs into one account.
    100% this. I hate having two apple ids. 
    1000% this!

    I also think the original terminology of “apple ID” was confusing and led people to create multiple accounts, creating the problems we’re all experiencing now.
    sflagelwatto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 18
    MplsPMplsP Posts: 3,931member
    blastdoor said:
    omasou said:
    Great. Now let me merge and consolidate all my Apple IDs into one account.
    100% this. I hate having two apple ids. 
    1000% this!

    I also think the original terminology of “apple ID” was confusing and led people to create multiple accounts, creating the problems we’re all experiencing now.
    sflagel
  • Reply 16 of 18
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,886member
    paisleydisco said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    If only there was a way to explain to my technophobe friend that the password for her AppleID account which is her gmail email address is NOT the google password for that account. I tried. Many times. No, all she does is get a password reset, changes the password triggering a cascade of problems.
    the amount of dumb  people who do this is maddening. 
    Sweet “IT guy” attitude, dude. Human tip: to non-IT people, this confusion is understandable. It does *not* infer they are dumb or lacking in intelligence. It’s simply a different domain than theirs. Imagine if your doctor or dentist called you dumb for not knowing basic things to them? 
    MplsPXedwatto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 18
    brianjobrianjo Posts: 40member
    StrangeDays said:
    paisleydisco said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    If only there was a way to explain to my technophobe friend that the password for her AppleID account which is her gmail email address is NOT the google password for that account. I tried. Many times. No, all she does is get a password reset, changes the password triggering a cascade of problems.
    the amount of dumb  people who do this is maddening. 
    Sweet “IT guy” attitude, dude. Human tip: to non-IT people, this confusion is understandable. It does *not* infer they are dumb or lacking in intelligence. It’s simply a different domain than theirs. Imagine if your doctor or dentist called you dumb for not knowing basic things to them? 
    The problem is, you can't even explain this concept to some people.  There are very smart people that just turn into potato mush when the word 'computer' is mentioned.

    The concept of a username/password used for websites isn't difficult, but people just don't get it.  There are also people that don't understand that Apple and Google are completely different companies.  It's mind blowing.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 18 of 18
    XedXed Posts: 2,574member
    brianjo said:
    StrangeDays said:
    paisleydisco said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    If only there was a way to explain to my technophobe friend that the password for her AppleID account which is her gmail email address is NOT the google password for that account. I tried. Many times. No, all she does is get a password reset, changes the password triggering a cascade of problems.
    the amount of dumb  people who do this is maddening. 
    Sweet “IT guy” attitude, dude. Human tip: to non-IT people, this confusion is understandable. It does *not* infer they are dumb or lacking in intelligence. It’s simply a different domain than theirs. Imagine if your doctor or dentist called you dumb for not knowing basic things to them? 
    The problem is, you can't even explain this concept to some people.  There are very smart people that just turn into potato mush when the word 'computer' is mentioned.

    The concept of a username/password used for websites isn't difficult, but people just don't get it.  There are also people that don't understand that Apple and Google are completely different companies.  It's mind blowing.
    His valid point is that it doesn’t make them dumb people for not being smart or knowledge in a certain way. 
    watto_cobra
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