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I am trying to change my apple id from gmail to iCloud. The iCloud email address is listed on my phone as one of my emails.
When I try to change it, I get the error message "You can only add the @icloud.com address that is already on file in your account."
How do I fix this?
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 11.6
That usually means the iCloud account is an independent account to the Apple ID you are wanting to change.
Stand alone iCloud accounts are Apple IDs in and of themselves and cannot be merged with other Apple IDs.
To change the Apple ID to use an iCloud email address, the iCloud address must already be part of the Apple ID in question. That is it cannot be an independent account.
You can log in to https://icloud.com with your current Apple ID and create a new email addressor it to use as the email account for that Apple ID. Link-> Add and manage email aliases for iCloud Mail on iCloud.com - Apple Support
That usually means the iCloud account is an independent account to the Apple ID you are wanting to change.
Stand alone iCloud accounts are Apple IDs in and of themselves and cannot be merged with other Apple IDs.
To change the Apple ID to use an iCloud email address, the iCloud address must already be part of the Apple ID in question. That is it cannot be an independent account.
You can log in to https://icloud.com with your current Apple ID and create a new email addressor it to use as the email account for that Apple ID. Link-> Add and manage email aliases for iCloud Mail on iCloud.com - Apple Support
Thank you fr your quick response. The iCloud address I want to change it shows up an an alias already. I followed the links you gave and it seems I would just be creating another alias and have the same problem. No?
Based on what I have read, I suggest you leave your Apple ID email address as a 3rd party email address because you have more flexibility if you need to change the email address. For example, if the Apple ID got compromised, you can change it to another address. I also have read of many people who were locked out of their accounts when they forgot their password. Since the recovery email address is the @iCloud email address, if you forget your password, you also can't access your email to get emails from Apple to recover your account. You can set a rescue email address, but for some people, this hasn't worked.
If it's an alias for the Apple ID you are currently using then it should be usable as its email address.
Did you log in with your gmail address at https://icloud.com or with the iCloud address you are trying to add?
Thanks that's what I thought. I logged in with the gmail account. When I try to switch, that is when it gives me the error message. It's not worth spending hours trying to figure it out. I will just keep the original login.
Thank you. I saw that response pop up when I googled this topic. I will leave it alone. It seems to be such a difficult thing to do and I am tired of messing with it.
You are welcome.
Change apple id
