X Is About to Put a Price Tag on Your Username
Prices to claim inactive usernames will range from free to seven figures.
When rumours first surfaced in late 2023 that X might start selling usernames, most people dismissed it as another wild Elon Musk experiment. But the idea has now materialised. The company launched handles.x.com, a dedicated site for what it calls the “Handle Marketplace.” It’s not live yet, only teasing a “coming soon” banner, but the direction is unmistakable: X wants to turn usernames into something you can actually buy and sell.
For years, users have battled over good handles, the short, clean, or name-only ones that signal early adoption or influence. Many of those have long sat dormant, tied to inactive accounts. X wants to unlock that inventory, but not for everyone. Access will be limited to Premium+ subscribers who pay $40 a month, giving them first dibs to claim or buy those coveted names.
Two tiers will exist. Priority Handles, typically common names or multi-word phrases, will be free for Premium+ users, while Rare Handles could cost anywhere from $2,500 to seven figures. Once you switch, your old handle freezes. Downgrade your plan, and you lose your new identity, a reminder that even your username now lives on borrowed time.
This idea isn’t entirely new. Telegram launched its own username marketplace through the TON blockchain in 2022, allowing users to auction premium handles using cryptocurrency. X’s move takes that same playbook and adds a subscription twist, folding the privilege into its Premium+ tier instead of making it a one-time sale. Compared to Meta or TikTok, which treat usernames as free identifiers tied to verification systems, X is pushing a model where digital identity itself becomes a paid asset.
It’s a clever but risky move. For X, it’s a way to turn dormant accounts into revenue and to give Premium+ a sense of exclusivity beyond blue ticks and algorithm boosts. But for users, it raises questions about ownership, do you really “own” something you lose the moment you cancel your plan? That grey area turns identity into a subscription, not a right.
Meanwhile, X continues reshaping how people interact with the platform. It’s testing new link behaviours that keep users inside the app rather than redirecting them fully, another push toward Musk’s “everything app” vision, where you talk, buy, and now even name yourself within X’s walls.
The Handle Marketplace isn’t open yet, but the implications are clear. The username wars are back, only this time, you might need your credit card to win.
Louis Eriakha
